Google Ads Update: Service Area Restrictions for Business Profiles
Google has recently made a significant update to its Business Profile service area guidelines, aimed at enhancing the accuracy and relevance of local search results. This new policy, effective June 24, 2025, explicitly bans businesses from including entire countries or states as service areas. This change is not just a minor tweak; it’s a major shift that will reverberate across various industries. Let’s dig deeper to understand what this means for businesses and how it impacts their advertising strategies.
Understanding the New Restrictions
The Essence of the Update
In a move to refine local search quality, Google has prohibited businesses from adding countries or states as service areas in their Business Profiles. The update emphasizes keeping service boundaries to within approximately two hours of driving time from a business’s base location. This marks the first time Google has clearly stated that businesses cannot list entire countries or states within their service areas—standing in direct conflict with previously understood practices.
Key Takeaways:
- Business Types Affected: The policy change primarily impacts service-area and hybrid businesses such as cleaning services, plumbers, and marketing agencies that previously marketed their services across broader geographic spans.
- New Requirements: Service areas must now be defined by city, postal code, or regional designations.
Who is Affected and Why?
The Target Audience
This policy primarily targets marketing agencies and large-scale service providers, particularly those who previously claimed expansive service areas across multiple jurisdictions. Stefan Somborac, who reported on this update via social media, noted that some marketing agencies claimed to cover up to 19 countries. This move is intended to prevent misleading representations of service availability.
The Reason Behind the Change
Google aims to enhance local search result quality and geographic accuracy in business listings. By banning broad service areas, Google hopes to improve user experience and ensure users receive relevant information about service availability in their localities.
How Service Areas are Managed
Service Area Business vs. Hybrid Business
- Service Area Businesses: Defined as those that directly visit or deliver to customers, these businesses cannot display storefront addresses and must restrict service areas to a single profile.
- Hybrid Businesses: These entities serve customers at both physical locations and through direct engagements. They can display their storefront address, operational hours, and a service area.
Detailed Service Area Configurations
Businesses must specify service areas using defined geographic criteria; the update explicitly rejects radius-based designations. Instead, businesses must denote their areas by city, postal code, or other accepted geographic boundaries, while still adhering to the 20 service area limit that respects the two-hour driving guideline.
Strategic Implications for SEO and Marketing
Compliance and Visibility
Businesses need to revisit their existing service area configurations to ensure compliance with the updated guidelines. Non-compliant listings may suffer reduced visibility in local search results, and companies that don’t make the necessary adjustments risk potential penalties.
Ongoing Business Profile Management
Maintaining correct and complete business information remains crucial for continued visibility in local search results. This includes address verification, phone number confirmation, and category accuracy within Business Profiles.
Future Considerations
Industry Impact
The implications of these changes extend beyond individual businesses, affecting local search marketing strategies across the board. Marketing professionals must incorporate these new geographic restrictions into their client recommendations to maximize visibility and relevance.
A Commitment to Quality
This policy change reflects Google’s ongoing commitment to maintaining high-quality local search results, ensuring that users receive accurate information about service availability. The focus on geographic accuracy not only enhances user satisfaction but also sets a new standard for businesses looking to engage with customers effectively.
Conclusion
As businesses adapt to these recent changes in Google Ads’ service area policies, the focus must remain on strategic compliance and local SEO agility. By understanding and implementing the new guidelines, companies can position themselves favorably in an increasingly competitive landscape.
For further insights on Google Ads and effective local search strategies, consider subscribing to PPC Land’s newsletter for the latest updates and expert advice.
Final Thoughts
Overall, this updated guideline signifies a transformative moment in Google Ads operations, urging businesses to rethink their geographical strategy and enhance user engagement through accuracy and relevancy. The landscape is shifting, and staying ahead means adapting effectively.