In short: before you sign with anyone for Google Ads, ask who runs the account, whether they take a cut of your ad spend, how long you’re tied in and what they’ll report. Good answers are short and you can have them in writing: a named person, no cut, a short term, and enquiries counted all the way to booked jobs.
Most tradesmen who’ve had a bad run with Google Ads didn’t pick a bad agency on purpose. They just didn’t know what to ask, and the salesman did the talking. These ten questions fix that. For each one you’ll see what a good answer sounds like and what should make you put the phone down.
A straight word first. Lead Wave now runs Google Ads for tradesmen, so I’ve got a horse in this race. Our own answers are at the bottom, kept separate, and you can hold us to them like anyone else.
Who runs the Google Ads account, and what can you see?
This is the first question for a reason. Every month your ads run, the account builds up a history of which searches, towns and ads brought enquiries. Some agencies set it up in your name, others run it for you. Either can work. What matters is whether you can see what’s going on and what it really cost.
Good answer: “We run it for you. You’ll see exactly what Google charged every month, and you can have your account ID whenever you ask.”
Bad answer: “Don’t worry about the account, you’ll get reports.” Ask what’s in the reports, and what happens to the account if you leave.
Do you take a cut or a mark-up of my ad spend?
Some agencies roll the ad spend and their fee into one monthly bill. Then you can’t see how much of your money actually reached Google. Others charge a percentage of whatever you spend, which means they earn more when you spend more, whether or not it brings work.
Good answer: “Your ad spend is billed at exactly what Google charges, on its own line. Our fee is separate and fixed, so we never earn more because you spend more.”
Bad answer: “It’s all-inclusive, don’t worry about the split.” Ask to see the split anyway.
How long is the contract, and what does leaving cost?
A short starting term is fair. Google needs some weeks to learn what works in your area, and nobody can judge an account in a fortnight. Being locked in for 12 months or more is a different thing, especially if leaving early means paying most of what’s left.
Good answer: “A few months to start, then month to month on notice, with no exit fee.”
Bad answer: “Twelve months, but nobody ever wants to leave.” Read the cancellation clause before you sign, not after.
Where will the clicks land?
You pay for every click, whether they ring or not. Someone searching for a flat roof repair should land on a page about flat roof repairs in your area, with your number at the top and proof from real customers. Send them to your homepage and plenty will give up looking.
Good answer: “Each job you want more of gets its own page that matches the search, and it’s fast on a phone.”
Bad answer: “We’ll send it all to your homepage.” Watch out too for pages built on the agency’s own system that disappear when you leave. If your site isn’t up to it, that’s worth fixing first, and it’s why we only run Google Ads on a website we’ve built for a tradesman.
What will you report each month?
Clicks and impressions are easy to report and tell you almost nothing. What you want to know is how many people got in touch, how many became quotes and booked jobs, and what each job cost you.
Even an enquiry count can flatter. On our Facebook clients’ accounts, in the six lead reviews that counted it exactly, 72 of 236 real enquiries never replied to anything. A report worth reading separates people who got in touch from jobs in the diary.
Good answer: “Enquiries by call, WhatsApp and form, booked jobs and cost per job, plus the searches that brought them.”
Bad answer: “Your clicks are up and your click-through rate is great.” Our cost per job calculator does the sums from your own numbers if you want to check an agency’s figures.
Will you run ads for my competitors in my area?
If one agency runs Google Ads for two roofers in the same towns, it’s bidding against itself with both your budgets. One of you is going to lose, and you won’t know which.
Good answer: “No. One business per trade in your area, and we’ll put the towns in writing.”
Bad answer: “We’ve got loads of roofers, there’s plenty to go round.” The same thinking applies to leads, which we cover in exclusive vs shared leads.
Can I listen to the calls?
On Google, a lot of enquiries come in as phone calls. A call that lasts ten seconds and a call that books a job look the same in a report that only counts calls.
Good answer: “Yes. Calls are tracked and recorded, callers hear a short message first, and you can listen back.”
Bad answer: “We count the calls, but you can’t hear them.” Then you’re taking their word for what came in.
How do you stop wasted searches?
Plenty of searches look close to your trade but will never be work: job hunters, training courses, DIY how-tos, the wrong trade, towns you don’t cover. Left alone, they eat the budget.
Good answer: “We check the actual searches your ads showed up for, often, and block the ones that waste money. You can see the list.”
Bad answer: “Google’s automation handles all that.” You still want a person looking.
Who actually works on my account?
The person who sells you the service often isn’t the one running it. Sometimes your account sits with someone you’ll never speak to, and that person changes every few months.
Good answer: a name, and a way to reach them that isn’t a ticket system.
Bad answer: “Your account manager will pass it on.” Ask who makes the changes and who checks them.
What happens in the first 3 months?
Ask for the plan in plain English. Before any money goes on clicks, the tracking should be set up and tested, so every call, WhatsApp and form is counted from day one. Google usually reviews new ads within a business day. After that, the early weeks are about blocking wasted searches and learning which jobs and towns bring work.
Good answer: “Tracking first, then ads live, then a short update every week and a full report every month. It gets better as it learns, and we’ll be honest about how it’s going.”
Bad answer: “Page one guaranteed” or a promised number of jobs. Nobody can promise either honestly.
The checklist
Print it, or keep it open on your phone when the agency rings.
| Ask them | A good answer | Walk away if you hear |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs the ad account? | A named person, and you can see what it cost | Don’t worry about the account |
| Do you take a cut of my ad spend? | No, spend at Google’s price, fee is separate | It’s all-inclusive |
| How long is the contract? | A short start, then month to month | 12 months, with exit fees |
| Where will the clicks land? | A page for each job you do | Your homepage |
| What do you report? | Enquiries, booked jobs, cost per job | Clicks and impressions |
| Do you work for my competitors here? | One business per trade in your area | There’s plenty to go round |
| Can I hear the calls? | Yes, recorded, with a message to callers | We just count them |
| How do you stop wasted searches? | Checked often, and you can see the list | Google handles it |
| Who works on my account? | A named person you can message | Your account manager will pass it on |
| What happens in the first 3 months? | Tracking first, weekly updates, honest reports | Guaranteed page one or guaranteed jobs |
How Lead Wave answers these questions
- Who runs the account: we set it up and run it for you, and you can ask for your Google Ads account ID at any time.
- A cut of your spend: none. Your ad spend is billed at exactly what Google charges, and our fee is separate and fixed.
- The contract: 3 months to start, then month to month with 30 days’ notice and no exit fee.
- Where clicks land: a page for each job you want more of, on a Lead Wave website.
- What we report: enquiries and booked jobs, with cost per job and the searches behind them.
- Your competitors: one business per trade in your area, with the towns agreed in writing.
- Calls: tracked and recorded, callers hear a short message first, and you can listen back.
- Wasted searches: checked every day and blocked, with what we changed set out in your monthly report.
- Who works on it: Nick signs off every important change, and you can message him on WhatsApp.
- The first 3 months: tracking set up before the ads go live, a weekly WhatsApp update and a monthly report.
One more honest line. Our Google Ads service is new. The 100,000+ leads we’ve delivered for trades came from Facebook and Instagram ads, not Google, and we’ll show our Google Ads results here once we’ve measured them. Until then, judge us on the answers above, and see the full details on our Google Ads page.
Want straight answers about your area? Message Nick with your trade and your towns, and ask him any of the ten questions. How our Google Ads service works
Your message to Nick