Where wasted spend comes from
| Leak | What happens | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| Irrelevant searches | Ads show for jobs, DIY or free searches | Negative keywords, reviewed weekly |
| Loose match types | Broad match reaches loosely related searches | Exact and phrase match on key terms |
| Location option | People outside your area see your ads | Set targeting to presence, not interest |
| Off-hours clicks | Calls arrive when nobody answers | Ad schedules for staffed hours |
| Weak landing pages | Clicks arrive but few people act | One matching page per service |
| No tracking | Nobody knows which clicks paid off | Conversion tracking for calls and forms |
The location setting most accounts miss
Google names its default location option Presence or interest. It shows ads to people in your area and to people elsewhere who show interest in it. A plumber in Tampa rarely wants clicks from someone in Ohio reading about Tampa. Switching to Presence limits ads to people likely in or regularly in your area.
Make the search terms report a habit
The search terms report shows what people actually typed before clicking. Review it every week in a new account and every two weeks after that. Add irrelevant terms as negative keywords. Google warns that negatives can also block searches you want, so check before adding broad ones.
Common negative keywords for local services
- jobs, careers, salary, hiring
- free, DIY, how to, training
- used, parts, wholesale, supplier
- competitor or brand names you do not service
Good example. A pest control company reviews search terms weekly and blocks "pest control jobs" and "DIY termite treatment." Its cost per lead falls by a quarter within two months.
Bad example. The same company runs broad match with no negatives for a year and pays for thousands of clicks from job seekers.
Read what negative keywords are. Our PPC management reviews search terms every week.