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Contractor marketing

Google Ads for Contractors: How-To Guide

Campaign types, keywords, ads, landing pages, tracking and the 2026 changes to Local Services Ads and automation, explained for contractors running their own account.

Evan Striemer Founder, Debut Marketing
  • Updated
  • 11 min read
Contractor holding a phone on a job site

Key findings

  1. A Google Ads lead costs contractors about $121. That's the typical figure across six industry sources, in Canadian dollars, and the middle half land between $108 and $145.16 By trade it runs from $84 for flooring to $258 for roofing.
  2. About 4 in 10 leads book a job. That's the typical rate across studies, agencies and our own campaigns.2711 So a booked job from search ads costs about $290 in ad spend.
  3. Local Services Ads and Facebook leads cost about half as much. About $59 and $61 a lead, against $121 for Google search.2891217
  4. The first call back wins. Leads called within 5 minutes converted 8 times as often as leads called later, and more than half of customers expect a reply within the hour.1819

A solo contractor and a builder with several crews both need a steady flow of good leads. Word of mouth, yard signs and HomeStars listings help, but they're hard to control. People are searching Google for your services every day, and Google Ads lets you show up first.

I've run Google Ads for contractors for more than five years, and this is the order I'd set up an account in if I were starting yours today.

This guide walks through Google Ads step by step for contractors: kitchen renovations, roofing, HVAC, excavation and everything in between. It will help you:

  • Get seen by homeowners and property managers when they're ready to hire
  • Turn more clicks into jobs
  • Stop paying for bad clicks
  • Build a lead system that runs while you're on the job

1. Why Google Ads Works for Contractors

Google Ads reaches people at the right moment: when they're looking for help. Someone scrolling Instagram is killing time. Someone searching "bathroom renovation quote Vancouver" or "licensed electrician near me" is ready to call.

Instant visibility

Your ads can appear at the top of the first page, above the map results and regular listings, even if your website doesn't rank yet.

Local targeting

Advertise only in the cities, postal codes or radius you serve.

Control

Pause, change or grow your campaigns any time. Push kitchen renovations in spring and roofing in fall if that's what you want.

You pay for clicks

You're charged when someone clicks or calls, not when they see your ad. With a good landing page, those clicks can turn into $5,000+ projects.

You can measure it

With conversion and call tracking, you can see which ads bring in calls, forms and booked jobs. That makes it easy to spend more on what works.

This guide covers the set-up every contractor needs. These go deeper for one trade or one question:

A Google Ads lead costs $84 to $258, depending on the tradeWhat one lead (a call or form) from Google search ads typically costs, by trade. Canadian dollars.
Roofing $258
General contracting and remodeling $224
Plumbing $218
Painting $193
HVAC $179
Concrete $175
Electrical $155
Landscaping $123
All contractors $121
Flooring $84
Chart: Debut Marketing. Our analysis of 13 sources169142030. Each figure is the median of every published cost per lead we found for that trade.

2. Choose the Right Campaign Type

Google offers several campaign types. For contractors, these are the ones that matter:

Search campaigns (start here)

Text ads that show when someone searches. If you bid on "siding contractor Burnaby", your ad can appear at the top. This is the highest-intent traffic you can buy.

  • Reaches people who are ready to hire
  • Easy to track
  • Easy to pause when you're booked up

Put most of your budget here to start.

Local Services Ads

If Google offers Local Services Ads for your trade and area, they're worth testing. They sit above search ads, show a "Google Verified" badge (which replaced Google Guaranteed in October 2025), and you pay per lead instead of per click. In Canada they cover a set list of trades, including:

  • Plumbers
  • Electricians
  • HVAC
  • Tree services
  • Roofers

Google is moving Local Services Ads into regular Google Ads accounts, starting in the US in 2026 and in other countries in 2027.31

Display and YouTube (for retargeting)

Image and video ads on other websites and YouTube. They're not great for finding new customers, but they're cheap and good for reminding past visitors to come back.

  • Retarget people who visited your site but didn't reach out
  • Stay visible during long decisions, like major renovations
Start with Search: it reaches people who are ready to hireGoogle Ads campaign types for contractors, and what each is for.
Campaign type Where it shows Use it for
Search At the top of Google when someone searchesReaching people ready to hire. Put most of your budget here
Local Services Ads Above the search ads, with a Google Verified badgePaying per lead instead of per click, if your trade qualifies
Display and YouTube On other websites and YouTubeReminding past visitors to come back
Chart: Debut Marketing.
A Local Services Ads or Facebook lead costs about half of a Google search leadTypical cost per lead for contractors, by channel. Canadian dollars.
Google search ads (six sources) $121
Local Services Ads (six sources) $59
Facebook lead ads (four sources) $61
Chart: Debut Marketing. Our analysis of 12 sources16891217. Facebook leads are earlier in their decision, so they need faster follow-up before they book.

3. Keyword Research for Contractors

Keywords decide who sees your ads. Choose well and you'll fill your schedule. Choose badly and you'll waste money.

Focus on specific, service-based searches from people ready to hire:

Good keywords:

  • "roof replacement quote Surrey"
  • "licensed electrician Vancouver"
  • "foundation repair contractor near me"
  • "deck builder Nanaimo"
  • "asphalt paving company Richmond"

Keywords to avoid:

  • "how to replace a roof"
  • "deck ideas"
  • "DIY electrical wiring"
  • "cheap contractor"

Those people want information or to do it themselves.

Tools:

  • Google Keyword Planner: free inside Google Ads
  • Semrush or Ahrefs: search volume and competitor data
  • Keywords Everywhere: a browser extension that shows search volume

Add negative keywords

Negative keywords stop your ad from showing for searches like:

  • "jobs"
  • "courses"
  • "free"
  • "DIY"

Group your keywords tightly by service (roofing, siding, windows) so each group gets its own ads and landing page.

4. Write Ads That Get Clicked

Your ad should be simple, direct and about what your customer cares about. Google uses responsive search ads: you write up to 15 headlines (30 characters each) and 4 descriptions (90 characters each), and Google tests the combinations to find what works best.

Headline examples

  • Stamped Concrete Patios
  • Free Estimates This Week
  • Vancouver Roofing Pros
  • 24/7 Emergency Electricians

Description examples

  • Serving Greater Vancouver since [year]. Call for same-day service.
  • Licensed and insured, with clear pricing. Book your free quote online.

What works

  • Urgency: "Limited Spring Booking Spots"
  • Your area: "Kelowna's Local Contractors"
  • Real numbers: your actual review count or years in business
  • Enough options: give Google at least 8 to 10 headlines to test

5. Build a Landing Page That Converts

You've paid for the click. Now the page has to turn that visitor into a lead. This is where most contractors lose money: they send ad traffic to a busy homepage instead of a focused page.

What makes a good contractor landing page

A headline that matches the ad: if the ad says "Kelowna Excavation Experts", the page should say the same.

Clear reasons to choose you:

  • Years in business
  • Licensed and insured
  • Free, fast estimates
  • Clear pricing

One clear next step:

  • Call now
  • Fill out the form
  • Book a quote

Works well on phones: most people will see your page on a phone. It has to load fast and be easy to tap.

Proof:

  • Real reviews and testimonials
  • Before and after photos
  • Certifications and associations
  • Your Google Verified badge, if you have one

Landing page tools, if you don't have a website that can do this yet:

  • Unbounce: custom pages without coding
  • Leadpages: templates for local service businesses
  • GoHighLevel: CRM and landing pages in one
Out of 100 clicks, about 8 call or send a form. About 4 in 10 of those book a job.The contractor funnel on Google Ads: typical figures across published studies, agencies and our own campaigns.
People who see a search ad and click it 6.4 in 100
Clicks that call or send a form 8 in 100
Leads that turn into a booked job 42 in 100
Chart: Debut Marketing. Our analysis of 11 sources and our own campaigns13511202232. Each line is a median: clicks from five published figures, calls and forms from 10, bookings from seven.

Three contractor websites that get this right

These are sites we built. Each one puts the phone number and a quote button where a thumb can reach them, has a page for every service it wants more of, and loads quickly on a phone.

  • T City Developments

    Duplex and multiplex builder, Vancouver

    • On a phone, the first screen has a call button, the 5.0 Google rating and a "Check What My Lot Allows" button
    • Answers the first question every lot owner asks (what can I build?) before asking for anything
    • A separate page for each build type: duplexes, triplexes, laneway homes, garden suites and more
    • The main content showed in 1.4 seconds on our phone test

    #97 to #4 for "Vancouver duplex builders" in 30 days of SEO.

    tcitydevelopments.com Case study

  • Beyond The Brush Painters

    Residential painter, Vancouver

    • The first screen covers the usual worries: free estimates, $2M liability insurance, open 7 days and a written touch-up guarantee
    • A page for each of 7 services, from interiors to popcorn ceilings
    • Phone number in the menu bar on every page
    • The main content showed in 0.8 seconds on our phone test

    8 booked jobs from Google Ads in the 20 days after launch.

    btbpainters.com Case study

  • Vernon Concrete (Valley West Concrete)

    Concrete contractor, Vernon

    • "Free Quote" on the first screen, with the phone number in the menu on desktop
    • A page for each of 11 services, from driveways to retaining walls
    • Built for one town, so Google and AI tools know exactly where the company works

    #1 on Google and in AI answers in Vernon, about 12 extra leads a month, no ads.

    vernonconcrete.com Case study

Websites we built for clients. Checked September 29, 2026: homepages loaded on a simulated mid-range phone over 4G, with desktop checks for click-to-call, quote buttons and service pages.33

6. Set Up Conversion Tracking

If you can't track it, you can't grow it. Track:

  • Form submissions (quote requests and contact forms)
  • Phone calls from your ads and your website
  • Clicks on key buttons like "Book Estimate" or "Call Now"

Two tools you need:

Google Ads conversion tracking: tells Google when someone does something valuable. Install the Google tag or use Google Tag Manager.

Google Analytics 4: shows what people do before and after they convert. Link it to Google Ads for better reporting.

Tip: use a call-tracking tool like CallRail or WhatConverts so you know which ad or keyword each call came from. If you can, send booked jobs back into Google Ads so it learns which leads turn into work.

Then call every lead back fast. Tracking tells you a lead came in; the callback decides whether it becomes a job. Every study we looked at found the same thing: the first few minutes matter most.

Call back within 5 minutes: five studies, the same answerWhat happens to a lead as the callback slows down, and what customers expect.
Study What they measured What they found
InsideSales.com, 2021 5.7 million leads at 400+ companiesLeads called within 5 minutes converted 8 times as often as leads called after 6 minutes or more.
MIT and InsideSales.com, 2007 15,000+ leads and 100,000+ callsCalling within 5 minutes instead of 30 made reaching the person 100 times as likely and qualifying the lead 21 times as likely.
Harvard Business Review, 2011 2,241 US companiesCalling within an hour made qualifying the lead nearly 7 times as likely as calling an hour later. 23% of companies never called back.
Invoca, 2026 70 million+ calls to home service businessesOnly 52% of callers reached a person, and 55% of businesses didn't ask the caller to book.
Jobber, 2026 1,050 home service business ownersMore than 55% of customers expect a reply within the hour, and 28% expect one right away.
Chart: Debut Marketing. Our analysis of five sources718193435.

7. Use Location Targeting

Showing ads to people outside your service area is the most common waste in contractor accounts.

Target by city, postal code or radius: if you work within 25 km of Nanaimo, don't run ads across the whole province.

Exclude areas you don't serve: add distant towns as excluded locations.

Use your area in keywords and ads:

  • Keywords: "concrete driveways Nanaimo"
  • Ads: "Local Concrete Contractors Serving Nanaimo"

Add a location asset: link your Google Business Profile so your location and reviews can show with your ad.

8. Improve Your Campaign Every Week

Google Ads isn't set and forget. Ten to fifteen minutes a week makes a real difference. Check:

Search terms report: which searches triggered your ads? Add anything irrelevant as a negative keyword.

Click-through rate: about 6 in 100 people who see a contractor's search ad click it.131120 If fewer than 4 in 100 click yours, test new headlines.

Cost per click: if it's climbing, look for more specific keywords or improve your ads' quality.

Conversions: if leads drop, check your landing page and phone tracking first.

Weekly checklist:

  • Pause keywords that spend without leads
  • Add new negative keywords
  • Adjust bids based on cost and lead quality
  • Compare results on phones and computers
Worker pouring concrete from a pump hose
Grade your own Google Ads in five minutesPull these from your account and your phone. Canadian dollars, for contractors.
What to check Good OK Needs work
Cost per lead $121 or less$121 to $181Over $181
Ad spend per booked job $290 or less$290 to $435Over $435
Time to call a new lead back Under 5 minutesWithin the hourNext day or later
Leads that book a job 42 in 100 or more30 to 41 in 100Under 30 in 100
Clicks that call or send a form 8 in 100 or more5 to 7 in 100Under 5 in 100
Chart: Debut Marketing. Our analysis of 12 sources and our own campaigns11118202232. Good means at or better than the typical contractor figure; OK is up to 1.5 times worse.

9. Use Automation Carefully

Google keeps pushing more automation. Smart campaigns, the old simplified option for small businesses, are being phased out in favour of Performance Max, and Google now offers AI Max for Search, broad match and automatically created ads. These tools can work, but they need good data.

Where automation helps

  • Once you have steady, accurate conversion tracking
  • When you have enough leads each month for Google to learn from (roughly 30 or more)
  • For finding new searches you hadn't thought of

Where it hurts

  • New accounts with little or no conversion data
  • Small budgets, where a few bad clicks eat the month
  • Accounts that count low-value actions, like page views, as conversions

Our advice

Start with a standard Search campaign, phrase and exact match keywords, and solid tracking. Once it's working, test one automated feature at a time and watch the search terms report closely.

10. Retargeting

Most people don't reach out the first time they visit your site, especially for bigger projects. Retargeting keeps you in front of them while they decide.

What is retargeting?

It shows ads to people who clicked your ad or visited your site but didn't call or fill out a form. Think of it as a friendly reminder: "Still need that deck built this summer?"

Why it works for contractors

  • Keeps you visible during long decisions
  • Builds familiarity and trust
  • Costs less than reaching new people

How to set it up

  • Create an audience of website visitors in Google Ads
  • Make simple image or video ads that match your branding
  • Use a soft follow-up: "Still looking for a roofer? Get a quote today."
  • Start with $5 to $10 a day

Tip: pair retargeting with a time-limited offer, like "$200 off any fence project booked this month".

Where to start

Set up conversion tracking first. Then build one Search campaign for your best service in the area you serve, sent to a page about that service. Add Local Services Ads if your trade qualifies. Check the search terms every week, and after a month move money toward the keywords that book jobs.

Rather have it done for you? See how we run Google Ads for contractors, with our prices on the page.

Questions contractors ask

How much should a contractor spend on Google Ads?

Work back from the jobs you want: jobs, divided by the share of leads you book, times your cost per lead. At the typical $121 a lead, $2,000 a month buys about 17 leads and 7 booked jobs.111 Canadian agencies usually suggest starting at $1,500 to $4,500 a month.563639 Our Starter plan is built for ad budgets of $1,000 to $4,000 a month.

Are Local Services Ads better than Google search ads?

Per lead, usually: about $59 against $121 for search ads, in Canadian dollars.16891214 Search ads tend to bring bigger jobs, so most contractors run both.

What's the most common Google Ads mistake contractors make?

Sending clicks to the homepage and not tracking calls. Every campaign needs its own page and call tracking.

How often should I check my Google Ads?

Every week: search terms, negative keywords and cost per lead. Bigger changes once a month. The scorecard above covers the five numbers that matter.

Glossary

Cost per click (CPC)
What you pay Google each time someone clicks your ad.
Conversion rate
The share of clicks that become a call or a form.
Cost per lead (CPL)
Ad spend divided by the calls and forms it brought in.
Cost per booked job
Cost per lead divided by the share of leads you book. The number that decides whether ads pay.
Local Services Ads
Google's pay-per-lead ads with the Google Verified badge, shown above the search ads.
Negative keyword
A word you tell Google never to show your ad for, like "jobs" or "DIY".

How we put this together

Data
Debut Marketing's 2026 findings: 25 industry sources and our own campaigns, in Canadian dollars
A Google search lead
About $121 CAD
A booked job from search ads
About $290 CAD in ad spend
Updated
September 30, 2026

How we worked out the numbers. These are Debut Marketing's 2026 findings. We went through our own Google Ads campaigns and the published figures of 25 industry studies, ad platforms and marketing agencies, 9 of them Canadian, and took the typical figure (the median) for each number. Every source is listed under Sources. Sources that only repeat another study were left out, ranges count at their midpoint, and US figures convert to Canadian dollars at the Bank of Canada's 2025 average ($1 USD = $1.3978 CAD).40 Our own campaigns count only toward click, lead and booking rates. Cost per booked job divides the cost per lead by the share of leads that book. The scorecards call a result Good when it matches or beats the typical figure and OK when it's up to 1.5 times worse.

Our own numbers. Budgets, setups, scorecards and checklists are how we run contractor accounts. The website examples are sites we built for clients.33

What benchmarks can't tell you. Your town, your offer, your reviews and how fast you call back move every number. Use these as a starting point and judge your own results by booked jobs.

Cite this page

Striemer, E. (2026, October 4). Google Ads for Contractors: How-To Guide. Debut Marketing. https://debutmarketing.ca/contractor-google-ads-guide

The numbers on this page are Debut Marketing's 2026 findings. We combined our own campaign data with the studies, ad platforms and agencies listed under Sources, took the typical figure for each number and put it in Canadian dollars. You're welcome to use them: please credit Debut Marketing and link to this page.

Sources

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