Google Local Services Ads, set up properly
LSAs are the pay-per-lead ads at the very top of Google — with the green checkmark — built specifically for the trades. Most contractors either don’t know they exist or set them up half-way. We do the full setup, once, properly.
Local Services Ads are different from regular Google Ads in the ways that matter to a trade. You pay per lead, not per click — an actual call or message, not a 3.6-second visit. You appear above everything, including the map pack, with a “Google Guaranteed” or “Google Screened” badge. And the ongoing management burden is a fraction of regular PPC — there are no keywords to bid on, no ad copy to test weekly. For plumbers, electricians, HVAC, roofers and most home trades, it’s the one paid channel we’ll actually recommend without holding our nose.
Why setup quality decides everything
LSA results are ranked by profile completeness, review velocity, responsiveness, and correct category/service-area configuration — not by outbidding. A half-finished profile sits below fully-built competitors forever, and miscategorized services buy leads you can’t serve. There’s also a background/licence screening step that stalls many contractors for weeks when done out of order. The setup is genuinely a one-time job — done right once, it mostly runs itself.
What the setup includes
Eligibility and screening shepherded end-to-end (licensing, insurance documentation, background check coordination). Business profile built completely — categories, service areas matched to where you actually work, hours, photos, review import from your Google profile. Budget configured to your target lead volume, with the per-lead economics of your trade written out plainly so you know what a lead should cost before the first one arrives. And the part everyone skips: we teach you the dispute process — LSAs let you contest junk leads for credit, and contractors who don’t know this quietly pay for wrong numbers and spam. You leave with a one-page playbook: how to answer (response speed affects ranking), how to dispute, what to check monthly.
The honest fit check
LSAs work best for urgent, licensed, high-frequency trades — plumbing, electrical, HVAC, locksmith-style urgency. They’re weaker for long-cycle design-build work where homeowners research for months. If that’s you, the same money almost always does more in organic search — and we’ll tell you so before taking the fee.
Common questions
How is this different from you managing our Google Ads?
Regular Google Ads need continuous management — keywords, bids, copy, negatives — which is why agencies charge monthly percentages. LSAs are structurally simpler: after a proper setup, the ongoing work is answering fast and disputing junk, which any office can do. We set it up once, teach you the playbook, and you own it.
What does a lead cost through LSAs?
It varies by trade and market — urgent trades in competitive areas pay more per lead. Part of the setup is writing out your specific economics: expected cost per lead, your close rate, and what that means per booked job, so you can judge the channel on real math instead of hope.
Set up LSAs properly, once
$495 flat. Pick “SEO — get found” in the form and mention LSA — we’ll reply with the eligibility checklist for your trade.
Start your project →Already have a site? Ask for the free plain-English audit — or just email jamie@foundwork.ca.