The Electrician's Guide to Running PPC Ads That Actually Bring In Paying Customers

Staying profitable as an electrician requires generating a steady stream of hot leads you can turn into paying customers, but being a highly skilled electrician isn’t enough. You need a strategy to put your services in front of potential customers precisely when they need electrical work, and that’s what pay-per-click (PPC) ads are for.

Pay-per-click advertising gives you a direct route to the top of search results, ensuring visibility exactly when potential clients are actively seeking your services. And unlike traditional advertising, PPC ads can use precision targeting to reach leads that are most likely to convert.

As of 2024, the average conversion rate for Google Ads was 6.96%, which is considered above average. With a high conversion rate and plenty of users, it makes sense to run ads on Google. It’s also worth looking at other platforms, like Facebook and Bing (Microsoft Ads).

Although many businesses get results, success is not automatic. Running a PPC ad campaign can be a great source of leads, but it can also become a money pit if you don’t do it correctly. Here’s what you need to know when your goal is to generate paying customers through PPC without wasting your marketing budget.

Pay-Per-Click advertising basics

Before diving into specific strategies, it’s important to understand the basics of PPC ads. PPC is an advertising model where you pay a fee every time someone clicks on your ad. It’s a quick way to get traffic to your website. And unlike search engine optimization (SEO), you’ll start seeing results immediately. Generally speaking, the system will display your ads for users who search for phrases related to the keywords you designate. If they click, you pay.

Why is PPC effective for electricians?

Electrical work is a competitive market, and unless you have a huge marketing budget for SEO, it’s hard to get visibility in the search results. Running paid ads on Google and social media platforms bypasses the need to pay for SEO to start getting traffic. Since ads show up at the top of the search results, leads looking for electrical services will see your ad right away. And when you target the right keywords and phrases, you’ll catch leads who need your services now.

Now let’s get into how to build a successful PPC campaign.

Set clear goals for your PPC campaign

Clear objectives are the foundation of every PPC campaign, so set advertising goals that align with your business goals. For example, it could be as simple as figuring out how many new customers you want each month and then setting goals to acquire that many new customers through PPC ads.

Research keywords to target the right search queries

Targeting the right search queries is arguably one of the most important aspects of running a PPC ad campaign. Not all keywords related to electrical work will generate paying clients. You want to focus on phrases that indicate a strong intent to hire, like “emergency electrician near me” or “licensed electrician in [city].” Some other examples include:

• “Residential electrician”
• “Commercial electrician”
• “24 hour electrician”
• “Electrical contractor”
• “Electrician services”
• “Same day electrician”
• “House rewire”
• “Electrical inspection”
• “Electrical maintenance”

You can create variations of these phrases with other phrases like “near me” or using zip codes, counties, and cities.

Once you have a list of keywords and phrases to target, you’ll also want to build a list of negative keywords. Negative keywords are terms you want to exclude so your ads don’t show up for those searches. These are terms that are going to waste your ad spend if you get clicks. Some examples include:

• “DIY”
• “How to”
• “Free”
• “Discount”
• Other services, like “HVAC,” “handyman,” “plumbing,” and “drywall”
• Informational queries, like “how to wire an outlet” or “wiring diagrams”

It also helps to add negative keywords for cities, zip codes, or neighborhoods you don’t service, especially if they’re within your general area. If you want a deeper walkthrough of building this list out, our complete guide to negative keywords in Google Ads covers the process step by step.

Craft compelling ad copy

Your ads need to resonate with your ideal lead, so your copy matters. You need a strong headline to capture attention and a compelling call-to-action (CTA) that gets them to click. A strong CTA can increase your click-through rate by 2.8%.

You already know your best leads need electrical work, but you still need to write convincing copy that creates a sense of urgency. For example, you could emphasize what sets your services apart, like having 24/7 availability. Your CTA should encourage immediate action, and the following phrases are a great place to start:

• Call now for a free estimate
• Call now to schedule your service
• Book now
• Get a free quote
• Call now for immediate service

Well-crafted copy will get you more clicks from customers who will actually sign up for your services and become paying customers. For more ways to structure a click-worthy call to action, see our call-to-action best practices for PPC landing pages.

An example of good ad copy that will generate clicks from people who need your services:

“Need fast, reliable electrical repairs? Licensed electricians. Same-day service available. No hidden fees. Call now for a free quote!”

An example of ad copy that may attract casual interest:

“Fast, affordable service. Licensed and insured electricians. Call us today.”

Use the right visuals

The images you use with your ads matter just as much as the copy, but don’t go overboard trying to capture attention with chaotic or random images. Sometimes the best imagery is just bold text with a simple visual. If you aren’t sure what images to use, test some out and see for yourself.

Use retargeting to reengage leads

Retargeting, also called remarketing, is when you show ads only to people who have previously interacted with your ads or visited your website. Remarketing will keep warm leads aware of your services and can eventually get them to convert. Sometimes people need to see ads from the same company or advertising the same service a handful of times before they’ll convert.

The best part about retargeting is being able to craft your ads with different messages that only retargeting leads will see. This allows you to employ some advanced marketing strategies that utilize highly specific copy.

Use social proof in your ads

Trust is one of the top factors that a homeowner uses to hire an electrician. According to a Podium study, 93% of customers say online reviews impact their decision to buy. Take advantage of this and include customer testimonials in your ads. It will show prospects that other people have had positive experiences with your company and are satisfied with your services. Give people a reason to feel good about clicking your ad or calling you right away.

Get activity on your Facebook ads

We just covered the importance of social proof, and getting activity on your Facebook ads can be an extension of that. This works best for local companies that have an active presence in their community, so if you don’t already have a following, you’ll need to create one first.

If you have a decent amount of followers on Facebook, and you interact with people in your community through your business page, engage with people on posts about your services and then boost those posts to turn them into ads. Boosted posts work a little differently than ads, but the result is the same – locals will see them, and the more positive engagement you have on those posts, the better it makes you look.

Design effective landing pages

Strong, compelling ad copy is important, but once people click on your ad, your landing page is responsible for converting them into a phone call. An effective landing page has the following elements and qualities:

• The content matches the ad’s message and offer, creating a seamless experience
• It’s not your homepage (homepages are too general)
• Specific copy that speaks directly to your customer’s needs
• A clear CTA that instructs the user to act now
• A clearly visible phone number
• Trust signals, like badges and certifications, testimonials, and customer reviews

Target local customers

Your services are location specific, so make sure your ads reach the right geographic audience. Whatever platforms you advertise on, set your ads to reach people in your service area, whether it’s done by zip codes, specific cities, or a set radius around your main address.

Set a realistic budget

You don’t need to spend a fortune, but you do need to set a decent daily budget to get seen. By fine-tuning your keywords and phrases, you can ensure you don’t waste your ad spend. Begin by setting your daily budget to at least $50 per day, if not $100. If you go lower than $50, your ads won’t show up as often (because you’ll be outbid by other electricians) and that will mean fewer clicks.

Employ the right bidding strategies

When you’re new to PPC, you’ll need time to play with your bidding strategies to see what works. Your options include manual CPC, enhanced CPC, and automated bidding strategies like target CPA.

• Manual CPC: You set the maximum amount you’re willing to pay for each click. This seems easy at first, but it limits you in the end. You’ll need to babysit your bids constantly or you risk overpaying or underbidding and never getting seen. This method works best if you know the exact worth of a click.
• Enhanced CPC: With this method, you still set your bids manually, but the ad platform will nudge your bids up or down depending on whether the system thinks a click is more or less likely to convert. The system uses past conversion data to make these decisions, but it’s not perfect.
• Automated bidding: This method gives the system total control over your cost per click. You basically tell the ad platform what you want to pay for each lead and it will increase your bids up to that amount if it thinks a user is highly likely to convert. If a particular user is less likely to convert, the system will either lowball the bid or skip the auction altogether. This method saves time and scales better, but can waste your budget if you don’t have proper tracking and keywords.

If you’re still new to PPC, stick to manual CPC. However if you’ve been using PPC for a while then enhanced PPC might make sense. And unless you’re a PPC pro, it’s best to skip the automated bidding or hire a marketing agency.

Monitor your ad performance

You can’t improve what you aren’t tracking. A successful PPC campaign rests on how well you track your efforts. From the start, monitor your click-through rate (CTR), conversion rates, and cost per conversion to know how your ads are performing — our guide to what makes a good click-through rate in Google Ads is a solid benchmark to track against. It’s equally important to split test your ads to test different ad headlines, images, copy, CTAs, and even landing pages.

Use ad extensions

Ad extensions are extra bits of information you can add that make them more enticing without paying more per click. For example, on some platforms, you can add a phone number, your location, a list of services, or special offers without having to cram everything into your main ad text. One big benefit of this feature is that Google rewards ads that it thinks are more useful with better positions and a lower cost per click — a signal closely tied to your Google Ads Quality Score.

Types of PPC ad extensions include:

• Sitelink extensions. Adds extra clickable links under your main ad that can be used to direct leads to your highest-converting landing pages. For example: “Electrical Repairs | Panel Upgrades | Emergency Services | Free Estimates”
• Call extensions. Adds your phone number to your ad. On mobile, users can click to call you. These ads should only be run during business hours since it will generate phone calls.
• Location extensions. Shows your business address and a map link. It will boost your credibility if you link your Google Business Profile in this type of ad.
• Callout extensions. This adds short, non-clickable text snippets that highlight features. For example: “Licensed & Insured” | “Same-Day Service” | “No Hidden Fees”
• Structured snippet extensions. These are similar to callouts, but are grouped under a main header like “Services.” This is great to show leads the variety of services you offer. For example, a “Services” header might list “Wiring, Rewiring, Electrical Inspections, Smart Home Installation”
• Price extensions. This will show the price of a specific package or service. For example: “Electrical Inspection – Starting at $99”
• Promotion extensions. This highlights sales or special deals, like limited-time offers or holiday discounts. Promotions are great when you include a deadline to create a sense of urgency.

Ad extensions can help you get more clicks, boost your ad rank, reduce your cost per click, filter your traffic, and boost your trustworthiness. At the very least, you should be using sitelinks, call extensions, and callouts. For the full rundown of every extension type and when to use them, check out our guide to Google ad extensions.

Already running a PPC ad campaign? Get an audit

Getting a PPC audit will help you get better results. If you’re unsure about your strategy, experimenting, or you aren’t getting good results, an audit from a professional PPC agency can help you pinpoint exactly what isn’t working and offer a more effective strategy.

Dominate your local market with PPC.co

Generating leads with PPC doesn’t require throwing mountains of cash at Google and hoping for the best. It’s about reaching the right people at the right time – people who need electrical work now – with a message that gets them to call you. Done right, paid ads will bring you a steady stream of hot leads, booked jobs, and predictable cash flow.

At PPC.co, we specialize in building high-performing PPC campaigns for electricians who want to grow their business. When you work with us, we’ll craft ads that attract people ready to hire you today.

Ready to see how it works? Contact us today to request a free proposal. You don’t need more clicks – you need more calls. Let’s make it happen.