In 60 Seconds
- •Smart Campaigns: Using 'Google Ads Express' or 'Smart Campaigns' is the #1 killer. It gives Google permission to burn money on broad matches.
- •Broad Match: Bidding on 'Plumbing' instead of 'Emergency Plumber Cityname'. You pay for people looking for 'Plumbing jobs' or 'Plumbing school'.
- •Landing Pages: Sending paid traffic to your Home Page. Visitors get lost. Send them to a dedicated page with ONE button: 'Call Now'.
- •No Negative Keywords: You aren't excluding words like 'Cheap', 'DIY', 'Job', 'Salary'. You pay for clicks from people who are broke or looking for work.
- •Tracking: Not tracking calls. If you don't know which keyword drove the call, you are flying blind.
"Google Ads doesn't work in my market." We hear this every day. It is false. Google Ads works. Your setup didn't.
The 3 Pillars of Failure
1. The Keyword Trap (Intent)
You bid on "AC Repair". Google matches you for "How to repair AC yourself." You pay $25 for that click. The user leaves. Fix: Use "Phrase Match" and "Exact Match." Use a massive "Negative Keyword" list to block DIYers.
2. The Landing Page Leak (Conversion)
You send the user to your beautiful homepage. They have to scroll past:
- "Since 1985..."
- "Our Mission..."
- "Meet the Team..."
- ... finally a phone number.
They leave. Fix: Send them to a page that says: "AC Broken? We fix it today. Call Now." Remove the menu. Remove the "About Us." Leave only the solution.
3. The Tracking Void (Data)
You spent $1,000. The phone rang 10 times. Which keyword drove the calls? Was it "AC Repair" or "Furnace Tuneup"? If you don't know, you can't optimize. Fix: Use Dynamic Call Tracking (CallRail). Feed that data back into Google Ads so the algorithm learns "This keyword = Money."
The "Set and Forget" Fallacy
Google Ads is a stock market. Prices change every minute. Competitors enter and exit. If you set it up 6 months ago and haven't looked at it, you are being eaten alive by competitors who optimize weekly.
[!TIP] The Search Partner Network By default, Google shows your ads on "Search Partners" (random websites). These usually convert poorly. Turn it off. Stick to "Google Search Network" only.
Read Next in This Hub:
- LSA Bidding - The other ad channel.
- SEO vs PPC - Allocation.
Related System:
- Local Visibility Systems - Done-for-you ads.