Google Local Services Ads Guide: Benefits, Tips + Expert Insights

Google Local Services Ads are paid ads that help people find your local service-based business online. Learn everything you need to know about using these ads to connect with local leads directly.

When people search for service providers in their area, you can bet they want to partner with a trusted, reputable local business.

This is especially true if they’re experiencing an emergency like a broken air conditioner or medical concern.

Google Local Services Ads help users find trusted local service-based businesses while allowing service professionals and businesses to reach more local leads in their time of need.

In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about Google Local Services Ads with expert insights from Dave LaBrie, lead strategist at HawkSEM.

What are Google Local Services Ads?

Google Local Services Ads are a type of paid ad that helps local service-based businesses get leads through phone calls, messages, or bookings made directly through the ads.

These ads appear at the top of the Google Search results when local users search for the services your business offers.

Google has ranking factors for LSAs, but they differ from search ads, which are ranked based on Quality Score. Instead, Google calculates your ad rank for Local Services Ads by considering factors like:

• Number of customer reviews you receive and your review score
• Response rate to customer inquiries and requests
• Number of complaints submitted about your business
• Your company’s business hours

How do Google Local Services Ads work?

Unlike pay-per-click (PPC) ads where you pay every time someone just clicks on your ad, Local Services Ads have a pay-per-lead model.

Instead of keyword bidding, advertisers set their maximum bid per lead with the option to let Google set your bid for you.

When a lead contacts the business via the ad, the business receives an email and notification from the Local Services Ads app. The business can then follow up with leads and convert them into customers.

Response rate can affect ad ranking. That means businesses should respond to as many messages and calls as possible, even if they are going to decline the request for service.

Google also features badges on these ads to help service-based businesses in the home services, professional, and healthcare industries build a trusted reputation online.

They award these badges after businesses have passed verification checks.

Google Screened Ads

Google awards the Google Screened badge to professional service businesses that have passed extensive background and license checks.

U.S. businesses with the badge undergo background and license checks, while Google checks U.K. businesses for licenses, registration, and insurance.

When users book services through Google Screened ads, they are eligible for reimbursement (at no cost to you) if they aren’t happy with the services.

Each country has its own lifetime reimbursement limits. For example, the lifetime limit is $2,000 for businesses in the U.S.

Google Screened professionals will have a green checkmark icon next to their business.

Google Guaranteed Ads

Home service businesses that earn the Google Guaranteed badge go through extensive background and licensing checks.

U.S. businesses with the badge undergo background and license checks, while Google checks European businesses for licenses, registration, and insurance.

Google Guaranteed businesses will have an icon with a white checkmark in a green circle next to their business.

License Verified by Google Ads

Google awards the License Verified by Google badge to healthcare providers and businesses that go through extensive background and licensing checks.

License Verified professionals will have a green checkmark icon next to their business.

Benefits of Local Services Ads

Google Local Services Ads are an excellent option for service providers that want to reach more local customers in their time of need. Here are just a few of the benefits of this ad type with

Increase top-of-page visibility

Google Local Services Ads help you become more visible on the search engine just by the nature of their placement. The search engine displays these ads at the top of Google search results in a carousel above search ads and organic results.

That means these ads are the first thing a user sees on the search engine results page when searching for a local service-based business.

“Even if you’re ranking well organically or utilizing paid search to drive new leads, Local Services Ads provide another opportunity for potential customers to convert,” LaBrie says.

“Not to mention, LSAs typically account for 10% to 15% of all clicks when they appear in search results.”

Improves click share against competition

“Investing in LSAs ensures you’re visible in the same top-of-page carousel results as your competitors,” says LaBrie.

Google Local Services Ads are a popular type of ad for many industries, including home services, real estate, financial services, and legal services.

If you aren’t using this ad type, your business is missing out on an opportunity to show up on Google alongside your competitors, giving them the advantage.

Increase trust & credibility

Businesses that advertise with Local Services Ads need to be verified by Google to use the service.

Depending on your type of business, this can include verification of your business license and insurance documentation or a background check.

When Google places the Google Guarantee, Google Screened, or License Verified by Google badge on your ad, Google has already vetted and verified that your business is reputable. The badge signals to the user that your business is trustworthy.

“Google LSAs also show your Google Review score alongside your ads,” LaBrie adds. “And if you have a strong rating, this is an excellent opportunity to leverage that in your advertising.”

Simple budget and geotargeting controls

Local Service Ads make it easy to manage your budget and geographic targeting. You set a weekly budget, and Google will not spend more than that.

“Similarly, you can toggle different geographical locations on and off whenever you’d like,” says LaBrie, “giving you simple control over where you’d like to spend your advertising budget.”

Only pay for qualified leads

“One of the greatest benefits of Google LSAs is that you only pay for viable leads,” LaBrie says. “This helps you get more out of your advertising budget.”

While you used to have to manually request refunds for unqualified leads, Google now automatically refunds you for unqualified leads that fit the following criteria:

• Inquiries about a service you don’t offer
• Geographical location is not in your service area
• Wrong numbers, hang-ups, or unintentional calls
• Caller seeking employment, soliciting, or trying to sell you a product or service
• Spam callers (bots, automated or pre-recorded messages)
• Caller provided incorrect contact details like invalid phone number

LaBrie adds that only paying for viable leads “makes it quick and easy to determine your cost per qualified lead from advertising with LSAs.”

Is your business eligible for Google Local Services Ads?

Google Local Services Ads are currently only available for specific industry verticals and locations. The job types supported vary by location and may not be available in all countries.

A variety of professional services businesses can run Google Local Services Ads, including (but not limited to):

• Architecture
• Financial planning
• Law
• Real estate
• Tax services

Home services companies can also run LSAs, including (but not limited to):

• Electrician
• Handyman
• House cleaning
• HVAC
• Locksmith
• Pest control
• Plumbers
• Roofing

It’s also available for some healthcare providers, including (but not limited to):

• Audiologist
• Dentist
• Dermatology
• Ophthalmologist
• Orthodontist
• Plastic surgeon
• Primary care physician
• Veterinary services

And you can run Google LSAs in the following countries:

• Austria
• Belgium
• Canada
• France
• Germany
• Ireland
• Italy
• Spain
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom
• United States

Check your business eligibility on Google before applying. Once you’ve confirmed your business is eligible, you will need to pass Google’s screening and verification process before you can start running LSAs.

The screening process varies depending on the industry and location. Check Google’s business screening and verification requirements to see what’s required for your business.

This can include things like identity verification, background checks, and verification of business registration, insurance, and licensing.

How to set up Google Local Services Ads

Let’s walk through each step of the process of setting up your Google Local Services Ads.

1. Create your profile

First, you’ll need to create your Google Local Services Ads profile. Go to the sign-up page, and the first step of the process will be to check your eligibility.

Enter your country, state, and zip code. Then, choose your job category from the list available.

If you’re eligible, you’ll be brought to a form where you can enter your business details:

• Business name
• Business registration name
• Phone number
• Website
• Owner’s first and last name
• Total number of field workers
• Year founded
• Languages spoken
• Business address

Many local businesses serve areas outside of their immediate zip code. On the next page, you’ll be asked to enter your service areas. You can also include service areas that you’d like to exclude.

This is an essential step because people who are within your service area are going to see your ad. So, you want to make sure that you include all of the places that your business services.

Next, you’ll select all the services you offer new customers. Here’s an example of what that looks like for a dentist:

Next, enter your business hours by adding the days and times your business is open. This includes both your physical location hours and the hours that you travel to serve clients.

Click the next button, and you’ll get a preview of what your ad will look like.

Once you’ve confirmed everything, you’ll check the boxes provided to agree to Google’s terms of service. Click the Next button, and you’re on to the next step.

2. Submit the required documents for verification

Once you have submitted your profile information, you will then submit the required documents for verification. Requirements will vary depending on the country and the type of business.

It will take some time for Google to verify all of the requested documents and information. The sooner that you complete these steps, the sooner you’ll be able to start running LSAs.

Here’s an example of what this process looks like for a dentist.

First, the dental office would submit their proof of insurance for general liability insurance. The certificate of insurance document needs to clearly show the amount of liability insurance and the expiration date.

For dentists, the minimum insurance amount required is $250,000.

Depending on your industry and requirements, you may also have to include information regarding the service providers on your team.

A dental office would need to enter the information for each dentist, including their license, license number, and proof of professional liability insurance.

Google will walk you through whatever is required for your own business and industry.

3. Complete the background check

Next, you’ll need to complete a business background check. The background check helps Google verify that you’re a trustworthy business.

Google partners with a company called Evident to run background checks. All of the information is kept confidential. Google doesn’t see the specifics, just whether or not you passed or failed the check.

You’ll also need to run background checks on the owner and any service providers. Information will be sent to each person via email to start the background check process.

4. Get more customer reviews

A high customer review score helps you get your Local Services Ads shown more often in the search results. For this reason, it’s important to get as many positive customer reviews as you can from happy customers.

Google will start an initial search for your existing reviews on Google Maps. You can also send previous customers a custom link to gather even more reviews.

5. Set your budget

Next, you’ll set your budget. Google recommends a budget based on what other businesses in your industry are willing to pay.

You have the option to go with Google’s suggested budget or set your own budget.

Once you’ve set your budget, Google will not spend more than that amount per week. Google automatically bids on leads for you, deciding when and how often to show your ads in the search results to maximize the set budget.

If you’re already running Google ads, Google will pull the payment information from that account. You’ll need to confirm or enter the correct payment information after setting your budget.

4 ways to improve Google Local Services Ads performance

While Google Local Services Ads do show up at the top of the Google search engine results page (SERP), there is still limited space. Google will only show up to three LSAs on desktop and two on mobile.

That means you need to optimize your Google Services Ads if you want to appear in one of the limited spaces in the results. LaBrie offers his top tips for improving Google LSA performance:

1. Select your targeted services accurately

For many businesses, Google provides sub-categories for targeted services. Be as granular as possible to put your ads in front of users with more specific, higher-intent search queries.

2. Submit all required documentation

Ensure you submit all required documentation for your Google Screened, Google Guaranteed, or License Verified by Google badge so these are visible alongside your ad.

3. Get more customer reviews

Reach out to customers to ask them for positive reviews to improve your Google Reviews score. This score is visible in your LSAs, so a higher rating will increase the interaction rate.

4. Monitor your weekly ad budgets along with targeted geographies

Pay attention to lead quality from different areas over time. Pulling back in areas with poor lead quality will free up budget for more lucrative areas. You can also target new areas if you’d like to expand your service areas.

How much do Local Services Ads cost?

Google Local Services Ads pricing varies depending on your location, industry, and goals. You can use the Google LSA budget calculator to find out what you can expect to pay each month.

For example, if you’re a dentist in downtown Austin, TX looking for 25 new leads each month, you will likely need a budget between $2,850 and $4,275 monthly. That comes to $114 to $171 per lead.

The takeaway

Google Local Services Ads are an excellent option for local service-based businesses that want to attract new local customers.

When used in combination with a solid search engine optimization (SEO) and PPC ad strategy, Google LSAs can expand your online reach.

As with any type of ad, getting support with Google Local Services Ads from an experienced search engine marketing agency can help you maximize your results.

HawkSEM is ready to support you with all your digital marketing and advertising needs.

Book a free consultation today.