The #5 Reason – More People Are Using Mobile Devices When Searching for Local Companies

Congratulations! You’re almost done. This article outlines Reason #5 in our series, The 5 Scary and Exciting Reasons Why Local Listings Are Changing the Way People See Search Engine Results! In this article, we explore one of the most important aspects to consider when thinking about local search—the fact that more and more Internet users are becoming mobile users.

The Trend Toward a Future of Mobility

The final reason to give strong consideration to a local listing campaign is that the mobile revolution is upon us.

More People Now Use Mobile for Search

As this recent article points out, searches on mobile devices like smartphones and tablets have now exceeded searches made on desktop machines.

A World of Mobile Devices

Whole segments of the world are purchasing smartphones before they purchase their first computer. The same goes for younger generations, who are experiencing the Internet for the first time on their cell phone.

And many companies are finding innovative uses for tablets. Restaurants are starting to eliminate pen and paper in favor of digital devices because they are finding the technology improves customer service and tips.

This trend toward greater mobility is not going to end. It used to be that most computers were stationed firmly on desks. Now it’s pretty rare to see an old-fashioned desktop computer. Most office workers use laptops. Many students and business types are foregoing the purchase of laptops, preferring the convenience and experience of a touch screen tablet.

In the future, it is likely that all computers will be tablet-like. And all phones will be smartphones, having some sort of Internet functionality. Try to buy a cell phone that doesn’t have the Internet or a data plan. It’s pretty much impossible. The future is now!

Google Knows What Kind of Device You’re Using

The reason this is a big deal is that, as I pointed out in this article, not only does Google know where you are; they also know what kind of device you are using. And because of this, they make an assumption about mobile devices—They assume that people who are searching for information on a mobile device are out and about and more likely looking for a local business.

And so when you make a query using your smartphone or tablet, you’re going to see local listing results more often than with your desktop or laptop.

The Future of Search—Location, Location, Location!

What this means is that in the future most queries on search engines will have a location component. This suggests that the future of local marketing is HUGE!

Do you see what I’m getting at? More and more people are going to want location-specific information when they do searches online. More and more search engines are going to deliver location-specific reports to consumers when they hunt for info.

The Interactivity of the Consumer Experience

With more and more people using hand-held devices, more and more people will be in the habit of leaving quick and easy online reviews of every store, every product, every movie, and every lemonade stand that they patronize. There will be an enormous level of interactivity to every consumer experience, whether it’s online or inline.

The oldest and most hallowed companies will no longer matter. The businesses that register with these tech-savvy consumers will have a huge advantage, regardless of their age and supposed standing in the community. Their real-time reputation will be what matters. And location will always be relevant.

Local Listing Will Be Bigger Than Ever in the Future

So now that you know about this mobility trend, should you be investing in local listings if you’re a local business? Yes!

Is a Yelp campaign a smart move in the near future? Yes!

Will your YellowPages.com Profile for your various company locations be important to keep updated with high-quality content? Yes!

Should you be creating unique and engaging images and placing them on Instagram and your Facebook Pages for each specific business location? Yes.

Should you hire a company like Holistic Web Presence to help you create a local listing and social media strategy that fits your industry and location? Yes.

More Local Results on More Mobile Devices

As more and more people use mobile devices they will be seeing more and more local results, meaning that adding quality information on these various sites will be even more valuable to local businesses.

We at Holistic Web Presence can analyze your current marketing strategy and help you determine an appropriate local listing campaign and budget. It can be as small as a few hundred dollars a month to start the process of building your local presence on these many, many important local sites like Google My Business, Yelp, YellowPages.com, and Facebook.

Over time building quality content on these various sites can have lucrative results. But you should start now, or you may never catch up with your competition.

See our conclusion, summing up the 5 Reasons You Should Be Considering a Local Listing Campaign.

Wade Mann, the author of this article, is an Internet Marketer at Holistic Web Presence.