Google Ads for air conditioning, with a budget that follows the weather

A budget that follows the thermometer

Most trades have a steady year. Air conditioning does not. A run of hot days makes clicks plentiful and phones busy, and a mild month makes both go quiet. A flat monthly budget is wrong twice a year.

We plan the account around the calendar. In the cooler months we run a modest base, enough to learn which searches turn into enquiries. As the forecast turns we raise the ceiling in steps, and during a heatwave we watch daily spend so a rush of clicks does not use the month in a few days. After the peak we bring it back down. You always approve the ceiling.

Installs and breakdowns are two accounts in one

A person who types split system installation has time. They compare, they ask for a quote, and they may call tomorrow. A person who types aircon not cooling has a hot house and wants a technician today.

We give each its own campaign. The install campaign points at pages on fitting and pricing, and its ads promise a quote. The breakdown campaign points at a page with the phone number first and says how soon you can attend. Each has its own budget, so a quiet install week never starves the urgent calls.

Ducted systems get their own care

Ducted air conditioning is a high value, slow decision. The clicks cost the same as any other, but the buyer may visit three sites over a month. We send those searches to a ducted page that explains the job, and we judge the campaign over weeks, not days.

Search terms and keeping the junk out

Air conditioning searches attract shoppers. People look for the cheapest unit, a model review, a user manual or a filter to buy. None of these are customers unless you sell units.

Each week we read the search terms report and add negatives for retail, manuals and do it yourself work. Each one is checked against what you do first. Our post on negative keywords for local service accounts sets out the method. We also keep out searches for services you do not offer, such as general electrical work.

Counting calls that happened

Google Ads can report conversions that were not enquiries. On one account we run, Google had been counting about ten times more conversions than there were real enquiries, because it counted its own engagement actions. We covered the fix in the Wollongong Service Company case study.

For an air conditioning account we set up three conversions: calls from the ad, taps on your phone number and quote forms sent. The form asks for a name, a phone number or email, and a comment. Nothing else is counted, so bidding aims at real people.

When the phone is answered

During a heatwave, calls arrive at nine at night. If your team takes them, the repair campaign can run late. If your phone goes to voicemail after five, a paid click at nine is a waste.

We set the schedule around when someone picks up. One account we run moved to all hours once its booking form proved that out of hours clicks still turned into bookings. Yours may or may not suit that. We test, then decide.

Servicing and commercial enquiries

Not every click needs to be a new install. Searches for aircon service and cleaning come from households that already own a unit, and they tend to rise before summer. We give servicing its own small ad group and a page that says what a visit covers. Commercial refrigeration and office systems are searched differently again, usually by a manager comparing maintenance providers, so we keep them out of the home campaigns and send them to their own page.

Licences and claims

Handling refrigerant needs a licence in Australia, and customers ask about it. We only write what you hold and can show, and we check the current wording on the Australian Refrigeration Council site before it goes into an ad. We do not promise response times you cannot meet.

Your account and your spend

You create the Google Ads account and add your own card. You pay Google directly for every click, and we never hold your payment details. Our fee covers managing the account, month to month.

Each month you get a short report with spend, clicks, enquiries and cost per enquiry, with the changes we made and why. If a campaign is not producing enquiries, we say so and move the budget to one that is.