Why Clicks‑to‑Call Are the Most Valuable Local Conversion Signal

Premise: Clicks to call conversion actions are more valuable than other conversion action on Google Business Profile for local, brick and mortar type businesses

Scope: This study relates primarily to local businesses that rely on customers from within their city's limits. These are local brands and not national brands. Although for some evidence, locally operated franchise brands have also been taken into account.

Introduction

Local businesses have several ways to engage customers from a Google search. People can click to visit the website, request driving directions, or tap the “Call” button on the Google Business Profile (GBP). Not all clicks are created equal. Mounting evidence from case studies, data analyses, and expert observations suggests that a click-to-call is a far more valuable conversion signal than a simple website visit or direction request.

In this white paper, we’ll explore why phone call clicks indicate higher purchase intent, how GBP insight data reflects user behavior, and what local SEO experts and forums reveal about the primacy of phone calls in driving real business results. We’ll also examine attribution nuances between calls, directions, and site visits, and why service-based businesses especially see immediate sales from phone leads.

The goal is to provide a comprehensive, citation-backed analysis that validates the claim: clicks-to-call outrank other actions as conversion gold for local businesses.

High-Intent Behavior Behind Click-to-Call Actions

When a customer clicks to call a business, it’s usually a strong signal of intent. Unlike casual website browsing, reaching out by phone implies the searcher wants direct interaction – often to inquire about a product or book a service right away.

Multiple studies confirm that phone calls tend to come from users who are further along the buying journey:

• Mobile searchers frequently call businesses directly. Google reported that 70% of mobile searchers have called a business straight from the search results. In other words, a majority of smartphone users will use the click-to-call feature when searching for local services, underscoring how common and expected calling is on mobile. This behavior reflects convenience (a phone is, after all, a phone) and urgency – mobile users often search with immediate needs in mind.

• Phone leads convert at much higher rates than web clicks. Research compiled by call tracking providers shows that only about 2% of form-fill web leads convert to customers, whereas an estimated 25–40% of inbound phone calls to local businesses turn into customers. In fact, phone calls convert 10–15 times more often than website leads. Similarly, data from MECLabs indicates just 2–6% of web leads become clients versus a stunning 25–75% of incoming calls convert to clients. These statistics make it clear that someone who takes the step to call is far more likely to actually spend money with the business than someone who simply clicks on a website.

• Calls often mean immediate action. Google’s research on mobile ad performance found that pay-per-click ads with a phone number see 6–8% higher conversion rates than those without, and including “Call Now” prompts in mobile ads lifts conversions. The reason is simple: mobile users calling a business are usually looking for something they need immediately. A classic example is a searcher with a broken pipe who calls the first plumber they find on Google – this caller is not in “research mode” but rather ready to hire. A click-to-call circumvents lengthy online research; it connects a ready buyer with the business in real time.

In short, behavioral data demonstrates that a click-to-call is a strong buying signal. The customer is engaging in a one-to-one interaction, often with intent to ask about availability, pricing, or to make an appointment on the spot. Compared to browsing a site or even getting directions for a later visit, a phone call is a direct conduit to revenue. Next, we’ll see how common these call clicks are and how they compare to other actions in aggregate GBP data.

Data Metrics

Google Business Profile Insights: Calls vs. Directions vs. Website Visits

Google Business Profile (GBP) performance metrics allow local businesses to track how people interact with their listing. The three main “conversion” actions Google reports are: website clicks, direction requests, and call clicks (tap-to-call). Understanding the breakdown of these actions is key to appreciating their relative value.

BrightLocal’s analysis of 45,000 Google My Business listings found that on average 56% of customer actions were website clicks, 24% were click-to-call phone actions, and 20% were direction requests. In an average month, a typical business got about 59 total actions on its listing (e.g. 33 website clicks, 14 direction taps, 12 call clicks) according to this large-scale 2019 study.

This data shows that website clicks tend to be the most frequent action, likely because many users click through to get more information. However, call clicks and direction requests together made up roughly 44% of actions – nearly half. It’s noteworthy that driving-direction taps often outnumber call taps in many industries during normal times (especially for restaurants, retail, and attractions where users plan a visit). Before 2020, direction requests far outpaced calls on weekends, as people routinely sought map guidance to physical locations.

But the volume of actions alone doesn’t tell the full story of value:

• “Zero-Click” conversions dominate local search. A comprehensive local search analysis noted that a large share of local customers convert without ever visiting the website. Back in 2021, over 75% of local search conversions for some categories happened directly on the local listing – via call or direction click – with no website visit. In other words, the majority of actual customer engagements (calls made, navigations started) took place straight from Google’s interface. This underscores that phone calls and direction requests are not tangential; they are the conversions, often bypassing the website entirely.

• Calls carry unique weight in service industries. For service-area businesses (plumbers, HVAC, mobile locksmiths, etc.), there is typically no public address listed, so the “Directions” button is disabled. In these cases, the phone call is the primary action a customer can take from Google. Even for brick-and-mortar services like doctors or lawyers, many clients will call before ever considering a visit. An internal Sterling Sky study of 179 law firm GBP listings found that click-to-call actions declined throughout 2025 (while website clicks did not drop as sharply), indicating that fewer people were tapping “Call” from mobile. This trend was attributed to changes in user behavior and Google’s interface, but it highlights that attorneys historically received a lot of inquiries by phone from their listings. When those call clicks dip, it’s noticeable. The phone is often the primary conversion funnel for service providers – if calls dry up, business suffers, even if web traffic holds steady.

• Website clicks are often exploratory, while calls are decision-oriented. GBP Insights can show that, say, 100 people clicked your website from the listing, but how many of those browsed and left versus actually became customers? Only 5% of all listing views result in any action (call, click, or directions) according to the BrightLocal benchmark. Many website clicks may be people looking for hours, prices, or just doing due diligence. In contrast, a direction request usually means a person is on their way, and a call click means they want to talk now. It’s quality over quantity: website visits produce a larger quantity of interactions, but phone calls produce a higher quality interaction in terms of likelihood of conversion.

It is also important to note limitations in Google’s tracking. Google’s own Insight numbers often undercount actual calls. As local SEO expert Joy Hawkins explains, GBP “Calls” metrics only count clicks on the mobile “Call” button – if a user sees your number and dials it manually on their phone or landline, Google won’t log it. For instance, one business received 380 unique calls in a period but GBP showed only 282 clicks – because nearly a hundred people likely dialed without using the button. Additionally, a click-to-call in Insights doesn’t guarantee the call connected (the user could cancel before it rings). The upshot is that the real number of customers calling from Google is higher than the reported clicks, reinforcing that call volume is a pivotal metric – even Google can’t fully capture it without call tracking in place.

Local SEO Methods

Expert Insights: Why Local SEOs Prioritize Phone Call Conversions

Those on the front lines of local marketing have long recognized that a ringing phone often equals revenue. In fact, many consultants and agencies judge their success by how many calls they drive for a client.

A look at industry commentary, surveys, and forum discussions shows a clear consensus: phone calls are gold.

• BrightLocal Industry Poll: In a widely cited survey of local marketers, phone calls were rated the #1 most important KPI for local search success (48% of respondents), outranking metrics like search rankings (46%) and website traffic (35%). Notably, calls were deemed far more important than online contact form submissions (only 27% cited web enquiries as a top KPI). The reasoning, as BrightLocal’s analysis explains, is that incoming calls are “invaluable leads” – they provide a direct opportunity to engage a customer and close a sale. Phone calls are a “real world” metric that business owners feel immediately; unlike web clicks, the business literally hears the phone ring and can speak with the prospect. This immediacy and tangibility make calls extremely compelling as a measure of marketing impact.

• “Calls = Customers” mindset: As one CallRail report put it, when it comes to driving revenue, call conversions are better than clicks. Marketers stress tracking calls because they know a click alone doesn’t pay the bills, but a phone call can directly lead to an appointment or order. “A click is one thing, but an actual call is a separate conversion that you can’t track through Google Ads alone… an actual sale is another thing altogether,” notes a digital agency director in a case study. The implication is that even in advertising, optimizing for calls (through call extensions, call-only campaigns, etc.) often yields more customers than optimizing purely for website visits.

• Forum wisdom and case studies: On the Local Search Forum (a community of local SEO professionals) and in Local U discussions, experts frequently emphasize the need to treat phone calls as a primary goal. For example, Sterling Sky (led by Joy Hawkins) reports on clients in terms of leads, not just rankings, with leads largely meaning calls, chats, or form fills. Many agencies now highlight how many calls their SEO efforts generated because business owners intuitively value that. Anecdotally, agencies have found that when call volume goes up, clients are happy, even if website metrics are flat. Conversely, a drop in calls triggers concern. One Reddit thread in r/SEO described a multi-location business puzzled by great rankings but no increase in customers – the missing piece was that calls weren’t coming in despite the visibility. Such stories abound, and the resolution is usually to improve conversion elements that drive calls (better call-to-action, using call tracking numbers, etc.) rather than chasing more traffic.

Finally, it’s telling that neglecting phone call tracking is seen as a serious blind spot. In a survey of search marketers, 63% said phone leads are as valuable or more valuable than web leads – yet 54% admitted they do not properly track phone call conversions from search. This “call gap” means many businesses underestimate the true ROI of local search. Marketers now implore businesses to implement call tracking and count phone calls as conversions, precisely because that’s where the money often flows. As soon as businesses start listening to calls or auditing call logs, they often realize how directly those calls lead to bookings or sales – reinforcing the high value of the call as a conversion signal.

The Attribution Visibility Gap Between Click Types

Not all conversion actions are equally trackable or attributable, which affects how much credit we give them. One reason phone calls haven’t always gotten their due is that attribution is trickier compared to online clicks.

Let’s compare:

• Website Clicks: When a user clicks through to your website from Google, you can follow their journey using analytics – you might see if they submitted a form, made a purchase, or bounced. Website visits leave a data trail. However, if the user simply gathers info (like checking your pricing page) and then calls you or visits in person later, that initial website click’s value might be overlooked without proper tracking. It’s a touchpoint, not a final conversion. Many local SEOs use UTM parameters on the GBP website link to measure how many leads or sales originate from those clicks. Still, a website click by itself is often just the start of a longer funnel.

• Direction Requests: A click for directions is a strong intent signal (the customer likely plans to visit), but attribution to an eventual sale is murky. Google’s GBP Insights counts unique direction requests per user, per day. What happens after they get the map directions? Did they actually show up and buy something? Unless the business ties in-store transactions to that digital action (through in-store surveys – “How did you hear about us?” – or using Google’s Store Visits estimates in ads), it’s hard to quantify. For many brick-and-mortar businesses, a direction request is as good as a foot in the door, but it’s an offline conversion that isn’t directly captured online. Attribution is essentially an honor system here; you assume many of those who asked for directions made a visit. There’s also the factor of repeat visitors: a loyal customer might hit “Directions” every time they drive over, getting counted each time, or conversely, multiple people carpooling might only count as one directions click. Thus, direction clicks are an approximate proxy for visits, not a precise count of sales.

• Phone Calls: Phone calls span both worlds – they start online (with a click) but end offline (a conversation). Without call tracking, you only know a call was initiated (if clicked on mobile). With call tracking, you can tie the call to the source (Google listing) and even record it to judge quality. Attribution for calls can actually be very detailed if set up correctly: you can know which keyword or landing page led to the call, how long the call lasted, and whether it resulted in an appointment or sale (by listening or integrating call tracking with CRM). The visibility gap is when call tracking isn’t in place – then, a business might see “50 calls this month” in Google’s dashboard and not know which were good leads or what drove them. As mentioned, Google’s own call count misses those who dial manually, so without a tracking number the attribution is incomplete. Despite these challenges, many marketers assert that tracking phone calls is essential to get the full picture of lead generation. The fact that a majority of marketers in one survey said their team gets no credit for driving inbound calls speaks volumes. Businesses that solve this (by using unique call tracking numbers on their GBP, for example) often discover that Google search was quietly driving far more customers than they realized, through the phone channel.

In summary, calls may require a bit more effort to attribute, but they provide clearer intent. You either connected with the customer or you didn’t, and if you did, you have an opportunity to attribute revenue to that call. With direction clicks, the customer could come or not come and you might never know. With website clicks, the customer could lurk or browse anonymously unless they convert online. This puts calls in a sweet spot: they are actionable events that can be tied to outcomes, especially if the business asks “How did you hear about us?” or uses call tracking technology. One tip from experts is to treat phone calls as conversions in your analytics, on par with form submissions. Google Ads, for instance, lets you count “Calls from ads” and even “Local actions – Calls” as conversion goals. This reflects their value. A call is not just a lead, it’s often a customer waiting to happen and it can be counted as such in your marketing KPIs.

Calls Often Lead to Immediate Sales or Bookings (Especially for Services)

For many local businesses, particularly service providers, a phone call isn’t just a casual inquiry – it’s often the moment a sale is made or a job is booked. Consider a few scenarios:

• A homeowner with an HVAC emergency isn’t going to fill out a form and wait; they call the first heating repair company that appears on Google. If that company answers the call, they’ll likely schedule a service visit and win the business then and there.

• A person looking for a haircut might call the salon to check availability and book an appointment on the call. One interaction, conversion secured.

• A hungry customer might call a restaurant to reserve a table or place a takeout order rather than navigating an online system or driving over.

These examples illustrate how calls collapse the funnel, they turn searchers into customers in one step. Data backs up how critical it is to capture these opportunities:

• Missed calls = Missed revenue. An eye-opening analysis shared on Reddit examined 314 inbound calls to 8 local businesses (including HVAC, dental, and med spa offices). About 37% of calls went unanswered, and 68% of those callers never left voicemail or tried again. The analyst estimated $13k–$20k in monthly revenue was leaking for these businesses simply because calls weren’t answered during peak times. The takeaway is stark: if you don’t handle your calls, the customer will “go back to Google and call the next listing”. This directly underscores the value of a call. Each call could be worth hundreds or thousands of dollars, so losing even a fraction of them has a serious cost. It also implies the inverse: every call answered is a chance to earn that revenue on the spot.

• Phone inquiries often mean ready buyers. Industry studies note that 65% of consumers prefer contacting a business by phone versus only 24% who prefer filling out a web form. People reaching out by phone are often those who want a fast answer or a personal touch before they commit. For instance, a study by Conversion Sciences detailed campaigns where over 50% of phone callers proceeded to a product demo or consultation, compared to only 3–12% of people who filled out an online form. The act of calling pre-qualifies the lead to some extent. By calling, they’re signaling a higher level of interest or urgency. Marketers sometimes refer to phone leads as “hot leads” for this reason.

• Service businesses rely on calls for bookings. In fields like home services, healthcare, legal, and B2B services, a common next step for a client is scheduling something (an appointment, a quote, a meeting). Phone calls shine here. A doctor’s office or law firm will convert a caller into a booked appointment more directly than a web visitor. Even where online booking exists, many customers find it easier to call and talk to a human, especially for complex or costly services. As CallRail notes, phone calls give you context – you can have a two-way conversation, answer objections, and close the deal in one interaction. That’s not possible with a simple click or site visit. Thus, for service-based local businesses, a click-to-call event is often synonymous with a new customer acquisition (assuming the call is handled properly).

Another aspect is speed. Phone leads tend to close faster. A study by HubSpot found that contacting a lead within an hour of interest drastically increased conversion rates. With a call, there is no lag – the prospect is literally on the line, and the business can begin the sales or onboarding process immediately. Compare that to a “Get Directions” click: the person might visit days later, or not at all, and even if they do, they might browse and leave without buying.

A website visitor could poke around and forget to follow up. But a caller is engaged now. The immediacy of phone interactions often means the sales cycle is shortened. For example, an insurance agent might receive an online quote request (web lead) and spend days playing phone tag with the prospect, whereas a phone call inquiry can result in a policy sold on the very first call.

All of this is to say: calls have a high propensity to turn into real business, very quickly. They are often the last step before money changes hands. That’s why many businesses train their staff extensively on phone handling – because converting a caller can have an instant payoff. It’s also why savvy local marketers focus on increasing calls (through tactics like adding “Call us” CTAs, running call-only ads, and using Google’s call extensions). The more calls, the more at-bats to close a sale.

Conclusion: Prioritizing Click-to-Call as a Core Conversion Metric

Given the evidence, it’s clear that a click-to-call is not just another user action, it’s the closest digital proxy to a customer walking in your door. Phone calls carry strong commercial intent, lead to higher conversion rates, and often immediately connect the business with revenue opportunities.

While clicks for directions and website visits are certainly useful (and should not be ignored), they lack the directness and trackable ROI that calls provide:

• A direction request is a vote of confidence that someone might visit, but a phone call is a conversation with a potential buyer happening now.

• A website click can inform or engage a prospect, but a phone call can close them. As one marketer quipped, “Clicks are great, but calls pay the bills.”

Local SEO experts increasingly advise treating phone calls as a top-tier KPI. Ensuring your Google Business Profile encourages calls via prominent “Call” buttons, call extensions in ads, and even Google Posts highlighting phone specials can pay dividends. And once those calls come in, businesses should track and nurture them: use call tracking numbers to attribute them properly, record calls to glean insights, and most importantly, answer the phone (or have a system to promptly respond to missed calls).

The data shows that every unanswered call is essentially a customer lost to a competitor, whereas every answered call is a chance to win a customer on the spot.

In a world where over 75% of local conversions can happen without a website click, focusing on the signals that matter is crucial. Click-to-call actions are a shining signal amid the noise. They signify trust (the user trusts you enough to call), intent (they want something now), and opportunity (a live lead). The takeaway is emphatic: driving and capturing phone calls should be at the heart of local SEO and optimization efforts. By valuing calls over vanity metrics and by optimizing for call conversions, local businesses can align their marketing with what truly moves the needle.