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Get results in days, not monthsResults in days, not monthsSeventy-one: that is how many business locations Howard County counts in trades that buy search ads, and none of them is large by headcount. The auction is a small room, and in a small room a clear ad for one exact service, tied to a landing page and tracked calls, can be seen. The county also holds a refinery, a veterans' medical center, a community hospital and a stretch of Interstate 20, each with its own kind of searcher.
GetPhound plans and manages Google Ads for Big Spring businesses, from Howard College to the interstate exits, adds Bing Ads and Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram) when they earn their place, installs call and form tracking and assigns a dedicated account manager who writes the monthly report. The arrangement is month to month and nothing is billed to open the account.
Market snapshot
City Ad Competition Index
22.1/ 100
Rank 181 out of 203 in Texas
Figures: ACS 2018-2022, Census population estimates, County Business Patterns 2022. A bar places Big Spring among the 203 Texas cities in this set and nowhere else. How it is scored: methodology. As of October 2026.
Buyers and advertisers
Of the 71 ad-buying business locations in Howard County, 70.4% have fewer than 10 employees and none counts as large, and the total slipped 5.3%. With so few players, a company that writes a precise ad and keeps its landing page honest can compete without a large budget, and one that does nothing leaves the field to the few that do.
The pattern by trade is uneven. Howard County counts 13 electrical contractors at 1.9 times the typical density, 9 accounting and CPA firms at 2.43 times and 12 insurance agencies at 1.09 times, while law offices (7), heating and air-conditioning contractors (7), dentists (5) and auto repair shops (5) sit below the typical density, and physicians' offices (7) are down 36.4%. The data show no roofing, remodeling or landscaping locations at all, so searchers for those services may be answered by firms from Midland or Odessa, a clear opening for a local firm that checks the numbers.
Buyers come from health care and social assistance (1,861 resident workers, 19%), mining and oil and gas (1,201, 12.2%) and retail trade (962, 9.8%). The Delek Big Spring Refinery, the George H. O'Brien Jr. VA Medical Center, Scenic Mountain Medical Center and Howard College are anchors that buy supplies and services, so business-to-business ads can run on weekdays while household ads lean on evenings.
Local workforce
What people do for work affects when they search and what they can pay for. The six biggest sectors for employed Big Spring residents are listed below.
| Sector | Share of employed residents |
|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 19% |
| Mining and oil and gas | 12.2% |
| Retail trade | 9.8% |
| Manufacturing | 7.6% |
| Accommodation and food services | 7.4% |
| Education | 6.7% |
Source: ACS 5-year estimates (2018-2022), employed civilians 16 and over. It follows residents wherever they work, including outside the city.
Rival bidders
County is as small as the Census gets for these counts, so each row covers Howard County, not Big Spring alone. Compare each density with the median U.S. county, where 1.0x is typical and 2.0x is double.
Source: Census Bureau County Business Patterns for 2017 and 2022. Employer locations are counted across the whole county; density = locations per 10,000 residents compared with the median U.S. county. These are businesses, not confirmed advertisers.
Location settings
In a city of 25,949 residents, small radiuses around named places beat one wide circle, because each place has its own crowd and its own hour of the day.
| Place | Targeting notes |
|---|---|
| Comanche Trail Park | Events at the amphitheater and the golf course justify short bursts of ads for food, fuel and parking within a few minutes of the park. |
| Big Spring State Park | Visitors at 1 Scenic Drive buy supplies on the way, so ads for ice, groceries and gas can run near the park entrance. |
| Hangar 25 Air Museum | A narrow radius around 1911 Apron Drive reaches museum visitors with lunch and lodging ads during open hours. |
| Heritage Museum of Big Spring | Downtown eateries and shops near 510 Scurry Street can reach museum visitors with ads that name the block. |
| Howard College | A campus-sized location group for food, books and repair keeps student calls separate from the rest of the city. |
| George H. O'Brien Jr. VA Medical Center | Ads for rooms, meals and pharmacies can reach veterans and families from 33 counties, with wording that never implies an affiliation. |
| Scenic Mountain Medical Center | Short-radius ads with directions near West 11th Place suit clinics, therapists and caregivers. |
| McMahon-Wrinkle Airport | Contractors, delivery services and pilots around the former air base can use a radius that covers the airpark. |
| Moss Creek Lake | Campers at Moss Creek Lake searching for ice, bait and groceries can be reached by ads placed within a short drive of the shore. |
Each place name is informal, taken from municipal, county or regional publications.
How people act on an ad
Just 2.3% of workers work from home, so almost everyone is at a job, a clinic or a rig through the day. They search on phones at lunch, on breaks and after the shift. Ads can run with call buttons during the hours when the business answers, and a landing page can put the phone number and the hours above everything else.
In Big Spring, 29.5% of residents speak Spanish at home and 11.8% were born abroad. A separate Spanish campaign and landing page, written by a fluent person, serve a large part of the market, and the monthly report can show whether calls from Spanish ads are as good as those from English ones.
The median household income is $65,418, median rent is $995 and the median home value is $127,600, while 12.2% of adults hold a bachelor's degree. Straightforward wording works best: what the job is, who does it, how a visit goes and how to book. Long claims and jargon cost clicks that never turn into calls.
The 2023 estimate is 22,373 residents, down 15% from the 2020 base, against 25,949 in the survey count, and 13.9% of workers commute 45 minutes or more. A modest budget, reviewed monthly, fits that picture, and Midland and Odessa shoppers can be added as a test in separate location groups when a business really serves them, with PPC in Big Spring kept as the base of the account and the extra cities judged on their own calls.
Campaign plan
Interstate 20, exits 174 to 182
Motels, restaurants, fuel stops and repair shops along Interstate 20, in a city of 25,949 residents, run ads that name their exit and amenities, with call extensions and directions. Travelers decide quickly, so the ad says what is available and how far, and the landing page loads fast on a phone.
Veterans and families
Lodging, restaurants, pharmacies and caregivers near the George H. O'Brien Jr. VA Medical Center run narrow ads aimed at people visiting from other counties, with parking and hours up front. The wording describes only the advertiser's own service and never suggests a link with the VA.
For 29.5% Spanish at home
Because 29.5% of residents speak Spanish at home, auto repair, dental, tax and home-repair businesses add a Spanish campaign with its own landing page. Calls are reported by language, so the share of budget can be adjusted by what the numbers show.
Weekday business hours
With 1,201 resident workers in mining and oil and gas, welders, truck repair shops, safety trainers and uniform suppliers run weekday ads per service. Negative keywords for jobs and applications keep the budget from paying for people looking for work at the Delek Big Spring Refinery.
Electrical, accounting, insurance
Howard County has 13 electrical contractors, 9 accounting firms and 12 insurance agencies, and a firm in any of them can run one ad group per service with a clear service area. Where the county data show no local roofers or landscapers, a firm that really operates here can claim the searches for itself.
Visitors on short trips
Cafes and shops near Comanche Trail Park, Big Spring State Park, Moss Creek Lake and the Heritage Museum of Big Spring raise bids on weekends and lower them on weekdays, and Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram) introduce them to households in the area. Bing Ads are one more place where a nearby searcher might find you.
For Howard County, the plan splits the audiences that really differ, interstate travelers, veterans and patients, field crews and households, into campaigns that can each be judged by calls.
Similar Texas markets
The five closest cities on size, income, age, tenure, density, home language, part-time housing and senior share. Pick a name to open its guide.
| City | Ad index | Population | Typical home value | Remote share | Long commutes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Spring, TX (this city) | 22.1 | 25,949 | $127,600 | 2.3% | 13.9% |
| Alvin, TX | 23.2 | 27,325 | $193,600 | 3.5% | 24.9% |
| Portland, TX | 26.4 | 20,130 | $218,200 | 6.7% | 8% |
| Lake Jackson, TX | 31.9 | 27,954 | $238,000 | 4.7% | 13.9% |
| Cedar Hill, TX | 61.2 | 48,733 | $246,300 | 13.3% | 25.1% |
| Cleburne, TX | 30 | 31,849 | $171,800 | 2.5% | 17.1% |
Matching uses the eight traits above; these columns show the ones that bear most on ad targeting. Census ACS 2018-2022.
Before the first dollar
Type in customer value, margin and the share of leads that close. It shows the break-even lead price and the customers needed each month to cover management. Nothing you enter leaves this page.
Fees
One monthly fee, set by platform count; you can walk away at any time. Ad spend never passes through us: the platforms bill you for it. Planning on more than $10K monthly in ad spend? Book a call.
Owner questions
The fee is a flat monthly amount: one platform runs $895, two cost $1,595 and all three come to $2,295. No contract is involved. The platforms bill your click budget separately, and we size it from what a customer is worth to you. The cards above explain each plan, and the pricing page adds the details.
A handful of campaigns ring the phone on day one, since a traveler looking for a room or a repair has a need right now, while others take two to four weeks to show which exits and phrases work best. We make no promise on volume. Each month's report lists calls, direction requests and search terms.
For most local businesses in Howard County, search comes first because people with a need type it right away, and a small slice goes to Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram) to build familiarity. In a county with 71 ad-buying business locations, a modest search budget often covers the best phrases, and the report shows whether to widen it.
Yes. Ads can mention that you are near the George H. O'Brien Jr. VA Medical Center and describe your own service, while avoiding the VA logo, claims of endorsement or wording that suggests a partnership. Visitors from the 33 counties it serves look for directions and parking, so those details belong in the ad.
For suppliers to the Delek Big Spring Refinery and oilfield crews we add negative keywords for jobs, hiring, employment and applications, write ad text that names the business service, and review the search terms weekly at first. In a county where 1,201 residents work in mining and oil and gas, those searches are common, so the filter saves money.
Often yes. Exit ads, whether for exit 174 or exit 182 in Howard County, use a tight radius around Interstate 20, show amenities and hours, and push the call button, while local ads can reach neighborhoods and lean on reviews. Keeping them apart shows whether drivers or neighbors bring more calls.
It is worth a careful test. Census-based counts can miss firms, but if few local companies advertise, a clear ad with a service area can reach searchers who otherwise land on Midland or Odessa firms. Start with a modest budget in Howard County and read the first month's calls before expanding.
A small test can, especially on weekends. A radius around Hangar 25 Air Museum on Apron Drive, ad text that says how many minutes away you are and a listing with accurate hours are enough to see whether museum visitors call or ask for directions. Keep the budget modest until the report shows a pattern.
OpenAI is testing labeled sponsored placements for users on its free and lower-priced plans, sold through a self-serve ad manager. Targets are coarse and the reporting is still developing, so a small test is the sensible way in. Google Ads stays the usual first move; we can talk it over if a test is on your mind.
The surrounding area
Campaigns can reach customers across city lines; the nearest cities, center to center:
The Howard County page looks at ads across the whole county.
Contact
Tell us who stops by, whether from Interstate 20, the VA medical center or Howard College, and which hours matter most. We will send an outline of campaigns that could cover those groups one at a time. Call 610-825-4363 or email hello@getphound.com.