{ Local Search }

The best way to let you know what “local search” is, is to show you.

The image below should look very familiar. It looks like a local listing. There’s a letter in a red tear drop shape icon, next to the listing name. The icon relates to the physical location on the map to the right of the listing.

Yes, this is local search.

In the old days, we used to open a phone book when we were looking for a local service provider. Nowadays most people go online instead.

Since 73% of all online activity is related to local content (statistic provided by Google) the search engines now show a “blended search result” when someone types in a search. Not so long ago, when we would type in “Plummer” or “yoga studio” only paid search and organic listings would appear on the first half of the search result page. Not anymore!

The search engines now show 7 local business listings above the organic listings.

So what is local search?

Basically anything that you would traditionally look for in the phone book, or Yellow Pages, is known as Local Search when you’re e looking online.

Local search results include a listing with a link to the businesses places page, map and reviews. No wonder it’s the most common way to find a local business, since it has so much information right there.

Here’s some food for thought:

70% of U.S. households use the internet to make decisions when shopping locally for products and services (Kelsey Group, 2005).
73% of all online activity is related to local content (Google)
66% of Americans use the Internet to find local businesses (Comscore)
54% of Americans have replaced their phone books (yellow pages) with Internet searches (Comscore)
82% of local searchers follow-up with their search by phone call and/or walk-in (TMP / Comscore)
Less than 10% of small and mid-size businesses are happy with their internet marketing

Now that you know what local search is, the next question is:

Is Your Business Optimized for Local Search?

*Hint* just having a website is not enough.

*Hint #2 * just claiming your local listing’s places page is not enough.

There’s a common misconception about how local listings appear in the search results. Contrary to popular belief, the listing is not based on alphabetical order and it’s not based on distance either. It’s actually based on the search engine’s algorithm.

There are ways to optimize your local listing, so your business appears higher up on local search. Since only 7 local listings appear on the first page of the search, ideally you want to be one of the 7.

Optimizing businesses for local search is one of our most popular services!

It’s popular for many reasons including its sheer practicality, and the fact that it’s less cost than full SEO. Some clients prefer a blend of local search and full SEO.

What solution is best for you? We’d need to look at your business individually and make a decision based on your unique needs.

For more information or to set up a consultation give us a call or contact us by email (info@evotivemarketing.com)

P.s.

When a searcher is looking online, sometimes they don’t enter in a city. They simply enter a search term. The search engine gives them results related to their geographic location even though they did not enter that into their search query. Even without the searcher typing in a particular city or town, the local listings will appear.

Knowing this, doesn’t it make sense to have your business optimized for local search?

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