The account
I ran Google Ads for a senior‑living community in the US, through a US agency. The account spent $3,919.88 in August 2026 and $4,401.41 in September 2026.
The goal was more enquiries from families.
The problem in this niche
Families who need care for a parent use almost the same search words as people who want caregiver or CNA jobs. Most of the families are adult children.
Google can also class these ads as housing, which rules out age targeting. So the keywords and the ad text have to keep job seekers out. The lead that counts is a family that calls or books a tour.
What I did
- Cut search terms that were bringing job seekers instead of families, and kept words like jobs, hiring, careers and CNA on a shared negative list.
- Used phrase‑match negatives such as “caregiver jobs” rather than “caregiver”, so families looking for a caregiver still saw the ads.
- Blocked training and start‑a‑care‑home searches, such as classes, courses, licenses and how to start one.
- Counted real enquiries as leads and kept page views and button clicks out of the conversion count.
- Judged changes over the whole month, not day by day, because urgent searches and slow comparisons sit side by side in this niche.
What changed
148.58 conversions at $22.32 each
1–24 Sep 2026 · $3,315.92 spend · 19.5% conversion rate (148.58 ÷ 761 clicks)
September 2026: 238 conversions on $4,401.41
1–30 Sep 2026 · 947 clicks · Google reports 237.53; rounded
August 2026: 200 conversions on $3,919.88
1–31 Aug 2026 · 980 clicks · Google reports 200.28; rounded
More screenshots
See the full account (2 more screenshots)
Google Ads overview, 1–30 Sep 2026: 947 clicks, 238 conversions, $4,401.41 spend. Client name not shown.
The same account over the full month of September. Google reports fractional conversions (237.53); rounded.
Google Ads overview, 1–31 Aug 2026: 980 clicks, 200 conversions, $3,919.88 spend. Client name not shown.
The same account in August 2026. Google reports fractional conversions (200.28); rounded.
For an agency
If your client runs a senior‑living community, its search terms often mix families with job seekers and people asking about Medicaid. I set up the account so tour requests and real calls count as leads, then keep cutting the searches that bring the wrong people.