Digital intelligence – why ‘local search’ matters

Date : 28/04/2014

Local search is a specific type of internet search based on the user’s location. It detects their geographic location from their mobile phone and lists the closest businesses as the most relevant. E.g. if you’re in Perth and you search for ‘castles’, castles in and around Perth will be at the top of the list.

According to Social Media Today, 56 percent of mobile users depend on local search and recent research by Google, in partnership with Nielsen, found that 69 percent expect businesses to be within five miles of their location.

It’s obvious that local search has implications for tourism businesses. But what impact does it have on how you should present your business online and how can you capitalise on this growing trend?

There are two key things to think about.

The first is to make sure your business is easily found when people are searching for local services. The second is to make your own website a rich source of local information. This not only emphasises to visitors that you’re keen to look after them and help them have a good experience, it should also help your search rankings.

Here are some simple tips to help you achieve both objectives:

A Google Mobile Movement Study found that 88 percent of consumers who search for a type of local business on a mobile device, call or go to that business within 24 hours.

So, make sure you’re providing all your business addresses, directions, contact information and opening hours in a format that is readily available to mobile devices.

Visitors and travellers increasingly rely on smart phones and tablets to find local information and find their way around.

In July 2013, Google Maps UK was the top travel site visited by UK web users – just over 10 percent market share of visits.

Look into signing up for the free start up package with Google Places for Business. Follow the instructions for categorising your business and uploading key data and images and you’ll be more easily found on Google Maps and Google+.

Online maps offer a rich experience including reviews, directions and photographs.

Make sure you have lots of good quality photographs of the interior and exterior of your business, and include a virtual tour or video content if you can. Three quarters of internet users have watched video online in the last three months!

Think about what potential customers want to see – what the business looks like from the pavement, so they know they’re in the right place when they arrive, bedrooms, pictures of the food you serve, views, and so on.

Google Business View is one way to give potential visitors a 360-degree picture of your business.

Location is one of the primary factors people take into account when booking. Potential visitors want to know what tourist spots are nearby and how close you are to transport links.

They may even want to take a virtual ‘walk’ down your street to see how safe it looks.

Embedding an interactive map into your site that shows your location in relation to local hotels, tourist attractions, transport links and so on, may persuade a potential visitor to book with you rather than someone else who isn’t providing the same level of detailed and thoughtful information.

We know that visitors are drawn to visit places because of events taking place there. By providing good, up to date information about what’s on in your area, you’re helping potential visitors make that vital decision to book.

The List has created a free widget that you can use on your website, which will show visitors to your site events taking place around and about your business.

It takes less than five minutes to install and doesn’t require any technical know-how.

Just download The List Widget Guide and follow the simple step-by-step instructions.

The widget automatically pulls events on to your site, based on the search parameters you set – so you can list events within a certain number of miles from your business or over a set period.

Now when visitors come to your site, they’ll see all the great stuff happening nearby, which may well swing their decision about where to book in your favour.

The List Widget Guide tells you all you need to know about this excellent tool.

ETAG data was gathered from a wide range of sources. For more in-depth information on the data, download the ETAG Technology Market Intelligence for Tourism report.

Shine Online is our great guide to building an online presence.