This past Tuesday I returned to Los Angeles from an awesome week on the east coast with my girlfriend. The trip was jam-packed with fun – I got to see lots of friends and family, and we covered a lot of ground. We flew into Philadelphia, and then drove to upstate New York for Camp Bisco, which was ridiculously fun. After Camp, we drove to NYC. I was driving a minivan which was jam packed full of stuff from the festival – coolers, clothing, camping stuff, etc. After sitting in traffic in the Times Square area for over an hour trying to find reasonably priced parking, I gave up and pulled the van into the first parking garage I could find. Take note that there was no real research behind my parking choice, only frustration and a strong desire to get out of the car. The parking attendant seemed shady, … Continue reading
Category Archives: Local Search
Optimizing For Mobile & Local Search: 5 Things Businesses Need To Know About Local SEO
The annual SMX Advanced Conference covers a vast array of information in the search industry. This year, like others, covered everything from SEO, to Social Media, to Paid Search and more. And while it did feel like every conversation touched on Google’s Panda update and its effects on the industry, there was an important underlying theme, which was that local search has grown and is becoming even more important to businesses. According to Google, local searches now account for 20% of searches on Google. Mix this in with comScore’s May 2011 report and now we’re looking at 2.24 billion queries a month on Google with local intent. Yes, that’s billion with a B. These changes aren’t just coming from search engines, but also from the mobile side. In mobile, 95% of smartphone users have looked up local information and 88% of these users generally take action within a day. Combine … Continue reading
PubCon South 2011: Local Search and Hyperlocal
Why has there been so much interest in local search lately? Well, for starters, 70% of users look for local information online first, and 20% of all searches are location related. Google has outbound call centers for local listing verification, so you can tell that they care. Local Search Algorithm Continues To Evolve As local seach continues to grow, Google’s local algorithm is changing rapidly. According to Brian Combs, the local algorithm now includes major pieces of the traditional (non local) algorithm because Matt Cutt’s webspam team was doing a better job at fighting spam than the local search team was. Google’s Support For Local Leaves Something To Be Desired Brian Combs said that the “report” feature in Google Places has been broken since February 21st. Reviews come and go – they disappear from the place pages completely sometimes. The “respond to review” functionality is temperamental at best. Some businesses … Continue reading