Google Ads is the fastest way for tradies to get leads. Unlike SEO (which takes months), ads can put your business at the top of Google within hours. But they can also burn through your budget fast if you don't know what you're doing.
This guide breaks down how Google Ads works for trade businesses, what you need to know before spending a cent, and the common mistakes that waste thousands.
Whilst this is a comprehensive guide, you can use Cliqe to do all this for you. Get in touch and we'll handle your Google Ads from start to finish.
How Google Ads Works for Tradies
When someone searches "electrician Gold Coast" or "emergency plumber near me," the top results are usually ads. You pay each time someone clicks on your ad (pay-per-click). The cost per click depends on how competitive your trade and area are.
For tradies, Google Ads is powerful because you're reaching people who need you right now. They're not browsing — they've got a leaking pipe or a dead power point and they need someone today.
Typical costs for tradies:
- •Electricians: $8–$25 per click
- •Plumbers: $10–$30 per click (emergency keywords are higher)
- •Builders: $15–$40 per click (high job value = more competition)
- •Painters: $6–$20 per click
Setting a Realistic Budget
Here's what most people get wrong about Google Ads budgets: it's not about how much you spend — it's about how well your campaigns are set up and managed. A well-nurtured campaign with a consistent daily budget of $20–$30/day can massively outperform a $100/day budget that's been set up poorly and left to run.
The key is consistent daily spend combined with constant management. Google's algorithm rewards campaigns that run steadily. When you set a realistic daily budget and actively manage your campaigns — adjusting keywords, refining targeting, adding negative keywords — your cost per lead drops over time and your results compound.
You can start with as little as $500–$1,000/month if the campaigns are properly structured and actively managed. A bigger budget with no management is just burning money faster.
Think about it this way:
A tradie spending $30/day with well-managed campaigns can generate more leads than one spending $100/day with a set-and-forget approach. The difference isn't budget — it's management. That's why daily optimisation matters more than throwing money at it.
Keywords: The Foundation of Everything
Keywords are the search terms your ads show up for. Getting these right is the difference between leads that convert and money down the drain.
Good keywords for tradies:
- ✓"electrician Gold Coast" — high intent, location-specific
- ✓"emergency plumber near me" — urgent, ready to hire
- ✓"switchboard upgrade cost" — researching a specific service
Keywords to avoid:
- ✗"how to fix a leaking tap" — DIYers, not customers
- ✗"electrician salary" — job seekers, not clients
- ✗"free plumber" — price shoppers who won't pay
You also need negative keywords — terms you don't want your ads showing for. Things like "free," "DIY," "jobs," "apprenticeship," and "salary" should be blocked from day one. Without negative keywords, you'll waste 20-40% of your budget on irrelevant clicks.
Keyword research is an ongoing process. It's not a set-and-forget task — the best-performing campaigns are reviewed weekly and adjusted based on what's actually converting, not just what's getting clicks.
Your Landing Page Matters More Than Your Ad
Here's what most tradies get wrong: they spend all their energy on the ad copy and send traffic to their homepage. Your homepage isn't designed to convert ad traffic — it's designed to tell your brand story.
You need dedicated landing pages for each service you're advertising. Someone searching "hot water system installation Gold Coast" should land on a page specifically about hot water systems — not your general plumbing homepage.
A good landing page includes:
- •Clear headline matching the search term
- •Your phone number front and centre (click-to-call on mobile)
- •Social proof — reviews, ratings, licence numbers
- •Photos of your actual work (not stock images)
- •Simple contact form as a backup to calling
- •Fast load speed (under 3 seconds)
The 5 Most Expensive Mistakes
1. No conversion tracking
If you can't track which keywords and ads are generating actual phone calls and form submissions, you're flying blind. You need call tracking and form tracking set up from day one.
2. Using broad match keywords only
Google's default "broad match" setting shows your ads for loosely related searches. An electrician might show up for "electrical engineering degree." Use phrase match and exact match to stay targeted.
3. Not checking search terms regularly
The "Search Terms" report shows what people actually typed before clicking your ad. Reviewing this weekly and adding negative keywords is essential — otherwise you keep paying for irrelevant clicks.
4. Set and forget
Google Ads needs constant attention. Bids change, competitors adjust, seasons shift. A campaign that worked last month might be burning money this month without ongoing optimisation.
5. No location targeting
If you service the Gold Coast, your ads should only show to people on the Gold Coast. Sounds obvious, but Google's default settings can show your ads to people "interested in" your area — even if they live in Sydney.
The Reality of DIY Google Ads
Can you run Google Ads yourself? Technically, yes. Google makes it easy to set up a campaign. But running profitable campaigns is a different story entirely.
Effective Google Ads management involves weekly search term reviews, bid adjustments, A/B testing ad copy, landing page optimisation, conversion tracking setup, competitor monitoring, and budget reallocation based on performance data. That's 3-5 hours per week minimum — time most tradies don't have.
The tradies who get the best results are the ones who either commit serious time to learning the platform, or hand it to someone who lives and breathes it daily. There's no middle ground — a half-managed campaign is usually worse than no campaign at all, because you're spending money without getting full value.
Quick Wins You Can Do Today
- 1.If you have an existing campaign, check your Search Terms report and add irrelevant terms as negative keywords
- 2.Make sure your location targeting is set to "Presence: People in your targeted locations" — not the default
- 3.Add your phone number as a call extension so people can call directly from the ad
- 4.Check your landing page loads in under 3 seconds on mobile (use Google PageSpeed Insights)