More Details on Local Searches

Sometimes there are so many results it is hard to know where to begin. In the Google local search site, in order to narrow down the results by type you can be more specific. Beside the search maps box, click on the link “show search options.” This brings up a pick list that says “all results.” If you click on the down arrow beside that, it will show the following options: Locations, Businesses, User-Created Maps, and Real Estate. For today’s search, I assumed I was a business and needed to find a local office supply company. I clicked on Businesses, and then entered “office supplies” in the search box. I scrolled down to Quality Printing & Office Supplies since I noticed on the map it was in an area of town that is convenient. By clicking on the right down arrow to the side of it, I could then select from Directions, Search nearby, Zoom here, Street View, Write a Revise, Save to…, Send, Move marker, Edit details, or Report a problem. Attached is a screen shot of what that page looks like. I clicked on each one to see how the different options may assist me. I remembered that I also needed to pick up some pecans along the way for a recipe I was making, so I selected “search nearby” and found that Tanner’s Pecans is just a few doors down. I then clicked on “save to” and the information was sent to my Blackberry so I could easily pull up the directions and details when I would be going out to run errands. Features such as this can be extremely important in the business world. As the office supply company maintains their customer base, as well as likely looks to bring in more customers, being on a local search results page can be critical to their business needs. Below is a short video that may be helpful for businesses who are interested in finding out how their customers can find them using searches. More and more users are relying on their computers to locate resources they need, and companies who are not participating in the local searches are likely missing out on business opportunities.