Here is this week’s roundup of the top news items related to local marketing and advertising, local media, technology, local commerce, consumer behavior and more.
Insight & Commentary
Voice Search Readiness is Not an Option — It’s a Must (December 18, 2018)
LSA Insider: “Voice search readiness is a concept that not many have embraced wholeheartedly yet, but that has to change. I understand that the idea of 50 percent of all searches being made by voice by 2020 can sound far-fetched — after all, how could consumers change their search patterns so much in a little over a year?”
‘No-Click’ Search Queries Make GMB & Proximity Even More Important (December 18, 2018)
LSA Insider: “The identification of the “no-click” search queries and the frequency with which it is happening is sending waves throughout the SEO community. New data from Rand Fishkin of SparkToro (formerly of Moz) has found that roughly 62% of mobile queries resulted in no click in Q3 2018 and about 33% on desktop. SEO experts were aware of this taking place, but the rate is higher than many anticipated.”
Will Google Home Hub ever become a useful local search tool? (December 18, 2018)
Search Engine Land: “Smart speakers have boomed in popularity. Amazon recently reported that its Echo Dot was the best selling product globally during “cyber weekend.” We don’t yet know how smart displays are doing, though Google’s Home Hub has probably sold well. According to a product listing on eBay, the Google Home Hub is the top-selling product in its smart speakers category.”
Strategy & Tactics
8 Steps to a Better Google My Business Listing (December 14, 2018)
LSA Insider: “Out of the many free marketing tools available today, Google My Business is one of the most powerful. In order to gain the trust and traffic that Google can afford you, you must make sure your client’s Google my Business profile contains the information that both Google and it’s users are seeking.”
How to Use Social Media for Customer Service (December 17, 2018)
LSA Insider: “Eighty-five percent of small to medium size business users, use their Twitter for customer service. At least, that’s what they say. But simply having a Twitter Support page doesn’t make you a customer service pro. You have to use social pages to engage with over two-thirds of internet users today who say they go to Twitter and Facebook first to make direct complaints to businesses.”
How to Sell Co-op to Your Advertising Clients in 8 Steps (December 20, 2018)
LSA Insider: “Co-op advertising refers to an instance where a retailer launches a local advertisement with a prominent brand logo and that brand reimburses the retailer for a portion or in some cases all of the advertisement cost. The retailer’s co-op advertising accrual balance is based on a percentage of their purchases throughout the year. Those accrual dollars can then be spent on various types of advertising.”
Stats & Studies
Study: 70% of Social Brand Engagement Occurs on Local Pages (December 21, 2018)
LSA Insider: “Data shows that the average person will spend almost 2 hours on social media every day. It has completely changed the ways that consumers and brands interact with one another.”
It’s a ‘Near-Me’ Xmas (December 20, 2018)
LSA Insider: “Several of the 2019 predictions we received focus on the growth of “near me” mobile searches in the past year. In one sense 2018 could be described as the year of near-me search.”
What Are the Most Important Website Features to Consumers? (December 19, 2018)
LSA Insider: “There’s an intensifying debate about the value and role of websites. Some marketers argue that websites (especially SMB sites) have become irrelevant because of Google My Business and other major consumer sites such as Facebook and Amazon.”
Industry News
Our Top 10 Articles from 2018 (December 19, 2018)
LSA Insider: “The LSA blog aspires to be a great tool and resource for local marketers and strategists. Over the last year, we’ve covered a wide variety of topics from local SEO to location intelligence, social media, reputation, SMB SaaS and more. We’re always trying to learn from feedback and refine our coverage and topic focus.”
Google Moves Away from Clicks with ‘Pay for Conversions’ on GDN (December 17, 2018)
LSA Insider: “The move toward conversions and away from clicks is consistent with what many customers, including SMBs, are seeking. The recent State of Local SEO report from Moz showed that, in terms of measuring ROI, more marketers and their customers (large and small) are increasingly focused on conversions and revenue, rather than rankings and traffic.”
Google says mobile-first indexing is now used for over half the web pages in its search results (December 19, 2018)
Tech Crunch: “Google announced today it’s now using mobile-first indexing for over half the web pages shown in its search results globally — a significant milestone in Google’s move to favor mobile sites over desktop sites in its search results.”
Member News
TapClicks Receives Top Industry Accolades for Leadership in MarTech in 2018 (December 11, 2018)
Cision: “TapClicks has been included in Deloitte Technology Fast 500, Inc. 5000 and Red Herring Global 100 listing, which recognized the company’s strong growth and development of market-leading innovations in omnichannel marketing operations and analytics.”
Google Testing Restaurant Booking, Foreshadowing Ever Tighter Grip on Local Commerce (December 19, 2018)
Street Fight: “Google is testing at least two buttons for on-SERP restaurant booking, Search Engine Land reported this week. The buttons, called Tables Tomorrow and Reserve a Table, allow searchers to see a number of potential times for a following-day reservation and to select one of those times right on SERPs, avoiding a trip to the local business’ website.”
