Capitalize on Local Service Ads that are 80% Cheaper than AdWords Leads

Hey, everybody. Adam Arkfeld with ParaCore again. Today I wanted to talk about local service ads. Local service ads are a different ad format that are just for local services companies. They’re only in select markets, and they only cover certain categories of advertising.

So, plumbers, electricians, locksmiths, and a few other categories are the only ones that work with local service ads. This has been changing over time, and the markets are changing over time. But, they started being tested in San Francisco about two years ago. It’s 2018; they’ve been tested for a very long time. And, now they’ve rolled out across the country as of 2017 in most major markets. On my screen, you’re going to see a search that says electricians in Phoenix, and a typical search, I’m just gonna show you another one for, let’s just say, tire company in Phoenix. I don’t know why I chose that, but, anyway. So, here we have standard search ads. You see Big O Tires, Discount Tire. Standard search ads, standard extensions. No big deal.

On this search, with the electricians in Phoenix, you see a different style of ad. And, these are sponsored. These are not organic advertising placements. And, then as you scroll down, then you start to see more of the standard search ads, and then you see the map feature. Now, I think one of the most important things to know about local service ads that I want you to pay attention to is the rating. Because, when these ads pop up, they’re very visual and you can see that they’re Google guaranteed, you see the stars. So, when I click more electricians in Phoenix, I’m gonna go to this page, I’m gonna say that I need light fixture installation, and we’re in Tempe. We’re going to check, and now when I scroll down, as a consumer, I’m seeing a lot of different options. Dent Electric has a 4.8 rating, which is great, only five reviews. It doesn’t make me feel super comfortable, but, hey, five reviews of 4.8 isn’t bad. Most everyone has, if you’re hours are not conducive to when someone’s calling you, then that’s not going to show up. Though, this just shows how late they’re open. Most of them have Better Business Bureau credit A+ rating, you know, number of years in business, locally owned and operated, 24/7, whatever it is. And, then this is the tracking number that Google uses so they know exactly how many people are calling you.

When you continue to scroll, these ads do kind of jump around a little bit, but George Brazil in the Phoenix market, by far, has the best profile, and they’re probably getting most calls. They have 1,174 reviews with a 4.8 star rating, and they, Parker and Sons is doing well, also. But, they are literally just outperforming the rest of the electricians’ market as it relates to this ad format. And, what’s important to know about the ad format is that it’s a lot cheaper than standard ad words if you’re getting the calls. So, clients that we’re running, we’re seeing the cost of a call is about $13. And, in this search campaign, the cost per click that we’re seeing is around eight to 12 dollars, currently, based on our current optimization. So, if you’re converting, let’s say, if you’re converting 25%, which is a pretty high conversion rate in most cases. If it’s a $10 cost per click, for example, that’s a $40 cost per lead. And, if we’re seeing a $13 cost per lead in the local service ads, that is a massive, massive drop. I mean, that is a 70% drop, I think. So, if you are able, and your market is is ready for this, if you’re able to get a local services ad, and get a lot of reviews, and get good reviews, which, obviously, what every business wants; you’re really, really going to start getting a lot more leads at a lower cost.

Now, the process to get into the local service ads is pretty extensive. The reason that it’s Google guaranteed is because Google actually checks the background of the business owners, the business, and does a background check on every single electrician that works at that electrical company. So, it’s a fairly lengthy process. It can take some time, the turnaround time is very slow, between Google and Pinkerton, who does the background checks. But, once you get in, you’re only charged when people call you. And, that’s really incredible. And, the cost per call is just significantly lower than what we’ve seen in the standard search campaigns, even if you’re doing really well, the cost per click.

So, if you have any questions about local service ads, please reach out, leave a comment. It’s a newer ad format, I’ve heard some negative feedback on it; but when it comes down to the cost per call, compared to search engines, it’s really, really, really outperforming the search ads and is a great mechanism if you’re able to get good reviews and a lot of reviews. So, again, let me know if you have any questions. I appreciate your time and feel free to reach out at any time.