Hey Blue Collar Boss,
Google Just Changed Local Services Ads AGAIN. Here’s Why You Should Care.
If you’re running Google Ads for your plumbing, HVAC, roofing, or home service business, there is something your agency should be checking before August 17.
Not next month.
Not after performance changes.
Before Monday.
Google is changing how certain Smart Bidding campaigns behave.
The change specifically affects campaigns that are:
1. Limited by budget
AND
2. Using target CPA or target ROAS bidding
Google says campaigns that have been performing significantly better than their stated bidding target may begin moving closer to that target starting August 17.
Here’s a simple example.
Say your agency told Google:
Target CPA: $100
But the campaign has actually been producing conversions at:
Actual CPA: $60
Today, Google may continue delivering around that $60 level.
After the change, Google is telling advertisers that performance can move closer to the $100 target you gave it.
Think about that for a second.
You could have a campaign performing better than the target, make absolutely no changes, and then watch your CPA start climbing toward a number your agency entered months ago.
So what should your agency be doing right now?
They should be reviewing every campaign that is both budget-limited and using target-based bidding.
Then they need to compare the bidding target against recent actual performance and, more importantly, against what a lead or sale is actually worth to your business.
If a campaign is already struggling to hit its target, this isn’t a reason to start randomly changing bids.
But if the campaign is significantly outperforming the target, the agency needs to decide whether that old target still makes sense.
Google itself is telling advertisers to review these campaigns before August 17 and adjust targets when appropriate.
This is the question to send your agency today:
“Which of my campaigns are limited by budget and using target CPA or target ROAS, and are any of them currently performing materially better than the target?”
Their answer should be specific.
Campaign names.
Current targets.
Actual performance.
And what they’re doing about it.
Not, “We’ll monitor it.”
While they’re in the account, ask them about this too.
There’s another Google Ads setting a lot of advertisers probably haven’t looked at.
Google can use its own rich media associated with your business locations, including photos, videos, text, icons, and even 3D assets, to enhance campaigns. The control sits under:
Tools → Shared Library → Location Manager → Settings → Google-owned rich media
If you don’t want Google adding those assets, there is a separate opt-out there.
This matters if you care about exactly what imagery appears next to your company name.
And yes, you should.
One more question: Who can get into your Google Ads account?
Marketing performance doesn’t matter much if somebody gets unauthorized access to the account.
At minimum, your agency should have strong account security in place.
Google Ads manager accounts can enforce 2-Step Verification and restrict which email domains can be invited into managed accounts. Google also supports passkeys, which provide stronger protection against phishing than passwords alone.
Google also lets agencies initiate account-link requests from their own Manager Account instead of relying on unsolicited access invitations.
And be extremely careful with emails asking you to log into Google Ads. Google specifically advises checking the destination URL and warns that phishing attempts can imitate Google communications.
Three questions for your agency today
Ask them:
Are any of my campaigns exposed to the August 17 bidding change?
Is Google-owned rich media enabled in my account?
What security controls are protecting my Google Ads access?
A good Google Ads agency should be able to answer all of that without scrambling.
If they can’t, that’s useful information too.
Not sure whether your account is ready for August 17?
Avi | Founder True Blue Collar Marketing
Talk to you next week,