Tag Archives: local internet marketing

Apple Launches iPhone 5, Fully Equipped with the New Apple Maps

Last Updated On August 13th, 2014Local SEO, , , , , , , ,

applemaps1At today’s San Francisco iPhone 5 launch event, Apple revealed a thinner, faster iPhone equipped with Apple Maps/local search, Siri enhancements and other updates.

The new iPhone 5 will be the first iPhone to feature Apple Maps instead of Google Maps. Apple Maps could have a significant impact on local search if the application’s user experience proves to be a good one. If Apple Maps is successful, it could take a large piece of Google’s local search traffic on the iPhone. However, the user experience of Apple Maps is still to-be-determined. Apple revealed that the new iPhone 5 features enhancements to Siri, which could mean more people will be using Siri to perform searches rather than Google.

Apple Maps will feature turn-by-turn voice navigation and will have real-time traffic data available. This means as traffic conditions change, alternative routes will be offered to the user. One feature that is exclusive to Apple Maps is the “flyover” feature which includes 3-D images that were taken by helicopters as they flew over major cities.

What did you think of the new iPhone 5 and Apple Maps? Will you be trading in your iPhone 4s or Android phone for the slimmer, faster iPhone 5?

Search Engine News: Now You Can Search for Facebook Photos Using Bing’s Social Sidebar

Last Updated On June 1st, 2023Search Engine News, , , , , , , , ,

Bing recently added a feature that allows users to search for photos shared by Facebook friends using the search engine. This feature is an expansion of the social sidebar Bing launched in May that integrated Facebook into the search results.

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Bing Social Sidebar (Facebook integration)

Now friends’ photos relevant to your search query appear in the social sidebar along with other results. When a friend’s photo pops up, you are able to click on it and browse that entire photo album on Bing. The Bing Friends’ Photos landing page also allows you to see all your friends’ photos on one page (the format looks very similar to Pinterest). You can also see your own albums and photos you’re tagged in with comments and “likes” in the sidebar. Users can also comment, “like” and share the photos directly from Bing.

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Bing Friend's Photos landing page

The new Facebook photo sharing on Bing will let you keep up with your friends’ photos that you otherwise may have missed on Facebook. Does Bing’s new integration with Facebook encourage you to ditch Google as your go-to search engine?

How to Determine Whether a Google+ Local Page Has Been Claimed and Verified

Last Updated On August 13th, 2014Local SEO, , , , ,

Ever since Google made the transition from Google Places to Google+ Local it’s been hard to determine whether a business page has been claimed and verified. Local Splash’s tech team looked into this and discovered how to tell if a page has been claimed and verified.

It doesn’t matter whether a business has been claimed of verified, it always contains the “Is This Your Business?” section with the “Manage this page” button:

ownerverified1

The way to tell whether the page has been claimed and verified is to click on the “Manage this page” button. The page you see after that determines whether the page is claimed and verified.

If the page is claimed and verified, clicking “Manage this page” will take you to the Phone Lookup page:

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If the page has not been claimed and verified, after clicking the “Manage this page” button you’ll arrive at the Place Page Claim page.

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Exception to this rule: The above is true as long as the Google account you are signed into has not claimed any prior Google+ Local pages. If you have previously claimed (claimed, not verified) any pages, then clicking the “Manage this page” button will take you to your Google Places dashboard.