<s>
Local	B-Application
search	I-Application
is	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
specialized	O
Internet	B-Application
search	I-Application
engines	I-Application
that	O
allow	O
users	O
to	O
submit	O
geographically	O
constrained	O
searches	O
against	O
a	O
structured	O
database	O
of	O
local	O
business	O
listings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Typical	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
queries	O
include	O
not	O
only	O
information	O
about	O
"	O
what	O
"	O
the	O
site	O
visitor	O
is	O
searching	O
for	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
keywords	O
,	O
a	O
business	O
category	O
,	O
or	O
the	O
name	O
of	O
a	O
consumer	O
product	O
)	O
but	O
also	O
"	O
where	O
"	O
information	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
a	O
street	O
address	O
,	O
city	O
name	O
,	O
postal	O
code	O
,	O
or	O
geographic	O
coordinates	O
like	O
latitude	O
and	O
longitude	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Examples	O
of	O
local	B-Application
searches	I-Application
include	O
"	O
Hong	O
Kong	O
hotels	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
Manhattan	O
restaurants	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
Dublin	O
car	O
rental	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Local	B-Application
searches	I-Application
exhibit	O
explicit	O
or	O
implicit	O
local	O
intent	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
search	O
that	O
includes	O
a	O
location	O
modifier	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
"	O
Bellevue	O
,	O
WA	O
"	O
or	O
"	O
14th	O
arrondissement	O
"	O
,	O
is	O
an	O
explicit	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
search	O
that	O
references	O
a	O
product	O
or	O
service	O
that	O
is	O
typically	O
consumed	O
locally	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
"	O
restaurant	O
"	O
or	O
"	O
nail	O
salon	O
"	O
,	O
is	O
an	O
implicit	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Local	B-Application
searches	I-Application
on	O
Google	B-Application
Search	I-Application
typically	O
return	O
organic	O
results	O
prefaced	O
with	O
a	O
'	O
local	O
3-pack	O
'	O
,	O
a	O
list	O
of	O
three	O
local	O
results	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
and	O
directories	O
are	O
primarily	O
supported	O
by	O
advertising	O
from	O
businesses	O
that	O
wish	O
to	O
be	O
prominently	O
featured	O
when	O
users	O
search	O
for	O
specific	O
products	O
and	O
services	O
in	O
specific	O
locations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
for	O
instance	O
,	O
has	O
developed	O
local	O
inventory	O
ads	O
and	O
features	O
ads	O
in	O
the	O
local	O
pack	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Local	B-Application
search	I-Application
advertising	O
can	O
be	O
highly	O
effective	O
because	O
it	O
allows	O
ads	O
to	O
be	O
targeted	O
very	O
precisely	O
to	O
the	O
search	O
terms	O
and	O
location	O
provided	O
by	O
the	O
user	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Local	B-Application
search	I-Application
is	O
the	O
natural	O
evolution	O
of	O
traditional	O
off-line	O
advertising	O
,	O
typically	O
distributed	O
by	O
newspaper	O
publishers	O
and	O
TV	O
and	O
radio	O
broadcasters	O
,	O
to	O
the	O
Web	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
advent	O
of	O
the	O
Web	O
,	O
consumers	O
are	O
increasingly	O
using	O
search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
to	O
find	O
these	O
local	O
products	O
and	O
services	O
online	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
recent	O
years	O
,	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
local	B-Application
searches	I-Application
online	O
has	O
grown	O
rapidly	O
while	O
off-line	O
information	O
searches	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
print	O
Yellow	O
Page	O
lookups	O
,	O
have	O
declined	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
natural	O
consequence	O
of	O
this	O
shift	O
in	O
consumer	O
behavior	O
,	O
local	O
product	O
and	O
service	O
providers	O
are	O
slowly	O
shifting	O
their	O
advertising	O
investments	O
from	O
traditional	O
off-line	O
media	O
to	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
engines	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
can	O
search	O
local	O
information	O
via	O
search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
often	O
return	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
results	O
from	O
directories	O
and	O
maps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
for	O
instance	O
,	O
will	O
present	O
results	O
from	O
its	O
directory	O
(	O
called	O
Google	B-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
)	O
in	O
Google	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
and	O
also	O
in	O
the	O
search	B-Application
engine	I-Application
results	O
pages	O
in	O
the	O
form	O
of	O
a	O
local	O
pack	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
can	O
also	O
look	O
for	O
local	O
information	O
by	O
searching	O
Apple	B-Application
Maps	I-Application
Search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
offer	O
local	O
businesses	O
the	O
possibility	O
to	O
upload	O
their	O
business	O
data	O
to	O
their	O
respective	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
databases	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
engines	I-Application
adjunct	O
to	O
major	O
web	B-Application
search	I-Application
portals	O
include	O
general	O
Windows	B-Application
Live	I-Application
Local	I-Application
,	O
Yahoo	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Local	O
,	O
and	O
com	O
's	O
AskCity	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Yahoo	O
!,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
separates	O
its	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
engine	I-Application
features	O
into	O
Yahoo	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Local	O
and	O
Yahoo	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Local	B-Application
search	I-Application
,	O
like	O
ordinary	O
search	O
,	O
can	O
be	O
applied	O
in	O
two	O
ways	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
applies	O
especially	O
to	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2012	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
they	O
made	O
40	O
changes	O
to	O
their	O
search	O
algorithm	O
,	O
including	O
one	O
codenamed	O
"	O
Venice	O
"	O
which	O
Google	B-Application
states	O
will	O
improve	O
local	B-Application
search	B-Application
results	I-Application
by	O
"	O
relying	O
more	O
on	O
the	O
ranking	O
of	O
(	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
)	O
main	O
search	B-Application
results	I-Application
as	O
a	O
signal	O
"	O
,	O
meaning	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
will	O
now	O
rely	O
more	O
on	O
organic	O
SERPs	O
(	O
Search	B-Application
Engine	I-Application
Result	O
Pages	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
can	O
show	O
a	O
business	O
's	O
information	O
in	O
mobile	O
or	O
desktop	O
google	B-Application
search	I-Application
results	O
,	O
or/and	O
in	O
mobile	O
and	O
desktop	O
google	B-Application
maps	I-Application
results	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Local	B-Application
search	I-Application
results	O
displayed	O
by	O
google	B-Application
often	O
include	O
a	O
local	O
pack	O
,	O
that	O
currently	O
displays	O
three	O
listings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Major	O
search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
have	O
algorithms	O
that	O
determine	O
which	O
local	O
businesses	O
rank	O
in	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Primary	O
factors	O
that	O
impact	O
a	O
local	O
business	O
's	O
chance	O
of	O
appearing	O
in	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
are	O
proper	O
categorization	O
in	O
business	O
directories	O
,	O
a	O
business	O
's	O
name	O
,	O
address	O
,	O
and	O
phone	O
number	O
(	O
NAP	O
)	O
being	O
crawlable	O
on	O
the	O
website	O
,	O
and	O
citations	O
(	O
mentions	O
of	O
the	O
small	O
business	O
on	O
other	O
relevant	O
websites	O
like	O
a	O
chamber	O
of	O
commerce	O
website	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
the	O
study	O
ca	O
n’t	O
replicate	O
Google	B-Application
’s	O
algorithm	O
,	O
it	O
did	O
deliver	O
several	O
interesting	O
findings	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
authors	O
were	O
instead	O
surprised	O
that	O
geotargeting	O
elements	O
(	O
city	O
and	O
state	O
)	O
in	O
the	O
title	O
of	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
landing	O
page	O
did	O
not	O
have	O
any	O
impact	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
rankings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Keywords	O
in	O
a	O
business	O
name	O
carry	O
significant	O
weight	O
in	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
algorithms	O
,	O
and	O
have	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
rise	O
in	O
business	O
name	O
spam	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
December	O
2021	O
Vicinity	O
Update	O
placed	O
more	O
importance	O
on	O
proximity	O
as	O
a	O
ranking	O
factor	O
and	O
decreased	O
the	O
significance	O
of	O
adding	O
keywords	O
in	O
a	O
business	O
name	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Traditional	O
local	O
media	O
companies	O
,	O
including	O
newspaper	O
publishers	O
and	O
television	O
and	O
radio	O
broadcasters	O
,	O
are	O
starting	O
to	O
add	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
to	O
their	O
local	O
websites	O
in	O
an	O
effort	O
to	O
attract	O
their	O
share	O
of	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
traffic	O
and	O
advertising	O
revenues	O
in	O
the	O
markets	O
they	O
serve	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
local	O
media	O
companies	O
either	O
develop	O
their	O
own	O
technology	O
or	O
license	O
"	O
private	O
label	O
"	O
or	O
"	O
white	O
label	O
"	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
solutions	O
from	O
third-party	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
solution	O
providers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Local	B-Application
search	I-Application
that	O
incorporates	O
internal	O
or	O
external	O
social	O
signals	O
could	O
be	O
considered	O
social	O
local	O
search-driven	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Explore	O
To	O
uses	O
Facebook	B-Application
Likes	O
as	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
signals	O
to	O
increase	O
the	O
ranking	O
of	O
listings	O
where	O
other	O
factors	O
may	O
be	O
equal	O
or	O
almost	O
equal	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Typical	O
ranking	O
signals	O
in	O
local	B-Application
searches	I-Application
,	O
such	O
as	O
keyword	O
relevancy	O
and	O
distance	O
from	O
centroid	O
can	O
,	O
therefore	O
,	O
be	O
layered	O
with	O
these	O
social	O
signals	O
to	O
give	O
a	O
better	O
crowdsourced	O
experience	O
for	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
More	O
recently	O
,	O
social	O
media	O
sites	O
Facebook	B-Application
,	O
Foursquare	B-Application
,	O
LocalMate	O
and	O
Zappenin	O
have	O
become	O
more	O
directly	O
involved	O
in	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
by	O
updating	O
their	O
mobile	O
apps	O
with	O
features	O
to	O
help	O
people	O
discover	O
new	O
businesses	O
to	O
visit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
providers	O
experimented	O
with	O
providing	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
for	O
mobile	O
devices	O
,	O
but	O
on	O
March	O
5	O
,	O
2020	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
was	O
the	O
first	O
to	O
announce	O
mobile-first	O
indexing	O
by	O
default	O
shifting	O
the	O
focus	O
of	O
optimization	O
from	O
desktop	O
to	O
mobile	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
previously	O
operated	O
an	O
experimental	O
voice-based	O
locative	O
service	O
(	O
)	O
but	O
terminated	O
the	O
service	O
in	O
November	O
,	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Electronic	O
publishers	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
businesses	O
or	O
individuals	O
)	O
who	O
would	O
like	O
information	O
such	O
as	O
their	O
name	O
,	O
address	O
,	O
phone	O
number	O
,	O
website	O
,	O
business	O
description	O
and	O
business	O
hours	O
to	O
appear	O
on	O
local	B-Application
search	I-Application
engines	I-Application
have	O
several	O
options	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
most	O
reliable	O
way	O
to	O
include	O
accurate	O
local	O
business	O
information	O
is	O
to	O
start	O
claiming	O
business	O
listings	O
through	O
Google	B-Application
's	I-Application
,	O
Yahoo	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Business	O
listing	O
information	O
can	O
also	O
be	O
distributed	O
via	O
the	O
traditional	O
Yellow	O
Pages	O
,	O
electronic	O
Yellow	O
Page-style	O
data	O
aggregators	O
,	O
and	O
search	B-Application
engine	I-Application
optimization	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
search	B-Application
engines	I-Application
will	O
pick	O
up	O
on	O
web	O
pages	O
that	O
contain	O
regular	O
street	O
addresses	O
displayed	O
in	O
machine-readable	O
text	O
(	O
rather	O
than	O
a	O
picture	O
of	O
text	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
more	O
difficult	O
to	O
interpret	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
May	O
30	O
,	O
2012	O
Google	B-Application
launched	O
Google+	O
Local	O
,	O
a	O
simple	O
way	O
to	O
discover	O
and	O
share	O
local	O
information	O
featuring	O
Zagat	O
scores	O
and	O
recommendations	O
from	O
the	O
people	O
you	O
trust	O
on	O
Google+	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
11	O
,	O
2014	O
Google	B-Application
launched	O
Google	B-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
which	O
replaced	O
Google+	O
Local	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
has	O
more	O
features	O
and	O
connects	O
with	O
AdWords	O
to	O
make	O
an	O
all-in-one	O
small	O
business	O
online	O
management	O
center	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Reviews	O
on	O
Google	B-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
can	O
be	O
written	O
by	O
anyone	O
regardless	O
of	O
whether	O
they	O
have	O
actually	O
had	O
experience	O
with	O
the	O
business	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	B-Application
has	O
a	O
posted	O
policy	O
that	O
states	O
all	O
reviews	O
"	O
should	O
accurately	O
represent	O
the	O
location	O
in	O
question	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
reality	O
,	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
support	O
staff	O
almost	O
never	O
removes	O
fraudulent	O
reviews	O
and	O
appears	O
to	O
be	O
more	O
interested	O
in	O
encouraging	O
business	O
owners	O
to	O
spend	O
money	O
on	O
Adwords	O
than	O
in	O
actually	O
ensuring	O
the	O
accuracy	O
of	O
the	B-Application
Google	I-Application
Business	O
Profile	O
information	O
.	O
</s>
