Education, News
July 10, 2019

Google Ads Dilemma: How to Make Things Right

Do you run an electronics repair shop and use Google Ads to attract customers? Are your Google Ads being disapproved and you don’t understand why? You aren’t alone! Many repair shops are spending hours trying to figure out why their Google Ads reports look like the one in the image below. Their ads are legitimate, they don’t use unauthorized brand names, and they strictly adhere to the Google Ads policy, yet hundreds of these technology, support-related ads are being disapproved and rejected as if they are fraudulent. WHAT IS GOING ON? 

Screenshot of Google Ads report when it is rejecting third party/tech support ads

On August 31, 2018, Google’s Global Product Policy Director, David Graff, announced that the overseers of Google Ads have “seen a rise in misleading ad experiences stemming from third-party technical support providers.” To resolve this issue and maintain a “healthy advertising ecosystem,” the Google Ads community has decided to begin restricting ads in this category, globally. Now a new issue arises, because not only does Google Ads restrict third-party technical support providers, but also “hardware repairs (computers, laptops, mobile phones) and the electronic service industry, even those with brick and mortar stores,” as pointed out by Bradley Penniment of A Medium Corporation. In this same announcement, Mr. Graff states that “in the coming months, (The Google Ads community) will roll out a verification program to ensure that only legitimate providers of third-party tech support can use (Google Ads) to reach consumers.” With that being said, it has been nine months and counting, yet there still isn’t a verification system to ensure that legitimate businesses are getting their advertisements across and the frauds aren’t. 

 

Now that you know why your Google Ads are being disapproved, how do you make things right?

According to Eric Gesinski, owner of Tulsa Marketing Online and digital marketing wizard, the best thing to do as soon as you start noticing that your ads are being disapproved, is to contact Google directly. Since there is no automatic processor in place right now to verify the legitimacy of technical support ads, directly calling or emailing Google and asking them to verify your business is the best way to go. This isn’t easy though. Mr. Gesinski says, “For contacting Google, I called them first, then emailed. I had to call them multiple times to get it resolved, though.” You may have to email and call multiple times before Google reaches out to you because there are many other businesses going through this same issue. When prompted, Mr. Gesinski stated, “It took about 2 weeks or so (before Google replied). When I first talked to them I thought they were already on it, but it never got resolved, so I had to reach out to them again… and then a couple more times.” Once you finally get in contact with Google’s support team, present your case and they will guide you through the steps of verifying your business and setting your Google Ads free.

 

What should you do as you wait for Google to contact you and set your Ads free?

 Invest more into Facebook Ads! While it is obvious that Facebook Ads don’t bring in the same amount of traffic that Google Ads does, Facebook is still very effective in increasing your brand awareness, visibility, and piquing of your audience’s curiosity, if you construct the ads properly. Keep in mind, Google told us that this situation is only temporary, so you would only be increasing your Facebook Ads budget until the Google Ads verification process goes into effect (hopefully it won’t be much longer). This will also help you boost your social media presence, and as you know, that can be one of the strongest assets a company can have in our present day and age. 

 

What can RepairQ do to help you?

RepairQ is integrated with Listen360 to help you understand and engage with your ideal customers. By utilizing this tool, you can gain information that is vital in creating effective advertisements and improving your products/services. Another RepairQ integration that can be very helpful in this crisis would be REVV. Revv is a tool that can assist in receiving reputable reviews so that potential customers can see the experience you are delivering to your current ones. This is another vital tool to invest in while you’re waiting on Google Ads because WOM (word of mouth) marketing is very effective. When potential customers discover your credibility and value through your reputation with current ones, they will be eager to find out more about your business!

Photo of Thabiso, author of this blog post.

Thabiso Ndiraya

Thabiso is the marketing intern for ServiceCentral. He is a helping hand for SEO and market research projects related to both ServiceManager and RepairQ. Outside the office, you can find Thabiso chasing a ball around the soccer field, strumming random notes on a beat up guitar, or devouring a Braum’s vanilla ice cream cone in 3 minutes.

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