Google AdWords Introduces Website Call Conversions to Track Which Ads are Generating Phone Calls

Google AdWords has launched a tool to track calls made from a business’s website, after the caller has found that website based on clicking on a Google AdWords ad. Google calls this new conversion tool, “a powerful way to identify and measure calls from a website that occur after an add click.”

This is how it works: You set up regular search ads, but every time somebody clicks on them and lands on your site, they will see a dynamically generated phone number that is linked to those ads. When potential customers then click on the number or dial it directly from their phones, the call will automatically be linked to the original ad that prompted it. This makes it easier to track which ads are driving phone calls.

But how does this help your business? Until now, it was surprisingly difficult to link incoming phone calls to ads. However, 1000bulbs.com beta-tested this new call conversion technology, and found that “After implementing website call conversions, we discovered that AdWords was not only driving over twice as many calls than previously thought, but that our customers also talk to use for over five minutes on calls originating from our site,” says the company’s director of marketing Jeremy Foster. “Insights like these are helping shape our web strategy and the way we serve our customers.”

Based on the call conversion data, advertisers can now optimize their ads and keywords to drive calls that are more likely to generate sales leads. This is a huge boon to businesses, as it will enable them to focus their efforts and their money towards ads they know are getting real results.

“This is a great tool not only to measure ROI and select the ads that perform better, but also to prove business owners that are still using old marketing methods where the leads come from,” says Jorge Benito of Ibis Studio. “It’s amazing that we can still find companies that invest in Paper Ads or Yellow Pages but don’t feel comfortable with SEO or PPC or even consider it as a temporary marketing solution. The ability to track not only emails but now phone calls coming as a result of online marketing campaigns will help eliminate that stigma and help businesses identify the real origin of their leads and sales, and sometimes most of their revenue.”

It’s simple enough to enable the call conversion feature. Advertisers need only add a small snippet of code on their desktop and mobile sites. The design of the phone numbers can even be styled according to the website’s branding, and the numbers stay active for at least 90 days.