Google Ads can put a small business in front of people who are ready to buy, today. It can also spend a month’s budget on searches that were never going to become customers. The difference is rarely the bid. It is the set-up, the tracking and the weekly checks.
This guide sets out what we would put in place before spending, and what has changed with Google’s AI features, so you can run ads in 2027 with your eyes open.
1. Decide what an enquiry is worth
Before you open Google Ads, work out roughly what a new customer is worth to you and how many enquiries turn into work. That tells you what you can afford to pay for an enquiry, and it is the number every other decision hangs on.
2. Set up tracking before you spend
If you cannot see which ads produce calls and forms, you cannot improve them. As a minimum:
- Track form submissions and calls from the website as conversions.
- Track calls from the ads themselves.
- Check conversions are recording before you launch.
In the UK, your cookie banner and Google’s consent mode need to work together. Consent mode passes visitors’ choices to Google tags, and Google uses modelling to fill some of the gaps when people decline (Google Ads Help: about consent mode). The ICO notes that the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 lets you set some cookies, such as some used for statistics, without consent; its provisions are now all in force (ICO). Advertising cookies still need care, so check your banner with whoever looks after your compliance.
3. Start narrow
Start with your most profitable services in the areas you actually cover. A plumber covering Ashford and Canterbury does not need to appear in Manchester. Narrow campaigns are easier to read and cheaper to fix.
4. Understand AI Max before you accept the defaults
Google’s AI Max for Search campaigns is an optimisation layer inside Search campaigns, not a separate campaign type. Google says it is turned on by default for new Search campaigns (Google Ads Help: set up AI Max). It can:
- match your ads to searches beyond your keywords, using broad match and “keywordless” matching
- write headline and description variations from your landing pages and existing ads
- send people to a different page on your site than the one you chose, through final URL expansion
Google also gives controls: you can turn search term matching off per ad group, turn text customisation and final URL expansion off at campaign level, exclude URLs and set brand and location controls (Google Ads Help: about AI Max).
Our view: AI Max can find good searches you would have missed, but only if your conversion tracking is accurate and your site’s pages are ones you are happy for an advert to land on. For a small account, we would review its settings line by line rather than accept the defaults.
5. Read the search terms report every week
Whatever match types or AI features you use, the search terms report shows what people actually typed. Add irrelevant searches as negatives. Google now shows headlines and URLs in the search terms report for AI Max campaigns, so you can also see which landing pages were used (Google Ads Help: how AI Max works).
6. Send people to a page that matches the advert
Google’s Quality Score has three parts: expected click-through rate, ad relevance and landing page experience, meaning how relevant and useful your page is to people who click (Google Ads Help: Quality Score). Google says Quality Score is a diagnostic, not an input to the auction, but a weak landing page usually means wasted clicks either way. Our landing page checklist covers what to include.
7. Write adverts that say something specific
Say what you do, where, and why someone should pick you: response times, accreditations, warranties you genuinely offer, or reviews. Avoid claims you cannot back up.
8. Set a budget you can learn from
A budget so small that you get a handful of clicks a week tells you very little. Agree a test budget and a test period in advance, and judge it on cost per enquiry, not clicks.
9. Answer enquiries quickly
Paid clicks are expensive to waste. If enquiries sit unanswered for a day, a competitor gets there first. Instant confirmations, missed-call text-backs and quote reminders all help; see our automation and lead handling service.
10. Review monthly, change one thing at a time
Look at cost per enquiry by campaign, search terms and landing page. Change one thing, give it time, then judge it. Constant changes make results impossible to read.
What we expect to change in 2027
These are expectations based on announced changes, not facts:
- More automation by default. With AI Max on by default for new Search campaigns, we expect fewer small advertisers to manage keyword lists by hand, and more to manage inputs: conversion data, landing pages and exclusions.
- Your website becomes part of the advert. Text customisation and final URL expansion draw on your site’s copy. We expect the quality of your service pages to matter more to paid results, not just organic ones.
- New ad surfaces. OpenAI now documents OAI-AdsBot, which checks landing pages submitted as ads on ChatGPT (OpenAI: crawlers). We expect more owners to ask whether to advertise inside AI assistants. Our advice will be to test only once Google Ads is tracked and profitable.
Where to go next
If you want an experienced eye on your account, see our PPC management service, or our paid ads management page for when to use Google, Meta or both. Or book a free 30-minute call.
FAQs
How much should a small business spend on Google Ads?
Enough to learn from. Work out what an enquiry is worth to you, then set a test budget and period that will produce enough clicks to judge cost per enquiry.
What is AI Max in Google Ads?
An optimisation layer for Search campaigns that expands matching beyond your keywords, writes ad text variations from your site and can choose a more relevant landing page. Google turns it on by default for new Search campaigns, and each part can be switched off.
Do I need a landing page for Google Ads?
You need a page that matches the advert and makes it easy to enquire. That can be a service page, as long as it does the job.
Why am I getting clicks but no enquiries?
The usual causes are irrelevant search terms, a landing page that does not match the advert, or broken conversion tracking. Check all three before changing bids.
Is Google Ads better than SEO?
They do different jobs. Ads bring enquiries in quickly while you pay; SEO builds over time. Many businesses use both.