How to Get More Phone Calls From Google Ads: 10 Fixes for Service Businesses
For most service businesses, the phone call is the lead. Here's how to set up Google Ads so more searches turn into calls, and more calls turn into booked jobs.
To get more phone calls from Google Ads, make calling the easiest action at every step: a call asset on your ads, a tappable phone number at the top of mobile landing pages, ads scheduled for when you answer, and call conversions tracked so Google's bidding learns to find callers. Then answer every call. A missed call from a paid click is the most expensive lead you'll never get.
Key takeaways
- Add call assets and schedule them to your answering hours.
- Put a tappable phone number above the fold on every mobile landing page.
- Track calls as conversions (from ads and from your website) with a minimum duration.
- Bid toward calls: once tracked, Smart Bidding can optimise for them.
- Answer every call. Measure missed calls weekly.
1. Add a call asset (and schedule it)
A call asset puts your number, or a call button on mobile, directly on your ad. Schedule it for hours someone answers, so Google doesn't show a call button when nobody picks up.
2. Use Google forwarding numbers
Google's forwarding numbers let calls from ads be tracked with duration and timing, and let you count calls over a minimum length as conversions. Turn on call reporting in your account settings.
3. Track calls from your website too
Many people click through to your site, then call. Use Google's website call conversions (which swap a forwarding number onto your site for ad visitors) or a call tracking provider that sends conversions back to Google Ads. Without this, your best leads look like they came from nowhere.
4. Put the number where thumbs are
On mobile landing pages:
- A sticky "Call now" button at the top or bottom of the screen
- The number written in full, tappable (a
tel:link) - Repeat it after each major section
5. Write ads that invite a call
Include phrases like "Call now for same-day service" or "Speak to a licensed technician now". Mention when you answer ("Open 7am–9pm, 7 days") if it's a selling point.
Paying for clicks but the phone stays quiet? We'll trace where callers drop off on a free strategy call. Book it.
6. Target searches with call intent
Urgent searches produce calls: "emergency", "24 hour", "same day", "near me", "now". Give these their own campaign or ad group with higher bids and call-focused ads. Our guide to Google Ads keywords for service businesses lists them by trade.
7. Schedule ads to your real availability
If calls after 7pm go to voicemail, reduce or stop ads after 7pm. If you do answer emergencies at night, those hours may be your most profitable. In our Pro Drain Cleaning case study, the account generated a genuine emergency call at midnight that the business couldn't take, because its team works daytime hours.
8. Bid for calls
Once calls are tracked as primary conversions, Maximize Conversions or Target CPA bidding can optimise toward them. Make sure call conversions have a sensible minimum duration (for example, 60 seconds or more), so short calls and wrong numbers don't train the system.
9. Answer every call, fast
- Route calls to someone who can book the job
- Use voicemail with a promise to call back within a set time, and keep it
- Review missed calls weekly: how many, at what times
Every missed call is a click you paid for that went to a competitor.
10. Check calls against booked jobs
Track which calls became booked jobs. Over time, this tells you which keywords, campaigns and hours produce real work, not just calls. Our guide to conversion tracking for lead generation covers importing those outcomes back into Google Ads.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get more calls from Google Ads?
Add call assets scheduled to your answering hours, put a tappable phone number at the top of mobile landing pages, target urgent searches, track calls as conversions so bidding optimises for them, and answer every call quickly.
What is a call asset in Google Ads?
It's an addition to your ad that shows your phone number, or a call button on mobile devices, so people can call directly from the search results.
How do I track phone calls from Google Ads?
Turn on call reporting for calls from ads, use Google's website call conversions or a call tracking provider for calls from your website, and set a minimum call duration for a call to count as a conversion.
Should I use call-only ads?
Google has moved most call-focused advertising to call assets on responsive search ads. A call asset with a call-focused landing page usually achieves the same goal while still allowing people to visit your site.
Why am I getting clicks but no calls?
Common reasons: the phone number isn't visible or tappable on mobile, ads show for research or DIY searches, the call asset runs when nobody answers, or calls are happening but aren't tracked.
Want your Google Ads to make the phone ring? We set up call tracking, call-focused pages and campaigns built around the hours you answer.
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