On episode 331 of PPC Live The Podcast, I speak to Dale Olorenshaw, Head of Paid Media and Search at StrategiQ, who shares a painful but valuable experience involving a high-budget test campaign and a critical oversight.
The costly PPC mistake
The story centers on a test campaign with a £15,000 budget. Despite strong clicks and engagement, the campaign delivered almost no conversions. After a month, the client emailed to point out that traffic had been sent to the wrong landing page. The dedicated test page they built had never been used.
What went wrong internally
The error happened for several reasons. Dale bypassed the internal QA process because he managed the campaign alone. He ignored early instincts that something felt off. And because top-line metrics looked normal, he didn’t dig deeper into the conversion issue. The biggest blow was realizing the client found the mistake first.
How Dale handled the fallout
Although panic set in immediately, Dale avoided sending a rushed, emotional response. He replied with a simple acknowledgment saying he would investigate, stepped away to reset, and waited until he had all the facts. The next morning, he informed his account director with full honesty: “I’ve messed up.”
The recovery plan
StrategiQ supported Dale fully and focused on solutions. The agency reconciled part of the wasted budget, delivered additional work at no extra cost, and offered reduced fees for the next project phase. The test was relaunched correctly, and the client relationship ultimately remained strong.
What Dale learned
This experience changed how Dale works today. He always follows QA processes, even as a department head. He trusts his instincts when numbers look unusual. And he encourages team accountability by asking for second opinions and double-checks, demonstrating that seniority doesn’t eliminate human error.
A common PPC mistake Dale still sees
Beyond his own error, Dale highlights a frequent PPC issue: overcrowded Responsive Search Ads. Google encourages advertisers to add many headlines and descriptions, but with small budgets, this creates thousands of ad combinations that never receive enough data to learn from. His recommendation is to reduce the number of assets and focus on clarity and quality.
Why talking about mistakes matters
Dale believes the PPC community needs more honest discussions about failure. Newcomers often only see success stories online and assume mistakes indicate incompetence. Sharing real experiences helps normalize errors, reduce pressure, and show that most growth comes from finding solutions.
Building a supportive culture
Dale closes with leadership advice: create a team environment where mistakes don’t feel career-ending. Encourage honesty, remove blame, and make it clear that challenges are addressed together—not left to individuals to carry alone.
Dale’s Final Message
If there’s one lesson to take away, it’s this: Don’t be rash, be honest, and treat client money like your own.