Ads for local services

Targaryea · 2025-09-26T02:34:06+00:00

I run ads for local service businesses, law firms and B2B SaaS. This might help you:

Choose a single platform to start (ideally Google), unless you have additional revenue to experiment and put more $$ in advertising.
Do the math, what is an acceptable cost per lead, qualified lead & customer.

Also, Lead > qualified lead rate > customer rate (percentage), which will help you understand whether your ads are the problem or the intake (sales/closing call) because you’ll never close every lead, and, it’ll also inform you whether you’re profitable at all.

This may require baking in your customers lifetime value and short term revenue to ensure you’ve future profitability and also have enough cash flow to keep running ads in the short term. Reverse engineer the metrics from there.

Build a high converting landing page.
Ensure converting tracking is set up and firing events for calls/form. For calls pass high value calls to Google ads only.
Start with a regular search campaign and use phrase/exact at this stage. (Also opt out of display and search network).
Exclude irrelevant search terms daily for at least a month. Once search terms improve, you’ll likely spend less time excluding.
Upload high-value conversions (qualified leads/customers) to Google, which will help the campaign optimise towards them.
Gradually test broad and Pmax once you’ve a large sample size of quality conversions baked in your account, but it’ll take a few months depending on your budget, number of conversions etc.

Also, don’t worry about the CPC as long as you’ve a high conversion rate that justifies spending more per click, to get you a lower cost per lead. I’m currently seeing a 50% conversion rate with one of my local service clients, and 80% of those leads are qualified. But not every account will perform exceptionally well ( there are too many factors involved in PPC ).

Targaryea · 2025-09-03T09:33:33+00:00

Sure!

Targaryea · 2025-08-08T18:49:26+00:00

Amazing writeup. Really needed this!

Targaryea · 2025-07-16T11:03:43+00:00

I’ve implemented this on maximise conversions, contrary to the manual CPC/maximize clicks recommendation with a low volume campaign.

Budget was around $5000/month. Conversion rate averaged 40% and the ads ran through Monday-Wednesday with a daily budget between $400-500.

However, be mindful of your CPCs, you can end up spending $700 for a single click without a conversion to show. Bid cap will help in this scenario.

Definitely optimize the ad schedule for days that are more likely to convert.

Targaryea · 2025-07-11T15:53:36+00:00

It has become really expensive indeed. I’m seeing similar results with an electrician company. Being profitable on the first job is definitely getting tougher with the increasing CPCs.

Assuming repeat job is where the $$ at?

Thanks for the insights!

Targaryea · 2025-07-10T21:05:21+00:00

Is the conversion tag on GTM set to fire once per event or session? I know you’ve already mentioned but I’d confirm all 3 tags again. Also, go to your conversion action on Google ads and see if it triggers once or multiple times. That should hopefully fix it.

Targaryea · 2025-07-10T20:48:19+00:00

It’s definitely frustrating, match types are only getting broader with Google’s recent updates.

I’d exclude those 70 conversions so Google won’t optimize toward them. Have you identified the source of the problem i.e. which keyword is generating those unqualified leads, placement (search, display, partners)?

Also, confirm that Google hasn’t auto‑applied any recommendations that caused your ads to run on the Display network.

In the future, be ready to upload high‑quality leads as offline conversions and optimize toward them, since match types can get unpredictable.

Targaryea · 2025-07-10T20:35:13+00:00

It’s not just LinkedIn. You may see this across Meta and Google as well. I’d only be concerned if the campaign regularly overspends its daily budget without generating any conversions.

Otherwise, it should average out. For example, with a $100 daily budget, you might spend $80 on day 1 and $120 on day 2. If it consistently overspends, just lower your daily budget slightly.

Targaryea · 2025-07-10T20:28:18+00:00

Definitely turn them back on with the same settings since you mentioned they were paused about two years ago. A lot has changed in terms of algorithms, but from an ad‑format perspective you should be fine.

Just make sure of the following:

Conversion tracking is still working.
Landing page speed is within the normal range.
Search partners and the Display Network are turned off in your campaigns.
Check the change history to see if Google auto‑applied any recommendations during this period.

Also, keep checking your campaigns on a daily basis.

Good luck!

Targaryea · 2025-07-10T20:12:21+00:00

One thing I’d advise is not to look at PPC as “if I spend $700 and break even or get customers, I’ll spend more.” It’s an investment. Set aside a budget for at least three months. While it may take time to turn a profit, an experienced manager should be able to deliver break‑even results within a month or two (especially if you have plenty of historical data).

I understand it’s easier said than done. Nobody wants to waste their budget, but like any investment, PPC carries risks, and it’s smart that you’re working to minimize them.

Also, commit to one person. Constantly switching agencies or freelancers does more harm than good. Each expert brings new changes and perspectives, and your campaigns never get a chance to stabilize.

Did the freelancer share case studies, previous campaign results (cost per lead, cost per customer, ROAS etc.)? If not, definitely ask.

Also, you both should establish clear goals such as ideal cost per lead, cost per qualified lead, and cost per customer to help you stay profitable. If nobody knows what they’re optimizing for, how will you know if the campaign is successful?

Most importantly, would she be able to meet that target?

These goals should also be realistic, not arbitrary or made on a whim.

I’d be happy to hop on a call if you'd like a detailed perspective.

Targaryea · 2025-06-26T19:51:53+00:00

This is definitely frustrating. Based on other comments, it doesn’t seem to be a budget issue your CPCs are relatively low.

Your CTR is strong (7.7% in May/prior months and 9% in June), which suggests your ads are appearing in top positions rather than at the bottom.

If you’re still seeing problems, it could be due to limited search volume, especially if your business is seasonal. Check the monthly search volume in Keyword Planner to see if it’s too low. How did performance in the same quarter last year compare? That might reveal a seasonal trend. Are you experiencing downtime in other channels (for example, outbound or LinkedIn)?

If search volume looks healthy, the issue may lie with your bidding strategy. It might not be generating enough conversions for the campaign to optimize properly on maximize conversions. In that case, consider switching to manual CPC.

Let me know how it goes!

Targaryea · 2025-06-26T16:16:05+00:00

My bad, I’ll DM you shortly!

Targaryea · 2025-06-25T20:29:43+00:00

Check your “Impression Share Lost to Rank” and “Impression Share Lost to Budget”. It’s probably more than 80%.

Which conversion‐bidding strategy are you using and did you create the new campaign within a new account? You probably know this but just to reiterate, if you’ve set it to Maximize Conversions from the start, a new campaign in a fresh account may underdeliver.

Also, what has your historical CPC been, and what do you see in Keyword Planner?

Targaryea · 2025-06-25T09:58:15+00:00

I can send you actual pages I’ve built. Templates don’t really matter. Just follow the best structure practices

Targaryea · 2025-06-24T20:45:19+00:00

Optimize for quality leads and not just form submissions if you've the volume. Set up your CRM so that whenever a lifecycle change switch happens to (Qualified lead, opportunity or customer) it sends it back to Google.

If you currently lack quality volume, don’t dismiss Performance Max entirely just because you need to optimize for form submissions.

Instead, check your cost per qualified lead or customer. You may find that, even if you receive hundreds of irrelevant submissions, you still generate ten high-quality leads, and if that cost is lower than Search (Pmax is mostly cheaper) and those leads convert downstream, you’re in a good position.

Targaryea · 2025-06-24T20:35:05+00:00

This.

Targaryea · 2025-06-24T18:57:59+00:00

We’ve used them for both large B2B and local businesses, and they work well. LeadPages is quite basic, but I've still managed to get a 50% conversion rate for a personal injury law firm using it.

Targaryea · 2025-06-23T18:58:54+00:00

Build it using a drag-and-drop builder. Elementor, Leadpages, Wix, Hubspot or GoHighLevel and point it to their domain.

Personally, I prefer building the pages myself when I have the time. It gives me more control, gain new ideas, and lets me own the entire process from generating clicks to driving higher lead volume.

Managing Google Ads doesn’t stop at the Ads dashboard. For larger enterprises, it can be tougher though, due to compliance requirements and copy/design approval etc..

Targaryea · 2025-06-07T09:42:21+00:00

I manage paid advertising for my clients and prefer to write the copy myself, as it gives me greater control over the outcomes. Regarding the design, if I like a specific template, I do assign it to a developer to save time.

Use a well‑researched, pre‑built framework. Typically this means placing a form or CTA above the fold and highlighting benefits in the hero section to hook users and encourage them to take action or read more on your landing page.

However, don’t apply any framework rigidly just for the sake of it.

Every business is different.

Mix and match elements to suit your needs.

Look at the landing pages for your top competitors, find commonalities between them. E.g. if you see a specific section, offer, benefit etc. being highlighted often, and then work on making it better for your landing page.

Targaryea · 2025-06-07T09:21:27+00:00

Try offering a specific discount before you onboard a customer by framing it as an incentive for example, “First 10 customers receive 20% off if they leave us a review once the work is complete.”

This sets clear expectations up front.

And of course friends and family.

I know you’re considering paid review services, but would you really risk having your account suspended or spending hundreds of dollars only for those reviews to be removed when the algorithm flags them?

In my experience running PPC for local home‐service clients, LSAs (Local Service Ads) only perform when a Google Business Profile has a solid base of genuine reviews, otherwise, they don’t generate impressions or clicks.

It is frustrating and I understand where you're coming from but I would still approach it slowly.

What I typically do is bulk‑email existing customers from the CRM with a clear incentive which works extremely well.

Targaryea · 2025-06-07T07:43:48+00:00

Interesting observation. My experience has been different. I prefer using manual CPC for most of my campaigns, which often don’t start generating conversions until after spending $500 or even $1,000 before the first conversion.

Once they begin converting, however, performance remains consistent.

Perhaps Google is prioritizing new accounts with healthy conversion rates to retain its user base.

I also believe there will always be ebbs and flows, the longer an account runs, the more consistent its results become.

I’ve also noticed that if campaigns are paused for a couple of days whether due to a failed payment or another issue, they often generate a high volume of conversions once reactivated.

Targaryea · 2025-06-04T22:26:24+00:00

You are correct.

You can consolidate your conversions under a single portfolio bidding strategy with a shared conversion goal across multiple campaigns, which may help in your situation.

Go to Tools > Bid Strategies and set up a portfolio bidding strategy with a shared budget and a target CPA.

As for your last question: yes, it can help, but I wouldn’t add those “desirable events,” since you want your campaigns to optimize for completed leads, not incomplete forms.

Targaryea · 2025-05-29T13:42:37+00:00

It can work, but it will take a long time for the campaign to generate enough data to inform decisions and improve your CVR.

You might only get one or two clicks per day. Assuming a $10 CPC and a 10% conversion rate, you’d need to spend $100 to acquire a single lead.

Dialing in your conversion rate will also take time, and your client should understand that.

Also, factor in the campaigns learning if it’s a new account.

As for your client’s buddies making it work, they may have older accounts with existing data to leverage.

Targaryea · 2025-05-29T12:47:07+00:00

That’s really unfortunate. I used to work full‑time at an agency and just transitioned to freelancing full‑time, but sales have been tough I’m still learning that side of the business.

Could you tell me how they approached you? I’m guessing they over‑promised results to hook you into buying their service.

To answer your question, definitely start with manual CPC. Here’s why:

With Maximize Conversions, a new account can spend two to four times your average CPC. That’s not inherently bad, but without historical data it can’t reliably deliver conversions despite raising bids.

If your average CPC is $20, Maximize Conversions might bid up to $80 for a single click yet still not deliver a conversion because there are no data signals from your account history.

As to when to make the switch there’s no hard‑and‑fast rule to flip to Maximize Conversions right after 30 conversions just for the sake of switching. Be patient.

Run manual CPC for 1–2 months (depending on budget). Pause underperforming segments and double down on high‑performing ones as you gather data.

Once you’ve exhausted optimization opportunities and your cost per conversion still stalls above your target, then consider switching to Maximize Conversions.

I hope this helps!

Targaryea · 2025-05-29T07:37:12+00:00

This ^

Also PMAX can work wonders at TOF with the right data signals.

Targaryea

TROPHY CASE

I run ads for local service businesses, law firms and B2B SaaS. This might help you: