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Google Ads for Local Firms

8 modules · 29 lessons · about 6h. Go in order — each lesson builds on the last. Pick up wherever you left off; your progress is saved on this device.

Start with Lesson 1

Start here

Start Here: buying calls, not clicks

The frame the whole course rests on — Meta creates demand, Google captures it — plus the honest money talk (every dollar, dated, up front) and the $0 tool stack that runs everything.

Welcome: why you can run this yourself10 min What this course builds — and what it really costs12 min The $0 tool stack10 min

Module 1

How Google's paid surfaces work

See the whole results page before you place a bet — the four zones, the two you pay for — then make the LSA-vs-Search call for your firm and land it all on a one-page plan.

How Google's paid surfaces work0 min The results page, decoded12 min LSA vs Search: the decision rule12 min Your one-page ad plan12 min

Module 2

Local Services Ads: pay per lead, not per click

The safest first dollar in Google ads — you pay when a real person calls, not when someone clicks. Get the Google Verified badge, set a lead price you can live with, and answer fast, because responsiveness is a ranking factor.

Local Services Ads: pay per lead, not per click0 min Google Verified: are you eligible, and what it takes12 min Set up your LSA profile, end to end14 min Bids, budgets, and what a lead really costs12 min Work the leads: answer fast, rate every one12 min

Module 3

Your first Search campaign

Google's signup is built to take a beginner's money on autopilot. You'll skip the trap, pick keywords with real intent, choose phrase and exact match, and build one tight campaign — the structure agencies charge four figures to set up.

Your first Search campaign0 min Open the account (and dodge the Smart-campaign trap)12 min Keywords: find them free, group them tight14 min Match types: why you start phrase and exact10 min Build the campaign, ad group by ad group14 min

Module 4

Stop the waste: negatives, location, schedule

Three hygiene moves that protect every dollar before you launch — a themed negative-keyword list, the weekly Search Terms triage, and the Presence + ad-schedule fixes that stop your ads showing to the wrong people at the wrong hours.

Stop the waste: negatives, location, schedule0 min The negative-keyword starter list14 min The Search Terms report: your weekly goldmine12 min Presence, radius, and the schedule that answers12 min

Module 5

Ads and landing pages that convert the click

AI drafts the responsive search ads and the landing-page copy in your voice — inside your state bar's red lines — then you wire calls the current way (never call-only), point every ad group at a page that keeps its promise, and run the launch-day checklist.

Ads and landing pages that convert the click0 min Write responsive search ads with AI14 min Make the phone ring: call assets and free ad real estate14 min The landing page that matches the ad14 min Launch day: the pre-flight checklist10 min

Module 6

Know what's working: tracking and the 15-minute read

Turn on Google's free call tracking (no code, no Tag Manager), read the five numbers that actually run a local account, and compress the whole operating job into one 15-minute weekly routine.

Know what's working: tracking and the 15-minute read0 min Track calls the free way12 min Track form fills without becoming a developer12 min The five numbers that matter12 min The 15-minute weekly routine12 min

Module 7

Keep it running, scale it, or hand it off

The monthly scale/fix/kill rules, an honest sort of every Google upsell (PMax and broad match aren't the first move), when hiring help is fair — and the closing view of the whole machine you built.

Keep it running, scale it, or hand it off0 min The monthly pass: scale rules, kill rules12 min PMax, broad match, and Google's other suggestions12 min When to hire help — and what fair looks like12 min Your ad engine, complete10 min