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Pricing & Costs
What's a good cost per lead for a contractor?
It varies enormously by trade and market. HVAC and plumbing leads in competitive metros often run $60–$150 through LSAs and $80–$250 through Search Ads. Roofing, remediation, and legal-adjacent trades run higher. What matters more is cost per booked job and average job value — a $200 lead that books a $12,000 install is a bargain.
How much does paid advertising management cost?
Management fees run by tier: LSA-Only Starter is $400/mo management on $500–$2,000 ad spend, Search Ads Starter is $600/mo on $1,500–$3,000 spend, Standard PPC Program is $1,000/mo on $3,500–$8,000 spend, Aggressive Multi-Service is $1,800/mo on $8,000–$20,000 spend, and Multi-Location runs $2,500+/mo on $15,000+ spend.
Is the advertising budget separate from the management fee?
Yes — ad spend goes straight to Google, and the management fee is flat and transparent on top of it, not tied to a percentage of your spend.
What minimum advertising budget do you recommend?
The LSA-Only Starter tier works with $500–$2,000/mo in ad spend — that's the realistic floor for most trades to get meaningful lead volume.
Are campaign setup, creative, landing pages, and tracking included?
Yes, scaled by tier — Search Ads Starter and above include dedicated landing pages and call tracking; every tier includes campaign setup and ongoing optimization.
Does your fee change when the advertising budget increases?
Yes, generally — the management fee scales with the tier, since a $20,000/mo multi-channel program takes more active management than a $1,000/mo LSA-only account. It's a flat fee per tier, not a percentage of spend.
Service Areas
Can you manage paid advertising for businesses anywhere in the United States?
Toughjobs builds Google Ads programs for trade contractors across the Midwest.
Can campaigns target specific cities, service areas, states, or national audiences?
Yes — campaigns are built around tight geo-targeting for your actual service area, not a broad metro-wide radius that wastes spend on clicks outside where you work.
Timeline & Completion
How fast do paid ads produce leads?
LSAs can produce leads within 48 hours of activation. Search Ads typically start producing within a week and hit stable performance within 30 days as Google's bidding algorithm learns your account. Full optimization usually takes 60–90 days.
How long does it take to launch a paid advertising campaign?
Account setup, campaign structure, ad copy, and landing pages typically take 1–2 weeks with AI-assisted workflows, assuming your service list and service area are confirmed. Google's own ad review process can add a few extra days on top of that.*
How soon can ads begin generating traffic or leads?
LSAs can produce leads within 48 hours of activation once your profile is verified. Search Ads typically start producing within a week and hit stable performance within 30 days as Google's bidding algorithm learns your account.
How long does campaign optimization take?
Full optimization usually takes 60–90 days as enough data accumulates for Google's algorithm and our own review to identify what's actually working.
How soon can you start managing my Google Ads?
Most accounts kick off within 1–2 weeks of signing. Exact start date depends on current workload — we will give you a real date on the strategy call, not a placeholder.*
* Estimated. Current workload and holiday scheduling can shift these dates — we'll confirm exact timing on your call.
Getting Started
How do I get started with paid advertising?
Talk to us about your market — no pitch, just a straight read on what would actually move the needle for your business.
Do you audit existing advertising accounts before recommending a campaign?
Yes — we review the current account structure, spend, and lead quality before recommending changes, rather than tearing everything down and starting over blind.
Which advertising platform should my business use?
For most trades — plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing — Local Services Ads (LSAs) should be the first channel since they only charge for real contacts and carry the Google Guaranteed badge. Traditional Search Ads matter for services LSAs don't cover, or when you want control over exactly which keyword drives which landing page.
What's Included
What is included with paid ads management?
Campaign setup across LSAs, Search Ads, and Performance Max as needed; dedicated landing pages that match the ad; call tracking, form tracking, and lead scoring; negative keyword management; and ongoing optimization.
Do you write the ad copy and create the advertising visuals?
Yes, as part of campaign setup across every tier.
Do you build or improve landing pages?
Yes. Every ad group gets a dedicated landing page that mirrors the ad copy, loads in under two seconds, has one clear call-to-action, and answers what a panicked homeowner actually wants to know: can you come today, how much, and are you licensed.
Do you configure conversion tracking and call tracking?
Yes — dynamic number insertion for call tracking, call recording for lead-quality scoring, and form submissions tagged with source data, pushed back into Google where possible so its algorithm learns to chase your best jobs, not just your cheapest clicks.
Do you monitor search terms, placements, audiences, and negative keywords?
Yes. Negative keyword management is core to the work — blocking terms like "DIY," "how to," "salary," "training," "cheap," and "free" that drain budget on tire-kickers instead of real leads.
Who It's For
What types of businesses benefit from paid advertising?
Trade contractors who want leads on demand — plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing, and similar trades where Local Services Ads and Search Ads carry real intent.
Should I use paid ads if I already invest in SEO?
Often both together — ads produce leads today at a per-lead cost while SEO builds a long-term asset. Cutting one because the other works usually costs more than running them in parallel with distinct reporting.
Our Process
What does your paid advertising process involve?
Local Services Ads first for most trades, then Search Ads with tight geo-targeting and a negative keyword list where LSAs don't cover the service, dedicated landing pages matched to each ad, and call/form tracking wired in from day one.
How do you determine the starting budget?
Based on your service area, service value, and capacity — the LSA-Only Starter tier works with $500–$2,000/mo in ad spend as a realistic floor, scaling up from there based on how much lead volume you can actually handle.
How often do you optimize active campaigns?
Weekly at the LSA-Only and Standard tiers, with quarterly strategy resets added at the Aggressive Multi-Service tier.
How do you prevent wasted advertising spend?
Tight geo-targeting drawn to your actual service area (not a whole metro DMA), aggressive negative keyword lists from day one, dayparting to only run when your phones are answered, and weekly review of search-term reports to catch waste before it accumulates.
Requirements & Preparation
Can I run Google Ads without a great website?
You can run LSAs without a website — Google will use your GBP. For Search Ads, you need at least dedicated landing pages, even if the rest of the site is dated. Sending paid traffic to a slow, unconvincing site burns money regardless of how well the ads are targeted.
What access do you need to begin managing my ads?
Access to your Google Ads account (or we help you set one up), your website or landing pages, and your service and pricing details so campaigns and landing pages can be built accurately.
What business, customer, and offer information do you need?
Your service list, service area, typical job value, and what makes you different from the competitor bidding on the same keywords.
Do I need a dedicated landing page before campaigns can launch?
Not necessarily to start with LSAs, but for Search Ads, yes — sending ad traffic to a homepage instead of a dedicated landing page is a fast way to burn budget regardless of how well the ads are targeted.
Customization & Options
Should I run LSAs or Search Ads?
Both, in most cases. LSAs get you the top of the page with pay-per-lead pricing and the Google Guaranteed badge. Search Ads give you control over keyword targeting, landing pages, and services LSAs don't cover well (renovations, installations, commercial work). Starting LSA-only is fine if budget is tight.
Can you manage Google Ads, Microsoft Ads, Meta Ads, or other platforms?
The core service is Google's ad products — Local Services Ads, Search Ads, and Performance Max — matched to whichever mix fits the trade and service area.
Can campaigns target specific services, products, locations, or customer groups?
Yes — campaigns are structured by service and geo-targeted to your actual service area, not run as one generic account covering everything.
Results & Expectations
What results should I realistically expect from paid ads?
The gap between a $60 cost per lead and a $400 cost per lead is almost always in the setup, not the raw spend — tight geo-targeting, negative keywords, matched landing pages, and call tracking are what separate the two outcomes.
What is the difference between clicks, conversions, qualified leads, and sales?
Reporting should separate all of them — a click isn't a lead, and a lead isn't a booked job. Real reporting tracks cost-per-lead AND cost-per-booked-job, not just clicks and click-through rate.
Ownership & Access
Who owns the advertising account and campaign data?
You do. You own the Google Ads account and can log in and see everything in it at any time — that's a baseline we hold every provider to, including ourselves.
Will I have administrator access to the ad account?
Yes, full access — no hostage situations on your own advertising account.
Policies & Guarantees
My last agency spent my budget on junk clicks. How do you prevent that?
Aggressive negative keyword lists from day one, geographic targeting drawn to actual service areas (not entire metro DMAs), dayparting to only run when your phones are answered, and weekly review of search term reports to catch waste before it accumulates. Most junk-click accounts we take over have zero negatives and no geo-restrictions.
Can you guarantee that an ad or account will be approved?
No platform approval can be guaranteed, but LSA verification, licensing checks, and profile buildout are handled as part of setup to avoid the common rejection reasons.
What happens if an account is suspended or an ad is rejected?
We manage LSA disputes and know how to get bad leads refunded — that's a specific, ongoing part of account management, not a one-time setup task.
Contact & Next Steps
How can I request a paid advertising consultation?
Reach out through the contact page for a straight read on your market and what a campaign would realistically cost and produce.
Advertising Budget & Billing
Who pays the advertising platforms?
Ad spend goes directly to Google from your own account. The management fee is billed separately and covers the setup, optimization, and reporting.
Can I set a firm daily or monthly spending limit?
Yes — spend cap control is something you set, not left to guesswork.
Can the budget be increased, reduced, or paused?
Yes. A real PPC provider will tell you to reduce spend if the data says the money is being wasted, rather than pushing you to spend more regardless of results.
Performance & Reporting
How do you measure paid advertising performance?
A baseline before work begins (starting assets, tracking, market, budget, constraints), a work log of what changed and when, and verified outcomes connecting calls and forms to lead quality or booked work when the data is available.
How often will I receive campaign reports?
Monthly reporting at minimum, with weekly optimization at the Standard tier and above.
Can you track calls, forms, bookings, purchases, and qualified leads?
Yes — dynamic call tracking with recording for lead-quality scoring, and every form submission tagged with source data.