Online Conference Why Is Google Local Services Showing Ads For a Different Location When Customers Search For Our Company Name?

[hvacman]

I'm an Air Conditioning Contractor, we are using Google Local Services( Google Guaranteed Ads) . When our existing customers use Google like a phone book, searching our company name, just to get our phone number, Google brings up a Local Services Ad, with us in the first position, if our ad is active. They then click/call that number, and we get charged by Google for the call. Our company name is Bay Area Air Conditioning, we are located in Crystal River and New Port Richey , FL. I assume the Google Algorithms treat this search as Air Conditioning in the Bay Area, as we are in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida. If you were to search our company name and either city with Florida, you should see the same results, even if our ad is not active. I have complained to Google Local in everyway I can find to do so, absolutely no help or understanding from them. Other businesses with a city or are in their name likely have the same issue. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, Dave

 

[Matt Casady]

Hi @hvacman, unfortunately, there's nothing you can do to get the Google Local Service Ads to stop showing on branded searches as you described.

Two things you could try, though (if you haven't already):

1. Train people who answer your phones to politely end calls from existing customers and call them back. As long as they end the call in less than 30 seconds you're not charged for the lead.
2. Dispute a few leads from existing customers with the "Duplicate lead" reason given and see if Google approves the dispute. If they do, continue disputing them for that reason.

 

[hvacman]

Hi @hvacman, unfortunately, there's nothing you can do to get the Google Local Service Ads to stop showing on branded searches as you described.

Two things you could try, though (if you haven't already):

1. Train people who answer your phones to politely end calls from existing customers and call them back. As long as they end the call in less than 30 seconds you're not charged for the lead.
2. Dispute a few leads from existing customers with the "Duplicate lead" reason given and see if Google approves the dispute. If they do, continue disputing them for that reason.

Hi Matt, Thanks for looking at our issue, I appreciate your time. They only approve about 10% of the disputes for duplicate lead. We have an automated phone system, the fastest we can answer is 24 seconds. None of my competitors company names bring up Google Local Service ads, just ours. Their names bring up, Google Business profiles and other relevant info, which our name does too. Ours brings up GLS ads as well, and if our ad is active we are in position number one at the top of the page. If everyone's company name brought up their GLS ad, no one could afford to us GLS ads. The new customers we gain are valuable, but due to cost of existing customers that we have to pay for, I limit the time the ad is on/active, which limits the new customers we get.

 

[Matt Casady]

Hi Dave, yeah this really is unfortunate, especially since as you mentioned, competitors are not having to pay for LSA leads from existing customers like you are.

I asked our LSA rep about this and they said, "LSAs are not supposed to show when you're searching the actual name it should only pull up off of searching the service they offered. If you are experiencing this you will want to call the live support team, their number is 650-260-5700." From the sounds of it, you've already tried this so I'm sorry I/they couldn't be of more help.

 

[hvacman]

Hi Dave, yeah this really is unfortunate, especially since as you mentioned, competitors are not having to pay for LSA leads from existing customers like you are.

I asked our LSA rep about this and they said, "LSAs are not supposed to show when you're searching the actual name it should only pull up off of searching the service they offered. If you are experiencing this you will want to call the live support team, their number is 650-260-5700." From the sounds of it, you've already tried this so I'm sorry I/they couldn't be of more help.

Hi Matt, thanks for trying to help. Have called that number many times, no help at all.. the last one said, they are google local and the problem is Google Search. If a customer searches the complete name , Bay Area Air Conditioning, Inc. GLS ads do not come up, only a few search the full name. Sure hate to lose GLS, put the cost is increasing as time goes by.

 

[Mikek86]

@hvacman be careful. We had the same problem. After months of disputing leads and many calls with support about denied disputes all related to our customers calling us through LSA ad our ranking has dropped significantly.

Now we don’t have to worry about disputing leads because we don’t get any.

We dominated LSA since it launched.

 

[hvacman]

@hvacman be careful. We had the same problem. After months of disputing leads and many calls with support about denied disputes all related to our customers calling us through LSA ad our ranking has dropped significantly.

Now we don’t have to worry about disputing leads because we don’t get any.

We dominated LSA since it launched.

Mike86, thanks for the input!

 

[hvacman]

I'm an Air Conditioning Contractor, we are using Google Local Services( Google Guaranteed Ads) . When our existing customers use Google like a phone book, searching our company name, just to get our phone number, Google brings up a Local Services Ad, with us in the first position, if our ad is active. They then click/call that number, and we get charged by Google for the call. Our company name is Bay Area Air Conditioning, we are located in Crystal River and New Port Richey , FL. I assume the Google Algorithms treat this search as Air Conditioning in the Bay Area, as we are in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida. If you were to search our company name and either city with Florida, you should see the same results, even if our ad is not active. I have complained to Google Local in everyway I can find to do so, absolutely no help or understanding from them. Other businesses with a city or are in their name likely have the same issue. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, Dave

Update: 9/14/2023

Our issue has been fixed, I'm not sure how it was fixed. I believe it was because I was asked to participate in a survey about LSA. During the survey I managed to state my issue in answering one of the questions. I noticed it was corrected about a month later, the day before one of my requests to correct the issue, was denied in an Email Reply from Google, that's why I think it was corrected due to answering the survey. Can't be sure, but definitely happy that we are no longer paying for our customers to call us! We have also seen an increase if phone calls from our website, and GBP Page, as they now come up top of page, when searching our v name, as they should!