Someone in Whitley Bay has water coming through the ceiling. They're not scrolling Instagram. They're typing "emergency plumber Whitley Bay" into Google with wet hands. Whoever shows up first gets the job.
That's what Google Ads is for. Not brand awareness. Not "engagement". Jobs, today, from people who already need you.
Start with the searches that pay
Forget broad words like "plumber". Too expensive, too vague. Start with searches that mean "I need someone now", plus a place:
- "emergency electrician Gateshead"
- "boiler repair Newcastle"
- "roofer near me"
- "blocked drain Sunderland"
Set your campaign to only show in the areas you actually cover. No point paying for a click from Carlisle if you won't drive to Carlisle.
Write ads that say three things
- What you fix. "Boiler repairs and servicing."
- Why you. "Gas Safe. Same-day callouts. Fixed prices."
- What to do. "Call now" or "Book online".
Add your phone number to the ad so people can ring straight from Google. Most emergency jobs never touch your website at all.
Block the rubbish
Add "negative keywords" from day one: jobs, salary, course, apprenticeship, DIY, how to. Otherwise you'll pay for every 17-year-old researching a career in plumbing.
Track the calls
If you can't tell which clicks turned into jobs, you're guessing. Turn on call tracking in Google Ads and track form enquiries on your site. Then you know your cost per job, which is the only number that matters.
What to spend
Most local trades can start on £5 to £10 a day. Run it for a month, look at cost per job, then decide. If a £200 job costs you £20 in ads, turn it up. If it costs £150, something needs fixing first.
The mistakes we fix most
- Sending ad clicks to a homepage with no phone number at the top.
- Letting Google "expand" your targeting to the whole country.
- Running ads 24/7 when nobody answers the phone after 6pm.
- Never looking at the search terms report. It's where the waste hides.
Pair your ads with a properly finished Google Business Profile and a steady stream of reviews, and you'll show up in both the ads and the map. That's a lot of your street covered.
Rather not fiddle with it?
We set up and run Google Ads for local businesses, tracked properly and checked weekly. More on marketing for trades. Ask us.
Rather we just did it? That's literally the job. See our paid ads service or the prices.
