These days, your local search and mobile marketing campaigns should go hand in hand. If you’re a local business looking to get your company seen in the local search results (Google Maps), then you can’t ignore that many consumers are using their phones to find information about local businesses.
The Facts:
- 40% of Google Maps usage is on mobile devices
- 33% of mobile searches are local and 61% of those users actually called the business
- Nearly 80% of smartphone users use their phones to help with shopping and 74% make a purchase
- 61% of smartphone users search for local info while on-the-go with their mobile devices
- Mobile Internet users will surpass desktop Internet users by 2014
What You Can Do:
- Claim your Google listing. If you haven’t already, find your business on Google. You will see “Is This Your Business?” on the right hand side of your Google+ Local page. Click “Manage this page” to claim your business.
- Edit the content of your page in Google Places for Business. Add 5 Google categories to your business, fill out your business description with relevant keywords and add as many photos as possible (Google allows up to 10). Optimizing your page makes it attractive to search engines and potential customers.
- Use Google Offers. These can be seen on the Android phones of consumers searching in your area. According to comScore, most people who use offers return to the business again in the future. Sixty percent of all local searchers use offers from their phones.
Google recently updated its search algorithm to take into consideration the number of valid copyright removal notices it receives for any given site. Websites with high numbers of removal notices may appear lower in Google results, according to a post by Amit Singhal, Google’s Vice President of Engineering, in 
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