Grow path · Beginner to improver

Google Ads for Local Businesses

Build a lean Google Search campaign that only shows to people in the towns you cover, track every call, form and WhatsApp message it brings in, and know each month what it is earning you.

Who this course is for

This course is for owners of local service businesses, such as plumbers, salons, dog groomers, driving instructors and cafes, who want more enquiries from Google without paying for clicks that never turn into work. It also suits freelancers and small agencies who run ads for local clients and want a setup they can explain and defend. You might be starting from nothing, or you might already have an account that spends money and you cannot tell what it is doing. Either way, you will finish with a small, tidy Search campaign that you understand line by line, rather than a tangle of default settings that Google chose for you.

What you should know first

You do not need any previous Google Ads experience. Every screen, setting and term is explained the first time it appears. You will need four things: a Google account; a working website with your phone number and a contact form on it; permission to add code to that website (we add Google Tag Manager in Module 3, and if someone else built your site you may need their help or a login); and a debit or credit card to add to Google Ads before your campaign goes live. If you do not have a website yet, build one first with our Elementor Beginner course, then come back here. If you are running ads for a client, ask them for admin access to their website, Google Analytics and Google Business Profile before you start.

By the end of the course you will be able to

Open a Google Ads account in Expert mode and switch off the default settings that waste money on day one.
Link Google Ads to Google Analytics 4, Search Console and your Business Profile so all your data lines up in one place.
Work out what a lead is worth to your business and turn that into a daily budget you can afford.
Build a Search campaign that only shows to people in the postcodes and towns you actually cover.
Choose keywords and match types on purpose, and build negative keyword lists that block searches like "jobs", "DIY" and "free".
Write responsive search ads and add sitelink, callout, call and location assets that earn clicks from the right people.
Track phone calls, form submissions and WhatsApp clicks as conversions with GA4 and Tag Manager, with Consent Mode v2 set up for UK cookie rules.
Pick a sensible bid strategy, decide when (and when not) to use AI Max, broad match or Performance Max, and run a 30-minute monthly check-up with a report you can reuse.

Your course project

Throughout the course you follow one worked example: Calder Plumbing and Heating, a Gas Safe registered plumber in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, run by Jo Calder with one van and one apprentice. Jo does boiler repairs, annual boiler servicing, new boiler installs and emergency plumbing across Harrogate (HG1, HG2, HG3), Knaresborough (HG5), Ripon (HG4) and Wetherby (LS22). Enquiries come in three ways: phone calls to 01632 960418, the contact form on calderplumbing.co.uk and WhatsApp messages to 07700 900418. In every lesson you see Shaz make each decision for Calder first. Then you do the same for your own business, a client's, or Calder's figures if you have neither. By the end you will have a correctly set up Expert mode account linked to GA4, Search Console and Business Profile; a lead value and budget sheet; a Search campaign for boiler repairs and servicing with tight location targeting, keywords, negatives, ads and assets; calls, forms and WhatsApp clicks tracked as conversions with Consent Mode v2; a chosen bid strategy; and a monthly check-up routine and report you can keep using long after the course. You also get keyword and negative keyword starter lists, a settings checklist and a monthly report template to work from.

Curriculum

Module 1: Set up without the traps · 8 lessons
- 1.0 Course trailer and how this course works
- 1.1 How Google Ads works for a local business
- 1.2 What is a lead worth? Budget maths before you start
- 1.3 Creating the account without a campaign
- 1.4 Linking GA4, Search Console and your Business Profile
- 1.5 Worked example: Mirrorwell's lead value and account checks
- 1.6 Module 1 recap
- Module 1 worksheet
- Module 1 check (quiz)
Module 2: Conversion tracking with GA4 and Tag Manager · 8 lessons
- 2.1 Deciding what counts as a conversion
- 2.2 Tag Manager and the Google tag on WordPress
- 2.3 Tracking form enquiries, phone clicks and WhatsApp clicks
- 2.4 Consent Mode and enhanced conversions
- 2.5 Testing your tracking and importing from GA4
- 2.6 Worked example: Mirrorwell's tracking set-up
- 2.7 Module 2 recap
- Module 2 worksheet
- Module 2 check (quiz)
Module 3: Build a Search campaign that only shows to the right people · 9 lessons
- 3.1 Campaign settings that matter
- 3.2 Location targeting done properly
- 3.3 Keywords and match types
- 3.4 Responsive search ads that follow the rules
- 3.5 Negative keywords and lists
- 3.6 Assets: sitelinks, callouts, calls and more
- 3.7 Worked example: Mirrorwell's Search campaign, built and paused
- 3.8 Module 3 recap
- Module 3 worksheet
- Module 3 check (quiz)
Module 4: Budgets, bidding and Google's automation · 5 lessons
- 4.1 Daily budgets and bidding for a new local account
- 4.2 AI Max, auto-apply and Performance Max: when to say yes
- 4.3 Worked example: Mirrorwell's bidding plan and automation note
- 4.4 Module 4 recap
- Module 4 worksheet
- Module 4 check (quiz)
Module 5: Reading reports and stopping wasted spend · 8 lessons
- 5.1 The search terms report
- 5.2 The columns that matter
- 5.3 Money leaks and your 30-minute monthly check-up
- 5.4 Worked example: Mirrorwell's first monthly check-up
- 5.5 The practical task: what to submit and how it is marked
- 5.6 Worked example: Mirrorwell Driving School's practical task submission
- 5.7 Module 5 and course recap
- Module 5 worksheet
- Module 5 check (quiz)