Sponsored Motorika 4.8 · Auto repair 1.1 km · 14 Lisova St Open · Closes 7 PM
Directions Call
Local & Maps ads
Google Maps and Local Search Ads
We show your location to people searching nearby: on Google Maps, in local search and on YouTube. The foundation is a well-kept Google Business Profile, and the result is calls, directions and visits.
- Funnel stageLocal
- Setupfrom ₴10,000
- Managementfrom ₴12,000/mo
Google Maps on a phone: among the results the promoted pin of the Brewnest coffee shop appears, the person taps it and sees a place card with photos, rating, “Open” and the Directions, Call and Save buttons.
A phone search for “car repair near me”: three places appear under a map, and the first is a sponsored place ad for the Motorika garage with rating, distance, opening hours, a photo and the Directions and Call buttons.
The Molara Dental place card in Google Maps: the person taps Directions, a 12-minute route appears on the map, then they tap Call and the advertiser gets a call from the ad.
Video explainer
Google Maps Ads explained in 40 seconds
01 · Searching nearby
A decision within minutes
Searching nearby Someone opens Google Maps and searches for “tire shop near me”. They'll decide within minutes.
What it is
Google Maps Ads: the essentials
Google Ads no longer has separate “Local campaigns”: they were moved into Performance Max with store goals. Today, advertising on Maps is made up of several mechanisms: location assets pulled from your Google Business Profile, Performance Max optimized for calls, directions and visits, Search campaigns with an address and a call button, and the Google Maps channel in Demand Gen campaigns, which Google is expanding from 2026.
The foundation of it all is your Google Business Profile. The right categories, business hours, photos and reviews affect both your organic ranking on Maps and how convincing your ads look. That's why we start with the profile, and only then set up campaigns, radii and call and direction tracking for each location.
Google Maps search An ad position above the organic results when someone searches for “coffee shop near me” or “tire shop” in the Maps app.
Promoted pins A pin with your logo on the map while people browse it, visible even when they weren't searching for anything.
Place cards and directions Ads on place cards and in navigation mode, when people are deciding where to go and comparing nearby options.
Google Search Ads with your address, distance and a call button in regular results when the query has local intent.
YouTube, Gmail and the Display Network In Performance Max with store goals, ads with the nearest location's address also show on YouTube, in Gmail and on partner sites.
Mechanics
How it works under the hood
- 01
We tidy up the profile
Categories, business hours, photos, services, reviews, a verified address. We link the profile to Google Ads so your addresses become location assets in ads.
- 02
We choose the mechanics
Performance Max with store goals for directions, calls and visits; Search campaigns with an address and radius for “near me” queries.
- 03
We set up geography
A radius around each location or a city district, “Presence” mode, and an ad schedule that matches your business hours.
- 04
We track local actions
Calls above a set duration, direction clicks, website visits and, where available, store visits, separately for each location.
Who it’s for
When to use Google Maps Ads
Places people walk into
Coffee shops, restaurants, bakeries: the decision takes minutes, and your pin on the map needs to be nearby at that exact moment.
Services with urgent demand
Auto repair, tire shops, towing, phone repair: people look for the nearest option and immediately call or get directions.
Salons and clinics with appointments
Barbershops, beauty salons, dental clinics: Maps shows the distance, rating and a call button, everything people need to choose a place close to home.
Chains with multiple locations
We group addresses by city or district to manage budgets and see each branch's results, while people see the location nearest to them.
Stores with a showroom
Furniture, electronics, building materials: people choose online and buy after a visit. Ads lead them to a location where they can see the product and buy it.
Manufacturers selling through retail chains
Affiliate locations show the nearest chain store that carries your product, if the chain is on Google's list for the country.
Formats
Ad formats and their anatomy
Ads in Maps search
Name, address, rating, business hours and “Directions” and “Call” buttons above the organic results, labeled “Sponsored”.
Promoted pin
Your logo on the map instead of a standard pin; tapping it opens a card with the address, photos and an offer.
Location assets
Address, distance and business hours from your Business Profile, added to Search and Display ads.
Call assets
A phone number and a call button in the ad, shown only during the hours when someone can answer.
Performance Max store assets
Headlines, descriptions, location photos and videos that Google assembles into ads for Maps, YouTube, Gmail and partner sites.
What we do
What we set up in the campaign: 12 steps
No templates: we adapt every item to your niche, margins and goals. Here’s what our launch checklist looks like.
- 01 Business Profile audit Primary and secondary categories, a name without keywords (profiles get suspended for this), an exact address, business hours including holidays.
- 02 Photos, services and attributes Real photos of the storefront, entrance and interior, a list of services or a menu, and attributes such as card payments or wheelchair accessibility.
- 03 Review management We set up an honest process for collecting and responding to reviews, with no purchased reviews or incentives that violate Google's rules.
- 04 Linking the profile to Google Ads We connect the profile as the source of location assets and, for chains, filter addresses by labels and groups.
- 05 Performance Max with store goals We choose the goals (calls, directions and visits where available) and prepare assets with photos of your actual locations.
- 06 Search with address and calls Separate ad groups for “near me”, “in my area” and “open now” queries, with location assets and call assets.
- 07 Radius and “Presence” mode We set a radius around each location and turn off ads for people who are merely interested in the city but located elsewhere.
- 08 A schedule that matches business hours Ads with a call button run only when someone can pick up the phone, and we limit impressions outside business hours.
- 09 Call tracking Calls from ads count as conversions above a set duration; calls from the website go through call tracking and are sent to Google Ads.
- 10 Directions and local actions We check that clicks for directions, calls and website visits are counted as local actions and carry different values.
- 11 UTM tags in the profile We add UTM tags to the website link in your Business Profile so GA4 can tell organic Maps traffic apart from paid traffic.
- 12 Reports by location We build reporting for each address (spend, calls, directions) to see which branch delivers and which one needs attention.
Audit
The mistakes we find most often
If your ads are already running, let’s start with an audit. Here’s what usually eats up the budget in this campaign type.
Mistake 01
A profile that drives people away
A wrong category, outdated hours, no photos or a name stuffed with keywords. The ad leads to a listing that doesn't inspire trust.
Mistake 02
The profile isn't linked to the account
Ads run without an address and don't appear on Maps, even though the business has a location people can visit.
Mistake 03
Showing ads to people in other cities
The default “Presence or interest” setting is left on, and the budget goes to people who merely read about your city.
Mistake 04
Incorrect call tracking
Even calls lasting a few seconds and misdials count as conversions, so the algorithm learns from noise instead of real inquiries.
Mistake 05
The whole chain in one campaign
All branches share one budget: the central location takes the impressions, the outskirts get no ads, and there's no report by address.
Mistake 06
Ads outside business hours
Ads with a call button show at night: people call, nobody answers, and the money is already spent.
Metrics
What we track
- Calls from ads Only calls longer than a set threshold. That's how we tell a real inquiry from an accidental tap.
- Direction clicks The closest online signal that someone intends to come by. We look at it for each location and over time.
- Store visits A modeled Google metric for accounts that meet data volume and privacy requirements. Where it's unavailable, we rely on directions and calls.
- Cost per local action by location How much a call or a direction request costs at each branch: the basis for reallocating budget between addresses.
- Impression share in local search Whether people see you in the area where you operate, and how many impressions are lost to budget or Ad Rank.
- Business Profile actions Calls, directions and website visits from the organic profile, so you see the full picture of demand and not just the paid part.
Bidding
Bid strategies
Maximize conversion value For Performance Max with store goals: we assign different values to a call, a direction request and a visit, and the algorithm pursues the most valuable actions.
Maximize conversions At launch, while call and direction data builds up. It's important that only real inquiries are set as primary conversions.
Target CPA (tCPA) When each location receives inquiries consistently: we keep the cost per call or booking within limits that work for the business.
Geography without manual adjustments In automated strategies, bid adjustments by district or distance don't apply, so we control geography through campaign structure and radii.
Industries
Where this campaign type works especially well
Pricing
Full-service Google Maps Ads: what it costs
You pay the ad budget directly to Google. Our fee is fixed — no percentage of spend below the Scale plan.
Setupfrom ₴10,000
Managementfrom ₴12,000/mo
Auditfree
FAQ
Questions and answers: Google Maps Ads
Didn’t find your answer? Ask us directly — we’ll advise for free.
Can we advertise on Maps without a Google Business Profile?
To show your location on Maps, you need a verified Business Profile linked to Google Ads: that's where the address, business hours and rating come from. The exception is manufacturers that show retail chain addresses through affiliate location assets. If you don't have a profile or it has been suspended, we start by restoring it.
Do ads affect organic rankings on Maps?
No, ads and organic results are separate mechanisms. Organic ranking depends on the profile's relevance, distance and prominence, while ads go through a separate auction. At the same time, a well-kept profile helps both: people click on it more readily, with or without ads.
How can we tell how many people came because of the ads?
We track calls, direction clicks and website visits for each location. Accounts that meet Google's requirements also get modeled store visits. We also recommend simple offline markers: a promo code from the ad, asking “how did you hear about us?” at checkout, or importing sales from your CRM.
We travel to clients and have no customer-facing office. Will this work for us?
If your profile address is hidden, visibility on Maps is limited, and the core becomes a Search campaign with a radius, call assets and inquiry tracking. Your Business Profile is still worth maintaining: it works in organic results and strengthens trust in your ads.
We have a chain with several branches. How do you set that up?
We connect all addresses from your Business Profile account, group locations by city or district and, if needed, split them into separate campaigns. That way each branch has its own budget and report, and people see the address nearest to them.
Do we need a website to advertise on Maps?
To call or get directions, people may never visit your site, since everything happens in the listing. But Performance Max and Search campaigns need a landing page, and it's often the website that convinces people to choose you. If you don't have a page or it's weak, we can build a landing page for your ads.
Free audit
We’ll launch your campaign right from day one
Leave your contact — a specialist will review your ads or website and prepare a short breakdown with concrete next steps. No obligations, no hard selling.
- 01 A short call or chat We clarify your niche, goals and what you’ve already tried.
- 02 Ads and website review We check the account (read-only access), tracking and landing pages.
- 03 Action plan You get a list of issues and priorities — even if you don’t work with us.
We reply within 1 business day