In the Brisbane business landscape, competition for digital real estate has never been fiercer. Many business owners believe that winning at Google Ads is simply a matter of having the deepest pockets. They set high bids, target the right keywords, and yet find themselves sidelined by competitors with smaller budgets.
If you are paying a premium for clicks but seeing your ads relegated to the bottom of the page—or worse, not showing at all—you likely have a Landing Page Experience problem. Google doesn't just want your money; it wants to protect its users' experience. If your landing page feels like a bait-and-switch or a technical minefield, Google will penalise you with a low Quality Score, effectively taxing every click you receive.
Here are the most common mistakes Brisbane businesses make that destroy their landing page quality score and how to pivot toward a high-performing strategy.
1. The 'Keyword Stuffing' Trap
One of the biggest misconceptions in 2026 is that a landing page needs to repeat the target keyword fifty times to be relevant. This is an archaic SEO tactic that actually hurts your Quality Score today. Google’s AI is now sophisticated enough to understand semantic relevance and intent.When you focus on keyword density rather than user intent, your bounce rates skyrocket. If a user in Fortitude Valley searches for "emergency plumber" and lands on a page that is a 2,000-word essay on the history of PVC piping, they will leave immediately. This friction signals to Google that your page is irrelevant. Instead, align your content with intent vs awareness to ensure the user finds exactly what they were looking for within three seconds.
2. Neglecting the 'Need for Speed' on Mobile
With over 60% of Australian search traffic coming from mobile devices, a slow-loading page is the fastest way to tank your Quality Score. Google measures "Landing Page Experience" based on how quickly a user can interact with your site.Common culprits for local businesses include: Unoptimised images: Using high-resolution photos of your Brisbane storefront that haven't been compressed. Heavy scripts: Excessive tracking codes or bloated widgets that delay the 'First Contentful Paint'. Poor hosting: Using overseas servers that increase latency for Queensland-based users.
If your mobile load time exceeds 2.5 seconds, you are effectively paying a 'slow site tax' on every Google Ads auction you enter.
3. The Broken Conversion Path
Google monitors what happens after the click. If a user clicks your ad, arrives at your page, and then immediately hits the 'back' button because they can't find a phone number or a booking form, your Quality Score will suffer.Many businesses fail to realise that technical errors are often to blame for high bounce rates. Whether it’s a broken 'Submit' button or a tracking pixel that causes a layout shift, these conversion leaks are invisible killers of ROI. A high-quality landing page must be functional, intuitive, and provide a clear path to the desired action.
4. Lack of Transparency and Trust Signals
Google’s Quality Score algorithm places significant weight on 'Transparency and Trustworthiness'. This is particularly critical for service-based businesses in industries like finance, health, or home services.Common mistakes that flag your site as low-quality include: Hiding your physical Brisbane address or ABN. Vague service descriptions that don't match the ad copy. Missing privacy policies or terms of service links in the footer.
- Automated pop-ups that obscure the main content immediately upon arrival.
5. Failing to Use First-Party Data for Personalisation
In the current privacy-centric landscape, generic landing pages are becoming less effective. If you are running broad campaigns without leveraging your own data, you are missing an opportunity to increase relevance.For example, a Queensland solar installer should have different landing page copy for a residential homeowner in Chermside versus a commercial warehouse manager in Rocklea. The more specific and relevant the landing page is to the specific ad group, the higher the Quality Score, and the lower your Cost Per Click (CPC).
Summary Checklist for a 10/10 Quality Score
To stop wasting your ad spend, audit your landing pages against this criteria: 1. Relevance: Does the headline of the landing page exactly match the promise made in the ad? 2. Clarity: Can a user understand what you offer within 3 seconds of landing? 3. Speed: Does the page load in under 2 seconds on a 4G connection? 4. Navigation: Is the 'Contact' or 'Buy' button clearly visible without scrolling? 5. Trust: Are your Brisbane contact details and ABN clearly displayed?Conclusion
A high Quality Score is the ultimate competitive advantage in Google Ads. It allows you to outrank competitors who are spending significantly more than you. By moving away from generic, slow, and cluttered landing pages and focusing on a seamless user experience, you can drastically reduce your acquisition costs.Is your Google Ads performance plateauing despite increasing your budget? It’s time to stop the leak. Contact Local Marketing Group today at https://lmgroup.au/contact for a comprehensive audit of your landing page experience and start winning the auctions that matter.