Presence versus interest
When you pick a location, Google gives you a choice that's easy to miss. Show ads to people who are in or regularly in your area, or to people who are in it or have shown interest in it. The second one is often the default.
| Setting | Who sees the ad | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Presence | People in or regularly in your locations | Almost every local service business |
| Presence or interest | Those people, plus anyone searching about your area | Tourism, accommodation, moving services |
How to set your area
- In the campaign settings, open Locations.
- Add the suburbs, postcodes or a radius around your base.
- Open Location options and choose presence.
- Exclude any areas inside your radius you don't want to travel to.
- Save, then check the locations report after a week.
Suburbs or a radius?
- A radius is quick, but it ignores rivers, bridges and traffic that make some nearby suburbs a pain to reach.
- Picking suburbs or postcodes takes longer and matches where you actually want to work.
- You can set different bids for different areas, so the suburbs you want most get a bit more.
How to check where clicks came from
Google Ads has a locations report that shows where the people who saw and clicked your ads actually were. If a chunk of clicks came from somewhere you'd never travel, the targeting needs tightening.
Location in the ad itself
Put your area in the ad text and use a location asset if you have a Business Profile. People click local businesses. An ad that names their suburb tells them you're one.
Want it run for you? Our Google Ads management is built around tracked calls, not clicks.