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Geographic Targeting on Google AdWords for Doggie Daycares

Last Updated: October 15, 2024 • Visit Blog Homepage


As a dog daycare or boarding kennel owner, reaching the right customers is key to the success of your business. You've always got to be on the lookout for ways to get your business in front of the eyes of potential new customers. One way to do this is by using geographic targeting with Google AdWords. By targeting specific geographic locations, you can make sure your ads are being seen by the people who are most likely to use your services. Imagine that you're a dog daycare in Chicago and someone searches "dog daycare in Chicago" on Google. That's exactly the kind of client that you want to be in front of. With Google Ads geographic targeting, you can get your ad in front of that person and hopefully generate a new client as a result.

Since many might not be familiar with Google AdWords or geographic targeting, let's start from the basics:

What is Geographic Targeting?

Geographic targeting allows you to specify the locations you want your ads to show up in. This can be as broad as targeting a whole country or as specific as targeting a particular zip code. When you use geographic targeting, your ads will only be shown to people who are searching for services in the areas you’ve specified. If you're a national brand like Nike, your ads can be shown to truly anyone in the world. Nike sells their products globally, so it doesn't matter who sees their advertisements, everyone is a potential client.

However, for dog daycares that are only serving a particular area, showing ads to people 100 miles away, let alone one thousand, is a gigantic waste of your advertising budget. So, how does geographic targeting help out businesses like dog daycares and boarding facilities? For example, if your dog daycare is located in a specific city, you can target that city and its surrounding areas to reach potential customers who live nearby. By only targeting people who are close to your location, you can increase the chances of them becoming customers and reduce your overall advertising costs.

Using geographic targeting in Google AdWords can also help you reach customers who are searching for dog daycare services while they are traveling. For example, if you have a customer who is traveling with their dog and is searching for dog daycare services in the area, your ad may show up for them if you have targeted the location they are in. This can be a great way to reach new customers who may not have been aware of your services before.

Targeting Mobile User

Additionally, Google AdWords offers the option to target mobile users, which can be especially beneficial for dog daycare and boarding kennel owners. Many pet owners use their mobile devices to search for dog daycare services, so targeting these users can help you reach a large audience of potential customers. By utilizing something like call extensions, you can even include a phone number call-to-action in your advertisement. This is a great way to immediately get an interested person on the phone and talking with yourself or your business manager. If someone is searching for dog boarding in your city, the best way to close that deal is to get them to call you and you can explain to them the benefits of your facility, the prices, and all the extra info that they would be forced to find by looking through your website.

Size of Targeting Group

When using geographic targeting in Google AdWords, it’s important to consider the size of your target area. If you have a large target area, you may reach more people, but the chances of them becoming customers may be lower. On the other hand, if you have a smaller target area, you may reach fewer people, but the chances of them becoming customers may be higher. It’s important to find the right balance to ensure you’re getting the most out of your advertising budget. Going back to the Chicago example, it might not be the best idea to target the entire city of Chicago for your ads, since someone on the south side most likely isn't going to drive over an hour to drop their dog off at daycare. You might want to target just certain aspects of your city. However, if you're located in a smaller city, it might be a good idea to target the surrounding cities as well. My parents take their dog to a boarding facility that is three cities over, so it's not completely out of the picture to get clients from cities that are a bit out of your normal business area.

Personally, for businesses like dog daycares and boarding kennels, I would always recommend having some sort of geographical targeting in place for any Google Ads campaign. It's too easy to waste a lot of money on bad clicks, so by utilizing some basic geographical targeting, you can really cut down on the amount of wasted clicks.

As you can see, using geographic targeting with Google AdWords can be a powerful tool for dog daycare and boarding kennel owners. By only reaching potential customers in the areas you’ve specified, you can increase the chances of them becoming customers and reduce your overall advertising costs. Consider implementing geographic targeting in your Google AdWords campaigns to expand your reach and drive more business to your dog daycare.

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