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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As we have mentioned in previous posts (A Brighter Look at an Impending Recession, Recession: Blessing In Disguise) about the recession, online medium seems to be a more robust area that can handle a downturn better than other media types.
Recently research firm, IDC, released a report suggesting the country’s economic slump has not yet impacted online ad spend.
According to a recently released study by IDC, the U.S. Internet Advertising 2008-2012 Forecast and Analysis, overall Internet advertising revenue will double from $25.5 billion in 2007 to $51.1 billion in 2012. During the forecast period, Internet advertising will grow about eight times as fast as advertising at large.
This week we explore advertiser strategies for winning the local search battle. Let’s start with what is not local search.
If your agency or internal marketing personnel state: “yeah don’t worry, we have local covered; we broad matched all your keywords, so we pick up anyone searching with geographic/local terms,” it’s time to get worried. That’s sort of like saying “we have every local market covered because we advertise on the Super Bowl … all local consumers watch the Super Bowl.”
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“A Little Bit of History Repeating” posted by Kaila Colbin on Search Insider today provides a dose of reality to the hysteria surrounding the recent lag in growth in the search industry. Colbin states that the downturn in traffic to Facebook, drop in new listings on eBay, and flat quarter for Google were inevitable. Just like an economy, an industry cannot possibly be in a constant state of growth unless it plans to take over the world. So, my fellow search marketers, fear not. The amazing growth trends and slight lags are all a part of a cycle - not a disaster.
Ever wonder why Emily’s (the file clerk in the basement) phone rings off the hook? Is she really that popular? Upon closer examination, you realize her direct phone line is listed as the main sales line for your company on a number of local search sites. So in effect, those are your local search sales leads going out the window.
The culprit: incorrect listing information for your company has found its way into the local listing database of some data provider and is now spreading like wildfire from local search site to local search site. (more…)
Don’t get left out of local search results.
Local search is a subcategory of overall search that can give a big boost to your business whether you are a big brand national services advertiser in local markets or a local business looking to expand. Some analysts expect local search revenue to double this year and become even more critical when emerging mobile phone technology allows people to stand on the street corner and ask about a local pizza shop, FedEx or Kinko’s. (more…)