Google Ads for builders: campaign structure, keywords and landing pages that convert

Luke Kilkolly • September 22, 2026

Google Ads for builders fail in one of two predictable ways. Either the campaign is too broad, bidding on "builder Sydney" and paying for clicks from people who want a bathroom retiled, a granny flat kit or a job as an apprentice. Or the campaign is fine but sends everyone to a homepage that says "quality homes built with care" and asks them to fill in a five-field form. Both waste money at a rate that makes builders conclude Google Ads don't work.

They do work, when the structure matches how homeowners actually search and how builders actually take on work. This guide sets out Google Ads for builders in detail: campaign structure by project type, keyword selection, the negative keywords that protect your budget, what a landing page needs to convert, and how to track leads through to won jobs.

In this article

Why builder campaigns need a different structure

A plumber sells one thing to one type of customer in a hurry. A builder sells several very different things (new homes, extensions, renovations, knockdown-rebuilds) to people at very different stages of a long decision. Someone searching "extension builder" is months from signing. Someone searching "knockdown rebuild cost" is earlier still. Someone searching "custom home builder Shellharbour" might be ready to talk.

A single campaign can't serve all of them well, because the keywords, the ad copy and the landing page need to match the project type. The fix is to structure campaigns the way you structure your business: one campaign per type of work you actually want more of.

Campaign structure by project type

For a builder doing a mix of work, the structure that produces qualified enquiry looks like this:

  • Campaign: extensions and additions. Ad groups for second storey extensions, ground floor extensions, and (if you do them) outdoor living and alfresco additions.
  • Campaign: knockdown-rebuild. Ad groups for knockdown-rebuild generally and for specific block types you specialise in (sloping, narrow, dual occupancy).
  • Campaign: renovations. Ad groups for whole-home renovation and any specific renovation types you take on. Exclude the ones you don't.
  • Campaign: new custom homes. Ad groups for custom home builder, architect-designed homes, acreage or rural builds as relevant.
  • Campaign: brand. Your own business name, cheap and protective.

Each campaign gets its own budget, so you can see that extensions cost $280 a lead and knockdown-rebuild costs $520, and shift money towards whichever is producing the jobs you want. Each ad group has its own ad copy and its own landing page. This is more set-up work than one campaign, and it's the difference between Google Ads that work for builders and Google Ads that don't.

Keywords: matching how homeowners search

Homeowners search for project type plus a location or a qualifier. The keywords worth bidding on for a builder are the ones that describe a project you want to win:

  • Project type plus location: "extension builder [suburb]", "knockdown rebuild [area]", "custom home builder [region]".
  • Project type plus qualifier: "second storey extension builder", "heritage renovation builder", "sloping block builder".
  • Cost searches, selectively: "second storey extension cost", "knockdown rebuild cost" attract researchers, so send them to a cost guide with a soft enquiry option rather than a hard quote form.

Use phrase match for most terms so Google shows your ad for close variants without drifting into unrelated searches. Broad match on builder terms is how budgets disappear. Review the search terms report weekly for the first two months and add anything irrelevant to your negative list.

Negative keywords that protect the budget

Negative keywords are the single most important setting in a builder's Google Ads account. Without them, "builder" attracts everything from Lego to LinkedIn profile builders. Start with this list and add to it from your search terms report:

  • DIY and cheap intent: DIY, cheap, budget, kit, kit home, flat pack, plans, free, template.
  • Owner builder and self-managed: owner builder, owner-builder, licence course.
  • Employment: jobs, careers, apprenticeship, salary, hiring, wanted.
  • Software and unrelated "builder" terms: website builder, resume builder, deck builder game, Lego, Minecraft, body builder.
  • Project types you don't do: if you don't do granny flats, sheds, pools, bathroom-only renovations or commercial, exclude them.
  • Retailers and suppliers: Bunnings, Mitre 10, Reece, and supplier brand names.
  • Locations you don't service: suburbs and regions outside your area.

A well-maintained negative list often cuts wasted spend by a third or more in the first month.

Location targeting for builders

Target the suburbs or radius you actually want to work in, not the whole city. A builder in Melbourne's inner east targeting all of Melbourne pays for clicks from Werribee they'll never quote. Use radius targeting around your base or a list of specific suburbs, and set the location option to "people in or regularly in" your targeted locations rather than "people interested in", which pulls in searchers from anywhere.

If you service distinct areas with different characteristics (an inner-suburb renovation market and an outer-corridor new build market, say), split them into separate campaigns or ad groups so the ad copy and landing pages can speak to each.

Map of Australia with colorful push pins marking locations

Landing pages that convert builder enquiry

Sending ad traffic to the homepage roughly doubles cost per lead. Each ad group needs a dedicated landing page that matches what the person searched. A landing page for second storey extensions should include:

  1. A headline that matches the search. "Second storey extensions in [area]" rather than "Welcome".
  2. Registration and insurance visible near the top. Homeowners check.
  3. Three or four relevant project examples with photos and suburb names. Extensions on an extensions page, not a mix.
  4. What's involved and a realistic cost range if you're prepared to publish one. This filters mismatched enquiry.
  5. Reviews , ideally ones that mention extensions.
  6. A short quote form asking for name, phone, suburb, project type and budget range. Four or five fields, not twelve.
  7. Click-to-call prominent on mobile.
  8. Fast load on a phone. Compress every image.

Our web design and conversion FAQs cover landing page structure in more detail.

Ad copy for builders

Ad copy that converts for builders is specific and reassuring. Lead with the project type and area, include registration or years established, mention something that differentiates you (fixed-price contracts, design and build, heritage experience), and make the call to action match the stage. "Request a site consultation" works better than "Get a free quote" for extensions, because homeowners know a quote isn't possible without a visit. Use ad extensions for phone number, location, sitelinks to project pages and callouts for registration and insurance.

Tracking from click to won job

Most builder leads arrive by phone, so call tracking is not optional. Set up conversion tracking for form submissions, phone calls from the ad, phone calls from the landing page, and ideally call duration so a two-minute enquiry counts and a ten-second wrong number doesn't. Then record every lead in a simple CRM with source, project type, quoted value and outcome.

After a quarter you'll know not just cost per lead but cost per quoted job and cost per won job by campaign. That's the number that tells you whether Google Ads are working, and it usually reveals that the campaign with the cheapest leads isn't the one producing the best jobs.

Budget and pacing

Builder click costs in Australian metro markets typically sit between $8 and $35 depending on project type and city, with inner-suburb renovation terms in Sydney and Melbourne at the top. At a 5% to 10% click-to-lead rate, a lead costs roughly $150 to $600. Work backwards from the jobs you want: two extension jobs a month at a 1-in-5 close rate needs ten leads, which at $300 a lead is $3,000 in media spend.

Pace the budget with the seasons. Enquiry lifts from late January through April and again in spring, and drops through winter and over the Christmas shutdown. Budgets that run flat overspend in July and underspend in February. Our guide to how much a construction business should spend on Google Ads covers the budget maths by city, and our Google Ads guide for civil contractors shows how the approach changes for commercial work.

Finally, treat Google Ads as the bridge. As your project pages and service pages start ranking organically, reduce paid spend on those terms and redirect it to project types or suburbs where organic hasn't caught up. Our lead generation service is built around exactly that shift.

Constructiv Digital manages Google Ads for builders across Australia, structured by project type with dedicated landing pages, call tracking and reporting on cost per won job. If you'd like a review of your current account or help setting one up properly, get in touch with our team.