Ask a plumber, a physio or an electrician where their work comes from and the answer is usually the phone. Ask their ad account and it will show form fills, because those are the only conversions anyone set up. The account then spends more on whatever produces forms, which is often not what produces jobs.
The order of work
- Count calls first. Use tracked numbers on the site and in ads, so each call is tied to its source.
- Decide what a good call is. A call over 60 seconds is a reasonable first rule; a booked job is better, if your job system can report it.
- Send that back to the ad platform as the conversion it should chase.
- Only then raise the budget.
Answered matters as much as receivedIf half the calls go unanswered, the fix is call routing, not more ads. Check missed calls before you check cost per click.
What the monthly report should show
- Spend, by campaign
- Calls and forms, by campaign
- Calls answered, and missed calls returned
- Cost per enquiry, and where you can, cost per booked job
A report that stops at clicks and impressions describes activity, not results. If yours does, ask for the four lines above. If nobody can produce them, the tracking is the first job.
