The most this can cost
Before launch, the all-in maximum for the proving period is written down: fee plus ad spend. Hoping has a budget and the budget has a ceiling.
A bounded first step
Google Ads audit for local service businesses.
A free audit of spend, search terms, tracking, and the place where the money trail stops, ending in a clear recommendation.
- Month to month
- You own the account
- Spend cap and verdict date in writing
- Conservative attribution
What is included
Work that creates a decision trail.
- Free audit: account, search terms, and conversion-path review
- Findings ranked by what they cost you, with the evidence
- A clear recommendation, including when not to spend more
What this costs
Known before launch.
Nothing. The audit is free: I look at the account read-only, find the most expensive problems, and give you a clear recommendation. If the honest recommendation is to stop advertising, the audit will say that plainly. No pressure either way.
From a real audit
One location setting, Presence or interest, was quietly spending $420.00 a month on clicks from people outside the service area. The finding took 4 minutes to identify. Most accounts I audit have at least one leak in this class, which is why the audit reads the account line by line instead of exporting a software report.
The working detail
What the work actually consists of.
- Temporary read-only access is enough: no password sharing, access by customer ID, revoke it any time
- Search term reports read line by line. Zero automated exports, zero software scores
- Findings ranked by cost, each with the evidence and the fix
- A conversion-path check: duplicate tags, double counting, and goals firing on non-leads
- A starter negative keyword list you keep, whoever does the work
- A walkthrough call to go through the findings in plain language
- A clear recommendation, including, when the numbers say so, the recommendation not to spend more
The Payback Window
A defined maximum downside and a dated verdict.
Every engagement gets a proving period with a spend cap and a verdict date, set in writing before launch. Proving periods are set per trade, because a drain-cleaning call and an insurance roof replacement do not pay back on the same calendar.
Long enough to be fair
The window is matched to how your trade actually books and pays. Long enough for a true answer, short enough that a wrong bet stays small.
The day hoping ends
On the verdict date, the Ledger says continue, adjust, or stop. If the numbers say stop, I will say stop out loud. That is the deal.
How I stay accountable
Measurement is the spine. Return is the promise.
The report does not stop at the platform. When booked work can be confirmed, it is reconciled in a monthly Ledger. When it cannot, the reporting says where it stops, under the attribution standard.
The Profit Ledger
A monthly answer, not an activity report.
Money inAdvertising spendCampaign spend, recorded to the dollar.
Money outClient-confirmed revenueBooked jobs and values confirmed in review.
VerdictScale, hold, or stop.The decision is written before the next dollar is committed.
The case studies on this site preserve the level of proof present in their source record. If a record stops at a platform lead, this site says so.
Questions owners ask
The answers, before a sales call.
Is the audit really free?
Yes. I audit the account, rank the findings by what they cost you, and give you a clear recommendation. No invoice, no obligation.
What access do you need?
Read-only access through your Google Ads customer ID. No passwords, no admin rights, and you can revoke it the moment the audit is delivered.
What do I get at the end?
A written document: findings ranked by what they cost you, the evidence behind each one, the fixes, a starter negative keyword list, and a walkthrough call. It is yours to act on with me or with anyone else.
What if the audit says ads are not my answer?
Then that is what it will say. Some accounts should pause, fix tracking, or fix capacity before buying another click, and telling you so is part of what the audit is for.
Is the audit just a sales pitch?
No. It is a deliverable with a fixed scope, and it ends with a recommendation you can execute without hiring me. If working together makes sense after that, we will both know it from the numbers.
The first decision
Set a bounded first bet.
Before any campaign launches, set the spend cap, proving period, and verdict date in writing.
Talk through the numbers
Free, 30 minutes, no obligation. I reply within 12 hours.