Concerns Raised Over Costs of Google’s Local Services Ads Feature

A feature labeled "Request Competitive Quotes" in Google Local Services Ads has led to concerns among advertisers about undisclosed costs.

How it functions:

1. Users click the "Request Competitive Quotes" button.
2. They select several businesses to receive quotes from.
3. Users enter a message and provide their email address.
4. Google distributes the request to all chosen businesses at once.

Why it matters:

This feature could notably influence the cost per lead for advertisers, possibly increasing expenses unknown to them. The opaque manner in which these charges might be applied complicates advertisers’ efforts to accurately compute their true ROI, potentially distorting campaign performance metrics.

Unknowns:

• Whether Google charges each business for these collective quote requests.
• How this feature affects overall cost per lead calculations.

Feedback:

Nick Smith, Senior Digital Strategist at Riester, warned about this feature, noting that information on it isn’t readily available online or in Google’s documentation. Google has not yet commented on this feature.

Significance:

If businesses are charged for these multi-quote requests, it could lead to:

• Artificially inflated lead costs.
• Reduced effectiveness of advertising budgets.
• Impacted ROI calculations for Local Services Ads campaigns.

Conclusion:

Advertisers using Google Local Services Ads require clarity on how the "Request Competitive Quotes" feature influences their costs and lead metrics.

About the Author

Anu Adegbola has been the Paid Media Editor of Search Engine Land since 2024, focusing on paid search, paid social, retail media, and video. Beginning her career in 2008, Anu has developed strategies to enhance digital marketing campaign effectiveness and efficiency, particularly in Paid Search. Apart from her editorial role, Anu founded the PPC networking event PPC Live and is the host of the weekly podcast PPCChat Roundup. An international speaker, she has presented on stages like SMX (US and Munich), Friends of Search (Amsterdam), brightonSEO, and more.