Google Maps is getting ads: here's what you need to sort out now

You are invisible there where Customers are looking

Suppose someone is in their car, searching Google Maps for a local painter. They see three results. Two with photos, star ratings, and a clear address. And one with a promoted pin at the top, with a nice photo of the work and a direct call-to-action button. Guess which one they click.

That promoted pin isn't you. Not yet. But your competitor might be soon, if you do nothing now.

This summer, Google is making a change that most tradespeople aren't even aware of yet. DemandGen ads, which already exist for online shops and large brands, will also become available on Google Maps. This means that local businesses such as painters, handymen, landscapers, and installers will soon be able to appear as promoted pins on the map view. Not only in search results, but actually on the map itself, while someone is scrolling in their own neighbourhood.

If you don't sort something out now, your competitor will be facing a Maps environment full of paid visibility this spring. And you simply won't be in it. Not because you're worse, but because you were too late with the preparation.

What is Google Demand Gen What is changing?

Google DemandGen is an advertising format that Google has been using for a few years to reach people when they are not actively searching. Think of ads in Gmail, YouTube and the Discover feed. Visual ads that show you at the moment someone is browsing, even before they type in a search term.

On 20 May 2026, Google announced that DemandGen ads will also appear on Google Maps, expected this summer. This is a big step, as it means that for the first time, Maps will truly become an advertising platform for local tradespeople. Not through keywords, but through location and targeted reach.

What concretely changes: your company can soon appear as a promoted pin in the Maps Explore view and in “nearby suggestions”. These are the suggestions that Maps shows when someone is searching in a certain area. Not because someone specifically typed your name, but simply because someone is searching on Maps in your service area. Your visibility will therefore be much broader than just people who are already looking for you.

For a gardener in Tilburg, this means that if someone scrolls through Maps in Tilburg and looks at nearby businesses, your company can appear with a promoted pin. With a photo of your work. And a button to contact them directly. That's new. That's big. And it already requires preparation, because the technical foundation you need takes weeks to get in order.

Promoted pins: this is what your competitor will look like soon Navigate in Maps

A promoted pin on Google Maps isn’t just a regular image. It’s a combination of your Business Profile and your Google Ads account, which together form a complete visual advert, visible to anyone browsing Maps within your service area.

What's in such a pin is your business name, a photo of your work, your average rating, the number of reviews, and an action button such as “Call now” or “Get directions”. Someone who sees that pin doesn't need to search for anything else. They click, call, or drive your way.

To be able to do that, you need to meet a few technical requirements. First, your Business Profile on Google must be linked as a location asset to your Google Ads account. That is the hard foundation. Without that link, you cannot participate in Maps advertising at all, because Google uses that link to verify that you are actually at that location and that your advertisement is true to reality.

Besides the link, you need good visual material. Google requires at least a landscape image of 1200×628 pixels and a square image of 1200×1200 pixels. A short video of 6 to 30 seconds is optional, but works particularly well for tradespeople. Think of a short clip of a job you’ve done, or a before-and-after situation. Using Google Asset Studio, which uses Gemini Omni, you can now also quickly generate or improve this type of material if you don't have a video yourself.

The budget to participate starts at around 5 euros per day. This doesn't have to be a lot, but it must run via Google Ads. And the targeting, meaning in which region you want to be visible, is set by yourself based on a working radius around your location. Think: does this sound complicated? It's not, if you follow the steps below.

Four things you already can arrange

You don't need to wait for DemandGen to go live on Maps to prepare. In fact, those who have their foundations in place now can be among the first to go live this summer. Here are four concrete steps you can take today.

Step 1: Link your business profile to Google Ads

This is by far the most important step. If your Business Profile isn’t linked to your Google Ads account as a location asset, you won’t be able to run Maps ads. Go to your Google Ads account, click on ‘Resources’, then select ‘Locations’, and link your Business Profile. If you’ve never done this before and don’t yet have an Ads account, start there. The linking process itself isn’t technically difficult, but it does take some time and involves a verification step via Google. Set aside an afternoon for this.

Step 2: Upload good work photos

Google Maps adverts are visual. The photo you choose determines whether someone clicks. Don’t use stock photos, logos or pictures of vans. Take real photos of your work. A beautifully landscaped garden. A freshly painted house. A neatly fitted bathroom. That photo needs to look good on a small mobile screen, because over 80% of Maps users access the service on their phones. Make sure you have at least one landscape photo and a square version of your best work photo.

Step 3: Collect reviews

A promoted pin with 4.8 stars and 47 reviews is more convincing than a pin with 3 reviews. Reviews are a key factor in how well your advert performs in Maps, and they give potential customers instant confidence. Start actively asking for reviews after every job today. A short WhatsApp message with a direct link to your Business Profile works well. Ask for it at the moment the customer is satisfied, so immediately after completion, not a week later when it’s already been forgotten.

Step 4: Set up radius targeting

DemandGen Maps ads work on a location basis. You determine the radius around your business where you want to be visible. For most tradespeople, this is a working area of 15 to 30 kilometres. Think carefully about what is realistic for you. If it's set too wide, you'll get leads that are too far away to help profitably. If it's set too narrowly, you'll miss opportunities close to home. Also, consider where your competitors are located and if there are regions where you already have a lot of work that you can expand further.

If you’ve got these four steps sorted, you’re technically ready for when DemandGen goes live on Maps. Anyone waiting for that moment to start preparing is already behind. And in a world where 51% of consumers search locally via Maps, falling behind is something you simply cannot afford.

Would you like to know how Google itself views the future of local search? In our article about Vraag Maps in Nederland See how the Maps search experience is rapidly changing and why local visibility is gaining more value.

Frequently asked questions about Google Maps ads