Search Ads vs. Local Services Ads: What Works Best for Your Shop?
TL;DR: LSA works best for general repair, delivering lower-cost, high-intent leads you only pay for if they’re valid. GSA offers full control and broader targeting, making it better for specialty work or areas LSA can’t reach. If you can, run both to capture more customers and maximize results. Quick Update Before You Read Google is […]
What Can Go Wrong With Local Services Ads
Quick Update Before You Read Google is making some changes you need to know about. The Google Guaranteed badge inside Local Services Ads is going away on October 20, 2025. It’s being replaced with something called Google Verified.Here’s the deal: the new badge still means you’ve been vetted by Google, but it no longer comes with the money-back guarantee […]
What Should My Acquisition Cost Be For A New Client?
Let’s go ahead and get this out of the way upfront: I’m going to answer your question without actually answering your question. But I am going to show you how to determine what your acquisition cost should be. And here’s why… Every now and then, someone in a group or on a forum asks, “What […]
What Are Google LSAs and Should Your Auto Repair Shop Be Using Them?
Quick Update Before You Read Google is making some changes you need to know about. The Google Guaranteed badge inside Local Services Ads is going away on October 20, 2025. It’s being replaced with something called Google Verified. Here’s the deal: the new badge still means you’ve been vetted by Google, but it no longer comes with the […]
Google’s New Local Service Ads: What Auto Repair Shops Need to Know
Attracting new customers is key to growing any auto repair shop, and Google’s Local Service Ads (LSAs) are now making it easier—with a catch. The latest verification process from Google goes beyond simple advertising; it’s about building trust with your customers and earning Google’s seal of approval. Here’s what you need to know to stay […]
Negative Keywords for Auto Repair Shops
Google Ads are one of the most powerful tools for driving new business to auto repair shops. Unfortunately, an incredible amount of money is wasted every day by ad managers who don’t understand the concept of negative keywords – or by shop owners and managers who run their own ads but don’t even know about […]
Patience is Key With New Google Ads
You’ve probably heard the same song and dance from multiple marketers: “wait and see” or “give it time.” We know that this can be frustrating, particularly when you really need to increase car count. However, these sayings do ring true in some cases, especially when it comes to brand new Google Ads. While Google Ads […]
Acquisition vs. Retention Marketing, And Why It Matters For Your Auto Repair Shop
As Kim and I travel all over the country teaching classes on marketing, it’s apparent when we start talking to shop owners that they can tell you what different marketing activities they are doing, but not necessarily why they are doing them. Most small business owners do random marketing that is disconnected from everything else […]
2 Things Auto Repair Shops Should Be Talking About Right Now
Prefer to listen? Use the player to listen or read below. As I write this article it’s March of 2022 and Russia has invaded Ukraine. You’re probably already asking yourself what this has to do with marketing an auto repair shop. Well, there are a couple of things you need to be talking about in […]
What Should My Auto Repair Shop’s Google Ads Budget Be?
It’s one of those questions we get all the time, and there is no easy answer. The question is “How much should I spend on my Google Ads budget?” There is no broad answer for this. There are so many variables, and we’ll cover them below. For the sake of this article, I’m going to […]