Imagine you run a cozy little salon in Bengaluru, and you’ve finally decided to invest in Google Ads. You set your budget, choose the perfect keywords, and hit publish. One hour later, your entire daily budget is gone.
The worst part? Most of the clicks came from people in Canada, South Africa, and Malaysia.
Wait, what?
Welcome to the world of Google Ads location settings, where one small mistake can cost you big. But don’t worry, in this blog, we’ll break it down step-by-step, using real-life examples from salons in India, Australia, and the US, so your ad only shows up where your customers actually are.
Why Google Ads Location Settings Matter More Than You Think
Let’s say you own a salon in Mumbai. Naturally, you want local clients. But if your location setting is too broad, like “All countries and territories“, you’ll end up wasting money on people who might love your ads but can’t visit your store.
Bottom line: Location settings decide who sees your ad and where. Get it wrong, and your campaign can spiral into irrelevance.
Google Ads Location Targeting
When setting up a Google Ads search campaign, Google gives you multiple options for location targeting. Here’s what each one means and when to use it.
1. All Countries and Territories
Use this setting only if your product or service is truly global.Think of platforms like Netflix, Spotify, or Shopify, which serve users around the world. If you’re an app developer aiming for global downloads, this can be a smart choice. However, if your offering is more regional or niche, it’s best to be cautious. Expanding globally without the right audience or infrastructure can lead to wasted budget and missed opportunities.
🚫 Not good for:
- Local businesses like salons, spas, or gyms
⚠️ Watch Out: If your business can serve customers worldwide, location-wise campaigns are ideal for better targeting, higher relevance, and improved ROI. However, “All Countries and Territories” is simpler to manage and works well if your product has broad, universal appeal. A hybrid approach, starting global and then narrowing down based on data, can offer the best of both worlds.
2. Current Location (Auto-Selected by Google)
When you start creating your campaign, Google often suggests your current physical location as the target area. For example, if you’re in India, it will automatically suggest India as the target country. If you’re in Australia, it may suggest Australia, and so on.
This is a convenient shortcut, especially if your business serves customers primarily in your current country. But don’t rely on it blindly. Always double-check whether this auto-selected location truly matches your target audience.
✅ Good for:
- Quickly targeting your local country
- Businesses that operate nationwide
⚠️ Watch Out:
- You run a hair and beauty salon in Melbourne, and Google suggests targeting all of Australia. But your customers mainly come from just Victoria. In that case, you should manually narrow down your targeting.
- Or you’re in Delhi, and Google suggests all of India, but you only want to serve clients within the NCR region. You’ll want to manually change that to avoid wasting your budget.
Google’s auto-suggestion based on your current location is helpful, but make sure it aligns with your actual business goals and service areas.
3. Enter Another Location
Want to run your ad in a specific city, state, or postal code? This is your go-to option.
For example:
- You’re a dentist in Melbourne, and only want patients from the city? Just search “Melbourne” and include it.
- Want to promote your restaurant in Austin, Texas, but not in Dallas? Include Austin, exclude Dallas.
- Running a franchise in Bengaluru and Hyderabad? Add both cities individually.
- You own a high-end salon in Sydney, but want to target only:
- CBD (Central Business District)
- Parramatta
- Nearby areas within a 10km radius
You’ll even see the estimated reach for each area you select. You can search and include those specific locations, and even exclude others.
➕ Include vs. Exclude: The Smart Combo
Want to target all of India but exclude cities where your salon doesn’t operate? Easy.
🧪 Example:
You own multiple salons across India but not in Pune.
✅ Include: All of India
❌ Exclude: Pune
This way, your ad is shown everywhere except Pune. Great for managing territories, franchise rules, or city-specific promotions.
Location Options: Presence vs. Interest (Don’t Skip This!)
This one’s hidden under a drop-down, but it’s super important. It decides who in the selected locations sees your ads.
Default Option (Be Careful):
People in, or who show interest in, your target locations
🧨 The trap:
Someone in Sydney watching YouTube videos about “salons in Mumbai” could see your ad, even if they can’t visit your salon. Or say you’re targeting Delhi, but someone in London is Googling “best coaching centres in Delhi.” Your ad might still show to them, even though they’re not physically in Delhi.
That’s because Google considers “interest” as valid targeting.
The Fix:
Change this to: Presence: People in or regularly in your target location
Presence: People in or regularly in your targeted location. (Recommended Option for Local Businesses)
Why it’s better:
Your ad will only be shown to people physically in your chosen location or frequent visitors. No wasted budget.
Advanced Targeting: Radius & Bulk Location
Let’s dig deeper with some advanced options perfect for brick-and-mortar salons.
1. Radius Targeting
Say you run a salon in Koramangala, Bengaluru, and you only want customers within 5 km.
Steps:
- Drop a pin on your location
- Select a radius (e.g., 5 km)
- Only people within that range will see your ad
Great for:
- Spas
- Nail studios
- Local beauty parlours
- Salons
- Restaurants
- Gyms
- Local tuition centres
2. Pin Mode
This works exactly like radius targeting, but lets you click and drop the pin manually on the map. Ideal if your business isn’t easily searchable.
Example:
Your salon is in a small street in Hauz Khas Village, New Delhi. Drop a pin and draw a 3km radius. Done.
3. Bulk Locations
Let’s say your salon chain has locations in 20 cities across India, and you want to target ads to those specific cities. Instead of selecting them one by one, use the Bulk Locations feature.
Simply:
- Copy-paste the list of cities you want to target
- Google will show all matching results for you
- You can quickly include or exclude locations as needed
To target multiple locations in bulk, go to Advanced Search > Add locations in bulk, paste up to 1000 locations (one per line) from the same country, and if you need to target more, simply repeat the process for the remaining locations. Example: You manage 1600 salon branches across India. Just split your list into two batches: the first with 1000 cities and the remaining 600 cities.
Perfect for:
- Salon chains (e.g., Enrich, Toni & Guy, etc.)
- Brands with city-specific franchises
Real-Life Story: A Costly Lesson in Location Settings
I once worked with a Mumbai salon owner who noticed that her ads were showing to people outside of Mumbai. She thought her settings were fine, but after digging into the details, we found that she was targeting users interested in Mumbai, not just those who were physically in the city.
After changing her settings to target only users in or regularly in Mumbai, she saw a significant improvement in bookings and a much lower cost-per-click.
Fixing it was simple:
✅ Switched to Presence only
✅ Added a 10km radius around the salon
✅ Result: Clicks dropped, but conversions improved
Final Thoughts: Don’t Let Your Budget Wander
Google Ads location settings may look like a minor section, but they’re the difference between relevant leads and random clicks.
Key Tips Recap:
Key Takeaways:
- Include vs. Exclude: Take full control over where your ads show up
- Use Presence targeting to make sure your ads are seen by people physically in your location
- Utilize Radius targeting for brick-and-mortar businesses
- For larger businesses, take advantage of Bulk Locations to target multiple cities quickly
With the right Google Ads location settings, your ads will speak to the right audience, people who are close enough to walk into your salon.
💬 Want help setting up the perfect Google Ads location strategy for your salon ads? Drop your questions below or reach out for a free audit!