How a Plumber Got 18 Leads in 30 Days With Google Ads

The Problem

When Marc Tremblay, owner of Plomberie Express Montreal, reached out to us in early February 2026, his business was running entirely on word-of-mouth referrals. He had no website, no Google presence, and no way to capture leads when his existing customers weren't actively recommending him. Business was inconsistent — great one month, dry the next.

Marc knew he needed to be online, but he'd tried to set up a Google Ads account on his own the previous year and burned $800 with zero results. He needed a system, not just an ad.

"I was showing up nowhere on Google. My competitors were getting all the calls and I was sitting by the phone waiting for referrals."

The Strategy

After our initial audit call, we laid out a 30-day plan with three phases running in parallel. The goal was not just traffic — it was qualified leads from people actively searching for a plumber in Montreal right now.

• Build a fast, mobile-optimized website with a clear call-to-action above the fold
• Launch a tightly-targeted Google Ads campaign focused on emergency and urgent keywords
• Deploy an AI chatbot to qualify and capture leads 24/7 — even when Marc was on a job

Website — Days 1 to 7

The website had to be live in one week. We built a single-page conversion-focused site on a fast hosting stack. No bloat, no unnecessary pages. The priority was speed, clarity, and trust.

Key elements we included on the homepage:

• Phone number and "Call Now" button visible without scrolling on any device
• A service list with emergency plumbing at the top
• Five Google reviews (seeded from Marc's existing happy customers we asked him to contact)
• A service area map covering all Montreal boroughs and surrounding suburbs
• A short lead capture form: Name, Phone, Issue — three fields, no more

The site loaded in under 2 seconds on mobile, which is critical. Google penalizes slow sites and users abandon them even faster.

Google Ads — Days 8 to 14

We launched one tightly-focused Search campaign targeting high-intent keywords. No broad match. No display ads. No YouTube. Pure search intent.

The winning keywords that drove the most conversions:

• "plombier urgence Montreal" — highest volume, highest intent
• "plombier 24h Montreal" — late-night emergency searches
• "debouchage egout Montreal" — drain-specific searchers with a specific problem
• "réparation chauffe-eau Montreal" — water heater issues, higher-value jobs
• "plombier près de moi" — proximity-triggered searches on mobile

We set a $15/day budget and used manual CPC bidding for the first week to understand which keywords converted before switching to Target CPA. Ad copy used the city name in the headline, mentioned "Available Today" and "No Surprise Fees," and included a call extension so users on mobile could call directly from the ad without even visiting the site.

AI Chatbot — Day 15

We added a Tidio AI chatbot to the website on day 15, after the Google Ads traffic was already flowing. The bot was trained on Marc's services, pricing ranges, service area, and a simple lead qualification flow.

When someone landed on the site at 11pm — which happened more than Marc expected — the bot would greet them, ask what the issue was, and collect their name and phone number. By morning, Marc had a warm lead waiting with context already attached.

The chatbot captured 4 of the 18 total leads. Without it, those leads would have bounced and called a competitor who answered.

The Results

At the end of 30 days, here's what the numbers looked like:

• 18 qualified leads (calls + form submissions)
• +340% increase in website traffic month over month
• Cost per lead: $27 (total Google Ads spend was $487 for the month)
• Marc closed 6 of the 18 leads — a 33% close rate, which is strong for a new Google presence
• Estimated extra revenue from the 6 new clients: $6,200
• ROI on the first month: 12x on ad spend alone

Marc's busiest day came in week four when a pipe burst in a condo building and the property manager found him via Google. That single job was worth $1,800.

Key Takeaways

This case study isn't unique to plumbing — the same system works for any urgent local service. Here's what made it work:

1. We started with a converting website, not just any website. Speed and clarity matter more than design awards.
2. Google Ads keywords were laser-focused on intent and location. We never spent money on broad awareness — only on people actively looking to hire a plumber today.
3. The AI chatbot plugged the after-hours lead leak. Most of Marc's competitors went offline at 5pm. He didn't.
4. We tracked every conversion from day one. Every lead was logged, every call recorded. Without tracking, you're flying blind.
5. The first 30 days were just the start. By month three, Marc's Google Ads were running at $18 cost-per-lead with 22 leads per month as we refined the campaign.

If your business depends on local customers finding you in a moment of need, Google Ads done correctly is the fastest path from zero to leads that exists. The key word is "correctly."