A “local search query” is a search question that someone types into Google when searching for a service or store that is in their geographical area. Some examples of local search companies are a plumber, restaurant, retail store, or lawyer. For some brick-and-mortar businesses, all searches are local. Most of these are hyperlocal businesses that only attract customers from a specific service area.
Examples include barbers, manicurists, dry cleaners, laundries, delicatessens, and sandwich shops. It is a fact that if someone is looking for these types of products or services, they intend to buy them at a nearby store. Some types of businesses are very location-specific, but the people looking for them are most likely to be somewhere else. While potential customers aren't currently in their immediate area, they expect them to be in the future.
Examples include cruise lines, ski resorts, car rental agencies, campgrounds, and convention centers. Some companies attract customers from both near and far. Examples include financial advisors, consultants, regional hospitals, moving companies, and mortgage companies. Local search algorithms are widely applied to numerous complex computational problems, including problems related to computer science (in particular, artificial intelligence), mathematics, operations research, engineering, and bioinformatics.
Some examples of local search algorithms are WalkSat, the two-choice algorithm for solving the street vendor problem, and the Metropolis—Hastings algorithm. Local search ads are shown to users looking for a company to solve their problems. If a user is looking for plumbing jobs, for example, those users will see ads for local plumbing services in their area. Local search ads allow businesses to stand out and stand out in the local results section of a Google search.
The following graphic provides an overview of the main tasks that make up a local SEO campaign, from the most basic (fundamental) to the highest (advanced). In fact, 50 percent of users visit a store one day after performing a local search and, in addition, 80 percent of local searches generate conversions. We've quickly and easily familiarized you with each of the facets of local SEO in the Learning Center. Increase your local SEO visibility with easy directory distribution, review management, listing updates, and more.
Local search algorithms move from one solution to another in the candidate solution space (the search space) by applying local changes, until the solution considered optimal is found or a time limit has elapsed. Because local search ads appear at the top of search results, the first thing a voice-assisted device will provide you with is a local result for your query. If Google is fairly certain that the user is looking for a local business, but is not sure which company is the most relevant, it will show some local results at the top of the list with phone numbers and links to more information on Google Maps. In addition, local search ads are located just above text ads, so they're the first thing users see when searching for a local business or service.
The online component of local search marketing is called “local SEO” or local search engine optimization. Nearly all local SEO techniques require continuous effort, as each company invests in the continuous growth of visibility and brand recognition within a specific community. Google is constantly trying to interpret local intent, and when it does, it wants to provide local search results.
