Why Your Google AdWords Call Extensions Don’t Work

Advertisers using Google AdWords Call Extensions or Location Extensions may soon find these features will stop working.

This is easily avoided by following some simple steps to verify your phone number.

Google AdWords has announced that:
“Starting in June 2015, we’ll begin requiring verification of ownership for all call extension and location extension phone numbers, in addition to our existing call extensions and location extensions AdWords policies. Call extensions and location extensions that do not meet this policy will be disapproved.”

Accounts with issues should include an “unverified” notation within the extensions tab.

There are three methods of verifying your phone number for AdWords ads:

AdWords Phone Number Text Verification

Make sure that your phone number is present on your website. It has to be text (Google can’t read a number within an image). The number has to be on at least one page. For most websites, your number will be in the header, footer or both, so this shouldn’t present an issue.

Phone Number Verification and Call Tracking

For sites using Call Tracking to measure ROI from all campaigns, the above method won’t work. The following two options should be used to verify your phone number instead.

Connect AdWords and Webmaster Tools

Connecting your AdWords and Webmaster Tools accounts should also complete the required verification. This more than likely will already be completed if you have someone in place doing your AdWords Management.

Here’s a short video to show you:

Verify Your Phone Number Using the AdWords Conversion Tracking Snippet

Add the calls from the website conversion tracking snippet to the landing page featured in your ad where your phone number is visible. Instructions for this are here.

AdWords Phone Verification Best Practice

As part of your AdWords management we would always recommend connecting AdWords and Webmaster Tools as this appears to be the simplest, and therefore recommended method, of verifying your phone number. Your AdWords Call Extensions and Location Extensions should continue to work after the June 2015 update.

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