Pinpointing Google’s Local Services Ads Ranking Factors

Did you know that 97 percent of consumers use online resources to shop locally? This gives the term “window shopping” a whole new meaning. Instead of traveling shop to shop to weigh out all of the local options, users are now relying on Local Services Ads to connect them with relevant businesses in their neighborhood.

But when it comes to visibility and credibility, not all LSAs are seen as equal. There are intricate details behind-the-scenes that let Google know it’s safe to boost your advertisement’s visibility in Google during local searches.

With the most important Google Local Services Ads ranking factors in mind, we’ve highlighted some of the best actions you can take to dominate local search results.

Enhance Your Google My Business Profile

Location, Location, Location

Since Local Services Ads are generated based on the information found on your Google profile, correctly providing your location matters. As a result, it is important to make sure both your address on Google My Business and the map pin location for your business on Google Maps are accurate.

Once a user begins their search, your location is one of the most important factors considered when ranking your LSAs. The closer you are the greater your chances of appearing higher in results. This means those extra miles you may have accidentally added could be weighing down your rank.

If it isn’t correct already, update your pin location and update your address immediately.

Add Photos

According to research, businesses with more photos get more clicks, calls and directions requests. The study also discovered that businesses with more than 100 images can receive 520 percent more calls than the average business.

Whether seeing the outside views help customers identify local landmarks or the inside views provide them with a glimpse of the environment, photos help consumers get an idea of what doing business with you might be like.

Manage Your Online Reputation

Get More Five-Star Reviews

Once your listing appears in search results, your star rating will be one of the first things a user will encounter. Given first-impressions are important, that can only mean your review rating can be rather influential to a user’s level of engagement. In fact, a study from Bright Local revealed that review ratings are the biggest driver of clicks in local search results.

Google keeps things like this in mind when determining a company’s eligibility for incentives like the Google Guarantee program.

Respond to Customer Reviews

Generating positive reviews is only part of the task. Responding to customer reviews is another way that the algorithm can work in your favor and boost the visibility of your business in search results. Not only does responding to reviews show a company’s level of commitment, but it is also an indication of great customer service.

According to a study by Gallup, companies that provided an emotional connection with customers outperformed the sales growth of their competitors by 85 percent.

Collect LSA Reviews

Did you know that users can also leave reviews on your LSA ad page? While Google will simply display reviews from your Google My Business profile, generating reviews for your LSA ad page could be beneficial in several other ways in the long run.

Keep Complaints to a Minimum

Negative reviews are one thing, but complaints are another red flag that can concern Google and scare away potential consumers. Unfortunately, if your business has received multiple complaints, it can have a harsh impact on your ranking power.

This is why keeping complaints low is a constant effort that must always be tended to when striving to keep your Local Services Ads at the top of local search results.

Be Responsive

Whether it be reviews or complaints, the more responsive your business appears to its customers, the better. If you were to miss a few calls here and there, it can still negatively impact your response rate, which is something Google considers heavily when ranking your LSAs.

Ensure the Accuracy of All Information Provided

It may sound like no big deal, but S Church St. and Church St. S are considered two completely different addresses in the eyes of Google. Not to mention, adding the incorrect service area can lead to several unwanted fees and broken promises. But not only your address, it’s essential for the business hours to be accurate, as well.

Since the visibility of your Local Services Ads will depend heavily upon if your business is open or closed when the search is conducted, incorrect business hours (including holiday and weekend hours) on your profile are seen as missed opportunities that can be far too damaging to your reputation to ignore.

Invest In Your Business

If you’ve already tried all of the options above, it may be time to take the saying “the best thing money can buy” to an entirely new meaning and start increasing your investment for a greater return. You can achieve this when you:

Bid Higher on Leads

Since Local Services Ads are pay-per-lead, businesses can identify how much it would like to pay weekly for a lead. The more bids made on a lead, the greater value it is determined to have. Similarly, the more a company pays for leads, the greater its chances of having its Local Services Ads move up in local search results.

Get The Google Guarantee Badge

Believe it or not, whether your business has a Google Guarantee badge or not, is a ranking factor that plays into how high your Local Services Ads can appear. Google is the authority in search engines and a certified badge of approval could be just another thing on the list of items you may need to outsmart the algorithm and convert your leads to customers once and for all.

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Caressa Losier

Caressa brings five years of experience as a content writer and over two years of digital marketing experience to Dagmar. Her responsibilities include optimizing content for SEO and creating robust data-driven strategies that are critical to the success of our digital content.

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