Google Is Sunsetting Call-Only Ads: How to Update Your Strategy

Google Ads has plenty of helpful tools to target phone calls.

But if your approach centers on call-only ads, you need to update your strategy now — or risk losing out on conversions.

I compiled everything you need to know about how call-only ads are changing and how to optimize search ads for phone calls.

Key Takeaways

• Google Ads is automatically migrating eligible call-only ads to responsive search ads (RSAs).
• Advertisers will no longer be able to create new call ads.
• Call assets are now crucial for phone call conversions.

What Are Call-Only Ads?

Call-only ads are a type of Google search ad that prompts potential customers to call the advertiser rather than visit their website.

Also known as call ads, they display an interactive call button with the advertiser’s phone number. Like this:

They appear on Google search engine results pages (SERPs) when they’re triggered by relevant keywords. That means interested customers can phone advertisers directly from search results.

Since these Google ads are designed to encourage people to call your business, they only appear on devices that make phone calls (e.g., mobile devices like smartphones).

They don’t work for every advertiser.

But they can be a good fit for high-ticket offers that require a pre-purchase phone call.

They can also work for local businesses and lead generation companies that book appointments over the phone.

But I don’t recommend going all-in on call-only ad campaigns. This ad type is slated for some major changes in the near future.

How Call-Only Ads Are Changing

In late 2024, Google Ads quietly announced that the platform intends to sunset call-only ads in 2025.

For most advertisers, this isn’t necessarily bad news.

Call ads may have delivered decent results in the past. But in recent years, many advertisers have reported issues with getting call campaigns to consistently spend budgets and generate clicks.

Fortunately, there’s a good alternative.

If you use Google call ads or if you want to get more leads on the phone, here’s what you need to know:

1. Responsive Search Ads Will Replace Call Ads

Once the sunset begins, Google Ads will automatically migrate eligible call ads to RSAs.

Your call-only ads qualify for this automatic upgrade if they include:

• Your business name at the campaign or account level
• A landing page URL that leads can click to visit directly from the ad

If you have existing call ads that don’t include these elements, you can manually add them.

Historically, the platform has recommended adding a final URL to this ad type. But this element has always been optional.

Soon, Google Ads will require advertisers to include a landing page URL when creating new call ads.

Adding a final URL will allow your ads to automatically upgrade to RSAs.

2. Google Ads Will No Longer Support New Call Ads

Eventually, Google Ads won’t allow advertisers to create new call-only ads.

The platform hasn’t announced a timeline for this stage of the process.

But don’t worry. As an advertiser, you have other options to get calls to your business.

3. Advertisers Can Use Call Assets Instead of Call Ads

Instead of running call ads, transition to including call assets in your search ads.

When you add call assets to RSAs, your business phone number can appear as a clickable element. Like this:

But there are a couple things to note: 

Your phone number won’t always appear in an RSA. Google Ads automatically displays the assets most likely to drive results.

And when your number does appear in a search ad, it’s far from the only element that leads can click.

They have the option to click your headline, which links to your final URL. Or your sitelink assets, which all lead to unique URLs on your website.

Below, we’ll walk through tips to use call assets and optimize Google ads for phone calls to your business.

How to Update Existing Call Ads

If you want your existing call ads to upgrade automatically, make one simple update:

Open the ad and add a landing page link in the “Final URL” box.

Optionally, add a verification URL.

This link won’t display in your ads. Instead, it tells Google Ads where to confirm that the phone number in the ad matches your business.

You can also input a display path. This URL will display in your ads.

It gives potential customers a better idea of what they’ll find on your landing page.

For example, your final URL might be: https://website.com/chicago-hvac-repair

And your display path might look like: https://website.com/chicago-hvac/spring-special

11 Ways to Optimize Google Ads for Phone Calls

As the platform phases out call-only ads, you need a new Google Ads strategy to get leads on the phone.

Use my recommendations to get more phone calls from your RSAs and Performance Max (PMax) campaigns.

1. Set Up Conversion Tracking

First, set up call tracking for your Google Ads account.

This way, you can monitor phone call conversions and optimize campaigns for calls.

Open your account’s conversion summary and create a new conversion action. Check the box for “Conversions from phone calls.”

On the next screen, select “Phone call lead.” Then, click to set up “Calls from ads.”

Note that this conversion action tracks clicks on your call assets only.

Repeat the process to set up tracking for “Calls from website visits.” This lets you collect conversion data when a potential customer clicks your ad, visits your landing page, and taps to call your business from your website.

Make sure to select the new conversion goal(s) when you create an ad campaign. And opt to reach your campaign goals using phone calls.

2. Enable Call Reporting

Next, switch on Google Ads’ call reporting feature.

When you enable this feature, calls get routed to your business via a Google forwarding number.

To customers, it looks like they’re calling your business directly. But with this number in place, Google Ads can track data like the caller’s phone number and the call duration.

Below, we’ll cover what to do with the data.

But first, set up call reporting by opening your account settings and switch the call reporting setting to “On.”

Note that you can opt to save call recordings for further analysis. And you also have the option to sync call data with a third-party analytics app of your choice for deeper insights.

3. Create Call Assets

Once you set up call assets for your account, you can start adding them to search and PMax campaigns.

Go to your account’s assets and click to create a new call asset.

Input your phone number and link the phone call conversion action you just set up.

By default, Google Ads adds call assets at the account level. But you have the option to add them to a specific campaign or ad group instead.

For assets that you’ll regularly use across campaigns, opt to add them to the account. For assets with unique phone numbers or schedules (see below), opt to add them to a specific campaign or ad group.

Then, add your call assets to search or PMax campaigns.

4. Schedule Call Assets During Business Hours

When you optimize ads for calls, you want to make sure the phone rings when your team is available to answer.

Otherwise, you’ll end up wasting ad spend on clicks and potentially lose out on warm leads.

You could adjust your ad schedule so ads only run during business hours.

But there’s a better way.

Open your call asset and click to view “Advanced options.” Then, input the days and times when you want the asset to appear in ads.

Your ads will still run on the campaign schedule you set. But when call assets aren’t eligible to appear, ads will direct leads to your website instead.

5. Increase Your Call Bid Adjustment

If you want more phone calls than website clicks from your search ads, change how you bid on these interactions.

With call bid adjustments, you opt to bid more on phone call interactions. This makes it more likely your call assets will display in ads on mobile devices.

Open your account’s advanced bid adjustments. Then, find the campaign you want to update and look for the “calls” interaction type.

Input your bid adjustment and review the math before saving. As an example, if you increase a $1 bid by 50%, the bid will adjust to $1.50.

6. Fine-Tune Your Location Targeting

When you want to attract nearby customers to your local business, you have to get specific with the location.

To get location targeting right, define your service area.

That might be an entire city, metro region, or state. Or it might be a few specific postal codes.

The more you fine-tune your location targeting, the more you can optimize your ad spend. Plus, you can collect granular data and zero in on the areas where your ads perform best.

7. Focus on High-Intent Keywords

Call conversions aren’t a good match for every search campaign.

For example, top-of-funnel ads that target people at the beginning of their customer journey probably won’t lead to many calls.

However, ads that target people looking to immediately solve a problem or make a purchase are much more likely to get calls.

To optimize for phone calls, create ad groups with high-intent keywords.

You can find relevant high-intent keywords by mining your Google Ads data. Check the keyword report to identify keywords that generate the most phone calls and other high-value conversions.

8. Identify Calls That Convert

Put your call tracking data to work and figure out which calls translate to valuable conversions.

Check your call details report and look for calls that led to sales or in-depth conversations with your sales team.

You can match the phone number from the report with your customer relationship management (CRM) data. You can also sort the report data by call duration.

Then, look for similarities between these calls and take appropriate action. For example:

• Did your best calls come from the same area code? Adjust your location targeting accordingly.
• Did your longest calls come during a certain time of day? Make sure you have enough available sales or customer support reps to take calls at those times.
• Are you missing a lot of calls during a certain window? Adjust your call asset schedule to avoid getting calls outside of business hours.

9. Use Assets That Make Ads Stand Out

Call assets are just one of the many asset types you can add to RSAs and PMax campaigns.

Some are required (e.g., final URL, headline, and description). But many ad extensions are optional.

Experiment with different asset types to make your ads stand out in search — and get more calls.

Use callouts to highlight when your business is open (“24 hours”).

Add sitelinks to clarify the services your business offers and give leads more opportunities to click (“HVAC Repair” and “Residential Services”).

Include promotions to incentivize interested customers to act right away (“$30 off Initial clean”).

10. Build Remarketing Lists

Because call assets are ideal for high-intent searchers, they’re often a good fit for remarketing to people who have already shown interest in your business.

To reach these prospects, create a new segment using Google Analytics 4 (GA4) data.

Use one of the the premade segments to quickly reach relevant audiences. Like recently active users or non-purchasers.

Or create a custom audience using a GA4 template or predictive data.

11. Add a Phone Number to Your Landing Page

Getting calls directly from your search ads is just one way to target phone call conversions.

Once you set up call tracking, Google Ads can also report on conversions that happen when a customer clicks your ad and initiates a call from your landing page.

To capture these additional opportunities:

• Use mobile-friendly landing pages for your final URL and sitelinks
• Add a phone number and a phone call-to-action to your landing pages
• Confirm that you’ve set up conversion tracking for calls from website visits

Conclusion

While Google Ads intends to sunset call-only ads in 2025, this shouldn’t stop you from using the PPC platform to get more phone calls for your business.

Call assets offer plenty of options to optimize Google Ads for phone calls.

But if you’re new to search ads or unsure where to start with call assets, Google Ads can be daunting. Our agency can help. Contact us to learn how we target the right audiences to maximize your conversions.