Martin
Founder, strategy and audits
Writes every audit and takes every first call. On your account from day one, running growth for SMEs since 2010.
SEM for Recruitment Agencies
Google Ads for Recruitment Agencies in the UK
A manager who types recruitment agency for engineers has a vacancy open now. Google Ads puts your agency in front of that manager today. We split client and candidate intent and report cost per qualified client enquiry, not per click.
For owner-led recruitment agencies in the UK that want client enquiries this quarter, with spend tracked to each enquiry and nothing spent on job seekers.
Why client and candidate intent need separate campaigns
Context from how your customers search, compare and book.
The same keyword report holds two different people. Recruitment agency for accountancy practices is a hiring manager. Accounting jobs is an applicant. Recruiter jobs is a recruiter looking for their own next desk. A single campaign spends most of its budget on the second and third, because they search far more often. The client campaign carries exclusion lists for jobs, careers, apply, salary, CV and recruiter jobs, reviewed every week against the actual search terms, and a candidate campaign exists only if the agency wants one, with its own budget and its own line in the report.
Each client campaign lands on a page built for that intent: a sector page for the sector search, the executive search page for the board-level search, the fee page for the how much do recruitment agencies charge search. Each page ends with a short form that asks for the role, the location and the timeline. A manager who has to click through a jobs board homepage to find a contact form usually leaves.
The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 shape what an advert can say. Regulation 27, as we read it on legislation.gov.uk, requires every advertisement issued by an agency to state the full name of the agency and, for each position advertised, whether it is for temporary or permanent work. An agency may not advertise positions unless it has information about the specific positions and the hirer's authority to find work-seekers for them, and where an advert gives rates of pay it must state the nature of the work, the location and the minimum experience, training or qualifications required. Every ad we build carries the agency's full name, and any advert for a position says whether it is temporary or permanent. HeyLead is not an employment agency and holds no licence. The owner confirms the compliance position with their own adviser.
Who this Google Ads service suits
groups Customer segments
- person Agencies with a consultant or two who have capacity for new briefs now
- person Owners who tried Google Ads once, spent the budget on applicants and switched it off
- person Firms opening a new sector desk that need client enquiries before referrals exist
- person Executive search boutiques that want board-level enquiries kept apart from contingency work
psychology What drives their decision
- check_circle Client campaigns by sector with their own budgets and exclusion lists
- check_circle Landing pages that answer the hiring manager's question before the form
- check_circle Call and form tracking that reports cost per qualified client enquiry in GBP
- check_circle Weekly search term review so applicant searches never creep back in
How we deliver SEM
A clear, repeatable process built around how recruitment agencies customers search and decide.
1
Account and tracking audit
We audit any existing account for candidate searches that spent client budget, check conversion tracking for calls and forms, agree the sectors, salary bands and cities from London and Manchester to Birmingham, Leeds and Bristol the agency can take briefs in, and set the client and candidate goals apart.
2
Campaign build by intent
Separate client campaigns for sector searches, role searches, executive search and fee questions, each with its own budget, and a candidate campaign only if the agency wants one. Ad copy states the sectors, the cities and how the agency works, and makes no claim about a hire or a time to fill.
3
Landing pages
One landing page per campaign with the hiring manager's question answered first, the consultant who covers that sector, how the agency is paid in pounds, and a short form asking for the role, the location and the timeline. Call buttons are tracked separately.
4
Exclusions and weekly review
Exclusion lists for jobs, careers, apply, salary, CV, recruiter jobs, courses and recruitment software from day one, and a weekly search term review that adds whatever applicants typed that week.
5
Reporting and refinement
Monthly reporting of cost per qualified client enquiry in GBP by campaign and search term. Where your CRM records terms of business signed, those are linked back so spend is judged on mandates rather than clicks, and budget moves toward the sectors that produce them.
query_stats
What Recruitment Agencies SEM includes
Reach people who are ready to book on Google, without paying for clicks that never turn into customers in the UK
- check_circle Client campaign build by sector, role and executive search
- check_circle Landing pages with a short qualifying form
- check_circle Exclusion lists and weekly search term review
- check_circle Call and form conversion tracking
- check_circle Monthly cost per qualified client enquiry report
What you can expect
- verified Client enquiries from hiring managers in the cities you recruit in in the UK, within weeks of launch
- verified Sector, role and executive search spend reported separately, so you know which desk pays
- verified No budget spent on applicants, recruiters seeking their own job, students or software shoppers
- verified Ads that state your sectors and cities without claiming a hire or a time to fill
- verified A clear cost per qualified client enquiry in GBP, reviewed monthly
Deliverables you receive
inventory_2 Client campaigns by sector, role and executive search with separate budgets
inventory_2 Exclusion lists for jobs, careers, apply, salary, CV, recruiter jobs and recruitment software
inventory_2 One landing page per campaign with a short qualifying form
inventory_2 Call and form conversion tracking tagged by campaign and search term
inventory_2 Weekly search term review and exclusion updates
inventory_2 Monthly cost per qualified client enquiry report
Technical approach
The mechanics behind SEM for recruitment agencies, explained plainly.
Conversion tracking
Calls over a set length and client form submissions are recorded as separate conversions, tagged with campaign and search term. Candidate forms, if any, record to a separate goal. Where the CRM records terms of business signed, those are linked back without any client or candidate detail leaving the agency.
Location and schedule
Campaigns target the cities and regions the agency actually recruits in from London and Manchester to Birmingham, Leeds and Bristol, with ads scheduled around business hours and the Sunday evening planning window, and no spend on areas where the agency cannot act.
Claims review
Every ad states what the agency does and where, names only the licences and memberships it holds, and makes no claim about a hire, a shortlist date or a time to fill.
Marketing from $500 USD a month
Month to month, no commitment. One fee covers the pages, the search and ad work and the tracking. Ad spend is separate and stays in your own accounts.
Starting at
$500 USD per month
Free to cancel with 1 month's notice. Tell us what you sell and where. We come back with what the first month would fix.
Get a Free AuditWhat $500 a month covers
Pages
IncludedPages built around the searches your buyers actually type.
Search and ads
IncludedSearch and ads aimed at people ready to enquire.
Tracking
IncludedCalls, forms and bookings tagged to the search, ad or page behind them.
What to expect from Google Ads
Google Ads can bring client enquiries within weeks, but a hiring manager usually compares two or three agencies, so early enquiries are conversations about terms rather than signed briefs.
Days 1 to 14
We audit the account and tracking, agree the sectors, cities and salary bands, build the campaigns and landing pages and set the exclusion lists. Campaigns go live once call and form tracking is confirmed.
Weeks 3 to 8
The first client enquiries arrive and the search term reports show which sector searches bring hiring managers and which bring applicants. Budget moves toward the campaigns that produce conversations, and exclusions are tightened every week.
Months 3 to 6 and beyond
Cost per qualified client enquiry settles as the campaigns learn, and terms of business data from the CRM shows which sectors turn enquiries into mandates. We cannot promise a number of mandates or a cost, because the hiring market and competition shape results.
Other Recruitment Agencies marketing services
Our team
The same people on the audit and on the work
Martin writes every audit and takes the first call. The same team stays on the account. 160+ businesses since 2010.
Yoana
Social and app development
Shapes social strategy and builds practical app experiences that turn attention into action.
Mike
SEO
Owns technical, local and content SEO so the right buyers find you when demand is highest.
Robert
Paid media
Plans and manages paid search and social campaigns around qualified leads.
Elmer
Analytics
Connects tracking, attribution and reporting so decisions are based on revenue-quality data.
Dino
Design
Creates clear brand and conversion-focused design across landing pages, campaigns and product experiences.
Certified and experienced
Certified where it matters. Accountable for the outcome.
Verified platform knowledge, 25+ years of hands-on experience, and an operating track record since 2010.
Google AdsCertified
✓Google AnalyticsCertified
✓Google Tag ManagerCertified
✓Operating since 2010Proven experience
✓Frequently Asked Questions
What does a click cost for recruitment agency keywords? expand_more
We have not measured a keyword cost per click for recruitment agency terms in the UK, so we do not quote one. What we report is cost per qualified client enquiry in GBP, which is the number the owner can set against their own fee schedule.
Why not one campaign for everything? expand_more
Because a hiring manager and a job seeker type almost the same words. One campaign spends most of its budget on applicants, who search far more often. Separate campaigns with their own exclusion lists let the owner see client enquiries on their own line and move budget toward the sectors that produce mandates.
Can the ads say we fill roles in two weeks? expand_more
No. A time to fill depends on the brief and the candidate market, and a claim the agency cannot stand behind on every brief should not be in an ad. The ads state the sectors, the cities, how the agency works and how to reach a consultant.
Should we run a candidate campaign too? expand_more
Only if the agency wants applicants from paid search, and then as its own campaign with its own budget and a separate landing page that asks for a CV. It never shares a budget or a report line with the client campaign.
What about ads for our own vacancies? expand_more
Ads for a specific position belong to the candidate side, carry the agency's full name and say whether the role is temporary or permanent, as regulation 27 requires, and run only for roles the agency has been authorised to fill. They are tracked apart from the client campaign.
Ready to get more from Recruitment Agencies SEM?
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