Mapquest’s reputation for providing driving directions has expanded to a one-stop shop for all local content.  This week Mapquest Local was launched in beta.  Their goal was to add more relevant content to a users map and direction experience.  The primary obstacle hoped to be overcome was providing all the local content necessary for users to go about their day without having to visit multiple Web pages. 

Either through personal settings or through your current location, content such as: news, events, city guides, gas prices, maps movies, videos, images, traffic conditions and weather is provided for that area.  The Mapquest local team says, ”Imagine spreading out your Sunday newspaper sections all at once and seeing the highlights of all the sections on one pate.  That’s what the new MapQuest Local brings to you.”

MapQuest Local is built on an open platform that allows anyone to develop widgets for everyone’s use on their home page.   The platform also enables the integration of third-party fees from local businesses, news providers etc.  All of this provides users a source of customizable local content.

To read more about MapQuest local, check out their blog here and here.

It would appear that Apple’s iPhone is the missing piece to the Mobile Search puzzle.  A host of new applications have recently been released bridging the gap between local search and mobile.  One of these applications, The Find: Where to Shop, has capabilities that allow in store shopping research such as price comparisons, alternative store locations, sales information, in-store availability and product proximity searches. 

For more information on The Find’s iPhone application release, click here.

I began writing for Search Engine Watch last year about the benefits and tactics for unlocking the local search space. It’s more important than ever to research opportunities and adapt local search into your overall media mix. Local search is a vertical strategy with the rewards of lower leads cost with higher sales conversation.
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Google recently added another new feature to its Maps application.  Now, not only can you get driving directions, but you can get walking directions as well.   This is especially handy for those who are looking for directions in an urban area.  It is expected that this feature will soon be available on the iPhone as well. When added, it is expected to be especially handy to those already on the go.

The Kelsey Group predicts local online video ad revenues to hit $1.5 billion by 2012.  Who will benefit the most from this revenue increase?  Most likely Internet Yellow Pages with thier small-medium sized advertisers that are capitalizing on user demand for local online videos.

Click here to read full article.

I’ve just come off the road from numerous meetings with national and regional advertisers. One common area of interest among advertisers seems to be: how to best communicate to the online audience.

Should a company focus on building their messaging around their brand image, or on driving direct response via their Web site and online media? At the risk of annoying my SEO department, who are happy to pack a keyword into every section of a Web site (no doubt necessary), the answer is both. Branding and direct response messaging can co-exist online, as both are vitally important to short- and long-term sales creation.
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Have you ever wondered how the search engines’ algorithms rank sites within local search? Or better yet, what criteria are the algorithms considering and how important is each? I know my team members and I have talked about it before and have speculated and hypothesized what ranking variables the search engines consider and which the search engines find more important.

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