In short: installing a script takes ten minutes and no coding: a blank spreadsheet shared with edit rights, the full loader pasted into Google Ads, authorise, preview, schedule, configure in TEST mode and check the next day. The most frequent support ticket — "it does nothing" — is almost always spreadsheet permissions, an incomplete loader, the wrong account or TEST mode still on.
Installing a Suite script takes ten minutes and needs no programming. But it has steps that, when skipped, produce the most common support ticket there is: "it does nothing". This lesson is the full guide, valid for any self-install script in the panel, along with what can go wrong at each step.
Which installation models are there?
| Model | Who installs it | Where the script lives | For which scripts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-install | You, from the panel instructions | In your Google Ads account | Analysis and optimisation: Guardian, AI Max Analyzer, QS Analyzer, RSA Optimizer, negatives, Shopping… |
| Installed by us (MCC) | The Ninja Scripts team | In our MCC, linked to your account | The crown jewels: Ninja Shield, Smart Bidding, Lead Rating |
In both cases the code is not handed over to you: what you paste is a loader (next lesson) that downloads the script from our server on every run, using your licence. That way you always run the latest version and the code never circulates.
Step 0 · How do you activate the script in the panel?
In My scripts, click Activate on the script. For self-install scripts activation is immediate (or comes after approval, depending on your account) and takes you to your personalised instructions: the loader already carries your licence token and your spreadsheet URL.
Step 1 · Which spreadsheet do you need?
- Create a blank Google spreadsheet (Drive → New → Google Sheets). Do not fill anything in: the script builds the whole thing on its first run (configuration tabs, dashboard, manual).
- Share it with the email the panel gives you (the executing user) with edit permission, if you are on the MCC model. On self-install, the script runs as your own user and only needs that user to be able to edit it.
- Copy the full spreadsheet URL; the panel saves it in your activation and inserts it into the loader.
Typical mistakes: sharing the sheet as "view only"; an Excel file uploaded to Drive without converting it; using the URL of a tab instead of the spreadsheet.
Step 2 · Where do you paste the loader?
- Google Ads → Tools and settings → Bulk actions → Scripts → + (new script).
- Delete the sample content and paste the whole loader from the panel (the Copy button). Name it after the script.
- Save.
Typical mistakes: pasting only part of it; editing the token; pasting it into a different account from the one on the licence (the loader checks the account).
Step 3 · Which permissions do you need to authorise?
Click Authorise and grant the permissions: Google Ads, Sheets, Mail and, if the script uses them, external services (UrlFetch, to download the code and, in some cases, to call the AI). If the dialog does not show one of the permissions (mail, for example), the loader carries a technical block that declares it; if it is still missing, save and authorise again.
Step 4 · What is the preview for?
Preview runs the script without applying any changes and shows you the log. What you should see: "licence OK", "spreadsheet found", the tabs being created, and a summary at the end. Open the spreadsheet: it should have its tabs and, in the Config tab, the default values (many scripts start in TEST mode or switched off: they do not touch the account until you change that).
Typical mistakes: "Could not load the script" (invalid token or licence: check the activation in the panel); "spreadsheet not accessible" (permissions); a timeout on very large accounts (the script picks up where it left off on the next run).
Step 5 · How do you schedule the script?
Set the Frequency according to the script (the instructions tell you): Guardian and the Agent, hourly or daily; the optimisers, daily in the early hours; the reports, weekly. Pick a time that does not clash with your other scripts (every run counts against the account's quota).
Step 6 · How do you configure and switch it on?
Open the Config tab in the spreadsheet: goals, thresholds, alert emails, TEST mode. Read the manual (its own tab in every spreadsheet). Leave TEST mode on for a few days, review what the script would have done, and switch it on once you understand it. Actions behind a checkbox (pauses, exclusions, ads) always wait for your approval.
Step 7 · How do you check the first run?
The next day: Scripts → the run history (status and log), the updated spreadsheet (the timestamp on the Dashboard), and the summary email if the script sends one. If something failed, the log says so in plain language.
How do you pause or uninstall a script?
Pausing the script's schedule in Google Ads stops it without deleting anything; the spreadsheet keeps its history. To uninstall: delete the script and, if you want, deactivate it in the panel (which frees up the licence).
💡 Ninja trick: the panel stores the account, the spreadsheet and the status for each activation, and the loader checks the licence on every run with a fail-open rule: if the panel does not answer, the script runs anyway (a failure on our side never leaves you unwatched); only an explicit "suspended" stops it. And the scripts configure themselves on a blank spreadsheet: there are no templates to copy and no columns to create.
What you should remember
- Self-install (you, from the panel) or MCC (us); the code is never handed over: you paste a loader.
- A blank spreadsheet shared with edit access; the whole loader; authorise; preview; schedule; configure (TEST mode first); check the next day.
- "It does nothing" is almost always: spreadsheet permissions, an incomplete loader, the wrong account, or TEST mode still on.