What are Google Local Services Ads?
Definition
Google Local Services Ads are ads that put local service businesses at the very top of Google search results, usually with a Google Verified badge, a star rating and a call or message button. You pay for each lead, such as a phone call or a message, rather than for each click.
Why they matter to a local service business
When someone searches "emergency electrician" or "AC repair near me", these ads often sit above the regular ads, the map and everything else on the page. Searchers can call or message you straight from the ad. You choose your job types and your area, set a weekly budget, and pay when a customer gets in touch about a service you offer.
To earn the badge, Google checks things like your business license, your insurance and, in some trades, background checks on the people who go into homes. Until October 2025 the badges were called Google Guaranteed and Google Screened. Google has since folded them into one Google Verified badge, and the old money-back guarantee ended with them.
For HVAC companies, these ads tend to earn their keep in the first heat wave and the first cold snap, when people call whoever shows up first. For plumbers, run them only in the hours someone really answers; people who reach voicemail rarely wait. For electricians, pick job types with care: a panel upgrade or an EV charger install is worth more to you than a single outlet.
Some people tap straight to call. Others search your name first, to see your website, your photos and your reviews before they commit, especially for a big job like a new furnace or a rewire. A dated or thin site can undo the trust the badge just bought you.
Before you turn them on
- Check that your trade and your area are offered; these ads aren't available everywhere.
- Have your license, insurance papers and business registration ready for Google's checks.
- Draw your service area around towns your crew can actually reach on time.
- Choose only the job types you want more of, and switch off the rest.
- Set the ad schedule to match the hours your phone is answered.
- Review your leads each week, and dispute the ones that weren't real jobs.
- Keep reviews coming in; your rating shows right on the ad.
How Future handles it
Future doesn't buy or manage ads, and it can't get you the Google Verified badge: that's between you and Google. What Future does is give the ad somewhere good to land when people check you out: a fast site with a tappable number, room for your license and insurance up top, and pages for your services and the towns you work in.
Reviews help the ad and your profile alike, and the hard part is remembering to ask. On Pro and Premier, each job booked on your site ends with Future asking that customer for a review, in words you've approved.