Google gives local businesses three main ways to advertise: Local Services Ads, Search campaigns and Performance Max. Each one bills you differently and shows up in different places. They also take very different amounts of your time. We'll go through each using Google's own help pages, so you can pick where to start.
The three options at a glance
| Local Services Ads (LSAs) | Search campaigns | Performance Max (PMax) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| You pay for | Leads (calls, messages, bookings) | Clicks | Google bids toward your conversion goal across channels |
| Where ads show | Prominently in Google Search results for local services | Google Search results | Search, YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail and Maps |
| You choose keywords? | No; you choose services and areas | Yes | No; you give assets and signals |
| Verification needed | Yes, screening and verification | No | No |
| Hands-on work | Low to medium | Medium to high | Low setup, but harder to see what's happening |
Local Services Ads: pay per lead
LSAs let you "receive leads directly from potential customers" and are "shown prominently in Google Search results" for the services and areas you choose. The big difference from other Google ads is that you pay per lead instead of per click.
What counts as a charged lead
Google's "How leads work" page lists charged leads as:
- a phone call you answer (or a call back where you speak with the customer);
- a missed call during your business hours where the customer stays on the line for more than 20 seconds;
- a text message or email from the customer;
- a voicemail;
- a booking request (US and Canada only).
What isn't charged
- Leads Google determines are invalid or low quality at first contact.
- Callers who don't press the key needed to be routed.
- Repeat contact from the same number or email within 15 days of a charged lead.
- Unanswered calls outside your business hours or ad schedule.
Lead credits
You can report a poor-quality lead through that lead's feedback survey, and Google "may occasionally credit" it. Google also reassesses charged leads over 30 days and may credit poor, duplicate or invalid leads automatically. Lead credits have limits: they aren't available for health care verticals, tax specialists or advertisers in EMEA, and automatic credits aren't available in EEA countries.
Bidding and budget
Google's bidding page lists three options. Maximize leads lets Google set bids to get the most leads within budget. Target cost per lead is automated, with an optional target. Max per lead is manual: you set the most you'll pay. Budgets are weekly, and Google recommends "a minimum budget of 10 leads per week for optimal results."
How LSAs rank
Google's ranking page names your bid, your responsiveness to customers ("missed calls may negatively affect your responsiveness"), the context of the search (including location), how relevant your business is, and profile quality. Profile quality covers your rating, number of reviews, average response time and use of good images. So your reviews and how fast you pick up the phone feed straight into where you show.
Google Verified (what happened to Google Guaranteed and Google Screened)
LSAs used to show several badges, including Google Guaranteed, Google Screened and License verified by Google. Google has since moved to a single Google Verified badge. Google's help page says it is "simplifying our advertiser badging" and "launching a single badge for all advertisers"; the British Pest Control Association reported the change took effect from 20 October 2025.
For you, that means:
- New advertisers must complete the Local Services screening and verification process to get the badge. Requirements depend on category and location; Google's getting-started page lists, for example, a license or business registration.
- Existing advertisers who already met verification requirements receive the badge automatically.
- The money-back guarantee is ending. Google says it is "discontinuing the money-back guarantee associated with the Google Guarantee badge." Customers can still claim for eligible services booked through LSAs before 7 December 2025, within 30 days of the service being completed.
Older articles that promise customers a "Google Guarantee" refund are out of date. So is any of your own marketing that says it.
Who is eligible
LSAs only run for certain categories and places. Google's getting-started page lists categories across home services (HVAC, plumbers, electricians, roofers, locksmiths and more), legal services, health care (dentists, chiropractors, physical therapists and others), auto services, beauty, pet care, childcare, and, perhaps surprisingly, restaurants. Some, such as architects and tattoo studios, are listed as California and Florida only. Its country selector lists the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland and several EU countries.
Eligibility shifts by category and city. Before you plan around LSAs, run your own category and area through the eligibility checker linked from Google's getting-started page.
Search campaigns: pay per click, full control
A Search campaign shows text ads when people search keywords you pick. You pay when they click.
- Good for: services LSAs don't cover in your area; specific high-value jobs ("tankless water heater installation"); controlling exactly which searches you appear for; sending people to a specific landing page.
- Watch out for: paying for clicks that never call. Use negative keywords (searches you don't want, like "jobs" or "DIY"), call assets, location assets, and conversion tracking.
Performance Max: one campaign, many channels
Google calls Performance Max a "goal-based campaign type" that reaches all Google Ads inventory from one campaign: YouTube, Display, Search, Discover, Gmail and Maps. You hand over images, videos, text and your conversion goal. Google decides where the ads go.
- Good for: businesses with solid conversion tracking and enough conversions for the system to learn from, and with good images and video.
- Watch out for: less visibility into where money goes, and spend on placements that don't suit local services. Google recommends using PMax to "complement your keyword-based Search campaigns", and says that when a search matches an exact-match keyword in a Search campaign, the Search campaign takes priority. PMax also offers brand exclusions and negative keywords as controls.
A local example: an HVAC company choosing a starting point
A two-van HVAC company in a mid-size US city has a $1,500 monthly ad budget. Someone answers the phone all through business hours.
- Starts with LSAs. HVAC is an eligible category, leads are billed per contact rather than per click, and its 140 Google reviews help its LSA profile. Bidding: Maximize leads. Weekly budget sized for about 10 leads, as Google recommends.
- Adds a small Search campaign for a high-value service ("heat pump installation") with tight keywords, sending clicks to a dedicated page.
- Holds off on Performance Max until it has reliable call and form tracking (see Measuring what works) and enough conversions to judge it.
- Reviews weekly: cost per lead and cost per booked job for each campaign. Disputes clearly invalid LSA leads through the feedback survey.
That's one sensible path, with no guarantee attached. A personal injury firm or a med spa could see very different results, and LSA eligibility and lead credits work differently for health care.
Do this now
How do Google Local Services Ads charge?
Per lead, not per click. Google charges for answered calls, qualifying missed calls during business hours, messages, voicemails and (in the US and Canada) booking requests. Invalid leads and repeat contacts within 15 days aren't charged.
Does Google Guaranteed still exist?
Google has moved to a single Google Verified badge and is discontinuing the money-back guarantee. Customers can claim only for eligible services booked before 7 December 2025.
Can I get a refund for a bad Local Services Ads lead?
You can report it through the lead's feedback survey, and Google may credit it. Google also credits some leads automatically after reviewing them over 30 days. Credits aren't available for health care, tax specialists or EMEA advertisers.
Should a local business use Performance Max?
It can work if you already track calls and forms as conversions and have good image and video assets. Google recommends using it alongside keyword-based Search campaigns.
Which businesses can use Local Services Ads?
Only certain categories in certain countries, now including home services, legal, health care, auto, beauty and more. Check Google's getting-started page and eligibility checker for your category and area.
Sources
- Getting started with Local Services Ads (categories, countries, eligibility checker), Google Local Services Ads Help (checked Oct 2026)
- How leads work, Google Local Services Ads Help (checked Oct 2026)
- How bidding works for Local Services Ads, Google Local Services Ads Help (checked Oct 2026)
- How ad ranking works in Local Services Ads, Google Local Services Ads Help (checked Oct 2026)
- About Google Verified badge, Google Local Services Ads Help (checked Oct 2026)
- The Google Guarantee, Google Local Services Ads Help (checked Oct 2026)
- Google Local Service Ads consolidates ad badges into one verified check, British Pest Control Association (checked Oct 2026)
- Local Services Ads overview and categories, Google for Business (checked Oct 2026)
- About Performance Max campaigns, Google Ads Help (checked Oct 2026)
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