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Trades PPC

Google Ads for Australian Tradies & Home Services

Booked jobs, not just quote requests from hipages price-shoppers.

We run Google Ads for Australian plumbers, electricians, builders, landscapers, and home service businesses. Our focus is on booked jobs that dispatch — coordinated against hipages, Oneflare, and ServiceSeeking marketplaces where they dominate the SERP.

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10+ yrs
Inside Google before this
500+
Brands we've worked with
Vertical
Home Services & Trades-specific playbooks
What breaks

Why Home Services & Trades Google Ads fail.

01

Marketplaces (hipages, Oneflare) own middle-SERP

hipages, Oneflare, and ServiceSeeking dominate Google SERPs for most trade queries by bidding on generic terms and converting clicks to marketplace leads. Tradies running Google Ads without coordinating against marketplace listings waste 30-50% of budget competing on terms where marketplaces always win.

02

State-by-state licensing creates compliance complexity

Australian trades require state licensing (NSW Fair Trading, VBA in Victoria, QBCC in Queensland, etc). Ad copy claiming services requires accurate license representation. Multi-state trades need per-state compliance. Most PPC agencies have no awareness of state licensing rules in trade advertising.

03

Emergency vs planned-work intent mixed

'Emergency plumber Sydney' converts in 10 minutes. 'Bathroom renovation quotes' takes weeks. Campaigns mixing them optimise toward the wrong intent — emergency keywords need 24/7 bidding, planned-work keywords need research-phase strategy with different landing pages.

What works

Home Services & Trades PPC tactics that actually produce revenue.

Tactic 01

License-prominent ad copy

Trade license number, state registration, and trade body membership (Master Builders, Master Plumbers, MEA) must appear prominently in headlines, descriptions, and landing pages. License-free copy underperforms credentialed copy by 30-50% and can violate state licensing advertising requirements.

Tactic 02

Separate emergency and planned-work campaigns

Emergency keywords get 24/7 campaigns with max-CPC bidding and click-to-call prioritisation. Planned-work keywords get business-hours campaigns with quote-form focus. Different funnels, different intent — mixed into one campaign, both underperform.

Tactic 03

Postcode-level service area targeting

Tradies typically service 20-40km radius. Default Google radius targeting includes too many irrelevant distant clicks. Target specific suburbs and postcodes, exclude areas crews won't drive to. Saves 15-25% of wasted spend immediately.

Tactic 04

Call tracking as primary conversion

70-85% of Australian trade leads come by phone. Install Delacon, CallRail AU, or Call Tracking Australia with dynamic number insertion per campaign. Disqualify quote-only calls from conversion counting so Smart Bidding optimises toward booked jobs, not price-shoppers.

Tactic 05

Seasonal and weather-triggered bidding

Bid 50-200% higher during heat waves (air conditioning), cold snaps (heating/plumbing), and storm events (roofing). Automated bid scripts tied to Bureau of Meteorology feeds, or manual monitoring. Australian peak-season revenue is where most tradies leave money on the table by running static bids year-round.

Our playbook

How we run Home Services & Trades campaigns.

01

Week 1: Marketplace audit + licensing review

Audit existing Google Ads setup against marketplace dominance (hipages, Oneflare). Review state licensing compliance in current ads. Map your actual profitable service area down to postcode.

02

Week 2: Emergency + planned-work rebuild with licenses

Separate emergency and planned-work campaigns live with license-prominent copy. Call tracking installed with dynamic number insertion. Postcode-level service area targeting enforced.

03

Week 3: Seasonal bidding + booked-job conversion tracking

Seasonal bid modifiers configured. Booked-job conversion tracking wired through your job management software (ServiceM8, Tradify, simPRO, AroFlo). First optimisation cycle on day 7.

04

Month 2+: Scale on average job value

Once booked jobs flow back with revenue, shift Smart Bidding from target CPA to target ROAS based on average ticket. An Australian electrician optimising toward A$3,500 switchboard upgrades scales differently than one optimising toward A$250 service calls.

Frequently asked

Questions about Home Services & Trades Google Ads.

How do you compete against hipages and Oneflare?

Not by bidding on the same generic terms — that's a losing economic proposition. Instead, compete on suburb-specific and license-specific long-tail queries ('licensed electrician Chatswood', 'Master Plumber Brisbane') where marketplaces don't optimise as tightly. Strong Google Business Profile presence and reviews also reduce marketplace dominance in Local Pack results.

What is a realistic cost per booked job for Australian trades?

Emergency plumbing and electrical: A$35-A$150 per booked job. Planned maintenance and service: A$60-A$250. Large installs and renovations (air con install, bathroom reno, roofing): A$200-A$600 per booked job. Ratio to average ticket matters more than cost — a A$200 acquisition cost on a A$5,000 installation is excellent economics.

How do state licensing rules affect ad copy?

State fair trading and licensing authorities require accurate representation of trade licenses in advertising. NSW Fair Trading, VBA, QBCC, CBS (SA), BOI (WA), and Tasmania's CBOS all have advertising compliance rules. License numbers should appear in ads and landing pages for the relevant trade. Running unlicensed trade advertising is both a regulatory offence and a trust disadvantage.

Do Australian trades need call tracking?

Yes, non-negotiable. 70-85% of Australian trade leads come by phone, not form. Without call tracking (Delacon, CallRail AU, or equivalent), Smart Bidding has no signal on what's actually converting. Dynamic number insertion per campaign lets you see which keywords produce booked jobs versus price-only calls that never convert.

What's the minimum ad spend for Australian trades Google Ads?

A$1,500-A$3,500/month for single-trade, single-city tradies. A$6,000-A$25,000/month for multi-trade operations or multi-location franchises. Below A$1,500/month, Sydney and Melbourne trade CPCs (A$12-A$35) absorb budget before you can accumulate conversion data to optimise on.

Can new tradies without reviews make Google Ads work?

Harder. Google Business Profile rankings reward review volume, and trust signals like reviews materially affect conversion rate. Google Ads can work for new tradies, but expect 30-50% higher cost per booked job until reviews accumulate. Review collection should be a parallel workstream — reviews and Google Ads compound together over time.
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