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Google LSA is Trash
Posted by on November 21, 2025 at 12:57 amSomeone turned me on to LSA and I've been setup for a few weeks now. EVERY lead so far has been junk and they charge you no matter what. I build and remodel swimming pools but I keep getting calls for a small leak or a problem with their pump. It's all handyman crap. I'm letting Google maximize leads and they're pricey but it's all garbage. I would gladly pay for real leads. At this point I'm thinking about disputing the credit card charges because it feels like a rug pull. All the "support people" say is that it's out of their control, it's the system. And "we can't control lead quality" "just leave feedback". It feels like talking to a poorly trained LLM. I understand the can't control who calls me with dumb shit but they should be able to control me paying for it.
Should I just cancel this garbage and try something else or is this a normal part of getting starting with LSA?
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1 Reply
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LSA can be a mess for pool builders because Google throws you in with every “my pump is broken” homeowner, and you end up paying for calls you’d never take. Most people in your situation end up turning it off because the dispute system barely makes a dent. If you want real remodel/build leads, Search with tight keywords and negatives usually works way better than LSA.
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It’s become a real shit show lately, and to cover the costs, most businesses have to make up that extra new expense by charging an actual customer more than they normally would have, just to get paid back for all the junk leads that they wasted money on.
Everyone wants to talk about inflation and the cost of living and blame whoever, but no one ever thinks to blame Google and advertising being the reason services have gone up by 100% over the last 5 years. Our service call has gone from $85 to $125, just to cover the Google tax. People think we’re making more money, when really a company that’s 3,000 miles away from me is making it. It’s criminal.
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Red flags everywhere on the og post. How long have the ads been running. How well does your website content match with your desired customer. How much are you spending. What other ad types have you tried? What’s been successful. Are your expectations too high?
No digital advertising is a magic wand that you wave and magically get business.
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Swimming pool replacement won’t work on LSA.
The LSA model maximizes the number of sellable leads. It attempts to capture leads that are “relevant” not necessarily high intent.
Types of businesses who will never be happy with LSA:
Commercial roofing contractor (will get mostly residential repair and replacement leads)
Real estate agent who only does listing (will get mostly buyer leads)
Pest control company who only does wildlife removal (will get mostly one time and ongoing spray treatment leads)Types of businesses who might be happy with LSA:
Landscaping company who sells everything from one time cleanup, to weekly mowing, to landscape design
Pool company that sells accessories, chemicals, cleaning, repair and replacement
Boat store that offers everything from anchors to new wakeboard boats, used pontoons to boat repair and rentalsThere are no levers available in LSA to meet the needs of businesses in the first category. It might be possible to make a first category businesses happy with a very cleverly managed standard search campaign.
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I run extremely successful LSA on Google. DM me and we can talk. But it is not magic, however understanding local advertising is key.
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We seem to have some horrible results for a dentist using Lsa. We need to do a full audit of it
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I can’t even get mine to deliver. Electrician in a big market that should have tons of impressions, but we get like 80/week and no leads. Profile is good too.
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