Here is today’s roundup of news related to local marketing and advertising, local media, technology, local commerce, consumer behavior and more.

2018 Prediction: Map Listings Will Drive the Future of Local Search (February 12, 2018)
LSA Insider: “As proximity continues to narrow and the use of mobile search on the go rapidly rises, optimized map listings will play an even larger role in determining which businesses a consumer visits.”

4 Reasons SMBs Think They Don’t Need SEO & How Marketers Should Respond (February 12, 2018)
LSA Insider: “It may seem like everyone understands the value of SEO by now. However, some small business owners are still unconvinced that their companies could benefit.”

Three ways AI will revolutionize email marketing (February 12, 2018)
MarTech Today: “The promise of artificial intelligence has put stars in many marketers’ eyes, but it’s not always clear what’s hype and what’s real.”

Monitoring web migrations: A checklist for moving from one site to another (February 12, 2018)
Search Engine Land: “Contributor Aleyda Solis walks through what to monitor during a web migration and explains how to fix issues so you don’t lose traffic and rankings.”

Organic Search Sees Largest Growth Rate in Over 2 Years (February 9, 2018)
Search Engine Journal: “Total site visits driven by organic search were up 6% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2017, which is said to be the strongest rate of growth since 2015.”

Accenture: Stand-Alone Digital Voice Assistants Are Taking Consumers Away From Smartphones (February 9, 2018)
GeoMarketing: “66% of consumers who own a stand-alone DVA use their smartphone for fewer activities, an Accenture survey says.”