What Is Local Targeting and Why It’s Not Just Zooming a Map
Let’s kick off with the basics, what is “local targeting” in the ad world?
In Google Ads, location targeting (aka geo-targeting) lets you choose geographic areas. countries, states, cities, or a radius around a point, where your ads will (or won’t) show. By default, Google allows your ads to appear for people who are physically in, regularly in, or have shown interest in your targeted locations. You also get to exclude locations, regions that bleed budget but bring little return. (Google)
Meta (Facebook/Instagram) offers geo-targeting too: you specify countries, states, cities, postcodes or a defined radius, and choose whether to target residents, people recently in that area, or anyone interested in that location (Meta).
Why is this a big deal? Because when you run ads, you’re trying to reach people who can actually act, walk into your store, hire your service, or order delivery. If your pizza shop in Sydney is showing ads in Perth, those clicks are mostly wasted.
Should You Be Using Local Targeting on Meta (Yes, But With Nuance)
Pros of using it on Meta:
Spend efficiency — you trim ad waste by not showing to regions irrelevant to your business (Leadsync).
Better relevance — localised messaging (e.g. “Servicing Bentleigh East”) performs better than generic (Hunchads).
Competitive play — you can geo-fence competitors’ locations to attempt to intercept their foot traffic (Leadenforce).
Risks / constraints / gotchas:
Meta sometimes includes people who have an interest in the location even if they don’t live there, unless you adjust “location targeting” modes carefully (TacticLab).
Radius targeting has limits (e.g. ~1 mile minimum or inaccuracy in dense or rural areas) (Hunchads).
With Meta’s shift toward AI / “Advantage+” modes, manual location segmentation may sometimes get overridden or deprioritised by Meta’s algorithms (Optmyzr).
How to implement smartly:
Use layered targeting: geography + age, interests, behaviours to sharpen the audience (Optmyzr).
Exclude non-performing zones (suburbs or postcodes that deliver poor CTR or conversions) (WasteNot).
Test “residents only” vs “recently in this location” settings to see which granularity best suits your business (Hunchads).
Use dynamic creative / localisation: swap in local references, landmarks, suburb names in ad copy or images to increase resonance (Hunchads).
If your business is local (e.g. café, plumber, boutique, clinic), yes, you should almost always use location targeting on Meta, unless your product is entirely global and not location-sensitive.
Should You Use Local Targeting on Google Ads (Yes, But Know the Settings)
Why it’s powerful:
You focus spend on users who physically or habitually are in your service zone (GrowthMinded).
You get performance by location reporting, so you can shift budget to suburbs or regions that over-deliver (Google).
You can apply bid modifiers for certain zones (e.g. increase bid in high-value suburbs, reduce in fringe) (Google).
Key traps & choices:
The presence vs interest option is crucial. If you leave “presence or interest,” Google may show ads to people interested in your targeted location (even if they’re elsewhere), not always ideal. Many PPC pros recommend switching to “presence only” (PPC Majestic).
When your targeted zone is too narrow, Google might flag “limited reach” and restrict your ad delivery (Google).
Household income location targeting is being migrated into demographic targeting — so don’t rely on it under “location” forever (Google).
How to do it well:
Start broad if unsure, then refine: city → postcode → radius (GrowthMinded).
Use region / suburb level campaigns and adjust bids per location rather than one giant campaign (Google).
Exclude zones that consistently underperform (outer suburbs, rural fringes) (Google).
Monitor location metrics monthly (CTR by area, conversions, cost) to reallocate budget (Google).
Combine with ad scheduling, e.g. when foot traffic in certain areas peaks (lunch time in business districts).
If your business is regionally bound, using local targeting is almost non-negotiable on Google Ads. Without it, you’ll bleed budget showing to irrelevant users.
The Local Targeting Story
Local targeting is the art and science of telling your ads: “Only show to people in places that matter to me.” On Google, you control whether your ad shows to people in your area or just interested in it, giving you the power to sharpen or widen your reach. On Meta, you can further filter by recent movement, residence, or interest, then layer in behavioural or demographic filters for precision.
Done right, local targeting saves wasted spend, boosts conversion rates, and lets your ads speak like a neighbour, “Hey Ney York, got lunch specials today?” But sloppy setups (wrong presence settings, failing to exclude dead zones) turn it into a budget leak.
At Dadek Digital we specialise in mapping out hyperlocal ad strategies, running split tests across suburbs, and automating smart creative swaps. If you need help turning your ad map into a weapon, we can build, manage and optimise your local campaigns for you.