No matter how long you’ve been running your PPC ads, you can always increase conversions just a little bit more. Sometimes that will involve tweaking your copy, your images, and the placement of page elements, and other times that will involve adjusting your target audience. When your goal is to increase your PPC conversions, you need to focus on landing page optimization and run a comprehensive landing page testing process.
To start getting better results, here are 8 PPC landing page tests you can run. Incorporating split testing into your strategy can help you compare different versions of your page to determine which one performs better. By testing landing pages systematically, you’ll identify changes that can drive significant improvements in your campaign’s overall performance.
Dynamic landing pages are essentially PPC landing pages that automatically change their content based on user input, like keywords, location, and more. This makes it easy to create a personalized experience for your visitors without having to create hundreds of PPC landing pages that perfectly match all possible combinations of your dynamic keywords.
When you start testing your PPC ad landing pages with dynamic landing pages, you’ll be able to tell which pages are converting better based on dynamic keywords being generated from your Google Ads. This will give you better insight into the efficacy of your ads and will help you learn more about your target market.
How many options do you give your visitors on your own landing pages? Do you have one product they can buy with a single click, or do your customers have to make a selection from a variety of options and variants?
At first glance, you might think giving your customers more options will generate more sales, but that’s not what the data says. In fact, if you’re not generating the sales you want, offering too many options could be what’s standing in the way. Landing page conversion rates often drop when too many choices are presented.
You’ve likely heard of “analysis paralysis” – the inability to make a decision when you’re presented with an overload of information. This occurs when someone is afraid of making the wrong decision and foregoing the ideal solution. When it comes to generating sales, giving prospects too many choices can result in analysis paralysis, and will actually cause more people to walk away than buy from you.
This phenomenon was demonstrated in 2000 in what has been dubbed “The Jam Experiment.” In this experiment, shoppers at Draeger’s Supermarket were given the opportunity to sample different flavors of Wilkin & Sons jams during two different sampling sessions hosted on different days. During the first session, shoppers were given 24 flavors to choose from, and during the second session, they were given just 6 flavors to choose from. The display with 24 flavors attracted more attention but resulted in one-tenth fewer sales. In other words, more people bought jam when they had fewer choices.
If this is what happened with something as simple as jam, imagine how an abundance of choices could be impacting your ability to sell important, high-ticket products and services.
Have you ever wondered why the fast-food chain In-N-Out Burger does so well without selling franchises or going public? Sure, they have amazing service and their food is good, but you can say that about a lot of businesses. From a marketing perspective, In-N-Out derives their success from having a simple menu consisting of burgers, fries, and drinks. However, unlike other burger joints you’ll only find three burgers on the menu: a hamburger, a cheeseburger, and a double cheeseburger.
While it’s true that a short menu tends to lower the spend per sales ticket, it increases the speed of service, which increases customer satisfaction and generates loyalty. After all, many people admit to driving for hours just to visit a newly opened In-N-Out Burger. Some have even waited in line for twelve hours to buy their food.
The lesson here is that people don’t want too many choices, and you’ll generate more sales by limiting the number of choices you offer to boost your lead generation efforts.
Your call-to-action (CTA) is more important than you might realize. Not only does your CTA entice people to click, but it can also influence whether or not visitors follow through with filling out your web forms.
For example, Culligan, a company that sells water filtration devices, experimented with their CTA by testing two variations. The first said “Get a Quote” and the second said “Get Pricing.” While both of these phrases mean the same thing, the results demonstrated the importance of matching visitor expectations. The page that used “Get a Quote” as the CTA saw 104% more form submissions. Why?
It’s because “Get a Quote” implies that the visitor will be asked to fill out a form with their information so they can talk to a service rep and get a personalized quote. “Get Pricing” implies that by clicking, the user will be taken to a page listing all the prices for various services. When asked to fill out a form, many users who expected immediate pricing ended up bouncing.
Check your CTA copy and really think about what you’re telling the user with your choice of words. There is a reason some CTAs convert better than others, and it’s not always because the copy is more persuasive – sometimes it’s because certain CTAs create a disconnect between the user’s expectations and reality. Make sure your CTAs create an accurate picture of what users can expect after they click.
What’s going on in the world that people are going to know about? Incorporate some current events into your PPC search ads to capture attention and see if you can get conversions. If you can come up with a clever search ad that is related to current events, like sports matches or upcoming national holidays, you’ll probably win some people over just by being clever.
Experiment with ads that play off of local events, local culture, holidays, and more. If you don’t have any ideas, consult with a professional PPC marketing agency because creating Google Ads like this is exactly what they do for their clients.
Your PPC landing pages should be extremely simple and users should intuitively know how to navigate, read, and understand what you want them to do next. If you have any page elements that get in the way of this process, you’ll want to eliminate them no matter what. For example, you could have the most beautiful slider at the top of your page that showcases brilliant photos of your products, but sliders have been shown to create resistance for visitors and they are a hindrance to conversions.
The problem with sliders is easy to see. The images change faster than visitors can take in the information they’re trying to read. Even if your slider doesn’t change that quickly, people are so used to nuisance sliders that they’ll just automatically start scrolling down the page when they see a slider.
Other page elements that can be difficult include pop-ups that open in a new window (these are largely forbidden by PPC platforms), pop-ups that aren’t easy to close, and videos without controls that prevent the user from pausing the video.
Check in with your landing pages to see if you have any elements that might be distracting or annoying to visitors and if anything looks like it might be in the way of getting conversions, make a new page and remove the element and test them both to see which page converts better.
Pop-ups are okay to use on landing pages with PPC ads as long as they are overlays and not new windows/tabs. Whether you already have pop-ups, or you’re just about to add some to your landing pages, make sure you spend a significant amount of time creating your campaigns.
Pop-ups are worth continually refining until they are pixel-perfect in terms of landing page design and size. You’ll also want to work on simplifying the copy. For example, avoid having paragraphs worth of text on a pop-up – most people won’t read that much copy. Use a short, powerful headline with a subheading, but limit the copy to a few lines.
Concerning the information, you ask for in your pop-ups, consider asking only for a first name and email address. If having a subscriber’s last name will help you in the future, then ask for a last name. However, if you’re only going to communicate with people online through email, a first name is all you need, and you’ll get more signups by asking only for a first name. However, some marketers have found that they get even better results by not asking for a name at all, and only asking for an email address. If a name is needed, they can use progressive profiling to get it later.
Which method is right for you? The only way to know is to run some experiments to test all of your options. However, if you’re not going to use progressive profiling, be sure to ask for at least a first name so you can get the higher open rates from sending out emails with personalized subject lines.
Many years ago, long form sales pages dominated the internet because everything was so new. Some speculate that long content made the business look more like an authority, especially when the content was full of good information. However, that was a time when people were primarily viewing websites from desktop computers. Today, most people are on mobile devices when viewing web pages, and long content is hard to read on mobile devices.
Sometimes long form sales pages are effective today, but not always. The only way to know how your content will perform in long vs. short forms is by testing it out yourself. However, remember that the key to generating conversions by shortening your content is to put your signup form or buy button front-and-center for your visitors. Go with a minimalist design to eliminate visual clutter and focus visitor attention on your signup form.
You can create landing pages that have a condensed version of your content on top with the extended version down below. Experiment with all of these options to see what works best for you.
If your product or service is used by people in different industries, then you need landing pages designed specifically to reach those individual markets. For example, you might run the same PPC ad for a variety of audiences, and that can work. However, you need individual, customized landing pages for each of your target audiences.
Elements to customize on each landing page include:
According to Unbounce, the highest converting landing pages have several key elements: compelling headings, a single and focused CTA, a clear value proposition, clear features and benefits, and testimonials or social proof. These elements should be present on all of your landing pages, but the content should change based on the target audience. You can also use a landing page builder to quickly create multiple pages for A/B testing purposes and multiple PPC landing page examples.
These are just a few ideas for what elements you can test to increase your PPC ad conversions in various search engines. As long as your conversion rates are below 100%, there is room for improvement. Never stop testing your Google Ads and landing pages; there’s always something you can adjust to squeeze out some more conversions.
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When you’re a plumber relying on a steady flow of leads to be profitable, it’s not enough to get your leads through word-of-mouth alone. That may work if you’re only a two-person team, but if you plan to grow your business, you’ll need to start marketing your services, specifically with PPC advertising.
Pay-per-click (PPC) ads are a beneficial form of advertising, but they can be a source of leads or a money pit for plumbers. When done right, PPC helps plumbing companies generate targeted leads looking for services, but poorly-crafted PPC campaigns can burn through a budget without results. The good news is with smart targeting, strategic bidding, and continual optimization, plumbers can generate qualified leads at a cost that provides a positive ROI. Here’s how pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is done for lead generation for plumbing businesses.
The biggest mistake plumbers make is targeting a broad area rather than a specific local area. Hitting your target audience by demographic and location will be critical to be most efficient in your PPC ad spend. Even when your company serves customers throughout several counties, you’ll want to create ad campaigns that target each individual city or county. If your ads are reaching people outside of your service area, you’re paying for clicks that won’t turn into paying customers.
An easy way to prevent this problem is to use location targeting inside of your PPC account to set your target location by zip codes, cities, or a custom radius around your main location. This will ensure your ads will only be seen by leads you can actually convert.
You’ll also want to explicitly exclude areas you don’t serve. For example, you might serve a whole county with the exception of a couple cities or neighborhoods because of traffic congestion or licensing issues. Make sure to add these locations as exclusions in your ad campaign settings to avoid wasting money.
The keywords that will bring you the best leads are keywords that signal high intent to purchase. This includes terms like “emergency plumber near me,” “24-hour plumber,” “toilet overflowing fix,” or “fix for busted pipe.” The people who search for these terms aren’t just casual browsers. They’re people who need a plumber immediately.
This type of expert keyword research isn't necessarily rocket science, but it's critical for your rankings in search engine results pages.
Prioritize these keywords and increase your bid to capture more of these leads.
Avoid using the kinds of keywords that will attract people who aren’t likely to hire you for plumbing services. For example, terms like “DIY toilet repair” or “how to fix (fixture)” will rarely lead to calls. People who search for these phrases are usually just looking for ways to fix their own problem, so filter them out.
When people need a plumber, they want to call and get someone out fast, especially if their basement is flooding or they’re dealing with a busted pipe in the house. Google offers call-only ads that let users tap to call you immediately from search results rather than click to visit your website, where they’d need to search for a way to contact you. This ad type alone will increase your conversions.
It’s crucial to use ad tracking tools like Google’s call forwarding or third-party platforms that track which ads generate your phone calls. Knowing what ads are driving your best leads will help you do more of what works and eliminate what doesn’t.
Since most leads will want to call you immediately, only schedule your ads to run when you’ll be available to answer the phone. If you don’t offer 24/7 emergency services and don’t answer your phone at 2 AM, don’t schedule your ads to run until the start of your business day.
Depending on your location and services, you might get more calls on weekdays or weekends. To find out your peak, check your reports to see when you’re getting the most calls and then adjust when you run your ads based on your actual performance data.
Don’t create complicated, wordy ads. Use simple, clear, and direct headlines that speak directly to the problems your leads may be dealing with. They’re going to be drawn to ads that promise to help them with real problems. For example, write headlines like “Broken water heater? Get 24/7 help,” “Clogged drains fixed fast,” and “Overflowing toilet? Get help now.”
In your ad copy, it helps to use location-specific phrases. For example, you might write “Serving Phoenix homes since 2001.” Doing this helps build trust and establishes relevancy.
For Google Ads that send visitors directly to your website, you’ll need to optimize your landing pages for conversion. The following elements are essential:
· Landing page copy that matches your ad. To create a seamless experience, don’t send leads to your home page. Send them to a landing page that matches your ad. For example, if your ad targets people with a clogged drain, ensure your landing page speaks to people with a clogged drain.
· An easy-to-find phone number. Your phone number should be readily visible on every page of your website, including all of your landing pages. The ideal place is in the top right corner of every page header.
· A click-to-call button. It’s easier for mobile leads to click to bring up your phone number in their dial pad rather than forcing them to write down a phone number they’ll need to then dial.
· A call-to-action (CTA). Leads need to be told what to do. Be direct and tell them to call you now for an estimate or to schedule a service call.
Your search ads will only bring you potential leads. Your landing pages are responsible for converting potential customers into paying customers.
To maximize your ROI without wasting money, you’ll want to set a realistic daily budget and scale it only when you know you’re ready. Most local service providers stick with a $10-$50/day budget, but it depends on the industry and your location.
Over time, you’ll find that some campaigns are working better than others. A varied performance can be caused by a variety of factors, and you’ll need to take a close look before making any changes. For example, underperforming keywords and plumbing ads that don’t get many clicks should be paused. However, if your ads are getting clicks, but limited conversions, you’ll want to tweak your landing page copy and/or your offer.
Sometimes irrelevant keyword searches will display your ads, so if you can come up with a list of keywords related to services you don’t provide, you can limit where your ads show up. For example, if you don’t offer sewer camera inspections, make “sewer camera” a negative keyword. If you don’t service septic systems, make “septic” a negative keyword. Doing this will prevent clicks from irrelevant leads.
Local Service Ads appear at the top of Google’s search results above the typical PPC text ads and organic listings. LSAs are pay-per-lead, not pay-per-click, which makes them even more profitable. With LSAs, you only pay when a lead contacts you directly through your ad, either by calling you or messaging you. This is a much safer way to manage your ad spend and generate qualified leads. It’s also an easier way to capture bottom-of-the-funnel leads who need emergency plumbing services.
To set up these ads, head over to Google’s LSA page and click “get started.” You’ll be prompted to go through the setup process, which includes confirming your business eligibility. To complete the process, you’ll need your business license, general liability insurance proof, and at least one Google Business Profile with positive reviews. The system will then ask you to choose the zip codes or cities you serve, list the types of services you provide, and set your weekly budget. Once you submit the form and pass Google’s screening process, you’ll start showing up in results for searches related to your business.
Try to get as many positive reviews on your Google Business Profile as possible since businesses with better reviews tend to rank higher with Local Service Ads. Also, keep in mind that Google tracks your response times, and the faster you reply, the better placement you’ll get. Unlike PPC ads, you can request refunds from leads that aren’t relevant, like leads requesting the wrong services or who are outside your service area.
It’s important to take advantage of these ads because it’s an easy way to get your business listed at the top of search results pages when people search for terms like “plumber near me.” It’s easier than waiting months for SEO to kick in, and it will bring you immediate leads. People will see your reviews and your Google Guaranteed badge, which will boost your credibility.
Getting your business verified by Google will give you a green checkmark next to your business name in your Local Service Ads. It tells customers that Google has personally verified your business, you’ve passed a background check, your insurance has been verified, and Google Ads will back your services with up to $2,000 in reimbursement if a customer isn’t satisfied with your services.
Getting this badge can boost your visibility and credibility, which can get you more clicks, leads, and paying customers. It will also help you rank higher in the list of LSAs.
To get this green checkmark, you need to get approved for Google LSAs. Once you’re approved for LSAs, you’ll get the “Google Guaranteed” checkmark badge automatically. Just make sure you renew your insurance policy on time, maintain a high review rating, and keep responding to leads quickly. If you don’t maintain these things, Google Ads might remove your badge.
You can’t improve what you don’t track. Track your critical metrics, including call tracking, form tracking, and chat tracking. Run regular reports and check in with your ad campaign performance on a regular basis. It will take a little bit of time to gather enough data to make informed decisions, but the sooner you catch underperforming ads, the sooner you can make necessary changes.
It’s important to split test ads to see what elements drive the most conversions. Split testing, also called A/B testing, is where you run two nearly identical ads, but with one small difference between them. The difference could be a headline, colors, an image, the main copy, or the CTA. Once you run the ads long enough, take the winning ad and change one more element to test. Repeat this process by changing just one element at a time to see which version performs better. Use Google keyword planner to help navigate this. When done correctly, your clicks should increase over time.
Getting satisfied customers to review you is crucial, and as previously discussed, it can impact how your Local Service Ads show up. Reviews can also impact how you show up in the Local Pack. The more high-quality, genuine, recent reviews you have, the more likely you are to show up in search results. You’re also more likely to get clicks.
Positive reviews act as social proof that helps customers choose which business to call. You could have the best ad copy in the world, but if your competitor has 150 five-star reviews and you only have 6 reviews from 2019, customers will choose them over you.
It’s easy to get clicks, but getting real leads from search engines– the kind that book your plumbing services – takes work. For plumbers, a strong PPC strategy can make the difference between getting steady jobs or wasting cash. By targeting high intention search terms, targeting narrow service areas, and optimizing your ads, you can create high-performing ads that deliver real results without burning through your marketing budget.
Lead generation is critical for your plumbing business, but when done without a positive return on investment, it's foolish.
Whether you’re new to PPC ads, or you’re tired of wasting money on ads that don’t generate calls, we’d love to help you get real results. Our PPC experts specialize in helping local service businesses in the plumbing industry just like yours attract high intent plumbing leads, reduce wasted ad spend, and grow predictable revenue.
Contact us now for a free evaluation for your lead generation strategies, PPC campaigns and search engine optimization services – we’d love to help.
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is the lifeblood of modern digital marketing, a finely tuned machine designed to separate serious advertisers from those who enjoy setting their money on fire. At its core, PPC is about buying attention—whether it’s from Google Ads, Facebook (or should we say Meta?) Ads, LinkedIn’s overpriced clicks, or whatever ad network is currently promising “unprecedented results.” The trick, of course, is making sure that the attention you’re paying for actually turns into conversions, and not just a collection of clicks that lead nowhere.
This guide is for marketers who already know the basics and are ready to squeeze every last drop of ROI from their PPC campaigns. If you’re looking for a “Beginner’s Guide to Google Ads,” this isn’t it. But if you’re tired of watching your ad spend disappear into the void and want to start running PPC like a ruthless efficiency machine, read on.
There’s nothing quite as tragic as a PPC campaign with no clear objective. Running ads without goals is like throwing darts blindfolded—sure, you might hit the board occasionally, but mostly you’re just making a mess. Before you even think about setting up a campaign, define what success looks like. Are you driving leads? Pushing e-commerce sales? Increasing brand awareness (ugh, we’ll get to why that’s usually a waste of money later)? If your goal is just “more clicks,” congratulations—you’ve just fallen for the ultimate PPC scam: paying for traffic that doesn’t convert.
Every campaign should have a quantifiable, measurable outcome tied to business KPIs. That means actual revenue, leads that don’t ghost you, or at the very least, cost per acquisition (CPA) that doesn’t make your CFO break out in hives.
Google Ads is the undisputed king of PPC, but let’s not pretend it’s the only game in town. Depending on your audience and objectives, Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram) can still be a goldmine—if you’re willing to put up with Meta’s ever-changing rules and the occasional algorithmic meltdown. LinkedIn Ads? Great if you enjoy paying $12 per click for someone who will never fill out your lead form.
And then there’s the rising trend of alternative ad platforms. TikTok Ads are fantastic if you’re targeting Gen Z and have the budget to experiment. Microsoft Ads (formerly Bing Ads) may be the underdog, but they offer cheaper CPCs and a surprising number of high-intent users. If you’re in e-commerce, don’t ignore Amazon Ads—they print money for sellers who get their targeting right.
Google would love for you to just use broad match keywords and let their algorithm “figure things out.” Spoiler alert: this is a terrible idea. Broad match means your ad could show up for searches so unrelated to your business that it’s practically performance art.
Instead, focus on high-intent keywords—the ones that indicate users are actually ready to buy. Long-tail keywords often convert better because they signal more specific intent. The goal is not just to drive traffic, but to attract users who already have their wallets half-open.
Want to know what works? Look at your competitors. Tools like SEMrush, SpyFu, and Google’s Auction Insights let you see what keywords they’re bidding on, which ones they’re ranking for, and—most importantly—where they’re burning money so you don’t have to.
If a competitor is bidding on specific high-intent keywords, that’s your signal to investigate. Either they’re seeing a positive ROI, or they’re making an expensive mistake that you can learn from. Either way, it’s free intelligence.
Great PPC ads aren’t just about catchy headlines—they’re about aligning with search intent, making a compelling offer, and convincing users that clicking your ad is the smartest decision they’ll make today. A well-optimized ad uses clear, persuasive language with a direct CTA, because vague CTAs like “Learn More” are about as useful as a screen door on a submarine.
A/B testing is non-negotiable. Your gut instinct is probably wrong, so test different headlines, CTAs, and descriptions to see what actually drives conversions. If you’re not actively testing, you’re just guessing.
You have about three seconds to convince visitors that they made the right choice clicking your ad. If your landing page loads slowly, looks like it was designed in 2008, or makes users hunt for the CTA, they’re gone.
Your landing page should have a singular focus: conversion. That means no distractions, no unnecessary links, and definitely no autoplay videos that scare people away. A strong landing page aligns perfectly with the ad copy, ensuring a seamless experience from click to conversion.
Nothing kills conversion rates faster than misleading ad-to-landing page alignment. If your ad promises “50% off running shoes” and your landing page is a generic homepage with no mention of that discount, expect a bounce rate that makes your campaign ROI cry. Every landing page should reinforce the ad message, use clear headlines, and make it painfully easy for users to complete the desired action. If a user has to think, they’re already gone.
If you’re still using manual CPC bidding across all campaigns, congratulations—you’re officially working harder, not smarter. Google’s automated bidding strategies have their place, but blindly trusting the algorithm is like handing your credit card to a stranger and hoping for the best.
Smart bidding, when done correctly, can optimize conversions and lower CPA, but it requires constant monitoring. Target ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) and Maximize Conversions can be effective, but only if you have historical data to feed the algorithm. If you’re running a new campaign, manual bidding still gives you more control.
Running PPC without proper tracking is like driving blindfolded and hoping you’ll reach your destination. You need to track not just clicks, but actual conversions, customer lifetime value (CLV), and return on ad spend (ROAS). Google Ads’ built-in tracking is decent, but combining it with Google Analytics, heatmaps, and call tracking will give you a full picture of what’s working.
Scaling PPC isn’t as simple as increasing your budget and watching conversions skyrocket. If you scale too fast, you’ll tank your ROI. The right approach is incremental scaling—gradually increasing spend while monitoring CPA and conversion rates. If your CPA starts climbing faster than your revenue, it’s time to reassess. And if your PPC manager insists that “everything is going great” while your ROAS tells a different story? It might be time for a new PPC manager.
