In this episode of PPC Live The Podcast, host Anu welcomes Google Ads coach and ex-Googler Jyll Saskin Gales to discuss a pivotal moment in her career – taking on a client she shouldn't have.

Jyll shares how ignoring red flags led to a situation that forced her to fire a difficult client and refund their retainer, but ultimately pushed her to transform her business model from Google Ads management to coaching and education.

Listen as Jyll provides valuable insights on:

• Recognizing client red flags before they become problems
• Setting and maintaining professional boundaries
• Trusting your gut when something doesn't feel right
• The challenges of AI adoption in Google Ads campaigns
• Finding a supportive community in the PPC industry

This transparent conversation about failures, mistakes, and comebacks offers practical advice for PPC professionals at all levels. Whether you're an agency owner, freelancer, or in-house marketer, Jyll's experience reminds us that sometimes our biggest professional setbacks lead to our greatest opportunities.

00:00 Introduction to PPC Live The Podcast

01:54 Meet Our First Guest: Jyll Saskin Gales

03:48 Jyll's Biggest Mistake in Google Ads Management

08:24 Lessons Learned and Advice for Handling Difficult Clients

16:12 The Importance of Trusting Your Gut

21:23 Navigating AI in Google Ads

24:05 Final Thoughts and Upcoming Events

Get the full transcript on our Podcast Site.

Jyll Saskin Gales is an ex-Google employee, holds a Havard MBA and is exceptional at making the sometimes-scary world of advertising clear and easy to understand.

Follow Jyll on LinkedIn, TikTok or Instagram

Book a coaching call with Anu

PPC Live The Podcast (formerly PPCChat Roundup) features weekly conversations with paid search experts sharing their experiences, challenges, and triumphs in the ever-changing digital marketing landscape.

The next PPC Live event is on June 26th in Leeds, UK

Follow us on LinkedIn

Follow us on Twitter

Join our WhatsApp Group

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Q1 How has your journey in the industry been?

Q2 What are your biggest frustrations with the industry right now?

Q3 You only do smart bidding - why? what is your position on which strategy to use and under what circumstances?

Q4 What are your thoughts on PMax?

Exit velocity:

What’s one thing you want to leave people with

Best advice have you've been given

Imposter Syndrome moment

#ppcchat Anu Adegbola chats with Paid Search expert Boris Beceric about account structure and AI

Q1 What is it like being a LinkedIn influencer

Q2 What are your biggest frustrations with the industry right now?

Q3 Smart versus manual bidding, what is your position on which strategy to use and under what circumstances?

Q4 What is your position on using PMAX and under what circumstances?

Q5 SKAG or STAG, what is your position on which strategy to use and under what circumstances?

What is a horror story regarding a platform (performance, support, etc.) that you have experienced?

What’s one thing you want to leave people with

Advice to freelancers wanting to pitch - what is important to you as a client

What advice have you been given

Imposter Syndrome moment

Thank you for listening!

Please help grow the podcast - and rate/review on Spotify, Amazon, Apple Podcast & more - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linktr.ee/ppcchat_roundup⁠⁠

#ppcchat Anu Adegbola chats with in-house Paid Search expert, Helen Dooner, about how her in-house team uses AI and giving PPC-ers advice on how to approach PPC in 2025"

Q1 What was the biggest shift for you in how you run PPC campaign when you moved in-house

Q2 What are your general feelings towards AI

Q3 What wouldn’t you allow AI to touch

Q4 What has AI changed the most for you

Q5 Does your Lead Gen team use Performance Max

Exit questions:

What’s one thing you want to leave people with

Advice to freelancers wanting to pitch - what is important to you as a client

Best advice you have been given

Imposter Syndrome moment

Thank you for listening!

Please help grow the podcast - and rate/review on Spotify, Amazon, Apple Podcast & more - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linktr.ee/ppcchat_roundup⁠⁠

#ppcchat Anu Adegbola chats with Paid Search expert Chris Ridley, about account structure and AI

Q1. Does Account Structure Even Matter Anymore?

Q2. Do you think account structure matters anymore? If so, does it vary by platform? And if not, why not?

Q3. Have you changed the way you structure accounts and/or campaigns? If so, does it vary by platform? And if not, why not?

Q4. What are your biggest frustrations with account and/or campaign structures right now?

Q5. If you could change something in a platform to make account or campaign structures better or easier, what would it be?

Q6. Best campaign type for Eco

Q7. Best campaign type for LeadGen

What’s one thing you want to leave people with?

Advice to freelancers wanting to pitch - what is important to you as a client?

What is your favourite agency story to tell?

What's the best advice have you been given?

Share your imposter syndrome moment

#ppcchat Slack discussion that runs on Tuesdays at 5pm GMT - Led by Julie Bacchini (@NeptuneMoon)

Q1 Are the brands you work with worried about the current global economic chaos set off by US tariff actions? If so, what are they concerned about and if not, why not?

Q2 Are the brands that you work with being impacted by the current global economic chaos set off by US tariff actions? If so, how are they being impacted and how is it impacting your PPC strategy and management?

Q3 How concerned are you, as a PPC professional, about the current global economic chaos? What concerns you the most and do you have any plan on how to deal with those concerns? If you are unconcerned, why are you unconcerned?

Q4 Switching gears - this week Elon Musk added more companies to his lawsuit targeting companies which he says unfairly boycotted advertising on X (formerly Twitter) - What are your thoughts on this both as a PPC professional and on behalf of your clients/brands?

Thank you for listening!

Please help grow the podcast - and rate/review on Spotify, Amazon, Apple Podcast & more - ⁠⁠⁠linktr.ee/ppcchat_roundup

#ppcchat Anu Adegbola chats with in-house Paid Search expert Matt Beswick⁠, about the latest updates in Search Marketing, giving PPC-ers advice on how to approach PPC in 2025"

Q1 How did you get into client-side 

Q2 What frustrates you most about all the new updates

Q3 How is your PPC workload as a client-side professional

Q4 What’s one thing you want to leave people with

Q5 Advice to freelancers wanting to pitch

Q6 What is your favourite agency story to tell

Q7 What best advice have you been given?

Q8 Do you suffer from Imposter Syndrome and how do you deal with it

#ppcchat Slack discussion that runs on Tuesdays at 5pm GMT - Led by Julie Bacchini (@NeptuneMoon)

Q1 Do you use social media to either build your brand and/or find business or leads? If so, which platform(s) do you use?

Q2 Do you use social media to either build your brand and/or find business or leads? If so, which platform(s) do you use?

Q3 Have any of the recent changes on social platforms (Meta dropping fact checking or TikTok being banned and unbanned for example) changed your social media plans for 2025?

Q4 Have any of the recent changes on social platforms (Meta dropping fact checking or TikTok being banned and unbanned for example) changed your social media plans for 2025?

Q5 What are your top priorities for building your brand and/or finding business and leads in 2025?

Thank you for listening!

Please help grow the podcast - and rate/review on Spotify, Amazon, Apple Podcast & more - ⁠⁠linktr.ee/ppcchat_roundup

#ppcchat Slack discussion that runs on Tuesdays at 5pm GMT - Led by Julie Bacchini (@NeptuneMoon)

Q1 Much like Twitter before this, after their change in ownership and subsequent policy changes, do these changes on Meta cause you to feel any differently about the platform, either personally or professionally?

Q2  Has any of last week’s happenings with Meta given you pause over continuing to recommend advertising on their platform? If so, why and how? And if not, why not?

Q3 Do you think as advertising managers we have any responsibility in where our clients or brands advertise? Or do we just do what the client/brand wants no matter what?

Q4 Is “brand safety” a concern of yours and/or your clients or stakeholders? If so, is it a primary concern?

Q5 Which ad platforms do you think are the “safest” for brands to be advertising on today? What makes you feel they are safer than others?

Thank you for listening!

Please help grow the podcast - and rate/review on Spotify, Amazon, Apple Podcast & more - ⁠linktr.ee/ppcchat_roundup

#ppcchat Slack discussion that runs on Tuesdays at 5pm GMT - Led by Sarah Stemen (@runnerkik)

Q1 Do you do research as part of your PPC strategy and management? If so, what types?

Q2  Is research something you do once or is it ongoing? If it is ongoing, at what frequency are you doing it and what types are you doing?

Q3 Do you have any tools you use for PPC research?

Q4 What is your biggest struggle or challenge when doing PPC research?

Q5 Is there a tool you wish existed for PPC research?

Thank you for listening!

Please help grow the podcast - and rate/review on Spotify, Amazon, Apple Podcast & more - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linktr.ee/ppcchat_roundup⁠