Why Most Brisbane Business Owners are Flying Blind
I’ve sat down with hundreds of business owners from Chermside to Logan, and when I ask them, "Which specific ad got you that $5,000 job yesterday?" most of them just shrug.
They know they’re spending $2,000 a month on Google Ads, and they know the phone is ringing, but they can't connect the two. This is what we call a tracking problem. In plain English: your Google Ads aren't telling you which clicks are turning into cash and which ones are just tyre-kickers wasting your budget.
If you don't fix this, you are effectively gambling. You’re putting money into a machine and hoping for the best. But when your tracking is set up correctly, you can see exactly which keywords, ads, and suburbs are bringing in the profit.
In this guide, I’m going to show you how to identify if your tracking is broken, why it matters for your bank account, and what the future of finding customers looks like in 2024 and beyond.
The Cost of 'Broken' Tracking
Let’s be blunt: if you can’t see which ads result in a phone call or a booking form, you are wasting at least 30% of your budget.
I recently spoke with a landscaper in Brookfield who was spending $3,000 a month. Google told him he was getting "plenty of clicks." But when we actually looked at the data, 80% of his budget was being spent on people looking for "free DIY gardening tips." Because his tracking wasn't set up to count actual enquiries, Google thought those clicks were great.
Once we fixed the tracking to only count when someone actually called him or filled out his quote form, we could see the waste. We cut the bad keywords, and his enquiry rate doubled overnight without spending an extra cent. This is why measuring ROI is the single most important thing you can do for your marketing.
5 Signs Your Tracking is Lying to You
How do you know if your Google Ads dashboard is giving you the full story? Here are the red flags I see every day:
1. The Numbers Don't Match Your Bank Account
If Google says you had 50 "conversions" last week, but your phone only rang 10 times and you only got 5 emails, something is wrong. Usually, this happens because Google is counting things that aren't actually leads—like someone clicking your address or just visiting your "Contact Us" page without actually sending a message.2. Every Click is a 'Lead'
I see this a lot with DIY setups. If your settings are too broad, Google might count every single person who stays on your site for more than 30 seconds as a success. That’s not a success; that’s a visitor. You only want to count the people who are ready to give you money.3. You Aren't Tracking Phone Calls
For most Brisbane tradies and service businesses, the phone is everything. If you aren't using "call tracking" (where Google shows a unique number on your site to track who calls from an ad), you are missing half the picture. You might think an ad is failing when it’s actually driving your best phone enquiries.4. Your Website Doesn't Work on Phones
If someone clicks your ad on an iPhone while sitting in traffic on the M1, and your "Call Now" button doesn't work, that's a lost lead. More importantly, Google can't track a broken button. If your site is clunky, your tracking will be full of holes.5. You're Tracking 'Page Views' Instead of 'Submit Buttons'
If your tracking triggers as soon as someone lands on your contact page, it’s useless. You need it to trigger only when they actually hit the "Send" button. Otherwise, you’re optimising your ads for people who look at your phone number but never dial it.The Shift: How Google Finds Customers Now
Marketing has changed. It used to be about you picking the right keywords. Now, it’s about Google’s computer brain (AI) doing the heavy lifting. But here is the catch: Google’s AI is only as smart as the data you give it.
If you give Google bad data (tracking junk clicks as leads), it will go out and find you more junk. If you give it perfect data (only tracking high-value phone calls and quote requests), it will get better and better at finding people who want to buy.
This is why letting Google find customers only works if your tracking is flawless. If your tracking is broken, Google’s AI will efficiently spend your money on the wrong people.
Trend Analysis: What's Changing in 2024?
We are moving into a "privacy-first" world. You’ve probably seen the pop-ups on your own phone asking if you want to be tracked. This makes it harder for Google to follow a customer from a click to a sale.
The Prediction: In the next 12-18 months, simple tracking will stop working for most small businesses. You will need what’s called "Enhanced Conversions." This sounds technical, but for you, it just means giving Google a little more encrypted info (like an email address) so it can verify that the person who clicked the ad actually bought something.
Expert Insight: Businesses that move to this "advanced" tracking now will pay significantly less per lead than their competitors. Why? Because while your competitor is bidding $20 a click for everyone, your account will be smart enough to only bid high for the people most likely to actually call you.
How to Fix It: Your Action Plan
If you suspect your tracking is off, here is what I recommend you do this week:
1. Do a Test Run: Go to Google, search for your business, click your own ad (yes, it will cost you a few dollars, but it's worth it), and fill out your own form. Then, check your Google Ads account the next day. Did it show up as a conversion? If not, you’re flying blind. 2. Check Your "Thank You" Page: When someone fills out a form, do they stay on the same page, or do they get sent to a page that says "Thanks, we'll call you soon"? Sending them to a separate page is the easiest way to track success accurately. 3. Turn on Call Reporting: Ensure Google is tracking calls from your ads. This is a simple toggle in your settings that most people forget to turn on. 4. Audit Your Budget: If you’re spending money without knowing exactly where the leads are coming from, you should probably reduce your budget until the tracking is fixed. There is no point pouring water into a leaky bucket.
What is a Waste of Money?
Don't let an agency charge you thousands of dollars for "advanced data analytics" or "heat mapping" if you’re a local plumber or accountant. You don't need to know exactly where someone moved their mouse on your screen.
You need to know two things: 1. Did they call me? 2. Did they email me?
Anything else is a distraction. Focus on the money-making actions. If your agency is sending you 20-page reports full of graphs but you can't see a direct link to your bank account, they are likely hiding the fact that their tracking isn't set up to show real results.
Real-World Example: The Morningside Electrician
We worked with a local sparky who was convinced Google Ads didn't work. He was getting "leads" for $15 each according to his dashboard, but his phone wasn't ringing.
When we looked under the hood, we found his tracking was set to count every time someone clicked his "Services" page. He wasn't getting leads; he was getting readers. We changed his tracking to only count when someone clicked his phone number or finished a booking.
Suddenly, his "cost per lead" jumped to $60. He was shocked—until he realised that every one of those $60 leads was an actual human wanting a quote. He went from zero jobs to three jobs a week from his ads because Google finally knew who to look for.
Summary: Get Your Data Right or Get Out
Google Ads is the most powerful tool for Brisbane small businesses, but only if you use it right. Without accurate tracking, you're just donating money to Google.
It takes about 2-4 weeks of clean data for Google’s system to really start performing. If you fix your tracking today, you could see a significant drop in your cost-per-customer by next month.
If you’re too busy running your business to mess around with tracking codes and Google settings, we can help. At Local Marketing Group, we specialise in making sure every dollar you spend on ads is a dollar spent on growing your business.
Ready to stop guessing and start growing? Contact us at Local Marketing Group and let’s get your tracking sorted so you can finally see the results you’re paying for.