Andy Brudtkuhl's Library tagged local →  View Popular, Search in Google

With Google's newly redesigned SERPs, location-based searches will increase, or rather filtering searches by location will. With the "nearby" option more visible, it stands to reason more people will use it. At this point, I'm not seeing real-time location-based info here, but that may change in the future. Google will continue making tweaks and adding features, and having real-time info here may begin to make sense.

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CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- Facebook is preparing to launch location-based status updates for its users. But the social network is also planning to offer it to marketers, including McDonald's.

As early as this month, the social-networking site will give users the ability to post their location within a status update. McDonald's, through digital agency Tribal DDB, Chicago, is building an app with Facebook would allow users to check in at one of its restaurants and have a featured product appear in the post, such as an Angus Quarter Pounder, say executives close to the deal.

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Information has leaked that Facebook is set to roll out location-based features for users and brands as soon as this month. According to Advertising Age, users could see location options any day now.

These features will include the ability to check in at various locations, including retail spots and restaurants. We’re unclear as to whether users will be able to add or customize their own locations, but we are fairly positive that this move will put Foursquare, Brightkite, Gowalla and other location-based services in an uncomfortable position.

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To get more details on opening hours or on customer specific comments related to the food, service or ambiance, simply click on those respective sections to show more information instantly. The Place Page also provides links to useful websites where the user can read full reviews about the place. Lastly, if address and cross street information is not enough, click on the map button and you will be taken to a full screen dynamic map which is pannable and zoomable. In this way you can quickly see the restaurant's location in the context of the entire neighborhood.

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The mobile version, accessed through Google.com, similarly puts useful info for local businesses at your fingertips. "Local" is the keyword in the clause, and Google should have automatically generated a page for any business that also surfaces in Local Search (if it doesn't, a merchant can claim a Place page through Google Places, formerly the Local Business Center.)

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Facebook may not have made any big announcements about local business marketing at last week’s f8 conference, but the company is certainly stepping up its efforts in that area. Today, we discovered that Facebook is sending out window decals with text-to-Like SMS instructions to select local businesses.

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Foursquare has just created a dashboard for local businesses that want to offer mayor specials and other rewards to people who checkin, Mashable reports..

This is smart and was a while coming, but it is still fascinating nonetheless to see this happen.

Right now Foursquare isn't charging businesses for the dashboard because they want to see how people use it and improve on it, and we don't think it would be smart to charge for it at all.

They will almost certainly charge for advertising and promotions later. Local advertising is a $10 billion market, and Google and everyone else has pretty much failed at making a dent there.

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Foursquare is making it easier than ever for businesses to offer venue promotions and get insight on their Foursquare traction. The location-oriented social network has launched a do-it-yourself tool for business to claim their venue and reap the rewards of the business dashboard.

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Something else you might notice is that while optimizing your web site to appear in the lucky seven box is a great idea, the majority of these results are sponsored. That’s right, Google is playing with selling enhanced listings in several cities and looks to be headed towards paid listings in local search

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If you are like most small businesses, the success of your company is dependent on attracting local customers, whether they are in your region, state, county or even town. While it's great to see that your website is pulling in visitors from around the country and maybe even around the world, you don't want to waste the time or resources worrying about leads and inquiries that you can't possibly follow up with. So, how do you ensure you are doing everything in your power to pull in those valuable visitors from across town? Check out this list:

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This post is short and easy to follow, just like the tactic it recommends. Most everyone who optimizes for Google Local (aka Google Maps) is familar with David Mihm's excellent and oft-referenced Local Search Ranking Factors. In that document, and in many places where local results are analyzed, it's clear that getting your business/website into more listings, in a consistent fashion is a very good thing.

Yet, somehow, this obvious tactic has gone missing from many GG Local optimization recommendations. Either that or it's so obvious that no one feels the need to mention it. Whatever the case, it's available now :-)

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Online will continue to get a larger share of the local ad spending pie, increasing from 12% in 2009 to a projected 14% this year. By 2014, BIA/Kelsey expects one-quarter of all local advertising spending to be online.

In January, Barclays Capital also reported 2009 local ad spending down significantly from the year before, by about 22%. Barclays similarly expects a flat local ad market through 2011.

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Within local search, the types of businesses which have the greatest need to feature key employees are doctors offices and legal firms. Some of these have learned over time to create good webpage content around their partners’ identities, but for many there is still room for improvement.

One doesn’t have to be a medical clinic, legal firm or large corporation for there to be a strategic benefit to presenting employee pages. Even small-to-medium businesses may often benefit from featuring a few of their top employees on their websites.

In cases where an employee may be known and searched-for online, companies should seriously consider highlighting that employee on their website to make their businesses far easier to find.

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Things in the Local Search space are out of the control of the typical small business owner; even if they know about the Google Local Business Center, Yahoo Local Listings, or Bing Local Listing Center, they’re only covering half their bases (according to last year’s 15 Miles survey.) And other portals and data companies typically don’t push updates live with the same alacrity as Google and Bing.

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Google has just turned on a nifty location feature in search. Now, you can refine search results with a “Nearby” button, which will filter your results that cater to your location. So if you do a Google search for Italian restaurants, you can click the “Show Options” button to access a “nearby” filter to see results for Italian restaurants in the city/area you live in. You’ll also be given local business results as well.

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Mobile question and answer startup ChaCha is on a roll, possibly achieving profitability, raising boatloads of money, and even venturing into social media with a Facebook app. Today, ChaCha is getting intothe business listings game with local business search company Localeze. Localeze will provide ChaCha’s website with in-depth information about more than 15 million businesses across the country.

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Meanwhile, Google Maps has been the Map platform of choice and added images, reviews, street views, and ratings during the past few years.  These Map features will be combined with Buzz and Place Pages to add a locational and social gaming experience. 

Google competitors beware.

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Before a business can confidently target ads using narrow targeting, it must be confident the search will be conducted using zips or neighborhood names, for example. So the ability to target effectively is critical for greater value. Tied to the geo-target is the need for inventory for that placement. Are users searching for your product or service in that targeted area? If so, how many search queries are run for that item that you want to sell? Added to all of those worthwhile questions is how confident are you that the search engine employed can truly target to such a finite area? Have you run any test campaigns to see results produced using narrow geo-targeting?

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Small businesses stand to increase their local audience and further their market reach through geolocation platforms, which attach real-world locations to mobile phones. Here are a few ways companies can become part of the location tagging world of social media.

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In the past, it has been difficult for local businesses to advertise on search services because there were barriers – such as knowing how to use cryptic technology – but recent advances, like Google Maps, have helped make local advertising more approachable.

It’s now reasonably easy for a local business to get listed, simply by claiming a spot on the map. The more businesses who register, the greater the resource, and the more people will use it. Also, the more people will come to expect to see local resources.

With the widespread use of smart-phones with inbuilt GPS services, the global local search market set to soon surpass $31 billion.

There is a lot of potential coming up in local PPC.

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