evidence
Real findings from real audits
Every line below is a real finding from a real audit. Same shape clients receive, same anonymization standard, same logic. Names are replaced with placeholders; numbers and reasoning stay intact.
Tracking + measurement
The highest-leverage findings. If you're paying for clicks with broken measurement, every optimization downstream is guessing.
[unevaluable] no-conversion-tracking
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-05
[unevaluable] data sources for this rule didn't resolve cleanly. The detector did not run; this row is a loud-flag for the operator. Prospect-facing surfaces filter this out by default. • conversion_firing: no Google Ads tag detected on the single page passively scanned...
Paying for ads. Not telling Google which ones turned into customers
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-05
Their ads are running, so the spend is real. But none of the main pages on the site are firing a Google Ads conversion tag. Every click is being paid for unmeasured. If the ad account is set to bid based on conversions (the default for most accounts these days), Google's bidder...
Running Google Ads with zero conversion tracking installed
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
an HVAC contractor in our audit set is observed in sponsored slots across the audit's reporting window. confirmed actively spending on Google Ads. But the homepage and contact pages show NO Google Ads conversion tag (AW-*), no GA4, no GTM container. Every click they're paying...
Paying for ads. Your contact clicks register no conversion
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-05
Their ads are running, so the spend is real. We triggered a contact action on the site the way a customer would and no Google Ads conversion request fired. If the account bids on conversions (the default for most accounts now), the bidder is optimizing on noise instead of real...
Targeting + match types
Where is the budget actually going? Broad-match leaks, anti-service bleed, geography mismatches, invisibility on queries the prospect thinks they're winning.
[unevaluable] ad-copy-offers-unlisted-service
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-05
[unevaluable] data sources for this rule didn't resolve cleanly. The detector did not run; this row is a loud-flag for the operator. Prospect-facing surfaces filter this out by default. • site_crawl_completed: all sources failed or ineligible. site_crawl_passive:...
Not in a single local pack across 161 service searches
HVAC contractor · audit run 2026-05
Across the audit window we captured 161 service-query SERPs in the contractor's service area where Google rendered a local 3-pack. On 161 of them, an HVAC contractor in our audit set wasn't in the pack. The most-observed pack dominators on those searches were Spencer Home...
Not in a single local pack across 10 service searches
HVAC contractor · Salem · audit run 2026-05
Across the audit window we captured 10 service-query SERPs in Salem where Google rendered a local 3-pack. On 10 of them, an HVAC contractor in our audit set wasn't in the pack. The most-observed pack dominators on those searches were Velocity Air HVAC, Quality Cooling & Heating,...
Addario's bought a sponsored slot on 20 of the contractor's service searches
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-05
Sponsored local-pack slots are a Google Ads placement tied to a business's GBP profile. Pay-per-click, renders inside the regular local pack wrapper, visually identical to an organic pack entry. On 20 of the 20 captured service searches where any sponsored slot rendered, a...
Ad copy + creative
What the ad actually says vs. what it should say. Missing location insertion, on-site offers never echoed, call extensions never rendered.
On-site promos never appear in ad copy (7 promos on site, none echoed in ads)
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
an HVAC contractor in our audit set prominently shows promos on their site. the headline offer captured was 'Same Day Service We guarantee reliable same-day service for your urgent needs, e'. but across 21 captured ads, none of the promo tokens (specific dollar amounts, % off,...
Ad copy never mentions any of the 1 captured geos (missing dynamic location insertion)
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
Across 3 captured ads on geo-targeted searches in peabody, their ad copy never mentions any of those town names. Dynamic location insertion (DLI) or simple per-campaign location tokens is one of the cheapest CTR wins for local services. Searcher types "AC repair Salem," sees "AC...
On-site promos never appear in ad copy (5 promos on site, none echoed in ads)
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
Their site prominently shows promos; the headline offer captured was "Advanced Plan Annual System Assurance Discount No surcharge on emergency call". But across 6 captured ads, none of the promo tokens (specific dollar amounts, % off, "free estimate," "same-day," "0% financing")...
On-site promos never appear in ad copy (12 promos on site, none echoed in ads)
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
Their site prominently shows promos; the headline offer captured was 'Same Day Service We guarantee reliable same-day service for your urgent needs, e'. But across 3 captured ads, none of the promo tokens (specific dollar amounts, % off, "free estimate," "same-day," "0%...
Position + auction pressure
Brand defense, money-keyword position, competitor encroachment. Often the cheapest clicks in the account. And the most frequently undefended.
Competitors are bidding on searches for their business name
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-05
Someone typing 'an HVAC contractor in our audit set' into Google is as qualified a click as any advertiser gets. They know the brand, they're in buy-mode, they just need the link. When a competitor has a text ad on that search, they intercept the conversion before it lands on...
Competitors are bidding on every captured search for their business name
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-05
Someone typing 'an HVAC contractor in our audit set' into Google is as qualified a click as any advertiser gets. They know the brand, they're in buy-mode, they just need the link. When a competitor has a text ad on that search, they intercept the conversion before it lands on...
Missing from the local 3-pack on 4 of 4 service searches
HVAC contractor · Beverly, MA · audit run 2026-04
On 4 of 4 captured service searches in the contractor's service area, the local 3-pack rendered and the contractor wasn't in it. Pack-dominating competitors: Cranney Home Services (4x), Semper Mechanical, INC. (4x), R & R Heating & AC, LLC (2x). Sample queries: 'AC repair...
Competitor Mass Hvac Inc dominates the local pack on an HVAC contractor in our audit set's brand searches
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
On searches for your own brand name, Mass Hvac Inc appears in the local 3-pack 3 times. Other pack competitors on brand: Mass Hvac Inc (3x), Mass HVAC Comfort Solutions (2x), Mass Heating Inc. (2x). A searcher typing their business name lands on a pack that invites a click to a...
Reputation + GBP
Upstream of the ad account but critical. Rating, review velocity, profile claim status.
Thin GBP review count (6 reviews)
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
an HVAC contractor in our audit set has only 6 Google reviews (current rating 5.0 stars). In a competitive local-services market, the review count itself is a trust signal. a searcher comparing three local-pack listings reads it as 'how busy is this business' and 'how many...
Thin GBP review count (2 reviews)
HVAC contractor · Peabody, MA · audit run 2026-04
an HVAC contractor in our audit set has only 2 Google reviews (current rating 5.0 stars). In a competitive local-services market, the review count itself is a trust signal. a searcher comparing three local-pack listings reads it as 'how busy is this business' and 'how many...
Thin GBP review count (9 reviews)
HVAC contractor · Peabody · audit run 2026-04
The contractor has 9 Google reviews (current rating 4.1 stars). In a competitive local-services market, the review count itself is a trust signal, a searcher comparing three local-pack listings reads it as "how busy is this business" and "how many people validate them."...
Thin GBP review count (10 reviews)
HVAC contractor · Beverly, MA · audit run 2026-04
The contractor has 10 Google reviews (current rating 4.6 stars). In a competitive local-services market, the review count itself is a trust signal, a searcher comparing three local-pack listings reads it as "how busy is this business" and "how many people validate them."...
About anonymization
- Business name is replaced with a generic placeholder.
- Phone numbers and emails are stripped.
- License numbers and other identifying sequences are removed.
- Findings that cannot be safely anonymized are dropped entirely.
What gets redacted before anything ships: business name, phone, license number, specific dollar figures, review counts with identifying context, and any detail that would let another reader triangulate the account. The structural lesson stays; the identifying detail goes.
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