Real Estate Success with Google Ads: Why Your Ads Aren’t Converting (And How to Fix It)
Launching Google Ads is both exciting and confusing at the same time. But what do you do if, after getting your ads all set up, you discover that your Google Ads aren’t converting as you had hoped? In this blog post, HomeRank Ads will review the top 5 reasons why Google Ads may not be working for your real estate company and how to fix these issues.
1. Targeting the Wrong Audience
2. Ineffective Ad Copy and CTAs
4. Not Using Conversion Tracking or Optimization
5. Ignoring Negative Keywords and Irrelevant Traffic
We hope that with some extra time and effort, Google Ads will perform for you like a star! If it has been longer than 3 months and you are still struggling to see an increase in conversions, contact HomeRank Ads. We can provide further tips or even manage your Google Ads for you!
Frustrated your Google Ads aren’t converting? Unlock the door to successful Google Ads with these solutions from HomeRank!
(Image Source: AS Photography)
5 Reasons Your Google Ads Aren’t Converting & 5 Solutions from HomeRank
Google Ads can be highly effective for real estate businesses, offering targeted ways to reach potential clients, build brand visibility, and drive lead generation. Here’s how Google Ads can benefit a real estate business overall:
Precise Targeting for High-Intent Audiences
Localized Advertising Options
Enhanced Visibility with Google Search and Display Ads
Lead Generation through Optimized Landing Pages and Forms
Retargeting Capabilities to Re-Engage Interested Users
Brand Awareness and Credibility Building
Measurable Performance and Optimization Opportunities
Flexible Budgeting and Cost Control
In sum, Google Ads can help a real estate business connect with prospective clients, build a strong online presence, and drive leads. This is precisely why you want your Google Ads to work right. Now let’s look at why your Google Ads aren’t converting and the appropriate solutions. We’ll look at each issue, provide a solution, and give you an example to learn from!
1. Targeting the Wrong Audience
The #1 reason why your Google Ads aren’t converting is that your ad isn’t reaching the right audience or is overly broad.
(Image Source: Luis Quintero)
Google Ads targeting allows advertisers to reach specific audiences based on criteria such as location, demographics, interests, and online behaviours. With options like keyword targeting, geographic targeting, and audience segmentation, Google Ads enables businesses to show ads to people who are most likely to be interested in their offerings, helping increase engagement and conversion rates. By refining who sees the ad, advertisers can focus their budget on reaching users with high intent, maximizing ad effectiveness and ROI.
Issue
The top reason your Google Ads aren’t converting is that your ads are not reaching people who are ready to take action, such as buying, selling, or renting a property. Generic or overly broad targeting can dilute the impact of your ad. If the audience is too broad or generic, you risk attracting clicks from users who aren’t serious buyers or sellers, leading to wasted ad spend and fewer qualified leads.
Solution
Use precise targeting, such as location-based targeting and refined demographics. Use “in-market” audiences in Google Ads to reach people actively searching for real estate.
Example
A good example of overly broad targeting in a real estate Google Ad would be using a general keyword like "real estate" or "homes" without specifying location, buyer intent, or property type. Here's why this dilutes the impact:
Keywords like "real estate" or "homes" are extremely broad. People searching for these terms might be interested in anything from international real estate trends to DIY home improvement tips. They’re not necessarily looking to buy or sell properties in your specific area, meaning many clicks will be from users with no real intent to convert into clients.
Plus, if you target all age groups or geographic locations without refinement, the ad might show to people outside your target market, such as those not actively interested in buying or selling, those in locations where you don’t operate, or people looking for rentals when you focus on sales.
Imagine you’re a real estate agent in Toronto specializing in condos for young professionals. Running a Google Ad with keywords like "real estate" or "homes for sale" would likely lead to:
Clicks from users searching for general real estate news, investment tips, or homes in cities other than Toronto.
Impressions for people outside your desired demographic, like retirees or families looking for larger suburban homes.
To sharpen targeting, you could refine keywords and demographics, focusing on terms like "Toronto condos for sale" or "condos near Downtown Toronto". This way, your ad reaches people looking specifically for condos in your target market, reducing irrelevant clicks and increasing conversion chances.
Narrowing down to high-intent keywords and a well-defined audience increases the chance that each click will come from a potential client rather than a general browser.
Conclusion
Targeting the right audience is essential in real estate advertising because it ensures your ads reach people who are most likely to be interested in buying, selling, or renting property. When ads are shown to a specific, high-intent audience—such as people searching for "condos for sale in Toronto" or "family homes near schools"—the chances of conversions increase significantly. Effective targeting lets you focus your marketing budget on those most likely to take action, maximizing your return on investment and helping you connect with prospective clients more effectively.
2. Ineffective Ad Copy and CTAs
Effective ad copy provides relevant details and includes clear, action-oriented CTA’s to guide users.
(Image Source: Pixabay)
Ad copy is the text or written content used in ads to persuade viewers to take a specific action, such as clicking a link, signing up for a service, or making a purchase. In digital advertising, especially with platforms like Google Ads, ad copy is crucial because it directly impacts whether someone will engage with the ad. Effective ad copy grabs attention, conveys value, builds interest, and includes a clear call-to-action (CTA).
Issue
Ad copy that’s vague, lacks a compelling offer, or doesn’t clearly communicate the value can fail to attract clicks. Similarly, weak calls-to-action (CTAs) like "Click Here" lack urgency and don’t encourage specific action.
Solution
Focus on benefits that resonate with potential buyers or sellers (e.g., "Find Your Dream Home" or "Get a Free Home Valuation Today") and include specific, clear CTAs like "Schedule a Tour" or "See Listings Now."
Example
Let’s contrast 2 ads next and let you compare the differences:
Ineffective Copy
An example of ineffective ad copy and CTAs in a real estate ad would be one with the following characteristics:
Headline: “Find Great Homes!”
Description: “Click here to learn more about homes in your area.”
CTA: “Click Here”
In this example, the headline is generic and lacks specificity or appeal. “Great homes” don’t convey unique value, location, or property type, making it unlikely to attract the attention of serious buyers or sellers.
The description is vague and does not provide any compelling reason to click. Phrases like “learn more” lack urgency or benefit, failing to communicate why the viewer should care.
Lastly, the CTA “Click Here” is weak because it doesn’t specify what action the viewer will take or what they’ll gain, making it easy to ignore.
Effective Copy
By contrast, the effective copy would look like this:
Headline: “Exclusive Toronto Condos – Limited Listings!”
Description: “Tour new listings today and find your dream home in downtown Toronto!”
CTA: “Book a Viewing”
This improved version includes specifics about the location, property type, and a clear, action-oriented CTA that encourages immediate engagement.
Conclusion
Effective ad copy and CTAs are crucial in real estate ads because they capture the viewer’s attention, communicate value, and drive immediate action. Strong ad copy provides relevant details—like property type and location—that resonate with prospective clients, while a clear, action-oriented CTA guides them on the next steps, such as booking a viewing or contacting an agent. Without compelling copy and a direct CTA, ads are likely to be overlooked or fail to convert, leading to wasted ad spend and missed opportunities to engage serious buyers or sellers.
3. Low-Quality Landing Pages
Take time to carefully craft high-quality landing pages that create conversion opportunities for your Google Ads!
(Image Source: Davide Baraldi)
High-quality landing pages are essential for Google Ad conversions because they provide a seamless, relevant experience that keeps users engaged and encourages them to take action. When someone clicks an ad, they expect to find information that directly matches the ad’s promise, such as property listings, contact forms, or booking options.
A well-designed landing page is fast, mobile-friendly, and visually appealing, with clear calls-to-action that make it easy for visitors to convert, whether by filling out a form, scheduling a viewing, or contacting an agent. Poor-quality or confusing landing pages can lead to high bounce rates, wasted ad spend, and missed conversion opportunities, as potential clients are less likely to stay and engage if the page doesn’t meet their expectations.
Issue
Even if the ad is strong, sending users to a confusing or slow-loading landing page without relevant information will cause high bounce rates. Pages that lack clear next steps or don’t match the ad’s promise fail to capture interest.
Solution
Ensure landing pages are fast, mobile-friendly, and provide a clear, seamless user experience. Match the landing page content to the ad copy and provide clear options for action, like signing up for a newsletter or viewing properties.
Example
A low-quality landing page for a real estate Google Ad might look like this:
Unclear or Irrelevant Content
A visitor clicks on an ad for "Luxury Toronto Condos," expecting detailed listings and virtual tour options. However, the landing page only shows a generic company homepage with no specific condo listings or luxury property information. This mismatch makes it difficult for users to find what they’re looking for and reduces the likelihood of conversion.
Slow Loading Time
A landing page that takes too long to load frustrates visitors, especially on mobile devices, causing them to abandon the page. Since many users expect fast load times, delays can lead to high bounce rates and wasted ad spend.
No Clear Call-to-Action (CTA)
The page might lack a clear CTA, like “Schedule a Tour” or “Request Property Details.” Instead, there’s only a generic “Contact Us” button buried at the bottom of the page. Without a direct, visible CTA, visitors aren’t encouraged to take the next step, leading to missed opportunities.
Confusing Layout or Poor Design:
A cluttered layout with too much text, few images, or hard-to-read fonts overwhelms visitors and detracts from the user experience. If it’s hard to navigate, visitors are unlikely to stay, much less fill out a form or take action.
In contrast, a high-quality landing page for "Luxury Toronto Condos" would have fast loading times, clear images or videos of the condos, easy-to-navigate property listings, and a prominent CTA like "Book a Private Tour."
Conclusion
High-quality landing pages are crucial for real estate Google Ads because they ensure a seamless experience that aligns with the ad's promise. A well-designed landing page provides relevant, easy-to-find information, such as property listings or booking options, and includes a clear call-to-action (CTA) to guide users toward conversion. Fast-loading, mobile-friendly, and visually appealing pages increase user engagement and reduce bounce rates. Without a high-quality landing page, visitors are likely to leave quickly, wasting ad spend and reducing the chances of turning clicks into qualified leads.
4. Not Using Conversion Tracking or Optimization
Keep reading to learn why conversion tracking is important and watch the video to learn how to set it up in Google Ads!
Conversion Tracking in Google Ads allows you to measure and track specific actions that users take on your website after clicking an ad, such as filling out a contact form, making a purchase, or calling your business. By setting up conversion tracking, you can see which ads, keywords, or campaigns are driving valuable actions, providing insight into which parts of your marketing strategy are working and which need improvement. Conversion tracking allows you to measure ROI and make data-driven decisions.
Optimization in Google Ads refers to making adjustments to improve the performance of your campaigns based on the data collected from conversion tracking. This includes tweaking elements like keywords, bidding strategies, ad copy, and targeting to maximize your return on investment (ROI).
Issue
Without tracking key actions like lead form submissions, phone calls, or downloads, it’s hard to understand what works and optimize ad spending. Relying on broad metrics without tracking actual leads can mask performance issues.
Solution
Set up conversion tracking in Google Ads to monitor actions that indicate genuine interest. Use this data to optimize ad bidding, targeting, and creative elements based on actual conversions rather than just clicks.
Example
Imagine you’re running a real estate Google Ads campaign to promote luxury homes for sale in Los Angeles.
Conversion Tracking Setup
Action to Track: You decide that a key conversion action is when users fill out a contact form requesting more information about a property.
Tracking: You set up conversion tracking to record when someone submits the form. You might also track phone calls or requests for a property tour as separate conversions.
Result: You now have data showing which ads and keywords are driving form submissions (the most important action) versus just clicks. This helps you know if your campaign is really generating leads.
Optimization Based on Data:
Bid Adjustments: After tracking conversions, you realize that keywords related to “luxury homes” perform better in certain zip codes like Beverly Hills. You adjust your bidding to increase your bids for these high-conversion areas to ensure you're showing ads more frequently to people in these locations.
Keyword Refinement: You notice that keywords like "cheap homes" or "affordable luxury homes" are getting clicks but not converting into leads. You pause these underperforming keywords to avoid wasting ad spend on irrelevant traffic and focus more on terms like "luxury homes in Beverly Hills" and "high-end real estate in LA."
Ad Copy Testing: You run A/B tests on your ad copy, trying different headlines such as “Exclusive Beverly Hills Homes for Sale” versus “Find Your Dream Luxury Home in LA.” The second headline gets more clicks, so you make it the primary copy in your ads, improving your click-through rate (CTR) and conversions.
Audience Targeting: Your conversion tracking shows that users between the ages of 30-45, who are interested in high-end real estate, are more likely to convert. You adjust your audience settings to focus more on this group, optimizing your campaign towards the most profitable demographics.
By using conversion tracking, you gain valuable insights into which aspects of your campaign are working. With that data, you can optimize your keywords, ad copy, targeting, and bidding strategy to improve conversion rates and maximize ROI.
Conclusion
Setting up accurate conversion tracking and continuously optimizing based on performance data allows you to focus your efforts on high-converting elements, reducing waste and improving the effectiveness of your Google Ads campaigns. You’ll ensure that your Google Ads are not just generating clicks, but are also driving real, measurable outcomes for your business.
5. Ignoring Negative Keywords and Irrelevant Traffic
Learn how negative keywords ensure your ad only appears to users interested in purchasing luxury condos in Toronto.
(Image Source: Anurag Jamwal)
If your Google Ads aren’t converting, perhaps you need to take a look at your negative keywords. Paying attention to negative keywords and irrelevant traffic in Google Ads is crucial for optimizing your campaigns and improving overall performance. You’ll maximize your ROI, improve ad relevance, enhance user experience, boost quality score, and reduce bounce rates.
Imagine you’re a real estate agent advertising luxury condos in Toronto. Without negative keywords like "cheap homes," "real estate careers," or "rent", your ad could be shown to users searching for affordable apartments or real estate job listings, resulting in irrelevant clicks. By adding those terms as negative keywords, you ensure your ad only appears to users interested in purchasing luxury condos, increasing the likelihood of conversions and saving your budget from irrelevant clicks.
Issue
Broad keyword matching can attract clicks from users searching for irrelevant or low-intent queries, wasting budget and lowering ROI. For example, keywords like "real estate agent jobs" attract those looking for careers, not properties.
Solution
Regularly update your negative keyword list to filter out irrelevant searches. Use keyword match types strategically to focus on high-intent searches, and review search term reports to see which keywords are leading to conversions.
Example
Suppose you’re running a Google Ads campaign for high-end condos in downtown Toronto. However, you don’t include negative keywords, so your ad shows up for searches like "cheap condos in Toronto," "Toronto condo rentals," and "Toronto real estate jobs." Here is the impact of such a campaign:
Irrelevant Clicks
Users searching for “cheap condos” or “rentals” click on your ad, but when they see it’s focused on luxury condos for sale, they quickly leave. You’ve paid for these clicks, yet they’re unlikely to convert into qualified leads.
Lower Quality Score
Since users interested in cheap condos or rentals aren’t engaging with your site, your ad’s Quality Score drops. This can lead to higher costs per click (CPC) and lower ad visibility, which means you’re paying more for fewer valuable leads.
Missed Target Audience
By spending on irrelevant clicks, you use up your budget on users who won’t convert, limiting the ad's ability to reach those genuinely interested in high-end Toronto condos.
To avoid these issues, you could add negative keywords like "cheap," "affordable," "rentals," and "jobs" to your campaign. This helps ensure your ad appears to a more relevant audience—those looking to buy luxury condos—maximizing ad budget and conversion potential.
Conclusion
In summary, negative keywords and filtering out irrelevant traffic ensure that your ads are shown to the right audience, maximizing your ROI, improving ad relevance, and preventing wasted spend on users who won’t convert.
Boost Your Real Estate Business with Expert Google Ads Management from Homerank Ads!
Looking to reach the right audience and drive real results? HomeRank Advertisements specializes in Google Ads management designed specifically for real estate businesses. Our team uses targeted keyword strategies, effective ad copy, and audience-specific landing pages to attract serious buyers and sellers, not just clicks.
With advanced conversion tracking and regular optimization, we ensure your ad budget is used effectively to generate qualified leads and maximize your return on investment. Let Homerank Advertisements handle your Google Ads so you can focus on what you do best—closing deals!
Ready to see real growth? Contact us today and let Homerank Advertisements take your Google Ads to the next level!
