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Before you pay for PPC help

AI PPC Management: Agency, Tool or AI Media Buyer?

See what each option costs and where the AI stops. Or connect Scaley Media Buyer read-only and ask where your money goes.

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See the Cost Table
  • Read-only. It can't change a setting
  • The Leak Guarantee
  • Cancel any day
  • Nothing changes without your yes

Read-only. Scaley Media Buyer: $99/mo + 1% of total ad spend. 3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime

You are about to pay someone, or something, to run your PPC.

Built by the team behind ZenoX Media, our Google Ads agency: $200M+ in client revenue tracked through our campaigns, across 400+ accounts, from ZenoX Media client reporting.

The short answer

AI PPC management means software reads your Google Ads account and finds the spend that never sells. Read-only tools answer and change nothing. Ask-first tools make each change only after your yes. Scaley Media Buyer costs $149 a month at $5,000 of ad spend. A human adds hands and new ads, for more money.

Written and reviewed by

Four ways to run PPC

AI PPC Management vs Agency vs Freelancer vs DIY Tool

I run ZenoX Media, a Google Ads agency, and I built Scaley. So I sell two of these four. Read every row, and remember ad spend goes to Google on top.

  • What it costs

    Freelancer
    $15 to $40 an hour on Upwork, per Loves Data
    Google Ads Agency
    A monthly fee or a share of spend. ZenoX Media: $3-8K a month, from our own agency work
    AI PPC Software
    Ryze AI's Paid Ads plan: $89 a month, same price at any spend
    Scaley
    Scaley Media Buyer: $99/mo + 1% of total ad spend

  • Who makes each change

    Freelancer
    They do. Ask how they tell you
    Google Ads Agency
    Their team. Ask which AI tools they use and who checks the output
    AI PPC Software
    Depends on the tool and its settings. Ryze lists approval controls on every change
    Scaley
    Scaley Media Buyer never changes anything. Scaley Suite makes each change only after your yes

  • What it can see

    Freelancer
    Your account, with the access you give
    Google Ads Agency
    Your account, with the access you give
    AI PPC Software
    Your account, once you connect it
    Scaley
    Scaley Consultant reads screenshots and CSVs. Scaley Media Buyer and Scaley Suite read the live account

  • New ads and strategy calls

    Freelancer
    If it is in the scope
    Google Ads Agency
    If it is in the contract
    AI PPC Software
    Ryze lists AI ad creative. Its pricing page names no strategy call
    Scaley
    No new ads. Weekly live call with Chris, on every level

  • Ad platforms

    Freelancer
    Whatever they know
    Google Ads Agency
    Whatever the contract covers
    AI PPC Software
    Ryze: Google, Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn and more
    Scaley
    Google Ads only, built around online stores

  • How fast it starts

    Freelancer
    Ask when they can start
    Google Ads Agency
    Ask how long the audit and onboarding run
    AI PPC Software
    Ryze lists a free trial of 7 days
    Scaley
    The same day, with a 3-day free trial

  • Biggest risk

    Freelancer
    One person. If they leave, the know-how leaves too
    Google Ads Agency
    Results depend on who on the team runs your account. Ask for their name
    AI PPC Software
    The settings decide how much it does alone. Read them before you switch it on
    Scaley
    It will not run the account for you. You still decide

Pick a human when you want hands and new ads. Pick software when you want to ask about any row, any day. Start on Scaley Media Buyer if you want that answer today, read-only.

Hiring a Person? Read the Hiring Guide

Freelancer figures come from Upwork, quoted by Loves Data, read 15 October 2026. The $3-8K a month range is ZenoX Media's own retainer pricing, not a market survey. Ryze AI's price, trial, platforms and approval row come off its own pricing page, read 3 November 2026. Scaley's price is on the Scaley pricing page.

Every option at $5K a month in ads

What AI PPC Management Costs at $5K of Ad Spend

Say you spend $5,000 a month on Google Ads. Here is what each option adds on top of that, and where each number comes from.

  • Pro who charges a share of spend

    Monthly Cost
    $500 to $1,000
    How It Is Billed
    10-20% of ad spend, grows as you spend more
    Source
    WhatConverts, on Google Ads professionals in general

  • Agency, per Loves Data

    Monthly Cost
    $1,000+ a month
    How It Is Billed
    Monthly
    Source
    Loves Data

  • ZenoX Media retainer

    Monthly Cost
    $3-8K a month, from our own agency work
    How It Is Billed
    Monthly retainer
    Source
    Our own agency work at ZenoX Media

  • Freelancer on Upwork

    Monthly Cost
    Depends on the hours
    How It Is Billed
    $15 to $40 an hour
    Source
    Upwork, quoted by Loves Data

  • Ryze AI, Paid Ads plan

    Monthly Cost
    $89 a month
    How It Is Billed
    Flat, same price at any spend. Managed Campaigns cost extra, as a share of spend
    Source
    Ryze AI pricing page, read 3 November 2026

  • Scaley Consultant

    Monthly Cost
    $99
    How It Is Billed
    $99/mo flat
    Source
    the Scaley pricing page

  • Scaley Media Buyer

    Monthly Cost
    $149
    How It Is Billed
    $99/mo + 1% of total ad spend
    Source
    the Scaley pricing page

  • Scaley Suite

    Monthly Cost
    $399
    How It Is Billed
    $199/mo + 4% of total ad spend
    Source
    the Scaley pricing page

Compare what each price includes before you compare the price. A tool that only reads is cheaper than hands for a reason.

See Scaley Pricing

WhatConverts says many Google Ads professionals charge 10-20% of ad spend, read 15 October 2026. Loves Data's agency floor and the Upwork range were read the same day. The retainer range is ZenoX Media's own pricing. Ryze AI's price was read off its pricing page on 3 November 2026. Scaley's bills are worked out from the Scaley pricing page at $5,000 of total monthly ad spend.

Where the AI stops

What AI PPC Management Does, and What It Can't Do Yet

AI is good at reading a lot of rows fast. It is not good at knowing your business. Here is the line, as I see it on store accounts.

What the AI handles well

  • Reads every search term you ask about and finds the ones that spent with no sale.
  • Tells you which products sell below your break-even return on ad spend (ROAS).
  • Tells you, when you ask, which winning campaign runs out of budget before the day ends.
  • Answers in chat instead of you digging through reports.
  • On Scaley Suite, writes the fix with the reason, so you can check it before it goes live.

What it can't do yet

  • Know your margins, your stock or next month's sale unless you tell it.
  • Make new ads, videos or landing pages that people want to click.
  • Fix broken tracking on your store. It can only tell you it looks off.
  • Choose which products or markets the business should push.
  • Promise a result before anyone has seen your numbers.
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From the first login to the first fix

How AI PPC Management Works on Scaley

Scaley Consultant and Scaley Media Buyer only read. On Scaley Suite, nothing moves until you say yes.

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  1. Connect on Google's Own Screen

    Sign in with Google and grant access. Scaley Media Buyer reads the account when you ask. It never scans on its own. On Scaley Consultant, you send screenshots and CSVs and connect nothing.

  2. Ask Where the Money Goes

    Type the question, or tap a quick check like Wasters, Winners or Trending. The answer lists the search terms and products that spent with no sale, with the dollars next to each. On Scaley Suite, the dashboard also shows a running line: Scaley found this much wasted spend this week.

  3. Say Yes to One Change

    Scaley Suite puts each fix on its own card with the reason and the numbers. Press Apply and that one change goes live. Press Reject and nothing happens.

The real app, names blurred

See the Waste Before You Pay Anyone to Fix It

These come from a live store account. Ask the question and the answer comes right back. No report to wait for.

A Scaley answer with two lists: products under the break-even ROAS, and search terms that spent and never converted. Names blurred.
Ask where the waste is. It lists the products under break-even and the searches that spent with no sale.

Screens from a live store account in the Scaley app. Names and figures are blurred. The dashboard and the change card are Scaley Suite screens.

Example account, round figures

Ask the Question a Monthly Report Skips

Made-up account, round figures. Connected, Scaley Media Buyer reads the live numbers and never touches them.

scaleyai.com/chatScaley Media Buyer
Example account, round figures

  1. You

    Which search terms spent money last month and sold nothing?

  2. Scaley Media Buyer

    Twelve terms spent $640 with no sale. Four are "free" searches, like "free phone case template", and those took $310. Your break-even ROAS is 2.2. Shopping is above break-even at 3.1. The waste is in Search. Want the four "free" terms as a negative list? I only read the account. The change stays with you.

Example queue, round figures

Scaley Suite Lines Up Each Fix and Waits

On Scaley Suite, every fix waits on its own line. Nothing moves until you tap yes.

Skip a line and that change never happens. Say no when tracking looks off or a big sale is about to start.

A sample queue, not a live account. Only Scaley Suite can change an account, one approved line at a time. Scaley Media Buyer and Scaley Consultant only read.

scaleyai.com/queue2 waiting on you
  1. Search / GenericYour call

    Add the four "free" terms as negatives

    They took clicks for 60 days with no sale. A negative tells Google not to show your ad for that search.

  2. Shopping / Top SellersWaiting for you

    Raise the daily budget by 15%

    It sells above break-even and ran out of budget by early evening on five days last week.

  3. Performance Max / All ProductsYou approved it

    Move 9 slow, low-margin products into their own group

    They spent for 30 days with no sale and keep very little margin when they do sell.

Software, or hands

Who AI PPC Management Fits, and Who Should Hire a Person

An AI that reads the account is not the same as somebody who runs it.

Start with Scaley if

  • You run your own Google Ads and want a second pair of eyes you can ask any day.
  • You sell products online, on Shopify or a similar store.
  • You can't tell if your current freelancer or agency is doing the work.
  • You want every change to wait for your yes.
  • A retainer would eat too much of your ad budget right now.

Hire a person if

  • You want the account taken off your hands. For bigger stores, ZenoX Media does that.
  • You need new ads, videos or landing pages made for you.
  • You run Meta, TikTok or Amazon ads and want one tool for all of them.
  • You sell leads or services and have no product catalog.
Christopher Krassnig, founder of Scaley and ZenoX Media

Christopher Krassnig

Founder, Scaley AI · Operator at ZenoX Media

Why we built it

Most Stores We Met Needed Someone to Read the Account

I'm Chris. I run ZenoX Media, a Google Ads agency for online stores. For big accounts, a team doing the work is still the right call.

At ZenoX Media, our own retainers run $3-8K a month. A lot of the stores that came to us could not carry that. They did not need hands. They needed somebody to open the account and say where the money was going.

So we built Scaley. Before it answers, it looks things up in our agency's Slack messages, voice memos and how-to notes from real store accounts. It mixes several AI models behind the scenes.

Scaley Media Buyer reads and answers. It never touches the account. Scaley Suite lines up the fix and waits for your yes.

If an AI tool can change your account, ask it to show you each change before it goes live.

Counted from the Slack export

The Agency Notes It Reads Before It Answers

This is ZenoX Media's own archive. Scaley reads it before it answers.

262,792Slack messages
8,183voice memos
1,151answered questions

ZenoX Media's Slack export

Every figure is the agency's own count, from its Slack export.

Before you sign with an AI PPC agency or a tool, connect Scaley Media Buyer read-only and ask where the money goes.

Get the Read-Only Answer
  • Read-only access
  • 3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime
Same notes, three levels of access

Pick How Much the AI Can Touch

Screenshots and CSVs on Scaley Consultant, the live account read-only on Scaley Media Buyer, or fixes that wait for your yes on Scaley Suite.

Scaley Consultant. You already have this inside your plan.

Most Popular

Scaley Media Buyer

$99/mo + 1% of total ad spend

At $5K spend that is $149 a month

3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime

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Leak Guarantee: any month we show you less waste than your bill, we refund it

See the conditions

Wasted spend means money spent in the 30It covers every paid bill. Ask within 14 days of the bill. Full terms

  • Everything in Scaley Consultant
  • One-click Google Ads connection, read-only
  • Reads live campaign, product and search term data
  • Ask any hour, 24/7. It answers from the live account
  • 1% of your total ad spend. No minimum, no cap
  • Ask Scaley where your money leaks. See the waste right away

Scaley Suite. When you want it to prepare the changes, not just name them.

See Scaley Suite
The offer

What Comes with Scaley Media Buyer

Scaley Media Buyer

$99/mo + 1% of total ad spend

  • Inner Circle seat included (normally $299/mo)
  • The ZenoX Scaling SOP Vault: the playbooks we scale client stores with
  • Ask Scaley where your money leaks. See the waste right away

3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime

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3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime

Inner Circle lists at $299/mo on its own Skool page. Every price and term here is the published one on the pricing page.

Every month, every paid bill

The Leak Guarantee: Less Waste Than Your Bill Means the Bill Comes Back

It covers Scaley Media Buyer. Check the list against your own search terms report.

Every month, if the wasted ad spend Scaley shows you is smaller than that month's bill, we refund the whole bill.

  1. Connect Read-Only

    One click on Google's own sign-in screen gives Scaley read-only access. It cannot change a setting.

  2. See the Waste List in Minutes

    Click the one-click audit. Within minutes of connecting, you see every search term and product that took clicks and made no sale, with the dollars next to each one. A counter adds it all up.

  3. Less Waste Than Your Bill? You Get the Whole Bill Back

    Any month the waste shown is smaller than that month's bill, email hello@scaleyai.com within 14 days of the bill. We refund the whole bill, base fee and percent.

Wasted spend means money spent in the 30It covers every paid bill. Ask within 14 days of the bill.

Full terms

Start the 3-Day Free Trial

3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime

Your first bill comes at the end of your first paid month.

Your spend, your bill

Put Your Own Ad Spend In

At ZenoX Media, our own retainers run $3-8K a month. Slide to your monthly Google Ads spend and hold your bill next to that.

$5,000

$
$2,000$150,000+
$5,000 a month in total. Scaley Consultant: $99 a month. Scaley Media Buyer: $149 a month. Scaley Suite: $399 a month.

  • Scaley Consultant

    Scaley Consultant is a flat $99 a month. Your ad spend does not change the price.

    $99 a month

    Start the 3-Day Free Trial

  • Scaley Media Buyer

    Scaley Media Buyer is $99 a month plus 1% of $5,000 total ad spend: $149.

    $149 a month

    Start the 3-Day Free Trial

  • Scaley Suite

    Scaley Suite is $199 a month plus 4% of $5,000 total ad spend: $399.

    $399 a month

    Start the 3-Day Free Trial

From our own price list. Scaley Consultant is $99/mo flat. Scaley Media Buyer is $99/mo + 1% of total ad spend. Scaley Suite is $199/mo + 4% of total ad spend. The retainer range is from our own agency work at ZenoX Media.

Cost, safety and the agency question

AI PPC Management: Your Questions

Anything else, write to hello@scaleyai.com.

It is software that does the reading part of running pay-per-click ads. It goes through search terms, products, bids and budgets, finds what loses money, and gets the fix ready. The good ones show you the reason and wait for your yes before anything changes.

Ask Where Your Ad Money Goes

Connect Scaley Media Buyer read-only and ask which search terms spent and sold nothing. Hold the list against your own search terms report. The terms and the dollars should match. Your first bill comes at the end of your first paid month.

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Or Start with Scaley Suite

Read-only. 3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime