What are Local Services Ads?
If your business provides a service to customers in a specific local area, Google’s Local Services Ads (LSA) are designed to create new leads for you. These ads display in a special section at the top of the search results page, above both paid and organic results, when someone searches for a keyword you’ve won at auction.
The ads include your business name, your starred rating from your Google My Business listing, and a button that either automatically dials your number or, in some cases, allows customers to send you a message.
Why use a Local Services Ad?
Local Services Ads are perfect for businesses that—you guessed it—provide local services. A lot of these types of businesses provide home- or car-related services, but any local service fits the bill.
Find out if Local Services Ads are available in your area.
Some examples of local services supported by LSA include:
- Auto repair shop
- Criminal lawyer services
- Dentist
- Electricians
- Family lawyer services
- HVAC (heating or air conditioning)
- Lawn care services
- Orthodontist
- Personal injury lawyer services
- Plumbers
- Primary care physician
- Roofers
You can view the full list of supported services here.
Please note: Not all services are available in all areas.
These ads are particularly good at drumming up new customers. When customers search for a local business of this kind, they usually do so with the intention of making a purchase decision. Maybe they’re locked out of their car, their toilet is overflowing and flooding the whole house, or their yard has fallen into disrepair and needs to be shaped up for a dinner party this weekend. These are the types of situations in which customers are ready to buy now.
Local Services Ads are also cost-effective uses of marketing resources—you’re buying leads instead of clicks. The only clicks or taps you pay for are the ones that end up as direct phone calls or messages to your business by customers who chose you over your competitors.
Lastly, by creating a Local Services Ad, your business automatically applies to become a Google Guaranteed business, which means you’ll be included in the results of voice searches made using Google Assistant.
Why should I use CallRail tracking numbers in my Local Services Ads?
If you have two or more message leads in the last 90 days, estimated messaging response times may appear in your ads. These estimates can range from a few minutes to 'one day.'" A lower average response time makes leads more likely to engage with your ad, and your ad may rank higher and be more likely to be served to potential customers.
We recommend you set their business hours in LSAs so you are only contacted when someone is around to respond. You can also set up an auto-reply or message flow to ensure leads from Google get a timely response, even if you're busy with another customer and need a few minutes before you respond.
Without CallRail, you’ll also miss out on advanced attribution analytics and reporting tools, along with services that help manage your leads and optimize your customer service. These include text attribution reports, email notifications, and the ability to send data to tools like Google Analytics and HubSpot.
You can also receive phone calls from Google LSA. If you choose to do so, we recommend using a CallRail tracking number to receive new leads. You can learn more about phone calls in Google LSA here.
How do I create a CallRail tracking number to use with Local Services Ads?
When someone clicks or taps "Message" on your Local Services Ad, their device automatically messages a Google tracking number, which forwards to your business number.
To use a CallRail tracking number, you’ll create a tracking number in CallRail using the steps below. This tracking number will also need to be registered for compliance purposes (10DLC) in the United States or Canada (not toll-free).
- Log in to your CallRail account, and then select the + Create button in the lower-left corner of the page, and select Phone Number. You can also select Create Number on the CallRail home page.
- Choose the company with which you'd like to use your new tracking number.
- The new number wizard will appear on your screen. The first question asks, "Where do you want to use this tracking number?" Select Somewhere else since this number will display in your ad, not on your website.
- Select Google Local Services Ads.
- Choose the type of tracking number you'd like to create. (Since this caller will be forwarded to this number from a Google tracking number, the area code doesn’t matter—they won’t see it.)
- Name your tracking number for your reports (we suggest “Google Local Services Ad”). Then, select Number Routing.
- Enter the forwarding number where your calls should route. You can also configure your whisper message and call recording.
- When you're finished, select Activate Tracking Number.
Once your CallRail tracking number is set up, access your Local Services Ads account. In the Business Profile section of the account, paste this tracking number as your main business number. To change the number listed in your ad:
- Go to Profile & budget
- Select Settings
- Enable Message Leads and toggle the box next to Text message so that it is checked
- If necessary, use the pencil icon next to the number for Text message and replace it with your tracking number.
Using CallRail Messaging to view LSA leads
When you receive a new LSA lead via text, it will appear in your CallRail Messaging inbox, with "Google Local Services Ads" replacing the customer name. We also will identify the message with a "Google Local Services Ads" tag.
Customers can reply directly to the message they receive from Google, and Google will forward that message back to the lead. We recommend that the customer responds to the Google number so the response time can be tracked (before initiating the conversation directly with the lead via their supplied phone number)
You can also sign up to receive text notifications via email, so you never miss a lead!