Key Takeaways

• Segment ad groups by theme (not broad keyword buckets).
• Prioritize high-intent keywords (e.g., "professional painter near me" vs "painter").
• Use exact and phrase match carefully - broad is not always better.
• Use aggressive negative keywords in categories such as:
  
• DIY / question terms.
• Brand names and store names.
• Colors of paints.
  
• Personal names and business names.
• Review / search year terms.
• Test Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) for more high-intent reach.
• Make sure your landing page is built for conversion, not just aesthetics.
  

Table of Contents

The Challenge: Competing in a Crowded Local Market

Painting services is one of the most crowded service verticals on Google Ads. The CPCs are high, competition is fierce and intent can be misleading - thanks to searchers looking for DIY content, paint brands or job openings.

Max Conversion recently took over a campaign for a local painting company in a highly competitive market. The goal? Generate high-quality leads with a high return on ad spend.

In just one week, the campaign achieved:

• There are 43 clicks.
• 600 impressions / 25.5% conversion rate.
• Ad spend over $11,000 +.

And we're aiming for 30% conversion.

Step 1: Structuring Ad Groups Around Intent, Not Just Keywords

We divided this campaign into 25 targeted ad groups. But the bulk of performance came from three core groups:

• Paint Services.
• House Painting.
• Interior / Exterior Painting.

These groups drove the majority of clicks and conversions with clear, intent-driven keyword targeting. Specialty ad groups (cabinet painting or epoxy floors) were included, but deprioritized due to lower volume or less relevant queries.

"We sort of separate our ad groups by theme [painting services], house painting [another], exterior painting another" - Kyle, Max Conversion.

We grouped keywords by user intent to keep messaging relevant, Quality Scores high and wasted ad spend low.

Step 2: Focus on High-Intent Keyword Variations

Google's changes to match types, especially phrase and exact match, mean advertisers can no longer use traditional definitions. Broad match brings cheaper CPCs at the cost of quality.

Instead, we looked at keyword combinations that indicate intent to hire, such as:

• "Local painting company"
• "Professional painters near me."
• "Knoxville painting contractor."

We removed generic or ambiguous terms like "painter" or "painting" in exact match (which performed well in the past but drew lower-quality traffic due to loose matching behavior).

"We were getting clicks for' how to set up a painting business' or 'jobs for painting business' - those are not leads. Those are distractions. - Kyle, Max Conversion."

Step 3: Aggressive Negative Keyword Strategy to Protect Budget

This was the true game changer.

We developed a multi-layered negative keyword strategy to avoid the campaign wasting budget on low-intent clicks.

Category of Negative Keywords Used:

DIY & Educational Search Terms.

• For example: how to paint, what paint is best, painting tips.
• Action: Added how, what, who, why, where, when to prevent top-of-funnel, informational searches.

Paint Colors.

• For example: "paint my hallway black," "beige trim"
• Action: We made a negative keyword list of over 100 colors.

Paint Brand Names :

• For example: Bear, Sherwin-Williams, Valspar.
• Action: Blocked paint brand-related terms so users could avoid researching products instead of hiring services.

Retail Stores.

• For example: Lowe's, Home Depot, Ace Hardware.
• Action: Prevented people from looking for supplies or store locations.

Business and Personal Names.

• For example: Jack's Painting, and Painters.
• Action: Avoided competitors' brand names and irrelevant branded traffic.

Years and Review Terms.

• For example: Best painting companies 2024.
• Action: Blocked review-focused searchers who do not want to hire immediately.

"Just because it has 'painting company' in the phrase doesn't mean it's a lead... People click on competitor names all the time. That's $20 gone. - Kyle, Max Conversion.

This rigorous filtering ensured that clicks were of high quality, which directly contributed to the high conversion rate of the campaign.

Step 4: Smart Use of Dynamic Search Ads (DSA)

We also added Dynamic Search Ads (DSAs) to capture additional high-converting traffic not explicitly targeted by keywords.

Although more advanced, DSAs delivered cost-per-lead averages $50 - excellent for painting.

DSAs are best paired with a well-optimized landing page and a strict negative keyword filter to avoid going rogue and burning budget.

Step 5: High-Converting Landing Page

We can't show the exact client page here, but here's what worked:

• Floating call button (especially for mobile).
• Clear, succinct copy describing services provided.
• Elements that build trust: Testimonials, before/after images.
• Targeting location for local relevance.

Even with great ad targeting, a bad landing page will kill your ROI. This page helped turn clicks into leads by matching the intent of each keyword group.

Final Thoughts

Optimizing a Google Ads campaign for a painting company requires precision, intent-based targeting and aggressive filtering to minimize wasted spend and maximize ROI.

A 25% + conversion rate isn't a fluke - it's the result of expert-level PPC strategy and ongoing optimization.

"Reach for the quality of the click, not the cost. "Cheap clicks don't pay the bills"  - Kyle, Max Conversion"

 If you're sick of wasting money on Google Ads with no return, this strategy-first approach is your ticket to success.

If you need help improving your Google Ads performance,  Book a Free Strategy Call with Max Conversion.

Relevant Services from Max Conversion:

• Google Ads Management
  
• Landing Page Optimization
  
• Lead Generation Campaigns
  
  

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