Google says goodbye to call tracking in Business Profiles. Here’s how marketers can adapt.

In case you missed it, Google officially announced that call history and chat history reports will no longer be available in Google Business Profiles (previously Google My Business) starting from July 31, 2024. While businesses will still receive calls through their Google Business Profiles and can track other engagement metrics such as web traffic and directions requests, call data will no longer be accessible.

Beginning July 15th, new chats cannot be started by users on Google Maps or Google Search. However, already started conversations will be able to continue until the update goes into effect on July 31st.

For marketers and small business owners who rely on call data to measure engagement and customer interaction, this change can feel like a major setback. However, there is an easy solution that can help you continue to gather crucial call tracking insights—CallRail.

The impact of Google's update

After quietly doing away with the call tracking feature in early July 2023, this newest announcement follows suit. Google's decision to remove call tracking data from Business Profiles comes as part of an ongoing effort to streamline their services and focus on other areas. Though the exact reasons behind this move are not fully disclosed, it's clear that businesses need alternative solutions to maintain their marketing effectiveness.

With 64% of U.S. businesses having a verified Google Business Profile, and 33% of those verified businesses using the chat feature, call and chat histories are crucial to understanding where your leads are coming from and what the audience needs from your business.

Insights at stake

Without access to call and chat history, you lose valuable insights such as:

Lead sources - Understanding how users are finding your business.
Consumer needs - Recording what your audience is looking for when they contact you.
Call volume - Tracking the number of calls your business receives.
Call duration - Measuring how long each customer interaction lasts.
Missed calls - Identifying missed opportunities that could be followed up.
Call trends - Understanding peak calling times and patterns.

These metrics are essential for optimizing marketing strategies, improving customer service, and turning leads into customers, ultimately driving business growth. With Google removing this information from Business Profiles, what should small business owners and marketers do now?

Enter CallRail

Ranked by G2 as the leading inbound call tracking provider for six years running, CallRail is a lead intelligence platform that can fill the gap left by Google's update. By seamlessly integrating CallRail with your Google Business Profile, you can maintain visibility into the effectiveness of your marketing efforts, understand which calls are coming from your online presence, and optimize your ROI accordingly.

CallRail keeps your call history, call summaries, duration, volume, sentiment, and other crucial data in a single, unified dashboard. When integrated with your Google Business Profile, you can tie together the calls coming from your Business Profile with calls coming in from all your other channels, providing robust insights on every marketing campaign.

Key features of CallRail

Detailed call analytics - CallRail provides in-depth reports on every call, including call volume, duration, and missed calls, allowing you to maintain a clear picture of your customer interactions.
Call recording and transcription - With call recording and transcription services, you can review conversations for quality assurance and training purposes.
Source tracking - Understand which marketing channels are driving calls to your business with source tracking. This feature lets you attribute calls to specific campaigns, ads, or keywords, giving you a deeper understanding of your marketing ROI.
Customizable reports - CallRail offers customizable reports that can be tailored to your business needs, providing you with the specific insights you require.
Integration capabilities - CallRail seamlessly integrates with Google Business Profiles, various CRM systems, marketing automation platforms, and Google Analytics, making it easy to incorporate call data into your existing workflows.

In addition to contacting you through the phone number shown in your listing, people can also click on the listing's website button, go to your website, and call you from the number listed there. CallRail’s advanced tracking capabilities can trace these calls back to your business listing as well, giving you a fuller picture of your Google Business Profile’s performance.

Why switching to CallRail is crucial (and easy!)

As this update goes into effect for Google Business Profiles everywhere, it’s pivotal that marketers consider how they are going to host and track the data for their call campaigns moving forward. CallRail has long been a simple, user-friendly solution that provides even deeper insights and data than marketers could find on their Google Business Profile.

For marketers and small business owners alike, maintaining access to call data is crucial for several reasons:

Optimizing marketing campaigns

Call tracking data allows you to see which marketing efforts are most effective at driving calls. By understanding which campaigns are producing results, you can allocate your budget more effectively and optimize your strategy for better performance.

Enhancing customer service

Knowing how long calls last and what issues are commonly discussed can help you improve your customer service quality. With CallRail's call recording and transcription features, you can train your team more effectively and ensure that every customer interaction is more effective than the last.

Identifying missed opportunities

Missed calls represent potential lost revenue. By tracking missed calls, you can follow up with customers and recover these opportunities. CallRail's detailed reporting makes it easy to identify and address missed calls promptly.

CallRail is up and running in minutes!

Transitioning to CallRail is straightforward, and you can seamlessly integrate your Google Business Profile as soon as you get started.

Here’s how simple it is to optimize your marketing efforts with CallRail:

Sign up - Visit CallRail's website and sign up for an account. You can try it free for two weeks to make sure you are getting the data you need.
Set up tracking numbers - Create tracking numbers for different marketing channels or campaigns in just a few clicks.
Integrate with existing tools - Connect CallRail with your Google Business Profile, CRM, marketing automation platform, or Google Analytics to streamline data collection.
Monitor and analyze - Start receiving automated, detailed call reports, and use the insights to optimize your marketing efforts and improve customer service.

See how easy it is with a 14-day free trial

While Google's decision to remove call tracking and call history from Business Profiles might seem like a hurdle, it's an opportunity to explore more effective solutions like CallRail. By adopting CallRail, marketers and small business owners can continue to easily gather essential call data, optimize their marketing strategies, and enhance customer service.

Don't miss out on critical insights and increased revenue—switch to CallRail today and ensure that your business continues to thrive.

Ready to maintain your call tracking capabilities? Sign up for CallRail now and stay ahead of the game!

Already a CallRail customer? Activate our Google My Business integration to maintain call visibility