Approved basis
The media plan, client period, currency and agreed line-item budgets.
Ad spend reconciliation from approved budget to checked client amount.
Ad spend reconciliation connects what the client approved, what the platforms recorded and what the agency is prepared to pass to finance. The close is complete only when every difference has a source, a decision and a calculation rule.
Reconciled actuals
Platform exports mapped to plan lines, with unmatched spend held for review.
Finance handoff
A checked amount with credits, fees, tax, source rows and change history.
THE MONTH-CLOSE METHOD
Six checks before an ad spend number reaches the client.
The exact spreadsheet can vary. The control points should not.
Fix the reconciliation scope.
Confirm one client, one reporting period, one currency and whether the platform data is current or final. A shifting scope makes every later variance ambiguous.
Preserve the approved plan.
Use the client-approved version as the baseline. Do not silently replace the plan with a newer working spreadsheet while closing the month.
Normalize platform exports.
Read dates, decimal separators, currencies and campaign identifiers explicitly. Keep the original file and row behind every imported value.
Map actual spend to plan lines.
Match Google Ads, Meta, TikTok and other exports to the approved structure. Low-confidence matches and expenses with no plan line remain open decisions.
Resolve every adjustment.
Record why credits, refunds, agency fees and tax change the amount. The rule, basis and author should remain visible after the close.
Lock the finance handoff.
Produce one checked client amount and a package that finance can trace back to plan lines, source exports and explicit decisions.
THE CONTROLLED CALCULATION
The client amount should be a conclusion, not a copied cell.
The exact order depends on the agency agreement and tax treatment. Spendwake records the rule instead of assuming one universal formula.
Confirmed platform spendsource-backed actuals
− credits and refundsdocumented reductions
+ agency feesagreed calculation basis
+ applicable taxrecorded tax rule
Checked client amountCOMMON FAILURE MODES
Where agency reconciliation usually becomes unsafe.
These are operational checks, not accounting or tax advice.
Platform totals replace the plan.
A dashboard total can show what ran, but not whether the spend belongs to the approved client amount.
Unmatched spend is forced into “Other.”
That makes a spreadsheet balance while hiding the decision finance actually needs.
Fees are applied to the wrong base.
A percentage may apply before or after credits, and tax may apply to a different subtotal. The rule must be explicit.
The source trail disappears.
Copied totals cannot answer which export, account, campaign or row produced the number.
FIRST PILOT · HUMAN REVIEWED
Start the free pilot Reconcile one real client month.
Send an approved plan and matching platform exports. Spendwake reviews the structure before anything becomes final.