Google LSA: City Targeting Leaves Out Large Sections

[UniqueTradesMarketer]

Hey everyone,

I'm the marketing lead for a SoCal plumbing company. Our LSAs have been underperforming, with impressions down 47% in Q2 compared to Q1. We discovered that our city targeting was excluding large sections of our service area (tens of miles). When we switch to ZIP code targeting, our service area is fully covered and matches our needs.

For example: City A has three ZIP codes. When we select City A, only ZIP codes A1 and A2 are highlighted, leaving out ZIP code A3. However, if we deselect the city and select ZIP codes A1, A2, and A3, all ZIP codes are highlighted and we're happy.

Our concerns are:

• If we stick with city targeting, people in ZIP code A3 won't see our ad when searching for a plumber.
• If we switch to ZIP code targeting, ZIP codes A1, A2, and A3 will see our ad. However, targeting by ZIP code instead of the city might affect our ranking when our ad appears.

We went forward with changing to ZIP codes. Our service area now matches what we had last year when our LSAs were performing better and before we made the switch to city targeting. I'm tracking this very closely.

Any insights on how ZIP code targeting might impact our ad performance compared to city targeting?

Thanks!

 

[Chris Barnard]

I've been going back & forth with support recently over a related issue I noticed in a few accounts - which sounds like it's related to the issue you're reporting.

We have a multi-location client who uses all zip codes for targeting, but, when a city name is added, the zip code of that city areas get removed (not all zips for the city) - and it doesn't appear to align with zip code coverage or city size.

City sections on the map didn't get removed when adding a zip, but when adding a city, the zip sections are getting removed.

Support first reply said it was a bug, their subsequent reply indicated, "It is not a bug and is an intended behavior, the system will either choose to target the city, or the zip codes. So depending on how large or small you would like to target, please choose one or the other."

Actionable insights are so relative to the account/location in my experience, that everything is test & verify IMO. But definitely update us on your results, if you fancy.

 

[UniqueTradesMarketer]

I've been going back & forth with support recently over a related issue I noticed in a few accounts - which sounds like it's related to the issue you're reporting.

We have a multi-location client who uses all zip codes for targeting, but, when a city name is added, the zip code of that city areas get removed (not all zips for the city) - and it doesn't appear to align with zip code coverage or city size.

City sections on the map didn't get removed when adding a zip, but when adding a city, the zip sections are getting removed.

Support first reply said it was a bug, their subsequent reply indicated, "It is not a bug and is an intended behavior, the system will either choose to target the city, or the zip codes. So depending on how large or small you would like to target, please choose one or the other."

Actionable insights are so relative to the account/location in my experience, that everything is test & verify IMO. But definitely update us on your results, if you fancy.

Appreciate the input! I'll track results the next few weeks and circle back.

 

[UniqueTradesMarketer]

I've been going back & forth with support recently over a related issue I noticed in a few accounts - which sounds like it's related to the issue you're reporting.

We have a multi-location client who uses all zip codes for targeting, but, when a city name is added, the zip code of that city areas get removed (not all zips for the city) - and it doesn't appear to align with zip code coverage or city size.

City sections on the map didn't get removed when adding a zip, but when adding a city, the zip sections are getting removed.

Support first reply said it was a bug, their subsequent reply indicated, "It is not a bug and is an intended behavior, the system will either choose to target the city, or the zip codes. So depending on how large or small you would like to target, please choose one or the other."

Actionable insights are so relative to the account/location in my experience, that everything is test & verify IMO. But definitely update us on your results, if you fancy.

Pretty big development on my end: Search inquiries affect LSA ad ranking more than I initially thought.

After switching to zip code targeting, our account has seen several days with zero leads, which has never happened before. This is obviously alarming.

I contacted support this morning to inquire if the switch to zip code targeting affected our ranking. Support confirmed, "Yes, that can affect ranking." I also asked why our ad wasn't showing up on any devices for any key terms when searched directly from our office. Support responded, "Because mostly the customer searched the ad using city name."

I generally prefer to let changes play out and track the results before making adjustments, but given this response, I've decided to switch back to targeting cities.

 

[Chris Barnard]

Thanks for the update!

Yeah, and I'd still take real-world observations and data over support rep words.

I'm still attempting to wrestle some type of useful answer (for one particular account) as to why choosing a city results in a smaller coverage than one of its zip codes (of which there are 9).

My feeling is something changed when proximity as a ranking factor changed, but that's just more guesswork.