---
title: AHS Asbestos PPC Strategy — Budget & Performance
type: article
created: '2026-04-05'
updated: '2026-04-05'
source_docs:
- raw/2025-10-28-ahs-marketing-meeting-97410361.md
tags:
- ppc
- google-ads
- client:ahs
- asbestos
- microsoft-ads
- lead-paint
- budget-optimization
layer: 2
client_source: null
industry_context: null
transferable: true
---

# AHS Asbestos PPC Strategy — Budget & Performance

## Overview

AHS (Madison Asbestos & Hazardous Services) runs a multi-campaign Google Ads account covering asbestos remediation, mold, and lead paint services, supplemented by Microsoft Ads. As of the October 2025 review, the account is performing well — described internally as one of Asymmetric's stronger client accounts — with calls and lead forms generating across all active campaigns.

This article documents the current campaign structure, performance benchmarks, and the rationale behind the November 2025 budget reallocation.

See also: [[clients/ahs/index]] | [[meetings/2025-10-28-ahs-marketing-meeting]]

---

## Campaign Structure

| Campaign | Daily Budget | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Asbestos (Google) | $20/day | Restored from $15 after news-driven demand spike |
| Lead Paint (Google) | $5/day | New campaign; low competition, low click volume |
| PMAX | (included in above) | Primary lead form driver |
| Display | (included in above) | Asbestos + mold calls |
| Microsoft Ads | ~$72/month spend | Supplemental; not spending full budget |

### Budget History

- Asbestos campaign originally ran at **$10/day**, raised to **$20/day** as account matured
- **$5 was reallocated** from asbestos to seed the new lead paint campaign, dropping asbestos to $15/day
- In November 2025, asbestos budget was **restored to $20/day** to capitalize on increased public discussion around asbestos (see rationale below); lead paint remains at $5/day funded separately

---

## Performance Metrics (October 2025 Snapshot)

> Note: Some numbers in this period reflect a four-day tracking anomaly and may read slightly high. Segmented by conversion type.

### PMAX Campaign
- ~**30 lead forms** submitted during the review period
- Primary driver of top-of-funnel lead volume

### Display Campaign
- **7 total conversions**
  - 2 asbestos phone calls
  - 5 mold phone calls
  - 2 email contacts

### Lead Paint Campaign
- **2 clicks** — low volume expected given low competition in the auction
- Running at $5/day; AHS appears to be the primary (or only) advertiser in this space locally
- Cheap clicks; campaign is in early ramp phase

### Microsoft Ads
- **$72 spent** over 30 days (well under budget cap)
- **2 conversions** recorded
- High click-through and interaction rates relative to spend
- Positioned as a **supplemental channel** — low cost, meaningful signal, worth maintaining alongside Google Ads

---

## News-Driven Budget Optimization

### Rationale

In late October 2025, asbestos became a topic of elevated public discussion due to a politically charged news story (demolition of a building without proper asbestos abatement procedures). Gina Richardson flagged this via a Google Alerts-style digest she receives weekly.

**Key strategic decision:** Increase asbestos campaign visibility to capture users entering the search funnel due to heightened awareness — without engaging with the political angle of the story.

> "My thought was, since people are talking about asbestos, let's get them more with asbestos." — Gina Richardson

> "I don't want to get involved with anything political for us, for sure." — Bob Stigsell

### Action Taken
- Asbestos daily budget raised from **$15 → $20**
- No political targeting, no blog content tied to the news story
- Focus remains on service-intent keywords (inspection, removal, evaluation)

---

## Keyword & Messaging Notes

- AHS **does not perform asbestos testing** — copy must use "inspection" or "evaluation" instead of "testing"
- Service area language: **"Madison and Southern Wisconsin"** or **"Dane County and surrounding areas"** (avoid implying Milwaukee coverage)
- Vermiculite-specific: in Wisconsin, vermiculite **contains** asbestos (not "may contain") — this distinction matters for ad copy accuracy

---

## Competitive Context

- Lead paint auction: AHS is currently the **only or near-only competitor** showing ads, which explains low click volume but also means low CPCs when clicks do occur
- Asbestos auction: more competitive; higher budget justified to maintain share of voice

---

## Recommendations & Patterns

1. **Microsoft Ads is worth keeping active** even at low spend — $72/month for 2 conversions is strong efficiency for a supplemental channel
2. **News cycles can be a budget trigger** — monitor Google Alerts or similar for asbestos-related spikes and be ready to temporarily increase daily caps
3. **Avoid political adjacency** — even when public interest is high, keep messaging focused on service need, not the news event
4. **Lead paint is a long-term play** — low competition now, but worth seeding early to build Quality Score and history before competition increases
5. **PMAX is the volume engine** — 30 lead forms in a short window suggests the campaign is well-optimized; protect this budget allocation

---

## Related

- [[clients/ahs/index]]
- [[meetings/2025-10-28-ahs-marketing-meeting]]
- [[knowledge/seo/ahs-domain-rating-boost]]
- [[knowledge/email-marketing/ahs-training-email-campaign]]