After publishing the article on salaries in Verseo's SEO section, we received numerous signals indicating that it was a good move. First, it provided impetus and a point of reference for the industry. Employees and applicants for a given position often struggled to assess their own value.
There's very little transparency in the market, even though we already had a relatively well-established "employee market" before the outbreak of the pandemic. Conversations about pay raises or the ever-present "what are your financial expectations?" are uncomfortable situations that often leave us wandering in the dark.
Many people have considered entering the world of SEO, but they weren't sure about the pay and skills required for the position. We cleared up all these doubts with a single stroke of the internet pen. So, it was time to delve into Google Ads – the second pillar of our company.
How did we divide the work of the Google Ads specialist team?
Before we get to the cherry on top of this earning cake, dear reader, you need to understand what the job of a Google Ads specialist at Verseo is like and what the career path looks like.
(The rest of the article can be found below the form)
First, we realize that finding a specialist in this area is difficult. The upside is that we employ people who haven't developed bad habits when working with Ads . These are also young people with a passion for what they do.
Of course, youth also has its drawbacks – lack of experience in one area can be beneficial, but in another it can lead to mistakes that you might not even consider later in your career. Therefore, the first 3-6 months of working as a Google Ads specialist at Verseo involve constant learning combined with intense sales.
Verseo is one of the few agencies that combines the role of account manager with a Google Ads specialist. This means that the person calling or writing to you KNOWS what they're talking about, and from then on, they'll be the only one who will contact you about your campaigns.
This is a clean system that also allows our associates to gain a unique perspective – they know that sales are difficult and understand our clients' situations. This makes them even more attentive to campaigns and more interested in ensuring that the campaign is satisfactory and that the client stays with us for the long term. Because client retention is key to a Google Ads specialist's salary at Verseo.
The first six months are simply difficult. If someone is afraid to talk to people, they won't cope. If someone lacks the passion to learn new things, it will also be difficult to reach the quality standards set by our company.
During the interview, which is usually conducted by Krzysztof and Mateusz – our CEOs – you'll immediately learn about the specifics of working in this position at Verseo. Typically, during these interviews, we talk more about what it's like for us than about your experience.
This isn't due to a lack of interest in you, of course, but rather to the fact that we deeply care about ensuring that potential colleagues understand the benefits and requirements, as well as the goals they should meet in the first 3, 6, or 12 months. Based on extensive experience, we understand the boundary conditions that will ensure your job satisfaction and, at the same time, grow our company.
In fact, if you survive three months, you can be sure you'll be with us for years to come. After that, turnover is virtually nonexistent. Because…
How much does a Google Ads specialist earn?
This article was inspired by a single, unprecedented event: the record salary of an Ads manager at Verseo. It happened in February 2020, reaching 38.500 PLN. Of course, even here, such payments don't happen every month. However, it illustrates that there's no salary ceiling at Verseo.
When founding their company, Krzysztof and Mateusz recognized (based on their previous experience) that a salary ceiling for salespeople was a demotivating idea. There are many companies that won't pay representatives or salespeople more than, say, 15.000 PLN, regardless of their performance.
However, it's different here. Plans aren't unrealistic. In many companies, exceeding them is difficult, and if it is achievable, it only results in a fixed bonus amount.
We're different – we always calculate higher payouts based on the amounts managed in campaigns and the commissions we work with clients on. Therefore, everyone is interested in campaign effectiveness, customer retention, and also acquiring new contacts.
The Verseo pay table looks like this:
From Junior to Legend
Junior generally refers to new colleagues who have little or no experience. We're not just talking about SEM experience, but also professional experience in general.
Therefore, as I have already mentioned, the first weeks are spent on intensive learning, and the first months are spent on crawling with small campaigns under the supervision of "older" colleagues.
The "Ads Specialist" position can be achieved in approximately 12 months. A year is a reasonable time to gain experience in both sales and running multiple campaign types within the Google Ads environment , leveraging our machine learning-based VCM system.
Further positions – Senior, Executive, and Master – result from working with larger clients, operating on higher advertising budgets, and demonstrating an exceptional approach to building relationships between the company and the client. The time horizon for reaching senior positions is now two years or more.
As our colleagues achieve increasingly spectacular results, we decided it was time to create a special Legend stand.
We're still considering its format – it may be a transitional position. However, reaching this level will be a formidable challenge – of Verseo's 50 Google Ads specialists , only two currently hold the Master level.
Google Ads Specialist Training System
We have created an internal training system based on best practices and led by one of our most talented specialists.
Joanna Hałaszkiewicz , who not so long ago dealt only with large campaigns for large online stores, has also been available for 2 months, training companies externally, as well as taking on the training of young adepts of the art of Google Ads.
In addition, at Verseo we particularly value the pursuit of knowledge – so if you find a training or event that can positively impact your development and the development of our entire organization, we will send you to it.
We've also created a Strategy and Optimization department to support our Google Ads specialists in more advanced areas. This includes specialists in analytics, systems, and recommendations across Google, Verseo, and advertisers.
benefits
At Verseo, there are essentially no benefits. We recognize that everyone knows what they want best, and the key is that everyone can afford it. Therefore, we've placed a primary emphasis on the opportunity to earn good money with us. We know why we come to work, and we attract people who are driven by numbers, not fruit Thursdays.
It might sound cold, but we're not going to pretend – our work is based on making money for our clients. At the same time, we maintain a level playing field, enjoy each other's work, and share a sense of shared responsibility.
However, the only thing we can offer our clients is an uninterrupted winning streak, so at the end of the day 1 + 1 must always equal 3.
Frequently asked questions about Google Ads specialist earnings
Pay in the PPC (Pay-Per-Click) industry isn't fixed. It depends primarily on experience level (junior, mid-level, senior), employment status (employment contract, B2B, freelance), the size of the advertising budgets managed by the expert, as well as the company's location and foreign language skills (foreign projects are significantly more rewarding).
Those taking their first steps in the industry, earning official Google certifications and learning the panel, can expect to earn between PLN 4,500 and PLN 6,500 gross (based on an employment contract). Intensive learning is key at this stage, and the salary increases with the employee's independence.
A specialist with 2–4 years of experience who can plan, optimize, and report campaigns without supervision earns an average gross salary of PLN 7,000–11,000. At this level, B2B contracts are becoming popular, offering more favorable tax treatment at this level of income.
Experts with many years of experience who manage large budgets worth hundreds of thousands of złoty or coordinate teamwork earn upwards of PLN 12,000 gross. Top specialists on B2B contracts often earn rates exceeding PLN 15,000–22,000 net (+ VAT).
It depends on your priorities:
- Marketing agency: Often offers a slightly lower starting level, but provides a huge dose of knowledge, work with various industries, and bonus systems based on client results.
- Working "in-house" (within one company, e.g. a large e-commerce company): This usually guarantees a higher, more stable base at the start, but is associated with a smaller variety of projects (you only focus on one brand).
Simply clicking on the Google Ads panel isn't enough to catapult you into the top pay bracket. To earn more, consider:
- Master advanced analytics (Google Analytics 4, Google Tag Manager).
- Learn the basics of automation programming (creating Google Ads scripts).
- Develop "T-shaped" competences – i.e. add knowledge of other systems (e.g. Meta Ads) to Google Ads.
- Switch to a freelance/own agency model, where you pay clients for the result (success fee) or a fixed subscription.
Summary
The above article covers the following topics:
- The publication of the SEO earnings report increased the transparency of the industry and helped employees evaluate their competencies, which is why Verseo decided to provide similar data for the Google Ads area.
- At Verseo, the role of a Google Ads specialist combines the role of a campaign expert with that of an account manager, with an emphasis on intensive learning and sales in the first months of employment.
- The earnings of Google Ads specialists at Verseo are unlimited and depend on results and experience, covering a career path from Junior to Master, with record payouts reaching up to tens of thousands of zlotys.
- Verseo offers an internal training system led by experts and support from the strategy department, while also financing employee participation in external development events.
- Verseo forgoes typical benefits in favor of high salaries and a focus on results, believing that a satisfactory salary is the best motivation for employees.
