Call Assets

A call asset adds your phone number to a Search ad as a call button. Google used to call this a call extension, and the name changed when extensions became assets. On a phone that can make calls, a clickable call button appears under a responsive search ad, and tapping it opens the dialer with your number filled in. On desktop, a Call us button appears instead, and clicking it shows your number or a Google forwarding number along with a QR code that someone can scan with a smartphone to open the dialer. You create the asset at the account, campaign, or ad group level, and the more specific level wins when more than one exists. Because the asset can sit at several levels, a service-area business can show different numbers for different locations or campaigns.

Behind the scenes, the key option is call reporting. When it is on, Google swaps your number for a Google forwarding number so it can track calls from the ad. Call reporting measures calls from call assets, location assets, and call ads, and it is available only on the Search Network. You can also count calls as conversions, with a default conversion type named Call from ads that you can customize. Google warns that counting call conversions may change bids if you use automated bidding, because the bidder will start optimizing toward whatever you define as a call conversion. This is why tracking should be decided before you turn the asset on, not after you notice odd bidding behavior.

The surrounding settings decide how useful the data is. Under advanced options you can schedule a call asset to show only on certain days and hours, such as when your business actually answers the phone. Number rules are strict: vanity, premium, and fax numbers are not accepted, the number must be written in strict E.164 format with no spaces, and the exact number has to be visible in your site's source code, or your domain must be verified through Search Console. Shared-cost and non-standard numbers display a disclaimer that extra charges may apply, which can discourage tapping. If your phone line is a main intake channel, treat the number check as part of launch, not an afterthought.

The usual mistake is leaving the asset on around the clock. Calls at 9 p.m. go to voicemail, you pay for the click, and the missed rings pollute your conversion data, so Smart Bidding learns from calls that never turned into work. Another is turning on call conversions without defining what counts, so a wrong number or a two-second hang-up is treated like a booked job. Finally, many owners forget that call assets are now the replacement for call-only ads, which Google is retiring, so they matter more than they used to. It also helps to tell staff that calls from ads are coming, so the person answering knows to ask how the caller found you.

To use this week, check that call reporting is on and that the number shown matches your website. Set a schedule matching staffed hours, then open the call details report to review call length, caller area, and time of day. Decide what a real lead looks like for your business, such as a call over a set length, and set that as the conversion definition if the setting allows it. If you still run old call ads, add this asset to a responsive search ad now, well before Google's February 2027 end date. Revisit the schedule seasonally, since busy periods and holiday hours often shift when someone is available.