Solved: Edinburgh Google Ads Foot Traffic (The Map Hack)

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out!

I’m happy to give you some initial thoughts and guidance on this. Edinburgh is a fantastic city, but from an advertising perspective, it can be a bit of a nightmare if you don't set things up right. You have this massive influx of tourists during the Fringe and summer, mixed with a very distinct local population that lives and works there year-round. If you treat them the same in Google Ads, you’re essentially throwing money into the Firth of Forth.

I've worked with quite a few local businesses trying to bridge this gap, and the mistake most make is trying to be everything to everyone with a single campaign. To get more foot traffic, we need to be hyper-specific about who is searching and where they are standing when they search.

Below, I’m going to walk you through exactly how I’d structure this if I were running your account, focusing on capturing that high-intent local traffic while filtering out the waste. Tbh, it's not about spending more; it's about tightening the screws on the settings Google tries to hide from you.

We'll need to look at your Campaign Structure first

Most people just set up one "Search" campaign and dump all their keywords in there. For a local business in a tourist hub like Edinburgh, that’s risky. You likely have two distinct customers:

1. The Resident: They know the city. They might search for "best Italian restaurant Leith" or "plumber near Stockbridge". They are looking for reliability, reviews, and specific services.
2. The Tourist: They are likely in the city centre. They search for "restaurants near me" or "shops on Princes Street". They are impulsive and driven by proximity.

I'd say you split these up. Not necessarily by campaign, but definitely by ad group or just by how you treat your keywords. If you are trying to attract foot traffic, "Near Me" searches are going to be your bread and butter.

We see this a lot with clients. I remember we ran a campaign for a home cleaning company (a purely local service) where we got the cost per lead down to £5. The reason it worked was that we focused on capturing high-intent traffic rather than broadcasting to everyone. For you, if you want foot traffic, you need to target people who are physically close enough to walk or take a short taxi ride.

I'd say you need to fix your Location Settings immediately

This is where Google catches everyone out. By default, when you select "Edinburgh", Google targets "People in, or interested in, your targeted location".

This means someone in London searching for "Edinburgh hotels" might see your ad for a local coffee shop or boutique. While that sounds okay, usually that person in London is just planning a trip or dreaming. They aren't going to walk into your shop today. You pay for the click, but you get no foot traffic.

You probably should change this setting to "Presence: People in or regularly in your targeted locations". This ensures your budget is only spent on people physically in the city.

Also, consider the radius. If you are a coffee shop on the Royal Mile, do you really need to show ads to someone in Queensferry? Probably not. They aren't going to drive 30 minutes for a coffee. Keep your radius tight to start with—maybe 1-2 miles around your business location. You can always expand it later if the volume is too low, but starting broad is a great way to waste budget.

You'll need to master Google Maps (Local Search Ads)

For foot traffic, the "Map Pack" (the 3 listings that show up on the map) is more important than the text ads at the top of the page. People trust the map. They want to see how far away you are and check your reviews instantly.

To get your ads here, you need to use Location Extensions (now called Assets). You link your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) to your Google Ads account.

Once linked, Google can show your ad inside the Maps results. This is huge for tourists. They open the Maps app, search "pub", and if you are bidding correctly, your pin can show up right at the top. We've seen this drive significant store visits for retail clients. It's basically a digital signpost.

But here is the thing—your profile needs to be good. If you have 3 stars and no photos, paying for an ad is useless. People will see it and scroll past. Before you spend a penny on Maps ads, make sure your reviews are solid and you have uploaded recent photos of the interior. Authenticity sells better than polish in local ads.

Budgeting for Footfall

A common question is "how much should I spend?". It's tough to answer without knowing your exact niche, but for local services, costs can vary wildly.

We're running a campaign for an HVAC company currently (very competitive), and they see costs around $60/lead. But for simpler local businesses, clicks can be much cheaper, maybe £0.50 - £1.50 depending on the competition in Edinburgh. Since you want foot traffic, you aren't necessarily looking for a "lead" (form fill), you are looking for a "Store Visit" or a "Get Directions" click.

I've built a little calculator below to help you estimate what your budget might get you. You can play around with the numbers to see what’s realistic.

You probably should obsess over Negative Keywords

This is where campaigns live or die. If you target "Barber Edinburgh", you might inadvertently match for "Barber jobs Edinburgh" or "Cheap barber training Edinburgh". You don't want to pay for people looking for a job or a course.

Go through your search term reports weekly. Add negatives like:

• jobs
• hiring
• course
• training
• free
• images of

For a local business, you want people with "commercial intent"—people ready to buy. If you skip this, you're just donating money to Google.

Ad Copy: Speak their language

Finally, your ads need to stand out. Don't just say "Great Shop in Edinburgh". Be specific.

If you are targeting tourists, mention landmarks. "5 min walk from the Castle" or "Best lunch near Royal Mile". They don't know street names as well as landmarks.

For locals, you can use local lingo or neighbourhood names. "Best brunch in Stockbridge" or "Serving Leith since 1990".

It's about relevance. If I'm a tourist standing in the rain on Princes Street (which, let's be honest, is highly likely in Edinburgh), and your ad says "Warm Soup - 2 Mins Walk - Open Now", I'm clicking that over a generic "Best Scottish Food" ad.

I've detailed my main recommendations for you below:

Google Ads for local businesses is tricky because the margins for error are smaller. You don't have the massive budgets of big brands to waste on learning phases. But if you get the location targeting right and focus on Maps, it can definitely drive real people through the door.

If you're feeling a bit overwhelmed by the technical setup or just want a second pair of eyes to make sure you aren't burning cash on the wrong settings, it might be worth getting some expert help. We offer a free consultation where we can look at your current setup (or plan it out if you haven't started) and spot any immediate red flags. No pressure, just a chat to see if we can help steer you in the right direction.

Regards,

Team @ Lukas Holschuh