For a tradie, it is likely that much of the time, when Google searches occur, it is because a customer is in dire need of a service, whether that be a leaking pipe, broken switchboard, a faulty air conditioner or a damaged roof. That is why AdWords for Tradies is a great option to target those who are seeking professional assistance. But it's not always clicks that convert to quality leads. If it is not targeted correctly, it can generate irrelevant enquiries, customers outside the service area and/or low-cost solutions. Rather than ramping up the advertising spend, Tradies should target the right audience, boost the relevance of their ads and ensure that people who search are real business opportunities.

To help Australian Tradies avoid losing out on valuable leads, here are some common mistakes to avoid.

1.   Not understanding the search intent behind the keywords.

If your trade business is considering raising money, one of the first questions they should ask is:

What's this person's intent behind searching the phrase?

There are not enough keywords to answer that question.

Consider these searches:

•            "electrician near me"

•            "emergency electrician"

•            "electrician apprenticeship"

•            "electrical course"

•            "free electrical advice"

They could all be electrical-related, but they aren't the same customer.

A person looking for an electrician around there may want to employ a professional. A job seeker or trainee seeking for an apprenticeship. If someone is looking for instructions on how to install it, they might be thinking of doing it themselves.

In the end, if all of these searches are considered to be equal in value, then advertising dollars can be wasted.

2.   Ignoring Geographic Targeting

The majority of Tradies have a workable service area.

The residential plumbing technician could provide services to several suburbs. A commercial electrician is able to serve a wider area of the metro area. A specialist contractor may have to go further for larger projects, but not for smaller.

When advertisements are placed outside of that functional space, it's easy to get a simple, high-cost problem:

You spend money on a potential customer that you can't serve.

Identify the locations within the business where the work is desired.

Prior to campaigns, determine:

•                    Core service suburbs

•                    Nearby suburbs

•                    Cities or regions served

•                    Customers who are profitable are located in these areas.

•                    Identifies businesses that are not served at the location.

•                    Your geographical approach will differ according to your business.

A mobile trade business might be happy to work with a larger service territory. Another company might be more narrowly targeted, because travel time can make a big difference to the profitability of the job.

3.   Redirecting All Customers to Homepage

One of the most crucial pieces of information you can gather from a customer who clicks on an advertisement is what they're searching for.

The landing page should carry on that conversation.

Imagine someone searches:

"Emergency plumber close to me.

They click an advertisement and they end up on a homepage that reads:

Welcome to ABC Plumbing!

Several links to bathroom renovations, commercial plumbing, gas services, maintenance, drainage and a lot more.

There's nothing wrong with that home page.

But it's up to the user to figure out where to go now.

A landing page that is more relevant would be in a position to make sense of the crisis plumbing service, the areas serviced, and how to get in touch with the company.

Align landing pages with customer's intent.

When a business advertises multiple important services, reflect on whether or not there is pertinent landing-page information for each of those services.

For example:

Search: Emergency electrician

The telephone number for emergency electric work is 811.Call 811 for emergency electric work.

Search: Switchboard upgrade

The Switchboard is being upgraded.

The search is for air conditioning repairing.

The Page is offering Air conditioning repair service.

The only catch is that it's not required to have a page for each keyword. The aim is to prevent unnecessary splintering and yet not lose in relevance.

4.   Creating generic ads that won't cause your customers to go elsewhere.

Trade advertising can get boring.

"Professional service."

"Call us today."

"Reliable and affordable."

"Quality workmanship."

While these statements are good, they are not necessarily helpful for a customer to identify one company from a different one.

A better ad will convey useful information to the searcher.

Keep it in mind what the customer needs to know

Suggested information to include, depending on the business and what can be practically supported:

•            Specific service

•            Location

•            Availability

•            Relevant experience

•            Qualifications

•            Warranty information

•            Booking options

•            Quote information

•            A clear next step

The best message may also alter depending on the customer's scenario.

Note that availability and ease of contact will be important to a person who has an urgent plumbing issue.

A person ready to renovate may have more of a focus on project experience, scope of service and workmanship.

5.   Measure Clicks, Not Business Results

The Clicks are easy to understand.

The results of business are more complex.

A campaign can create:

•            500 impressions

•            100 clicks

•            5 enquiries

A second campaign could yield:

•            250 impressions

•            50 clicks

•            10 enquiries

The second campaign had half the number of clicks, but twice the number of enquiries.

But it won't necessarily mean the better one is better, as much of what's being asked is still important and valuable, and it's just an illustration of the fact that traffic isn't the only thing that counts.

Track meaningful actions

Useful conversion actions for a trade business include:

•            Phone calls

•            Quote requests

•            Contact forms

•            Booking requests

•            Consultation enquiries

6.   Making Mobile Users an Afterthought

If a customer is searching for a tradie, they might be using their mobile device because they need assistance as soon as possible.

This is a vastly different experience where a person may be researching a service on the desktop computer.

The customer may wish to:

•                    Make sure that the business offers the service you need.

•                    Check whether it operates in their area.

•                    Call immediately.

When a click on the ad leads to steps that are difficult to perform on the website, then the advertising action becomes less valuable.

Make the mobile journey simple

Find out if customers can easily:

Read the information in the main text.

•                    Find the phone number

•                    Tap to call

•                    Make a short enquiry

•                    Know the area of service

•                    Access the appropriate service.

•                    Just take note of page speed and usability as well.

Google's advice for helpful content takes into account the general feel of the web page, if they discovered the info they wanted to discover, or whether the page runs well throughout devices.

7. Kickoff the Campaign and don't look back

Google advertising is not like a vending machine that you put money in and get customers out.

The market changes.

Customer searches change.

Competitors change.

Some services get more competitive.

There are some search terms that aren't expected to generate traffic.

Some advertising campaigns are more effective than others, too.

Campaign management should be evaluated on a regular basis.

Read through the search words

What people actually search for can uncover things that you may not have thought of when planning your campaign.

You might discover:

A great (and unexpected) word customers say that you never thought of

A search that occurs repeatedly for something that isn't relevant.

An innovative service opportunity

Any area that has merit on its own should be considered a separate location.

A phrase that must NOT be included

This information can help enhance the campaign over time.

Analyze and monitor performance by service and location

Don't assume that the entire account is singular.

Ask:

•                    What services do they get enquiries from?

•                    Where do appropriate leads come from?

•                    What are the problem words associated with poor quality traffic?

•                    What ads do people pay attention to?

•                    What pages are landing pages that are generating inquiries?

•                    What means do they have to become a job?

It is a vicious circle that advertising and business feed on each other.

Better Way to Think About Google Advertising for Tradies

In summary, the seven things listed above are all related to a single issue;

Using advertising as a means of traffic instead of acquiring customers.

A more helpful one is:

Customer need → Search → advertisement → relevant page → enquiry → qualified lead → customer → completed job

Every stage matters.

The advertisement is seen by the wrong person if the keyword is incorrect.

The business might end up getting requests from enquirers that it is not able to service.

If the advertisement does not match the customer's interests, he may never click.

The landing page is crucial for the customer to stay.

Without conversion tracking, the business is unable to gauge what works.

But if there is no oversight of the data, then the same problems will persist every month.

A practical review with tips on how to do a campaign review.

You don't have to make dozens of changes each week in a trade business.

It may be helpful to start a useful review with a short list of questions:

Search quality

•                    Do people look for services that are not offered by the business?

•                    Are irrelevant searches eating up your budget?

•                    Is it necessary to use the negative keywords?

Location quality

•                    Are enquiries from serviceable areas?

•                    Is there any place where leads are always bad?

•                    Advertisement quality

•                    Is the advertisement clearly a description of the service?

•                    Does it provide a sound basis for the customer to select the business?

•                    Does it fit with the search purpose?

Landing-page quality

•                    Does the page give an immediate understanding of the service?

•                    Are there any obstructions in the service area?

•                    Do customers have easy access to contact the business?

•                    Does the page have credible trust signals?

Conversion quality

•                    Are calls and enquiries being monitored?

•                    So, which of these leads are qualified?

•                    What campaigns/services result in completed jobs?

Commercial performance

•                    What are the funds used for?

•                    What is being generated?

•                    What services generate the greatest opportunities?

•                    Can the cost of acquiring a customer be sustained?

This method is better than trying to simply raise bids and budgets.

Here are a few things to avoid when advertising with Google:

Take time to check before investing more money in a campaign:

Keywords accurately represent actual customer needs

Irrelevant searches are being identified:

•                    Negative keywords are considered.

•                    Realistic service areas are the focus of campaigns.

•                    The service is advertised and information is clearly communicated.

•                    All landing pages are relevant to the advertised services.

•                    Trusted signals are incorporated into reality

•                    Mobile users can reach out to the business effortlessly

•                    All phone calls and forms are logged.

•                    The quality of the lead is being evaluated.

•                    Search terms are monitored on a regular basis.

Real data is utilized to inform campaign planning and decisions.

Frequently Asked Questions

•                    So, is Google advertising a good bet for Tradies?

Especially when a company has a service that users are actively looking for and can turn their searches into money. But advertising is not necessarily profitable. The results are dependent on a variety of factors including competition, location, service type, customer value, conversion rates and lead quality.

•                    What to post on Google as a tradie?

The most obvious starting point is typically the services that the business desires to expand and can make money on. Do not promote all services equally; focus on services that meet customers' needs and provide commercial value.

•                    Where can Tradies save money on their advertising budget?

Get the basics right: Add, review, add negative, add geographic targeting, build relevant landing pages, and monitor for real enquiries. These adjustments can help pinpoint the traffic that is not responding to your budget.

•                    Is it better to go with clicks or leads when it comes to a tradie?

Leads and results are more helpful than clicks when the goal is to create business. Click data can also be useful for diagnosis of campaign effectiveness, but a high volume of clicks doesn't equate to a successful campaign.

•                    What should be the frequency of Google advertising campaigns reviewing?

No single schedule is applicable to all businesses. Campaigns that have high spending or are competitive might require more frequent hands-on management, whereas small accounts might be better off with less frequent management. The key is to review campaigns regularly enough to accurately detect significant shifts in search data, lead quality and performance.

Conclusion

For Tradies, Google advertising can be a powerful tool when it comes to attracting customers who are actively seeking a service.

However, being first on the search results is not the only goal of advertising.

It's about being relevant.

The right customer at the right place and the right page, with an easy contact option in front of them to the right service and a useful advertisement. The business then needs to question if that enquiry was of any value.

No wonder the most critical query a tradie needs to ask in advertising is not:

What was the number of clicks?

It is:

“Were we successful in our advertising in reaching the right customers and was the advertising work commercial?”

Those that ask that question often, are in a far stronger position when it comes to optimizing their campaigns without the cost of simply spending more money.