The easiest Google Ads clients to win are businesses already paying for ads and getting poor results. You can see enough from the outside to write them a useful three point note, and a note that shows a real problem gets answered far more often than "I help businesses grow with PPC." This page shows how to spot the problems without any login, what the audit email says, and how to price the first month.

Find businesses that are already advertising

Search the exact phrases your target buyers' customers type, such as "emergency plumber Tulsa" or "commercial cleaning Denver", and note who appears in the ads above the results. Each of those is a company spending money today. Pick a niche where one lead is worth a lot (a roofer, a personal injury lawyer, a dental implant clinic) so that fixing the ads has an obvious return. A business that sells a $40 item has little room to pay you.

What you can see from outside

Click their ad in a private window and look at what happens. Four things are visible in two minutes:

  • The landing page. Does it match the ad? A search for "water heater repair" that lands on a home page is a problem.
  • The contact path. Is the phone number clickable on a phone? Is the form short? Does a call go to voicemail?
  • Brand ads. Are they paying for clicks on their own name while a competitor's ad sits above the organic result?
  • Search terms. You cannot see theirs, but you can see ads running for broad words that bring the wrong people.

Write down only what you saw. Do not claim anything about their budget or numbers, which you cannot know.

The three point audit email

Subject: Three things I noticed on your Google ad for AC repair

Hi Beth, I searched "AC repair Phoenix" this morning and your ad came up first. I clicked it and noticed three things:

1. The ad sends people to your home page, not to the AC repair page, so a visitor has to hunt for the service.
2. On my phone, the phone number is plain text, not tap to call.
3. Your competitor Desert Cool shows a "same day service" line that yours does not.

I manage Google Ads for home service companies, and I can fix those three in a week. If you want, I will write up what I would change on a call, no charge for the call.

Mina Torres, mina@torresads.example
600 N 7th Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85003. Reply "stop" and I won't write again.

It is concrete, can be checked, and asks for a call, not a contract. Send it to the owner or the marketing manager. For tone and subject lines see how to cold email a potential client. As commercial email it needs your real name, an address and an opt-out, and you have 10 business days to honor a request under CAN-SPAM.

Price the first month

A first month has two parts: a setup fee for the audit and account cleanup, and a management fee. Many agencies charge a monthly fee or a percentage of ad spend. Pick one and explain it in a sentence. Example for Mina: $1,200 setup, then $900 a month for accounts spending up to $5,000 on ads, with a reporting call on the first Monday. State what is not included, such as new landing pages. Month to month contracts reduce the fear of signing, and results are what keeps the client. For the retainer conversation, see how to ask for a retainer.

Credentials and claims

Google has a Partners program with badge requirements that include certifications, spend and performance thresholds. Check Google's own help page for the current rules before you use the badge in your pitch. Never promise a lead count or a cost per lead before you have seen the account.

After the call

Ask for read-only access to the account, review it for a day, and send a one page plan. Keep any promises to what you control: the structure, the ad text, the landing page and the weekly check. Report the same four numbers each month: spend, clicks, leads and cost per lead.

Rocketship can find businesses that match the type you work with, such as home service companies in your region, by name, email them from your own Gmail and follow up. You supply the three point note; it handles the list and the sending. Try the 7-day trial, card required.

Audit three advertisers today and send the best note tomorrow morning.