How long does Google Ads take to start working?

Ads can start showing within a day of approval, so calls can arrive in the first week. The first few weeks are also when the campaign learns: we read the real searches that triggered your ads, block the ones that waste money, and move budget toward the searches that produce calls. Judge it on enquiries over the first month or two, not on the first few days.

Do I own my Google Ads account?

Yes. The account is in your name and billed to your card. We manage it with access you grant, and if you ever stop working with us, the account, its history and its conversion data stay with you.

What is the difference between Google Ads and SEO?

Google Ads puts you at the top of the results today, and you pay for each click. SEO earns a place in the unpaid results, which usually takes months and cannot be switched on for a particular week. Many local businesses use ads to get calls now while their website builds up organic visibility over time.

Can you fix a Google Ads account that is spending money but not getting calls?

Usually, yes. The common causes are keywords that match far too many unrelated searches, missing negative keywords, no call or form tracking, ads shown outside your service area, and ads that send people to a homepage instead of a page about the service. We start by reviewing the search terms, the tracking and the landing page, then fix what is actually costing you.

Google Ads management

Google Ads in Ottawa: show up when customers search for your service.

Google Ads can place your business in front of people who are actively searching for the service you provide. Someone typing “furnace repair Ottawa” or “plumber near me” already has a problem to solve, and your ad can appear at that exact moment.

What it is

What Google Ads is

When someone searches on Google, the top of the results often includes ads labelled Sponsored. Businesses choose which searches they want to appear for, write the ads, and pay when someone clicks.

This is different from advertising to random people. A flyer or a billboard reaches everyone who passes by, whether they need the service or not. A search ad only appears when someone types a search related to your business, so the person already has intent.

You also control where and when the ads run: which towns or neighbourhoods, which hours of the day, and how much you are willing to spend.

A homeowner beside a furnace that has stopped working, holding a phone — The moment of intent: the furnace has stopped, and the next step is a search for help nearby.

The problem

Good businesses that are hard to find

Many local businesses do excellent work but lose customers at the search stage, before anyone has a chance to see how good they are.

You barely appear when people search for the service you provide.
Competitors show up above you, so they get the call first.
Most of your work comes from referrals, which is hard to grow on purpose.
Your website gets traffic, but you cannot tell whether any of it turns into calls or quote requests.
You tried Google Ads before, spent money, and could not see what you got for it.

How AdVelocity helps

How AdVelocity manages Google Ads

You do not need to learn how Google Ads works. Here is what we look after, in plain terms.

Research and setup

Keyword and search-intent research. Finding the searches real customers use, and separating people ready to hire from people just researching.
Campaign structure. Grouping services so each ad matches the search and leads to the right page.
Geographic targeting. Showing ads only in the areas you actually serve.

The ads

Ad copy. Clear ads that name the specific service, your area, and why people should contact you.
Ad extras. Call buttons, location details and links to key pages, added where they fit.
Call and form tracking. Recording calls and form submissions from the ads, where appropriate.

Ongoing management

Search-term monitoring. Checking the real searches that triggered your ads.
Negative keywords. Blocking searches that waste money, such as “jobs”, “training” or “DIY”.
Budget optimization. Moving spend toward the campaigns and searches that produce enquiries.
Ongoing optimization. Adjusting ads, bids and targeting as results come in, with plain reporting on what changed.

Visual example

What better search visibility looks like

The same search, before and after a better-structured campaign. This is an educational illustration, not a client case study.

Before

furnace repair ottawa

Sponsored Competitor Heating Ltd. · Furnace Repair competitorheating.example Furnace repair and installation across Ottawa. Book online.

Sponsored Northside HVAC · Heating Repairs northsidehvac.example Local heating technicians. Call for service.

City Furnace Services cityfurnace.example Repairs, maintenance and replacement.

Example Heating & Cooling has no ad for this search. The business only appears much further down, under a general “heating services” listing.

After

furnace repair ottawa

Sponsored Example Heating & Cooling · Furnace Repair in Ottawa exampleheating.example/furnace-repair Furnace not working? Local technicians serving Ottawa. Call now or request a repair visit online. Call nowBook a visitService areas

Sponsored Competitor Heating Ltd. · Furnace Repair competitorheating.example Furnace repair and installation across Ottawa. Book online.

City Furnace Services cityfurnace.example Repairs, maintenance and replacement.

Educational illustration only. Business names are placeholders and no real results are shown. Where an ad appears depends on competition, budget and ad quality, and it can change from one search to the next.

From search to lead

How a search turns into a tracked lead

01Customer searches Google“furnace repair Ottawa”
02Relevant search adMentions furnace repair and the Ottawa area.
03Service-specific landing pageA page only about furnace repair.
04Calls or submits a formTap to call, or a short request form.
05Lead is trackedRecorded with the search and campaign that produced it.

Types of search

Different searches need different handling

People search with different levels of urgency. Select a type of search to see how the ad, the landing page and the measurement should change.

What the person wants: Something is broken right now. They are not researching; they will call whoever looks able to help first.

How the campaign handles it: Keywords grouped around urgent terms, call buttons on the ads, and ads scheduled for the hours you can actually take calls.

Where the ad should lead: A page with the phone number at the top, the service area and availability visible straight away, and nothing in the way.

What to measure: Phone calls, and how many of them were answered.

emergency plumber open now

SponsoredEmergency Plumber in Ottawa · Call NowLocal plumbers available today. Tap to call.

Lands on

Emergency plumbing page

Phone number at the top, easy to tap
Service area and hours shown immediately
Nothing standing between the visitor and the call

These are educational examples showing how search intent changes the work. Business names are placeholders, and none of this describes a client campaign.

What matters

What Google Ads should be judged on

A campaign can get thousands of impressions and plenty of clicks and still produce no work. We focus on the actions that lead to jobs.

What we focus on

Real enquiries

Calls from people who need the service
Quote requests
Form submissions
Bookings
Qualified leads: people in your area who need what you offer
Cost per lead: what each enquiry costs

Not on their own

Traffic numbers

Impressions: how often an ad was shown
Clicks: how often someone visited

These help spot problems, but a campaign with lots of clicks and no calls is not working.

Who it can help

Businesses that do well on Google Ads

Google Ads works best for businesses whose customers search for the service at the moment they need it. That includes most local service businesses.

How it works for specific trades: HVAC, plumbers, electricians, roofers and renovation contractors. Hiring someone to run your ads? Read how to choose a Google Ads agency.

HVAC companies
Plumbers
Electricians
Roofers
Contractors
Renovation companies
Cleaning companies
Landscapers
Pest control
Movers
Other local service businesses

Hypothetical example

An HVAC company heading into furnace season

A heating company in Ottawa wants more furnace repair calls as the weather turns cold. It already gets referrals, but rarely appears when people search.

The campaign targets searches like “furnace repair Ottawa” and “furnace not working”, only within the company’s service area, and mainly during the hours someone can answer the phone. The ads mention furnace repair specifically and send people to a furnace repair page with a call button and a short request form.

Calls and form submissions are tracked, so the company can see which searches produced enquiries. Each week the search terms are reviewed and irrelevant searches, such as “furnace repair course”, are blocked.

This illustrates how a campaign can be structured. It is not a client result and makes no promise of performance.

Your account, your ad spend

You pay Google directly, on an ad account in your name. The spending is always visible to you, and the account history stays with you if you ever stop working with us.

Wondering whether Facebook and Instagram would suit you better? See how Google and Meta compare and work together.

Questions

Google Ads questions from Ottawa businesses

It depends on what a click costs in your trade and how many calls you need. Google’s own Keyword Planner puts a top-of-page click for a search like “furnace repair” in Ottawa at roughly $10 to $20, while many other local searches cost far less. The budget should be large enough to collect real data within a few weeks, and it is paid to Google directly from an account in your name.

Next step

See how Google Ads could work for your business

Book a free strategy call. We will look at what people in your area search for, who shows up now, and what a campaign would need to produce calls.

Book a free strategy call Learn about Meta Ads