What was once the territory of ecommerce website owners who relied on search engines to drive traffic to their online stores, local search is now exploding, which is a great boon for local business owners across the nation.
The fact is that 50 percent of all searches are done so via a mobile device, and half of those searches are for local businesses. Thats a huge increase in consumer usage of local searches, and smart brick and mortar businesses just jump on the bandwagon right away, said the owner of FindUsLocal, a business directory that drives consumers to local businesses using GEO technology.
Just a couple of years ago, marketers struggled to understand how use search engines to drive traffic to local businesses. There were a lot of awkward phrases used as keywords, but recent studies show that those methods only hurt local businesses in the rankings.
But the relatively new phenomenon of GEO technology and marketing is proving to be the answer to local business owners, who can no longer rely on the Yellow pages.
[Local search directories](http://www.finduslocal.com/) are the new Yellow Pages, said the owner of FindUsLocal, a local business directory that uses GEO technology. People have changed the way the look for businesses, and that includes local stores. If brick and mortar store owners arent already listing their sites on local business directories, theyre behind the curve and should quickly catch up.
And hes right. The Local Search Association recently released the State of Local Search, a report that shows large growth in every area of local search. In addition, digital marketers say that now 95 percent of mobile searchers conduct local searches on their smartphones.
The evidence is clear, says the FindUsLocal owner. Local businesses will likely see their business decline unless they get listed on [local business directories](http://www.finduslocal.com/) because thats where todays business comes from.
About FindUsLocal: FindUsLocal uses geolocation technology in visitors browsers to construct a home page focused on their city, town or community. Right there on the front page, theyll find local weather, sports results for their favorite teams, and announcements of the top musical acts and events coming to their city. Smart business owners list their businesses on the site to be seen by those who are specifically looking for businesses in their local area.
