For PPC & paid media agencies
Your fee and their ad spend are two different numbers. Never let them become one.
Paid media sales start with an account audit — wasted spend, missing conversion tracking, a campaign structure that's fighting itself — and end with a proposal the client reads as one large monthly number. Then performance dips in a slow month, and the conversation is about your fee rather than the market, because the proposal never separated the two or agreed what success meant.
ApeiroCraft sends the proposal as a link with audit findings, the restructure and testing plan, KPIs agreed up front, and your management fee on a separate line from ad spend. You see when it's opened and reopened, it's signed in the browser, and setup and monthly fees are invoiced from the accepted proposal.
Where PPC relationships break down.
Fee confused with spend
A client sees one total for media and management, decides it's expensive, and cuts the part that's easiest to cut — your fee — while expecting the same results.
KPIs chosen after the fact
Month one is judged on clicks, month two on leads, month three on revenue. Without agreed KPIs, every report is measured against a different target.
Account ownership at exit
When the client leaves, who keeps the ad accounts, the conversion tracking and the history? If it wasn't agreed, offboarding is a dispute.
From account audit to month-one invoice.
Audit findings up front
Lead with what you found in their account — wasted search terms, broken tracking, overlapping campaigns — then the plan to fix it.
See when the numbers are being checked
Opens and re-opens are recorded on the link. A proposal reopened before a client's budget meeting is the moment to offer a call about spend levels.
KPIs signed, not assumed
The signature records name, email, IP address and a UTC timestamp and can't be altered — your KPIs and fee basis are on record before month one.
Setup and monthly fees
Convert the accepted proposal into the setup invoice in one click. Raise monthly management invoices against the client record. Ad spend stays on their own card with the platform.
What a PPC proposal has to include.
The proposal is where the client learns how to judge you. Make sure they learn the right way.
Management fee vs ad spend
If it's left vague
One combined figure makes your fee look like the whole cost.
With ApeiroCraft
Put the management fee and recommended spend on separate lines, and say who pays the platforms.
Fee basis
If it's left vague
A percentage-of-spend fee rises without anyone noticing, or a flat fee doesn't cover a doubled budget.
With ApeiroCraft
State whether the fee is flat, a percentage of spend, or tiered, and when it's reviewed.
KPIs and tracking
If it's left vague
Success is defined after the first report.
With ApeiroCraft
Agree KPIs and how conversions are tracked before launch.
Platforms and scope
If it's left vague
Search was agreed, then social and shopping campaigns are expected.
With ApeiroCraft
Name the platforms and campaign types in scope.
Account ownership and exit
If it's left vague
Accounts and data become a bargaining chip when the client leaves.
With ApeiroCraft
State that accounts are owned by the client, your access, and the notice period.
- Setup and monthly invoices on one client record.
- Kanban tasks for monthly testing and optimisation work.
- Your own payment link — ApeiroCraft never handles ad spend or client payments.
Common questions.
How do PPC agencies usually charge?
Common models are a flat monthly management fee, a percentage of ad spend (often with a minimum), a tiered fee by spend band, and sometimes a setup fee for audit and restructure. Performance-based fees exist but need very clear tracking. ApeiroCraft holds whichever model you use; it doesn't suggest rates.
What does a PPC proposal look like in practice?
Audit findings showing wasted spend on irrelevant search terms and missing conversion tracking; a one-off setup phase to rebuild campaign structure and fix tracking; monthly management with a testing plan; KPIs of cost per lead and lead volume, reviewed after a set period; recommended monthly spend on its own line, paid by the client to the platform; a flat management fee; client-owned accounts; a notice period. The client reopens the KPI section twice, signs, and you invoice setup.
When is ApeiroCraft not the right fit for a PPC agency?
It doesn't connect to ad platforms, build reports or dashboards, or calculate percentage-of-spend fees automatically — there's no API. You'd set each month's invoice amount yourself. It fits the proposal, signature, client record and invoicing.
Can I bill a percentage of spend?
Yes, by stating the basis in the proposal and setting each month's invoice amount from the actual spend. Invoices are editable until you send them.
Is there a PPC template?
Yes — the PPC proposal template has an account audit, a restructure and testing plan, KPIs, and a management fee kept separate from ad spend.
Separate the fee from the spend.
Start from the PPC template and agree KPIs before the first campaign goes live.
Start freeStill deciding? Talk to the founder
Keep reading
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