This is a basic but important post to show you how to start (enable) or stop (pause) y0ur Google Ads campaigns. I have helped many small business owners set up campaigns and often I am asked how to turn them on or off.  If you have had a consultant build a campaign for you, which is probably a good idea, but you don’t want to pay them for their time for minor adjustments, it is sometimes helpful to have knowledge of some of the basics, such as starting and stopping your campaigns, or even adjusting your daily budget. So this is a quick and hopefully easy post to show you how to start or stop your Google Ads campaign(s).

Make sure you are logged into the Google account that has access or owns your Ads campaign. None of this will be possible unless you have access. When you have someone build you a campaign, they should always grant access so that you own the campaign and the work. You are paying for this so you should have access to it. Once you are logged into the right account, you can simply follow the steps below.

  • Go to ads.google.com
  • Click on “Campaigns”
    • This is important. You have to pause or start things from the “Campaign” level. This is where the budget is set and the screens can be confusing and look similar.  If you turn off an adgroup, but the campaign is still running, you can still get billed. At the same time, if you turn on an adgroup, but the campaign is off, nothing will run.
    • See below screenshot to show what screen you should choose, once you are logged in at ads.google.com

Google Ads Campaigns Choose Campaigns

  • When you see the list of campaigns, there will be a green light next to those that are active or enabled, and a gray pause sign next to those that are not running.  You simply click the down arrow next to these symbols and choose to either “Enable” or “Pause” based on what you would like to do.
Google Ads Campaigns Click Down Arrow

Click Down Arrow Next to Symbol

  • Once you click on the arrow, you can choose to Enable or Pause.
Google Ads Enable or Pause

Enable or Pause Your Campaign

  • That is all there is to it. You are done.

You can turn your campaign on or off any time you’d like. The same holds true with display campaigns.  If you find you are paying Google too much and you want to turn things off until you have a chance for a professional to review and make sure things are running smoothly, you can do it here. It is as simple as that. You just need to know where to go. If you need help with Google Ads management, give us a call.