How To Manage Google Local Service Ads
Summary
Google's Local Service Ads (LSAs) are a pay-per-lead advertising product that can help firms generate more ideal clients at a competitive cost per lead. For more about how they work, read our summary here: https://www.legalscapes.com/learn/local-services-ads-for-lawyers/
Receiving Leads
Leads come into your Google Local Service Ads account one of two ways: phone calls to your firm's phone number, or text messages.
When a message lead is submitted, the email address(es) associated with your account should receive a notification. If you have text notifications turned on for messaging leads, you can also manage them via mobile phone or the texting number in your LawAmp account.
Related Documentation:
Managing Leads
Log into your account at: https://ads.google.com/localservices/
Choose the appropriate LSA account from the list.
Once you are in the account, if it does not default to the Leads screen, click the three bars at the top left of the screen and select Leads.
Once a lead is received through a call or message, it's important to update its status in the LSA platform.
Lead Statuses
Within the platform, there are 5 different classifications for leads.
- New: New leads automatically go in this category. Aim to move them from here within 24 hours.
- Active: These leads are currently being nurtured. Leave them here if you're waiting on a follow-up call or are otherwise actively communicating with them.
- Booked: When a lead schedules a consult with you, they should go into Booked status. This category is for leads who have expressed buying intent but haven't yet retained.
- Completed: Completed is for leads who retain with your firm and become a client.
- Archive: Archive is for leads that don't convert. Archiving leads helps train Google on what prospects are good or bad for your firm.
Documenting Client Information
When you select a lead within the platform, you'll have a section where you can enter the client's name, email and basic notes. Don't put any sensitive information in here. Documenting basic information in here and utilizing Google's platform has been shown to help you surface better in the LSA listings.
Rating Leads
Up until mid-2024, Google provided the ability to manually dispute a lead within their platform to have it reviewed for potential credit. Since then, Google implemented an AI-assisted process where they automatically credit leads they deem to be irrelevant to the business.
In its place, they introduced a "Rate This Lead" option where you can rate a lead one of the following ways:
For the first two options, it will ask you to provide more context with one of the following selections:
For the last two, it will ask you why you were dissatisfied:
While the rating system did not appear to have much effect for the first few months it was in place, in late 2024 we have started to notice across our client base that Google will sometimes credit a lead if it was initially charged, but we rated it as "Very Dissatisfied" for valid reasons.
We recommend rating all leads for this reason, as well as to help Google better identify good potential clients for your firm moving forward.
Call Recordings
Within each phone call lead, Google provides you with a recording to audit intake and connect leads to signed cases to determine your return on investment.
As a LegalScapes client, you can download recordings, call transcriptions, AI summaries, and more in-depth tracking data in our lead tracking portal - read more by clicking here!