Why Google Ads is not working: the six checks
Work down this list. Each step has a report in Google Ads that answers it in minutes.
| # | Question | Where to look | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Does the ad show when people search? | Ad preview and diagnosis; Search lost IS (rank) | Better ad and page before more budget |
| 2 | Are the searches people hiring? | Search terms report | Negative keywords; tighter match types |
| 3 | Are the people in your area? | Location options | "Presence" instead of "Presence or Interest" |
| 4 | Is the budget going to websites, not search? | Networks; auto-applied recommendations | Turn off Display; review auto-apply |
| 5 | Is the number easy to tap, and shown when you're open? | Call asset; your landing page on a phone | Call asset with business hours; tap-to-call button |
| 6 | Do calls come in and go unanswered? | Call details report | Answer, forward, or call back fast |
Then check what Google is optimizing for (last section). If it counts page views as "conversions", it will buy you more page views.
1. Is your ad even showing?
Use the Ad preview and diagnosis tool, not a Google search of your own. Searching yourself adds fake impressions; the tool tells you whether the ad is eligible and why not (Google Ads Help).
Then add the column Search lost IS (rank): the share of searches where your ad didn't show "due to poor Ad Rank in the auction" (Google Ads Help). If that number is high and "lost IS (budget)" is near zero, more budget won't help. An accounting firm we run marketing for had a Quality Score of 3 and lost about 80% of eligible searches to rank, 0% to budget. Doubling the budget ($180 to $360 a day) bought 24% more clicks for 62% more spend.
2. Are the right searches triggering it?
Open the search terms report: it lists the real searches that triggered your ads (Google Ads Help). Broad match is the default for every keyword, and Google says it can match searches that "don't contain the direct meaning of your keywords" (Google Ads Help: keyword matching).
Look for people learning, not hiring: "how to fix a leaking faucet" for a plumber, "DIY," "salary," "course," "free." Add them as negative keywords. Keep the searches that name a job and a place, like "water heater repair near me." Full method: Google Ads wasted spend.
3. Are the clicks from your service area?
The default location setting reaches people in your area and people who've only "shown interest" in it:
"This default and recommended option lets you reach people who are likely to be in or regularly present in your targeted location, as well as people who have shown interest in your targeted locations." (Google Ads Help: advanced location options)
A local service can't serve someone three states away. Google suggests "Presence" when you only want people in your locations (same page). Expect fewer impressions.
4. Is the budget leaking to Display sites?
Google's default is to show ads across its whole network, which includes thousands of partner websites, not just search results (Google Ads Help: Google Network). "Use Display expansion" is also one of the recommendations Google can apply automatically if auto-apply is on (Google Ads Help).
For that accounting firm, Display was switched on by auto-applied recommendations without anyone noticing: in one morning, 296 junk-site visits, mostly inside Facebook and Instagram's in-app browsers, median 5 seconds, against 18 real search visits. Check the campaign's networks setting and the auto-apply history.
5. Can people call you in one tap?
Add a call asset so a call button shows under your ad. Google lets you show it only during hours you answer:
"Business hours: You can set numbers to appear only when your business can accept calls." (Google Ads Help: call assets)
Don't type the number into the ad text instead; Google says that can get the ad disapproved (same page). On your landing page, open it on a phone: the number should be a tappable button near the top, not an image or a footer line. What else the page needs: Google Ads landing page.
6. Are calls coming in and going unanswered?
Often the calls exist; nobody picks up. Turn on call reporting: Google puts a forwarding number on your ad and logs every call (Google Ads Help). Forwarding numbers work in the US and Canada (same page). The call details report then shows each call's time, length and status, "missed or received" (Google Ads Help).
Count the missed ones by hour. If they cluster at lunch or after 5 pm, fix the schedule or the phone, not the ads. See missed calls cost.
Is Google optimizing for calls, or for something else?
Automated bidding chases whatever you mark as a primary conversion:
"Primary actions: These are conversion actions that are reported in the “Conversions” column in your reports and used for bidding as long as the standard goal they are part of is used for bidding." (Google Ads Help)
Open Goals → Summary and check each primary action. Keep calls from ads (with a minimum call length) and form submissions; set page views to secondary (Google Ads Help: phone call conversions). At the accounting firm, the account had auto-made goals such as "About Us" page views set as primary, so the "Conversions" column didn't match real bookings. To feed Google the jobs you actually won: tracking a lead to a booked job.
Example
A plumber, $1,500 a month, 3 calls
Search terms show half the clicks were "how to" searches. Location was "Presence or Interest", with clicks from two other states. Negatives plus "Presence" cut wasted clicks; same budget, fewer but local clicks.
An HVAC company, 20 calls, 4 jobs
The call details report shows 9 of 20 calls missed, mostly 12 to 1 pm. The ads were working. Forwarding lunch calls to an answering service is the fix.
A roofer, all clicks, no calls
Display was on. Most "clicks" came from phone games and apps. Switching to Search only sent the same budget to people who searched for roofers.
Different for you?
- Local Services Ads (pay per lead), not regular Search: Local Services Ads not showing.
- Ads disapproved, not just quiet: Google Ads disapproved.
- Calls come but don't book: speed to lead.
- Law firm: Google Ads for lawyers.
- Want the account checked every week: Paid Ads.