Google Local Services Ads Updates: What You Need to Know

Google has announced several updates to the Local Services Ads (LSA) platform over the past 18 months that may impact your home service business. As always, Coalmarch Marketing keeps a constant pulse on Google's platform changes so we can adapt as quickly as possible and leverage new tactics and strategies to support our clients' success. Below, we will dive into the details of these updates and what they may mean for your business!

Update #1: Automated Lead Credits

In mid-2024, Google phased out the manual dispute option in LSA, opting to automatically credit businesses for what it deems as poor-quality leads. The rollout was completed by August 2024. This update was designed to save businesses time and effort by eliminating the need to manually dispute leads. While this sounded great in theory, the results have been mixed.

What are the pros?

• Time savings: Businesses no longer need to manually file disputes. This is particularly beneficial for those who invest heavily in Local Services and previously spent hours a month reviewing and disputing leads. The automated system reviews all leads within 72 hours and applies credits within 30 days when warranted.
• More equitable distribution: Google claims the system credits more leads overall than the manual process, benefiting advertisers who weren't previously actively disputing them.

What are the cons?

• Discontinuation of certain credits: Google no longer provides credits for "job type not serviced" and "geo not serviced" leads. This means they will no longer issue a credit if a lead is seeking a service you don't provide or that is outside your service area. It's crucial to ensure your service area, verticals, and job type settings in your dashboard are configured accurately so you aren't wasting ad spend on unqualified leads.
• Lead quality concerns: Throughout 2025, many advertisers have reported declining lead quality under the automated system. Reports from early 2025 indicate businesses receiving out-of-city and out-of-industry leads with no recourse to dispute them. While Google maintains the system, it credits more leads on average. We recommend providing feedback through the Lead Feedback Survey for every lead you receive, as Google uses this data to improve its algorithm and may occasionally issue credits based on your feedback.
• Loss of control: Without manual dispute options, businesses must rely entirely on Google's automated system to accurately assess lead quality. If you were previously regularly disputing leads, monitor your account closely to ensure credits are applied appropriately.

Update #2: Local Services Ads on Google Maps

In mid-2024, Google launched LSA ads on Google Maps, initially limited to the iOS version of the mobile app. According to Google, the billing and pricing for these ads remain consistent with current Search ads, with only qualified leads charged at existing bids. Your existing LSA data and user reviews are automatically used to create these Map ads—no additional setup required.

This expansion puts your business in front of high-intent local searchers actively using Maps to find services. However, there's a crucial catch: you cannot opt out of Map placement without also pausing your Search ads. This bundled approach limits the flexibility of campaign management.

For home service businesses, this could present additional opportunities to generate leads from users searching at the moment of need. While we've seen some increased visibility, the impact has been moderate rather than transformative for most home service companies.

Update #3: Google Verified Badge Replaces Multiple Badges

Effective October 20, 2025, Google simplified its badging system by consolidating "Google Guaranteed," "Google Screened," and "License Verified by Google" into a single "Google Verified" badge. This change also discontinued the Google Guarantee badge and its associated money-back guarantee.

The new Google Verified badge appears on all eligible Local Services Ads profiles that have completed the necessary screening and verification process. The badge displays the verification checks a business has passed, making it easier for consumers to understand your credentials.

If your business already had a Google Guaranteed or Google Screened badge, the transition was automatic—no action required. However, you should update any marketing materials that reference the old badge names.

Update #4: Mobile App Discontinued

On January 6, 2025, Google retired the dedicated Local Services Ads mobile app. All campaign management must now be done through the web interface at ads.google.com/localservices, accessible on both mobile and desktop devices.

While this may initially seem inconvenient, Google's goal is to centralize advertising efforts under one platform—Google Ads—making it easier to manage budgets, leads, and performance across multiple channels.

Update #5: 'Wildlife' Job Type Has Been Removed

As of June 2024, Local Service Ads has discontinued the "wildlife" job type within the platform's Pest Control vertical. In Google's release notes, they stated, "In some locations, wildlife control, which includes services such as removing bats and raccoons from attics, has different licensing requirements than pest control. To simplify pest control services in Local Services Ads, we are removing wildlife control."

The "wildlife" job type was automatically removed from accounts that had this job type enabled.

Does this mean I can't utilize LSA to generate wildlife leads?

This doesn't necessarily mean that LSAs are no longer displaying for wildlife searches or that you can't utilize LSAs to generate wildlife leads. There are a few things to note:

• From our research, LSAs don't appear when you search "wildlife control" or "critter control" in Google. To capture users searching these exact terms, businesses will have to rely on traditional pay-per-click ads to drive paid traffic and leads.
• However, LSAs are still showing up for some wildlife-related searches, such as squirrel, bat, opossum, and bird removal.
• Squirrel searches seem to be tied to the "rodent" job type, while bats, opossums, and birds seem to be tied to the "other" job type in the back end of your LSA dashboard.

Unfortunately, Google does not disclose which job types correspond to which searches, so we cannot say with 100% certainty. Grouping squirrels under the "rodent" job type and bats, opossums, and birds under the "other" job type appears to be the result of this update.

How could this update affect my business?

If you were utilizing the "wildlife" job type, you may have seen a decline in LSA spend or wildlife leads in particular since mid-2024. If you want to continue driving leads for squirrel, bat, and bird removal through LSA, ensure the "rodent" and "other" job types are enabled. If you are a current Coalmarch customer, we've already handled this on your behalf!

Update #6: Message Lead Cost Separation

In 2025, Google enhanced reporting by separating costs for message leads and phone calls. Previously, advertisers only saw blended lead costs. Now you can view and manage spend for messages separately, providing clearer insights into how users are engaging with your ads and which lead type converts more efficiently.

Message leads generally cost less than phone call leads—approximately half the price in many cases—though pricing depends on factors such as the customer's likelihood of booking for the specific service requested.

Update #7: Mandatory Google Business Profile Integration

As of November 2024, Google made Google Business Profile (GBP) verification mandatory for all Local Services Ads advertisers. Businesses must have a verified, public GBP with accurate, up-to-date information to maintain LSA eligibility. This change was implemented to enhance ad reliability and prevent fraud.

Coalmarch Has You Covered

As always, our Digital Advertising Experts will continue to monitor changes in real time and adapt quickly, leveraging new tactics and strategies to support our clients' success. When you're a customer of ours, you won't have to worry about this kind of stuff—we've got you covered!

Interested in learning more about how Coalmarch can help maximize your LSA account? Contact us today to speak with one of our Digital Marketing Consultants.