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Local Search Engine Optimization – Revisited

By Scott Buresh in Featured

Roughly a year ago, local search engine optimization was all the rage – the new frontier in search engine marketing.  For a while, it seemed that everyone was interested in the local search angle – even multi-national companies.  However, for many companies selling products or services to the entire United States, or even globally, it seemed like a non-starter. Companies that counted on people looking for certain products or services that did not require close proximity to the company’s location were unaffected. As far as local search engine optimization goes, things have changed a bit since then – at least for some.

Some time ago, Google introduced a “geographic box” at the top of its search results.  This is tied in to its mapping feature, and, when it was first introduced, the engine would display three results at the top of its search results whenever somebody entered a geographic modifier into the search box (“Atlanta widgets,” for example).  The Google algorithm then has the intelligence to determine whether the query calls for results that are primarily local in scope.

Since that initial trial, Google has obviously found that its users appreciate the feature.  The engine now displays ten local search results at the top of the listings for certain queries, provided that they have a geographic modifier attached.  For example, if you type in “Atlanta gyms” in Google, you will see ten results alongside a map that shows the location of ten gyms in Atlanta.

It should be noted that you will not see local search results for all queries that contain a local modifier.  In certain instances, it almost seems as if Google somehow “knows” when a geographic modifier really means that you only offer services in a particular area.  Yeah, those guys are pretty good.