Stop Throwing Good Money After Bad
I see it every single week here in Brisbane. A local business owner—maybe a landscaper in Carindale or a boutique gym owner in Newstead—comes to me frustrated. They’ve been running Facebook ads, and for a while, the phone was ringing. Then, suddenly, it stopped.
Their first instinct? "I probably need to spend more money to get Google or Facebook to notice me again."
Stop right there.
Increasing your budget on an ad that isn't working is like trying to fix a leaky bucket by pouring more water into it. You aren't fixing the problem; you're just making the puddle on the floor more expensive.
If your ads have stopped bringing in leads, bookings, or sales, throwing more cash at Mark Zuckerberg is the last thing you should do. Most of the time, the issue isn't the amount of money you're spending; it's what you're saying and who you're saying it to.
In this guide, I’m going to show you exactly what to check first so you can get your phone ringing again without blowing your profit margins.
1. The "Boredom" Factor: Are People Tired of Seeing You?
Imagine you’re driving down Gympie Road. The first time you see a massive billboard for a new steakhouse, you notice it. The tenth time, you barely see it. By the fiftieth time, it’s just part of the scenery.
Your Facebook ads work the same way. In the marketing world, they call this "ad fatigue," but let’s just call it what it is: people are bored of looking at your stuff.
If you’ve been running the same photo of your service van or the same "10% off" graphic for three months, your local audience has tuned you out. Brisbane is a big city, but your specific neck of the woods (say, a 10km radius around your shop) only has so many people in it. They’ve seen your ad, and if they didn't click the first five times, they aren't going to click the sixth.
How to fix it:
Swap the photo: You don't need a professional photographer. Take your phone out, go to a job site, and take a high-quality photo of your team actually working. People trust faces more than logos. Change the headline: If your headline is "Best Plumber in Brisbane," try something more specific like "Got a Blocked Drain in Chermside? We’ll Be There Today." Try a video: If you've only used images, try a 30-second clip of you explaining a common problem you solve. You can actually get more customers from one post if that post is high-quality and speaks directly to a customer's pain point.2. Your Offer is Weak (Or Non-Existent)
I’ve seen dozens of Brisbane businesses run ads that basically say: "We exist, please hire us."
That isn't an ad; that's a digital business card. And nobody clicks on business cards.
If your ads aren't working, look at what you’re actually asking people to do. If you're asking them to pay full price for a service they aren't sure they need yet, you’re going to struggle.
People on Facebook aren't usually looking to buy right this second. They are scrolling to see what their mates are doing or to look at memes. To get them to stop scrolling, you need a "hook."
What a good offer looks like:
The Tradie Offer: Instead of "General Maintenance," try "Free 20-Point Safety Inspection with Every Service." The Professional Service Offer: Instead of "Book a Consultation," try "Download Our 5-Step Guide to Saving $5k on Your Taxes." The Retail Offer: Instead of "New Arrivals in Store," try "Show This Ad for a Free Coffee While You Browse."If your offer doesn't make someone feel like they’d be silly to pass it up, it’s not strong enough. You need to stop posting and start selling by giving people a genuine reason to click now rather than "later" (which we all know means never).
3. Your Website is Killing the Deal
This is the most common problem I see with small business marketing in Queensland. You spend $500 on Facebook ads, the ads are great, people click them... and then they end up on a website that looks like it was built in 2004.
If your website is slow, doesn't work on a phone, or makes it hard to find your phone number, you are throwing money away.
Think about it: most people are looking at Facebook on their phones while they’re waiting for a coffee or sitting on the train. If they click your ad and your site takes more than three seconds to load, they are gone. They won't wait. They'll go back to Facebook and keep scrolling.
The "Leaky Bucket" Checklist for Your Website:
1. Does it load fast? If you’re using big, un-optimised images, your site will be slow. Slow sites don't get phone calls. 2. Is your phone number at the top? Don't make people hunt for it. It should be the first thing they see. 3. Is there a clear next step? Tell them exactly what to do. "Call Now," "Fill out this form for a quote," or "Book Online." 4. Does it work on a phone? Open your website on your own phone right now. Is the text too small? Are the buttons hard to hit with a thumb? If yes, fix it immediately.If you fix your website, you'll often find that your "broken" Facebook ads suddenly start working again. It wasn't the ad that was the problem; it was the destination.
4. You’re Talking to the Wrong People
Facebook’s targeting is powerful, but it’s easy to get wrong. I’ve seen Brisbane businesses targeting the whole of Australia when they only service the Southside. That is a fast way to go broke.
Alternatively, you might be being too specific. If you’re a local pest controller and you’re only targeting people who like "termite prevention" and live in a 2km radius of Indooroopilly, your audience is probably about 50 people. Your ads will stop working because you've run out of people to show them to.
The Golden Rule for Local Targeting:
Keep it simple. If you're a local service business, target your service area (by postcode or a radius around your shop) and keep the interests broad. Facebook is actually quite smart; if you show it that you want people who need "plumbing," it will eventually find the people in your area who are looking for plumbers.Don't try to outsmart the system. Focus on making sure you aren't paying to show ads to people in Sydney who can't use your services anyway.
5. You aren't Tracking the Right Things
How do you know your ads aren't working?
I ask this of every client. Some say, "I’m not getting many likes."
Likes don't pay the electricity bill.
You should only care about two things: 1. Did the phone ring? 2. Did an enquiry form come through?
If you are judging your ads based on how many people "liked" the photo, you are looking at the wrong numbers. I would rather have an ad with zero likes and ten phone calls than an ad with 500 likes and zero calls.
If you feel like you're wasting time on social media, it's usually because you're chasing "vanity metrics" instead of actual business results. Stop looking at the hearts and thumbs-up. Look at your bank account and your call log. That’s the only data that matters.
6. Your Follow-Up Sucks
Sometimes the ads are working perfectly, the website is doing its job, the leads are coming in... and the business owner is letting them die in the inbox.
In the digital age, a lead has a shelf life of about five minutes. If someone fills out a form on your site at 10:00 AM and you don't call them until 4:00 PM, they've already called three of your competitors. By the time you get to them, they’ve already booked someone else.
Before you increase your ad budget, look at your sales process: How long does it take you to return a call? Do you have an automated email that goes out immediately after someone enquires? Do you call them back a second time if they don't answer?
Improving your follow-up speed is free. Increasing your ad budget is expensive. Fix the free stuff first.
Summary: What to do today
If your Facebook ads have hit a wall, don't panic and don't just throw more money at the problem. Follow this order of operations:
1. Refresh your creative: Change the photo and the headline. Use a real photo of your work, not a stock photo. 2. Check your destination: Make sure your website works perfectly on a mobile phone and loads fast. 3. Strengthen your offer: Give people a reason to call today*. 4. Audit your area: Ensure you are only targeting people who can actually buy from you. 5. Fix your follow-up: Call leads back within minutes, not hours.
Marketing isn't magic; it's math and psychology. If you give the right people a great reason to click and make it easy for them to contact you, you will see results.
Need a Hand Getting the Phone to Ring?
At Local Marketing Group, we don't care about "brand awareness" or "engagement rates." We care about getting Brisbane small businesses more customers. If you're tired of guessing why your marketing isn't working and you want a straight-talking partner to help grow your business, let's chat.
Ready to get more leads? Contact Local Marketing Group today and let’s get your marketing back on track.