Are Search Engines Going Local?
The power of search engine rankings is widely recognized and accepted as an important method of improving the performance of your web site.
A recent innovation amongst search engines is the ability to offer local searches with maps attached. As these usually appear above all other links it is vital to feature well in these searches. There is strong evidence that consumers are using the internet for their local information far more than traditional methods such as yellow pages and local publications.
Local searching is a process where the user often looks for information on-line, with no intention of completing a transaction on-line. Someone looking for an Italian Restaurant in your town is probably going to arrive at the premises for a meal. This transition from on-line to offline is difficult to monitor, and when a client turns up at your restaurant you can't be sure how he came to be there.
A lot of research is being done in this new and rapidly changing area of search engines, and as with general search engine rankings there are criteria that need to be addressed in order to improve your ranking:
• Include detailed directions on how to reach your premises (name as many local landmarks as possible) • Include the name of your town in title tag and description tag • Include your physical address at the bottom of every page. • Include telephone number with a local area dialling code if possible • Get listed in Google Local • Build links from local directories
Local focus is still a fairly new area for search engines and there is a lot of research and experimentation going on. Google recently had local listings appear based on a zip code presumably related to your ip address, yet offering the option of changing the code to something more relevant to your search. This feature has now disappeared and it is assumed that Google are analyzing the results of this experiment, with a view to refining it and including it in their search process. It has been suggested that the thinking behind this is to help smaller, local businesses feature in searches.
About 80% of all our business activity (shopping/services) takes place within a 5 mile radius of our homes. This is nothing new - but what is new is that we are now using the internet to find these businesses. The advent of focused local searches means that it is now quite possible for smaller businesses within a given geographic area to feature much higher in a search than some of their national competitors.
That said, it is important to remember that a fair percentage of local searches may well be conducted by people who, although in the area, may not necessarily be familiar with it; holidaymakers, new arrivals etc. It is therefore important to remember that this be considered when putting together information. Yahoo and MSN also provide local searches on their US site so one must assume that it is coming our way soon.
Another point to bear in mind is that it is now possible for businesses without a website to feature in a Google local search. If you have a website that is optimized properly, and that is informative and appealing to your visitors then this should not overly concern you, but do remember that they are there.
Date: 17/09/2008
Category: BUSINESS EDITORIAL