Google makes promotions easy for business owners who are only interested in generating phone calls for their business. You can set your ads to show only when your business can take calls, so you won’t miss an opportunity to connect with your customers. In this post, we’re going to take a brief look at the available options to help get consumers to call.
Read More: Google Ads Tips for Pay Per Call
Call-Only Ads for Pay Per Call
Google Ads previously required a landing page or website to enable a click-through connection for consumers, which directs a consumer to your business site where they can find your number. By using call-only ads, advertisers and businesses can bid exclusively on phone calls. There are even options to use a Google tracking number or their own business extension to generate calls from consumers.
Ads created in call campaigns are programmed to only appear on devices capable of making calls. When placed on search results pages, the Ads campaign features the phone number if consumers want to dial on their own, as well as click-to-call functionality. For business owners and advertisers interested only in phone calls, this functionality allows them to bid exclusively on that feature.
The first step is to create a new campaign, then select the “Sales” or “Leads” goal, and “Search” as the campaign type. Here, under “Select the ways you’d like to reach your goal”, check the box next to “Phone Calls” and input the phone number you’d like to use in the campaign. Name the campaign, and be sure to select “No” when prompted to “Add Display Network”. From there, you can adjust your bidding options.
After that, it’s up to you to create Call ads within the “Ads & Extensions” tab. Be sure to include extensions that expand your ad with additional information. There’s no cost to add them, and it is recommended that you add all extensions that are relevant to your business. Though sometimes they may be hidden in order to make the most of a smaller screen, it’s better to optimize for them to give your ad greater visibility on the search results page.
Read More: 7 Google Ads Mistakes to Avoid
How to Add Call Extensions to Your Ads
Call extensions are the easiest way to add phone numbers to existing ads. When your call extensions show with your ad, people see your number or a clickable call button if their search device can complete calls. By clicking on the ad, users will be directed to your website. You can even add business hours to your ad to only display when you are available to take calls. All in all, call extensions give you more chances to get and track valuable conversions.
In order to add a phone number to your ads, you first need to sign in to your Ads account and click on the “Ads & Extensions” in the page menu. Next, you’ll need to click the “Extensions” drop-down menu and select “Call extensions.”
The “Add call extension” view then appears. From here you’ll be able to select whether you want to add the call extension to your Account, Campaign, or Ad group. Then you can select “Create new” to make a new call extension, or “Use existing” if you’ve previously created a call extension. Clicking the “create new” option allows you to enter the country of origin and punch in a new extension number for your Pay Per Call campaign. If you are going to use your own extension, you’ll need to select the option from the list that appears.
Once you have completed this step, you’ll have the chance to optimize how your ad appears, including headlines and descriptions. Your ad can appear with your website URL and business phone number or show just your number.
Selecting “Mobile” under “Device preference” allows mobile-optimized ads to appear when consumers conduct a search on a smartphone. This produces the click-to-call button in the ad (though it will still appear on desktops and tablets). If you click the advanced link, you’ll be able to further optimize your ads in terms of how and when they appear in searches.
You’re Ready to Go!
These tips will help you get started adding phone numbers to your Google Ads. Whether you use call-only or call extensions, these ads can help you make the most of your Pay Per Call campaigns.
Read More: 5 Tips for Improving Your Ad Quality
Originally published on July 11, 2015. This content has been updated to reflect the latest settings and tips for Google Ads.