Quick answer: Of all the Google Ads location settings, the most important is “presence: people in or regularly in your locations”. Here is how to set it.
Location targeting is one of the easiest ways to waste money in Google Ads, and it usually comes down to a single default setting.
The setting most people miss
In campaign settings under Locations, Google has a “Location options” section with two choices for who to target:
- Presence or interest (often the default): people in, regularly in, or who’ve shown interest in your locations.
- Presence: people in or regularly in your locations.
“Interest” means someone in Perth who searches “plumber Wollongong” can see your ad, which is fine for some businesses. But it can also include people who’ve simply looked up your area for unrelated reasons. For most local service businesses, Presence is the right choice.
Target the area you actually serve
- Use a radius around your base or a list of suburbs and regions you service.
- Exclude areas you don’t want, such as suburbs you can’t travel to.
- If you serve all of Australia, target Australia, but still choose Presence.
Check where clicks come from
Under Insights and reports, the Locations and Where your users were reports show where people actually were when they saw or clicked your ads. If you see clicks from other states or countries, tighten your settings and add exclusions.
Use bid adjustments carefully
If certain areas convert better, you can increase bids there. With Smart Bidding (Maximise conversions or target CPA), Google mostly handles this automatically, so manual location adjustments matter less.
Don’t forget the schedule
Location and time go together. If you can’t answer calls after 6pm, an ad schedule (or call assets limited to business hours) avoids paying for calls nobody answers.
A quick location check
- Location options set to Presence?
- Only areas you can actually serve?
- Excluded areas added?
- Clicks report shows mostly people from your area?
- Ad schedule matches when you can respond?
Sources and further reading
Written by Gregory
20 years building websites and running lead generation, mostly with my own money on the line. Based in Sydney, working with clients worldwide. How I work →