When we take over a Google Ads account, we do not touch bidding for the first two weeks. We check whether the conversions are real.
Duplicate conversion actions are the most common problem. A thank-you page fires a conversion, a form plugin fires another, and the platform counts both. Every reported cost per acquisition is then roughly half what it actually is, and the account looks like it is working.
The three checks worth doing today
Open your conversion actions and count how many are set to "primary". If more than one fires on the same event, your numbers are inflated.
Compare platform-reported conversions against your CRM for the same period. A gap of ten per cent is normal attribution drift. A gap of sixty per cent is a measurement fault.
Check whether anyone can reach your thank-you page directly. If they can, and it fires on page load, bots have been converting for you.