Are your Google Ads not bringing enough calls for your septic business? You’re spending money every month, but the phone just isn’t ringing like you hoped. It’s frustrating to watch your ad budget drain away with too few new customers to show for it. Many septic service owners are in the same boat – paying for ads but not seeing the return they need to keep trucks rolling. What if I told you there’s one common mistake that could be cutting your potential customer base in half? Fix this one issue with your Google Ads, and you could see your lead volume grow without spending an extra penny.

In this post, I am going to show you a critical Google Ads mistake that’s costing septic service businesses thousands in wasted ad spend. Here are three burning questions I’ll answer today: Number One: Why are septic companies accidentally blocking good potential customers with their negative keyword lists? Number Two: How can you tell if you’re being too aggressive with your search term clean-up? And Number Three: What’s the right balance between filtering out bad traffic and maintaining healthy lead flow? This is information you need if you want to make the most of your Google Ads budget and stop accidentally turning away good customers.

Think about fishing for a minute. When you cast a net into the lake, you want to catch the fish you’re after while keeping out the junk. So you choose a net with holes small enough to catch your target fish but large enough to let the little stuff pass through. But what if you make those holes too small? You might end up catching nothing at all – even the fish you wanted! This is exactly what happens when septic businesses go overboard with negative keywords. You’re trying to be precise, but you might be filtering out perfectly good customers who would have hired you if only your ad had shown up when they searched.

Let’s talk about why septic businesses accidentally block good potential customers. It’s natural to want your ads to be super targeted – after all, you’re paying for every click. You look at your search terms and see people searching for “septic problems” or “septic repair near me” or even “plumbing emergency.” And you think, “We specialize in septic tank pumping, so let’s add ‘problems’ and ‘repair’ and ‘plumbing’ as negative keywords.” But here’s the issue – customers don’t always search in perfect terms. Someone with a septic tank that needs pumping might search “septic problems” first, then call you and discover pumping is exactly what they need. By blocking these related terms, you’ve cut yourself off from potential customers.

How can you tell if you’re being too aggressive with your search term clean-up? The first sign is a sudden drop in impressions and clicks after adding new negative keywords. This means fewer people are seeing your ads. Another warning sign is when your ads stop showing for searches that used to bring you good leads. For example, if you used to get calls from people searching “septic system maintenance” but now your negative keyword list blocks that term, you’ve gone too far. The most telling sign is when your lead volume decreases while your cost per lead goes up. That’s a clear indicator that you’re filtering out too much potential traffic.

So what’s the right balance between filtering out bad traffic and maintaining healthy lead flow? Start by being selective about your negative keywords. Focus on excluding terms that are clearly unrelated to your business – like “septic tank video games” or “free septic service.” For related terms like “septic repair” or “septic inspection,” think twice before excluding them. Even if these aren’t your primary services, they might be gateway searches that lead to your main service. Instead of broad negative keywords, use phrase match or exact match negatives to be more precise. And regularly review your search term data. Look at what searches led to phone calls. If you’re blocking terms similar to ones that converted before, you might want to remove those negative keywords. Remember, it’s about finding the sweet spot – not too broad that you waste money, but not so narrow that you miss good leads.

The difference between a Google Ads campaign that barely breaks even and one that delivers consistent leads often comes down to these small but critical details. Getting your negative keyword strategy right could make your septic service ads finally work the way you hoped they would. Want to learn more ways to use Google Ads to grow your septic service business? I’ve got plenty more posts just like this one that can help you attract more local customers and keep your crews busy year-round. Thanks for watching, and I’ll see you in the next video.