Google Ads management, done right
Ads can put you in front of people searching for your trade today, without waiting to earn the ranking. We run your campaigns in an account you own, and the reporting says what you actually got for the money. Book a free demo and we'll show you what your searches cost in your suburb.
emergency plumber [your suburb]
Licensed & insured. On time, or we call ahead. Book online in 60 seconds.
31 calls · $19 a leadwhat the monthly report actually says
The slot is bid for, not earned — so it can work from the day the campaign is approved.
How Google Ads actually works — in plain English
Google Ads is an auction. When someone searches "emergency plumber [your suburb]", Google runs an instant auction among businesses bidding on that search, and the winners appear in the ad slots above the organic results. You pay only when someone clicks. Position is not simply for sale: Google ranks the auction on your bid together with how relevant it judges your ad and the page it lands on.
That's the power and the trap. Done well, you're buying real customers at the exact moment they're looking for you, with hard numbers on what each call cost. Done badly, with vague keywords, no negative keywords and no tracking, you are paying for clicks from people who wanted something else. And you cannot see it happening.
Management is the difference between the two. Not set-and-forget: ongoing keyword pruning, bid discipline, ad copy that matches what people search, and tracking that ties spend to phone calls, not just clicks.
Word of Mouth manages Google Ads the way we'd want ours managed. The account is created in your name and stays yours. Your budget goes to Google, all of it — the management fee is invoiced separately rather than skimmed out of your spend, and the whole scale is published further down this page instead of quoted privately. The monthly report says the only things that matter: what it cost, what it brought in, and what we're changing next.
What does a budget actually buy?
Google Ads is pay-per-click, so the maths is simple: budget divided by cost per click equals visits. Pick a monthly budget to see how it plays out.
Roughly 3–10 enquiries, if the site converts a typical 5–10% of visits
Workable in lower-cost industries and regional areas. In an expensive market this budget runs out before the campaign learns what converts. If that’s you, we’ll say so rather than take it.
Roughly 5–20 enquiries, if the site converts a typical 5–10% of visits
A sensible starting point for most local businesses. Enough traffic to learn which searches and suburbs turn into phone calls, then shift budget toward the winners.
Roughly 10–40 enquiries, if the site converts a typical 5–10% of visits
Room to compete for the expensive, high-urgency searches, the emergency and same-day work, where clicks cost the most and are worth the most.
These ranges are illustrative. A click can cost $3 in one trade and $30 in another, and clicks still have to be turned into calls. In the demo we pull the real costs and volumes for your searches, so you decide with your numbers rather than averages. Whatever you pick, 100% of it goes to Google — our management fee is invoiced separately, on the scale published below.
What we charge, in full.
Two numbers: what it costs to build, and what it costs to run. Both are here so there are no surprises later — and the more you spend, the smaller our share.
From $850 once-off setup + GST
Strategy and demand research for your trade and suburbs, the account and campaigns built in your name, keyword research and negative keywords, ads written and tested, conversion and call tracking wired up, then launch QA. Paid once, before anything goes live.
| Your monthly ad budget | Our management fee + GST | At the top of that band |
|---|---|---|
| Up to $10,000 Where you'd be starting | 15% minimum $350 | $1,500 |
| $10,000 – $25,000 | 12.5% | $3,125 |
| Over $25,000 | 10% or by arrangement | — |
There's a minimum because the work doesn't shrink when the budget does — setting up, weekly checking and reporting take the same effort either way. Under about $2,300 a month that minimum applies, so we earn nothing extra by talking you into a bigger budget; above it we do, which is why the rate falls as you go. And the budget we recommend comes from the demand, the competition and your own numbers, never from what would make our fee bigger. Sometimes the right answer is $600 a month — if the searches aren't there, we'll tell you rather than spend it.
We will look up what your customers actually search, free
Real search volumes and click costs for your trade in your suburbs, pulled live on the call, so you know what a sensible budget looks like before a dollar goes to Google.
- The searches people in your area really type, with volumes
- What a click costs in your trade, not a national average
- The honest minimum budget, including when that number is too high to bother
Free, about 20 minutes. You keep the numbers whether you go ahead or not.
What you get
Leads this month, not next quarter
Ads start showing the day campaigns go live. For a new or capacity-hungry business, it's the fastest route to the top of the page.
Your account, your asset
Campaigns are built in an account you own. Leave any time and everything — history, learnings, data — goes with you.
Spend that stays on target
Tight keyword match types, negative keywords, suburb-level targeting and budget caps — so the budget buys your customers, not everyone else's.
Calls counted, not clicks
Conversion and call tracking wired in from day one, so the report reads "31 calls, $19 a lead" instead of "12,000 impressions".
Everything included
- Keyword and competitor research for your industry and suburbs
- Campaigns built in a Google Ads account you own
- Ad copy written for your business, tested and refined
- Negative keywords and search-term pruning, ongoing
- Conversion and call tracking set up properly
- Budget caps you set — changed only with your say-so
- A monthly plain-English report: spend, clicks, calls, cost per lead
- No lock-in — pause or stop whenever you like
Every month, in plain English
Your ads this month
- Sixty-three wasted search terms added as negative keywords
- Budget shifted from Ascot to Newstead, where calls cost half as much
- Two new ad variations tested against the best performer
What’s next. Emergency jobs convert three times better than quotes. We are moving more of the budget there.
of people who search for something nearby on a phone visit a business that day
Think with Google, 2016of your ad budget goes to Google. The management fee is invoiced separately, never taken out of your spend
Our termslock-in contracts. Pause or stop your campaigns whenever you like
Our terms- 01Scope the opportunity
We look up what your target searches cost and how often they happen in your area, and agree a budget that can actually win them.
- 02Build it properly
Campaigns, ad copy, suburb targeting, negative keywords and call tracking, all set up in an account created in your name.
- 03Launch and mind it
We watch the search terms your money is actually buying and prune the waste, week by week.
- 04Report in plain English
Every month: what you spent, what it returned, what we're changing. If the numbers say ads aren't your best channel, we'll say that too.
Is Google Ads right for you? Be honest — we will be.
Ads work brilliantly for some businesses and burn money for others. These are the questions that separate the two.
Do people search Google when they need your service?
Then the top of that page is for sale, and someone in your area is probably buying it right now.
If your customers come by referral or word of mouth only, search ads have nothing to catch. We'll tell you that on the call rather than take the fee.
Can you handle more enquiries right now?
Good — then it can scale. Where there is more profitable demand to buy, more budget captures more of it. Where there is not, we will tell you that instead of spending it.
Then fix capacity first. Paying for calls you can't answer is the fastest way to waste a budget and your reputation.
Do you have a realistic monthly budget for clicks?
Then it can work hard. Your whole budget goes to Google — management is invoiced separately, starting at $350 a month + GST.
Below a sensible minimum for your industry, ads run out of budget before they learn what converts. We'll tell you the honest number for your suburb in the demo — and if it's out of reach, SEO or reviews are the better first move.
Every rate published
- The Google Ads account is yours. You keep it if you leave
- Your budget goes straight to Google — the fee is invoiced separately, not taken out of it
- Every rate is printed on the page, and our share falls as your budget grows
The usual arrangement
Quoted on the call
- The account is opened under the provider's login rather than yours
- The rate is not published, so what growth costs you is a conversation rather than a number
- Reporting that counts impressions rather than phone calls
Wondering how the price works? Read why our pricing is different.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Google Ads management cost?
Two things: a once-off setup from $850 + GST to research, build, track and launch the account, then management from $350 a month + GST. Management is 15% of your ad budget up to $10,000 a month with a $350 minimum, 12.5% from $10,000 to $25,000, and 10% above that. At the budget most local businesses start on the minimum is what applies, so it is $350 a month whether you spend $600 or $2,300. Both numbers are on this page rather than saved for the call.
What's the minimum ad budget that makes sense?
It depends on what a click costs in your industry and area — an emergency plumber in a capital city pays more per click than a picture framer in a regional town. As a rule of thumb, if the budget can't buy a few clicks a day, the campaign never learns what converts. In the demo we'll pull the real numbers for your searches and give you an honest minimum — and if ads don't stack up at your budget, we'll recommend where the money works harder.
Do I own the Google Ads account?
Yes — it's created in your name, on your billing, and it stays yours. If you ever leave, the account, its history and everything it has learned go with you. That's not the industry norm, which is exactly why we lead with it.
How fast will I see results?
Ads can start showing within days of launch. That is their whole advantage over SEO. Expect the first month to be part performance, part learning: we're finding out which searches, suburbs and ads actually turn into calls, then shifting budget toward the winners.
Can you guarantee a result?
No. Anyone who guarantees leads at a set price before seeing your market is guessing. What we guarantee is the discipline: tracked calls, pruned waste, capped budgets, and a monthly report honest enough to fire us with. No lock-in means that report has to earn the next month.
Should I do SEO or Google Ads first?
Ads if you need calls now; SEO if you're building the asset that eventually makes those calls free. They compound together — ads reveal which searches convert, which sharpens the SEO — but if the budget only stretches to one, we'll look at your suburb in the demo and tell you which, straight.
See what your searches cost in 20 minutes
We'll look up the real search volumes and click costs for your industry and suburb, live — so you know what a sensible budget looks like before spending a dollar.
Free, about 20 minutes, with a real person. You’ll get the fee in writing on the call.