For roofing owners
Google Ads for roofers: what works, what wastes money
Paul Parnell. I run the ads and follow-up for home service companies.
Google Ads for roofers work when three things are true. The ads only show to people who need a roof. The page loads fast on a phone. And someone answers when they call.
Miss one of the three and you pay for clicks that never turn into jobs. Here is how to get all three right.
Which Google campaigns a roofer should run
Start here
Search
Ads for people typing "roof repair near me" or "roofing company in [your city]." They need a roofer now. Use phrase match keywords, not broad, so Google cannot wander off topic.
Pay per lead
Local Services Ads
The ads with the Google Verified badge at the very top. You pay per lead, not per click. Since October 1, 2026, Google bills missed calls during your business hours when the caller holds past 20 seconds. Answer every one.
Watch it closely
Performance Max
Runs across Search, Maps, YouTube, and apps. It can work, but check where the money goes. I have found home service ad budgets going to mobile game apps.
Keep it separate
Brand
Ads on your own company name, in their own campaign. Judge them on a full year of data, not a month. In one roofing account, a short window made brand terms look like waste. A year of data showed they were not.
Keywords to buy, and words to block
Buy searches from people ready to hire. Block searches from people who will never pay you.
| Buy | Block |
|---|---|
| roof repair near me | roofing jobs, roofer hiring, roofer salary |
| roof replacement [city] | how to fix a roof, DIY roof repair |
| roofing company [city] | roofing school, roofing training |
| roof leak repair | shingles for sale, roofing nailer |
| storm damage roof repair | roof rack, car roof, RV roof |
| roof inspection [city] | free roof, roof tent |
Words like near me, cost, price, quote, company, and hire point to a buyer. Words like how to, DIY, and jobs point to someone who is not.
Check before you block. A word that looks like waste may be a service you sell. In one roofing account, gutters, soffit, and fascia looked like waste on paper. The company sells all three. Read your search terms each week and judge every keyword on booked jobs, not clicks.
Cut the junk clicks
- Fake clicks. I found $1,234 in fake clicks inside one Google Ads account. Here is how to find them in yours.
- Get the money back. Google has a form for invalid click refunds, and the clock is short. Here is the link and what to put in it.
- Apps and kids' videos. Performance Max can show your ads inside games and on kids' YouTube. Turn on content exclusions at the account level.
- Tap-by-accident spots. Check where ads ran. If a placement brings clicks and no calls, exclude it.
Fix the page the ad sends people to
A homeowner with a leak is on a phone. If the page is slow, they hit back and call the next roofer. You still paid for the click.
- One roofing company's ad page scored 42 out of 100 for speed and took 4.1 seconds to load. After the rebuild it scored 93 and loaded in 1.8 seconds.
- Another roofing company's page, built in a funnel builder, took 14.2 seconds on a phone to show its main content.
What the page needs: your phone number as a tap-to-call button at the top, a short form, photos of your own jobs, real reviews, and the towns you serve. One page per service, matched to the ad.
Check your ad page free with ClickMend, the scanner we built. You get a score from 0 to 100 and a short list of what to fix.
Answer the phone
30% to 40% of calls to a roofing company never get answered. When that call came from your ad, you paid for it anyway.
- Text back every missed call within a minute. Here are the 3 missed-call texts to use.
- Text new leads first, then call the ones who reply. That took the booking rate to 50%.
- See what missed calls cost you. Run the missed call cost calculator.
Track what turns into jobs
- Count real leads only. A call counts when it lasts 60 seconds or more. A form counts when the lead lands in your CRM.
- Make sure call tracking is on the page. In one roofing account, the call tracking code was never installed, so the account logged zero website calls in 90 days.
- Pick bidding that fits your data. Google's smart bidding needs steady conversion data to learn. Start on Maximize Clicks with no cap on cost per click.
- Judge on booked jobs. Google counts form fills and ringing phones. Your CRM counts money.
What the work has done
- 10x to 15x return on Google Ads for a flooring company.
- $1.2M in 90 days across two home service companies.
Questions roofers ask
Are Google Ads worth it for roofers?
They can be, when the ads only show for people who need a roof, the page loads fast on a phone, and someone answers the call. Judge them on booked jobs, not on clicks or leads.
Should a roofer use Local Services Ads or Google Search ads?
Both can work. Local Services Ads charge per lead, and since October 1, 2026, Google bills missed calls during business hours when the caller holds past 20 seconds. Search ads charge per click and give you control over the keywords and the page. Either way, answer every call.
What keywords should a roofer block in Google Ads?
Job and hiring searches, DIY and how-to searches, and supply searches like shingles for sale. Check your search terms each week and block what does not fit, but never block a service you sell.
How much should a roofer spend on Google Ads?
Work it out from your own numbers. Start with what a job is worth to you and what you can pay to win one. Then set a daily budget that buys enough clicks to learn from, and judge it on cost per booked job.