Paid search is the menu group you buy when calls can't wait. It covers six line items: Google Local Services Ads, Google Search campaigns, Microsoft Advertising, Meta campaigns, retargeting and weather-based budget pacing. Each one can produce calls within days of launch. None of them is worth running without call tracking in place first, because a paid channel you can't measure is just a monthly bill.
What each line item does
Short answer: Local Services Ads buy leads, search ads buy clicks, and the rest support or extend them.
Google Local Services Ads (LSA)
These ads appear above regular search ads for some local service searches, and you pay per lead rather than per click. Before they run, Google checks your business, which can include licences, insurance and background screening depending on your trade and area. We prepare the paperwork, write your profile, set your job types and hours, and review every lead weekly so poor-fit leads are flagged through Google's process.
Google Search campaigns
Search ads let you choose exactly which searches you pay for. We build tight campaigns around jobs that make money: no-heat calls, furnace and boiler replacement, heat-pump quotes, AC repair in summer. Negative keywords keep out job seekers, DIY researchers and parts buyers.
Microsoft Advertising
A smaller audience than Google, but often worth a controlled test once Google is tracked and profitable. We import your best campaigns and judge them separately.
Meta campaigns
Facebook and Instagram don't capture urgent searches, but they work for offers people didn't know they wanted: a maintenance-plan launch, a spring tune-up, a replacement financing message. We use them for those jobs only.
Retargeting
Most visitors leave without calling. Retargeting shows them a short reminder for a limited window, which matters for replacement buyers who compare three quotes.
Weather-based pacing
A cold snap can triple no-heat searches overnight. We set budget rules so spend rises when demand does and falls back when your schedule is full.
Who it's for
Short answer: companies with capacity to take more jobs now, and with someone who answers the phone. Paid search suits you if:
- you have open slots in the schedule and need them filled this month
- you're entering a new town and SEO hasn't caught up yet
- you want to sell a specific job type, such as heat pumps, harder than organic search allows
It doesn't suit you if calls already go to voicemail at peak times. More ads will only mean more missed calls, so we fix lead handling first.
Timeline
Short answer: days to launch, about a month to learn, a quarter to judge.
- Week 1: account audit or setup, conversion tracking, call tracking numbers, first campaigns.
- Weeks 2–4: LSA verification where eligible, negative keyword clean-up, first lead reviews.
- Months 2–3: bid and budget changes based on booked jobs, landing page tests with the website group.
- Month 3 onward: steady optimisation, seasonal pacing, a decision on Microsoft and Meta tests.
How we measure it
Short answer: cost per booked job, by campaign. Clicks and impressions are inputs. The numbers we report are tracked calls, booked jobs (from your field software or call review), cost per booked job, and revenue where you share it. We also send booked-job data back to Google Ads, so its bidding learns from jobs, not from any call that lasts thirty seconds.
A worked check: if you spend $4,000 in a month, receive 80 tracked calls, and book 32 of them, each booked job cost $125. If your average first job is worth $450 in margin and one in five becomes a plan member or replacement later, you can see whether that $125 is cheap or expensive for your business.
Disciplined paid lead generation shows up in our HVAC work: HVACDeal.ca produced 500+ leads at a 12:1 ROI.
Mistakes to avoid
Short answer: most wasted ad spend comes from five habits.
- Sending ads to the home page. A no-heat searcher wants a no-heat page with a phone number at the top.
- Broad match with no negatives. You'll pay for "HVAC jobs", "furnace filter sizes" and "how to bleed a radiator".
- Counting every call as a conversion. Sales calls and wrong numbers then train Google to find more of them.
- Fixed monthly budgets. Spending evenly through a mild week and a cold snap wastes the first and starves the second.
- Ignoring LSA lead quality. Poor-fit leads that nobody flags are leads you simply pay for.
See how this group fits into a plan on the pricing page, or compare it with other groups on the services menu.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between Local Services Ads and regular Google Ads?
Local Services Ads charge per lead and sit at the very top of some local results, after Google runs its own checks on your business. Regular search ads charge per click and give you far more control over keywords, ad text and landing pages. Most HVAC companies that qualify run both.
Are Local Services Ads available everywhere in Canada?
Not for every trade in every area, and eligibility rules change. Google publishes current availability and verification requirements in its own help pages, and we check them for your area before we plan any budget.
How much should we spend on ads?
Work backwards from jobs. Decide how many extra booked jobs you want, divide by your booking rate to get calls, then multiply by a realistic cost per call in your market. We give you that number in the trial before you spend anything.
Should we bid on competitors' names?
It can work, but it often produces poor-quality calls and annoyed competitors. We test it only when there's a clear reason, and we never use a competitor's trademark in ad text.