Local Search Archives

According to at least two Google Maps Help Threads, Google Maps changed how they handle looking up a specific location by longitude and latitude.

Supposedly, in the past, entering in the longitude followed by a comma and followed by the latitude, it would return the location on Google Maps. Now, it shouldn't work - but honestly, it currently does for me (maybe, I am on a different data center). The way to get it to work, is to prefix the longitude and latitude with loc: (for example, enter in loc:37.425866,-122.085743).

This works for me on both my iPhone and Safari browser, so maybe it is Blackberry specific? I am not sure.

Google's Tom from the Google Mobile Maps team said:

I've checked with a few teammates, and they've informed me that we've made slight adjustments to our search algorithm: In order to pinpoint a location on a map, please use the prefix "loc:" in the search bar before entering in the lat/long. For example, the search "loc:37.425866,-122.085743" will drop a pin directly on the Googleplex in Mountain View, CA, USA.

Again, this seems to be Google Maps Mobile specific, but maybe not iPhone or Android specific?

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help Threads.

The other day, Google announced improvements with analytics for the Google Local Business Center. I thought I take you through detailed screen shots of how my business listing appears in the LBC.

(1) Analytic Graphs plotting both "impressions" (views) and "actions":

Impressions are the views of your local listing in Google. Any time someone sees your listing in Google. The actions include clicks on "more info," clicking on "driving directions" or clicking on your web site.

(2) The data summary for the date range listed above:

(3) Top Search Queries used to find your local listing:

(4) Where people are coming from when they click driving directions:

(5) Plus Google added a percent done of your listing, and a quick edit button to add or edit information:

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Many local SEO experts came together to publish the second version of the Local Search Ranking Factors. This guide grades how important each factor is in ranking well in local search. The survey polled 27 local SEO experts on 49 factors.

David Mihm who organized the survey said the follow points are most interesting to him:

• The power of Distance from Centroid as a ranking factor has diminshed, but many folks are still seeing clear evidence of its importance, despite Carter Maslan’s claims to the contrary last summer. It’s becoming even more important, though, to have a physical location for your business within the city which is being searched.
• The importance of links in the Local search algorithm(s) seems to be on its way down, while the importance of citations, particularly those from major data providers and industry/location-specific directories, was deemed to be increasing in importance. HyperLocal citations (from blogs or other businesses in your area) are becoming more important, too, but not at the same rate. The quality of links seems much more important than quantity, which speaks to the idea of Location Prominence as a central algorithmic factor.
• When it comes to reviews, though, it’s the exact opposite–at least in terms of rankings. Nearly every expert felt that positive customer experiences dramatically increased clickthrough and conversion, but that volume of reviews is what makes the difference in ranking. Ian Lurie’s concept of review “velocity” is an interesting one to consider.

A must read for all SEOs and all businesses that run local operations.

Forum discussion at Sphinn.

Back in March 2007, Google Maps had an easter egg that allowed people to search for directions from places like New York to London, and it would tell you to swim across the Atlantic Ocean. It was a little geek joke that caused a lot of buzz.

You can see many pictures of the various examples in Google Images.

But at some point, Google disabled those directions. I am not sure when, but a Google Maps Help thread asks what happened to the neat gag? The Maps user said:

Darn it, when did Google get rid of the "swim across the atlantic ocean" gag?! That was the best "easter egg" type feature I ever saw in any professional application, ever. If it was business users who complained which ended this feature please at least bring it back as an option. It was a really neat joke which was obviously not intended to be taken seriously. It was the kind of thing that made Google "cool."

I am not sure when it stopped working, but it was something cool that Google did.

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help .

In the past couple of weeks, we showed how Google Maps can cause real pain for some business owners. I first showed you how you can close down competitors on Google Maps and then I showed how your business listing can be merged into a competitors listing leaving them with your business and you with non.

Those are two serious ways on how Google Maps can seriously impact your business and sales. Google posted documents on how to reopen one's business after being closed, but we are still seeing complaints from business owners, to this day. Google is working on fixing the merging issue, but no update yet on when or how soon it might be fixed.

The next bug I spotted was via a Google Maps Help thread where one business owner explained that when conducting a search for signs Buckhead, Google changes the town of Buckhead to Bankhead. That then leads his potential customers to a totally different town, far away from his business.

He said:

When I use Google and try to search this (in Atlanta) "signs Buckhead" Google Maps listings result is "signs Bankhead" which is incorrect. Bankhead is in another section of town. This will cause me to drive way over to Bankhead to get my signs. The organic listings are OK but I need directions from the Maps. As a test I also tried "furniture Buckhead" and the same Bankhead listings came up again in Maps. Is this a search issue or a maps issue? When I look at Maps in the Buckhead area it says Bankhead as well.

Here is a screen capture:

Google confirmed the issue and hopes to have this one resolved as well. But there is no estimated time for when the fix will be in place.

I certainly wonder, how many businesses are losing money due to these three recent bugs with Google Maps?

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

Let me start off by saying I find this hard to believe. A Google Maps Help thread has one individual claiming that a Yell.com representative claimed that if you don't pay for your Yell.com listing, your Google listing will drop down. Yell.com is a popular UK local search engine.

The Yell representative reportedly said, "of next week, unless you pay for Yell.com, your listing on Google maps will drop down below anyone listed with Yell.com in your area."

Of course, this is not possible, Google would not let Yell.com influence how Google Maps works and ranks listings. In early 2008, there were rumors that Google would buy Yell and in 2005 Yell even powered Google Local UK, but that is long over with.

A Google Maps representative made it crystal clear. Joel H from the Google Maps team said:

Yell.com doesn't control ranking in our search results.

Maybe the poster was confused or maybe the Yell.com representative was confused or a bit crazed. I don't know for sure, but one thing I do know is that Yell.com cannot do what this poster said.

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

I found a very disturbing Google Maps issue via Google Maps Help forums. Mike Blumenthal has uncovered that Google is merging competing businesses that have nearby addresses. Let me say that again, but show you an example, that was uncovered by Mike.

Here are the results for two different hotels/motels in the same area, but that have different addresses. The map result for South Pier Inn displays the correct information, but their competitor, The Inn on Lake Superior is somehow merged into this record, showing the South Pier Inn's information and web address, while not showing the Inn on Lake Superior's information. They did however, merge both hotel's phone numbers. Here is a picture:

Googler, Nina, responded in the Google Maps Help thread saying:

Yes, the algorithm for merging changed recently. The developers who work on this have been alerted and are actively working to address this problem. They are also reading this thread.

The fix needs to be automatic - not manual. These things usually take several weeks to test and bring live. We know it's causing user pain and I know they are working really hard on it right now as we speak.

Clearly Google knows how big of an issue this is and I hope it gets fixed soon.

Mike Blumenthal has posted more information on this topic at his blog.

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

Update: Marty at aimClear blog wrote about this on the 21st.

A confirmed Google Maps bug seems to be causing the reviews in Google Maps to disappear. A Google Maps Help thread has several business owners complaining that their reviews (all or many) are now missing.

Googler, Joel H said that Google is aware of the issue and is working to resolve it. I'll quote him:

We're aware of this issue and are working on a fix. We'll update the group when more information becomes available.

I am not sure if this is a specific issue with importing reviews from third-party data sources or if it is a Google Maps review bug. I know that when Google Maps began allowing user contributed reviews back in June 2007, I did have at least one review, from myself. Now, none.

Embedded Maps view (currently has no review, but might change in future):

View Larger Map

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

Google has created a comprehensive user guide for the local business center. You can via the user guide over here.

It is broken down in seven sections:

1. Getting started
2. Adding a listing
3. Adding more than 10 listings
4. Verifying a listing
5. Your Local Business Center homepage
6. Editing or removing a listing
7. Other features

Here is the user guide's introductory video:

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

Google has announced a Google Maps for Mobile update in the Google Mobile Help discussions area that fixes the bugs with version 3.0 for Symbian and Windows Mobile devices.

Googler, Christopher, said:

A new version of Maps for mobile is available to download. This update includes many fixes and updates for both Maps and Google Latitude based on your feedback here in the Help Forum.

Please see the following Release Notes for more details about what's been changed in this version or go directly to m.google.com/maps in your mobile browser to download it now: http://www.google.com/support/mobile/bin/answer.py?answer=144115

It seems like early feedback on this release shows that some users of these applications on the devices are still having some issues. If you are having any issues with Google Maps for Mobile on Symbian and Windows Mobile devices this is the place to be.

Forum discussion at Google Mobile Help.

The Google blog announced that Google is now showing more local results in web search for more generic queries. This is something that was noticed before the announcement but now it is officially confirmed by Google.

This means that searches for local-like keywords no longer need to have a location in the query. For example, a search on web design automatically shows me a local box in the middle of the Google web search results, without me specifically specifying web design, suffern, ny, which then shows the local box at the top of the results. Here is a picture of Google detecting that I am near the city of Monsey, in New York and it even ranks my company in the number two spot.

Google explains how they get your location:

In most cases, we match your IP address to a broad geographical location. You can also specify your likely location using the "Change location" link on the top right corner, above the map.

These searches work for a wide range of keywords, such as restaurants], [dentist], [groceries], [sporting goods], [flowers], [bank], [gym], [post office], or even [111 8th ave].

My big question is why are there so little people discussing this new change in Google in the forums? I know there are plenty of blog posts on this topic, but very few forum threads.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

A Google Maps Help forum thread has a post from Steve Thornton, the IT administrator at Solid Ground, an organization that does a lot of good. In short, Steve posted his extreme displeasure with how Google Maps is listing a shelter of theirs and it can lead to extreme issues for battered and abused woman, amongst others.

Let me quote Steve:

Angry husbands and boyfriends know where this place is now, and they come around and threaten staff and residents. This makes me so angry I'm spitting blood. Women and staff at other shelters around the country have been MURDERED. REMOVE OUR LISTING NOW!

He is a tech savvy individual, he knows how Google Maps works and he testified that he went through the steps to removed the listing in Google Maps. But after two tries, the listing is still there and he is fed up, frustrated and scared.

So far, Google has not replied to this thread.

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

Earlier this month, we informed people how one can close down a business on Google Maps without being that business owner. Since then, Google has posted instructions on how to reopen your business on Google Maps. The issue is, it can take up to two weeks to reopen your business.

Google said, "it can take up to two weeks in some cases."

In any event, here are the instructions on how to remove the "Place Closed" note from your Google Local listing.

• For listings that have been claimed and verified through the Google Local Business Center, please sign in to your account and select the Edit link. The editing wizard will appear. Click the Submit button.
• For listings that aren't claimed through the Local Business Center, they're open to community edits. Please select the Edit link below the address and select Restore Place.

Forum discussion continued at Google Maps Help.

Let's say you wanted to drive from the zip code 10302 to 10308, which are both in Staten Island, New York. If you plugged that into Google Maps, Google would tell you, you have to be prepared for a three hour or more commute.

For some unknown reason, a bug in Google Maps, thinks the zip code 10308, which is owned by Staten Island, is in Schenectady, in upstate New York.

Adam from the Google Maps team confirmed the issue in a Google Maps Help forum thread. He said:

Turns out this bug is an artifact of a known issue we're working to resolve, so if you haven't reported this yet to Tele Atlas please don't expend the effort.

So, if you are driving to 10308, be careful when using Google Maps.

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

How often to do you hit yourself on the head and say, "why didn't I think of that?" That is how many felt when Patrick Sexton and David Mihm launched GetListed.org. GetListed.org is an incredibly useful and easy to use tool to quickly see how your local search listings play in the local search space.

Let me show you. First you enter in a business name and zip code. Then GetListed.org polls Google, Yahoo, Live and Best of the Web's local engines to see how your listings are doing in those engines. Here is a look at RustyBrick's local search reach:

Then you can drill down deeper to see a better overview:

Also, you can see a to do list, all your reviews and the details of your listing by those four engines. I suspect GetListed.org will continue to add more engines over time.

Matt McGee posted his review at Search Engine Land and the Sphinn discussion around the new tool is excellent. This tool is an excellent idea and I am glad it was created.

Forum discussion at Sphinn.

Maps Guide Adam created a new thread in the new Google Maps Help discussion forum clarifying how Google's Tele Atlas maps distribution deal has helped improve Google Maps.

The two main points Adam made were:

(1) You can see blocks of addresses, notice in the embed map below around Baruch College, that there are numbers on the streets that show you the house numbers. So if you need to go to 153 East 25th street, you know where to go. Zoom in to see:

View Larger Map

(2) Roof top markers, so you now which building you are looking for. Zoom in to see:

View Larger Map

(4) Easier getting updates and sending update due to their shared data agreement.

Finally, you can submit feedback about the data to mapinsight.teleatlas.com/.

Forum discussion at Google Maps Help.

Construction. It is the one word commuters hate hearing. But it is everywhere and mapping providers, such as Google Maps, Yahoo Maps and MapQuest need to be aware of these construction zones in order to have up-to-date directions.

So what is the process of updating these zones, so that commuters have the proper driving directions? While I am not sure of that answer, I spotted two Google thread discussing two major construction zones.

The first Google Groups thread talks about construction closers on I-64/US Hwy 40 between I-710 and S. Kingshighway Blvd in St. Louis, Missouri. It is annoying for those that live there to have to manually change the starting routes to go around this zone, but it is also surprising for tourists to use the directions and then get stuck in a construction zone. That being said, the thread was initially created on December 31st and now, on January 13th, a Google representative said:

Just wanted to update you that this bug has been logged with both our team and with our map data vendor. However, I can't provide you with a specific time when this issue may be resolved.

So it appears that both Google needs to know about this, as well as their mapping vendor.

The second thread is similar, but talks about the 35W Bridge reopening, and thus should be a valid route for Google Maps directions. In this case, a Google representative said, "we're aware of this issue and working to update our data to reflect the operational status of this road segment."

Overall, it seems like Google does have some flexibility on their side to make mapping changes, in terms of directions, but it also seems they need to communicate those changes to their mapping vendors.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Believe it or not, there are times where I want to find the latitude and longitude values of the location I am currently at or at an other location. I spotted a Google Mobile Help thread that goes through the steps on how to obtain the latitude and longitude using Google Maps. I found it interesting and I thought I document the process.

Step 1: Open up the Maps application on your iPhone and find the location you want to get the latitude and longitude for. Either your current location or scroll through the map or enter in the location by name.

Step 2: Click on the right bottom most button and then hit "Drop Pin."

Step 3: Drag the pin to where you want to find the latitude and longitude:

I picked an area that is under extreme turmoil right now, the border of Gaza:

Step 4: Click on the blue, right arrow, above the pin. That will bring up this screen:

Step 5: Click on the "Share location" button, which will open an email containing a link to Google Maps, coded by the longitude and latitude:

There you go, here is the link, if you are interested. It is at 31.466114/34.484749, which seems to be off from the border by a few miles.

Forum discussion at Google Mobile Help.

As some of you know, my company has been actively building out iPhone apps to sell on the iTunes App Store. Some of our apps are big hits and some are not.

Wednesday, we decided to try out AdMob, one of the most popular ad networks for the iPhone. AdMob can place ads within other iPhone apps, to help promote a brand, product or so on. We ran a $100 test to see what type of conversion rate we can get.

We picked the "App Store" from the "adverting goal" screen. The App Store will basically enable you to link the ad directly to your product on the App Store page. So that made most sense for us. The other options allow for linking to a web page, phone number, video (YouTube, I believe), audio (QuickTime), iTunes link, Maps or Canvas (I assume a picture).

So we picked App Store.

Here is the ad creation tool for the App Store. You have a title, description, graphic and app store URL:

Here is a closer look at the ad that showed up in iPhones:

We made sure to include the price of the app, for obvious reasons.

We then targeted only US iPhone users, since the price of 99 cents was most likely only relevant there:

Then we set our bid to 50 cents per click, so we get a lot of traffic in a short period of time:

The results? Well, not so great.

The ad was live for about 30 minutes. It received 26,815 impressions, with 200 clicks resulting in an average CTR of 0.75% with an average CPC of $0.50.

On Thursday, I received the sales numbers for Wednesday's BlackBook sales. They were a disappointing 16 sales. We average about that or more per day for the BlackBook, without the ads. Since we sell the BlackBook for 99 cents, we only make 70 cents per sale. With 16 sales, we made $11.20. $11.20 minus the $100 in ads, turns out to an $88.80 loss on the campaign.

Now, there may be other factors why the campaign stunk. Maybe people in the US did not know what a Little Black Book meant? Maybe they didn't like some of the reviews, cause our competitor left some nasty reviews about our app - which is honestly way superior to our competitor's app. Or maybe AdMob is not a great avenue to advertiser iPhone apps? I am not sure.

I am sharing this because I received a number of Twitters from interested SEMs asking me how the campaign went. So here is your answer, not well!

Forum discussion at Search Engine Roundtable Forums.

Google Maps Guide Tom replied to a Google Groups thread requesting Google to bridge the data between My Maps and Google Mobile Maps.

Typically, a Google representative would say, thank you for your feedback and leave it at that. But Tom said, "keep checking back for updates!" That implies to me that this feature might be coming in the next release.

So soon, if you save maps on My Maps, then you might be able to take them with you on your Mobile device.

As an FYI, the new iPhone 2.2 update has new map features such as street views, new pin placements, walking and transit directions and more.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

A couple days ago, Google Mobile Maps users reported over at Google Groups that India was no longer showing up in Google Mobile Maps. Well, to be honest, the satellite views were showing, but the ordinary map view was not showing India.

People at first thought it might have been a political move by Google, but all it was, was a bug.

On November 8th, it was reported and on November 11th, Maps Guide Tom confirmed the issue, saying:

Thanks for your great reports. I'm looking into this issue and I'll update you as soon as I have more information.

A day later, on November 12th, we have confirmed reports that the issue has been fixed and map view for India is now showing up fine in Google's Mobile Maps application.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Mike Blumenthal has been covering Google Maps spam since Google Maps came out. I guess he got sick of covering the issues and not much being done about stopping it. He decided to do something a bit extreme. He hijacked Microsoft's listing in Google Maps and made them a Microsoft Escort Service. He also messed around with profiles, here is one example:

Danny Sullivan has a really enjoyable read on how Mike did this.

While some SEOs and webmasters are shocked this can happen, those of us who have been around and watching the space has known this has been going on for a while now. Who is to blame? Businesses should validate and acquire their Google Maps listings? Do they even know they are able to do so? Are they aware? Is ignorance an excuse?

Meanwhile, Maps Guide Brian, an official Google Maps representative posted a Google Groups thread stating that they will be upgrading the Local Business Center:

Please note that that the Local Business Center will be undergoing scheduled maintenance today, October 30th, and again on November 6th. We appreciate your patience as we work to continue to improve this product!

Hopefully this upgrade or maintenance will help prevent some of these issues. I know Google is a big target and the more features and tools they release, the more susceptible they become to becoming targeted. It is a tough business and sometimes it can be hurtful. You build tools to help people (of course also make money) and people come in and abuse it.

Forum discussion at Sphinn #1, Sphinn #2 and Google Groups.

First go read Greg Sterling's write up at Search Engine Land named Location in the Browser: What Does It Mean?

Now that you read that, you will realize that the implication of Google adding geolocation capabilities to your desktop browser can be huge. The Geolocation API can run on any browser that has Google Gears and automatically will run on Android and Google's browser, Chrome.

Google currently knows your approximate location for when you do searches only via IP data, personalized search data or other, less exact methods. But now, if the browser can detect wifi locations and/or cell towers, Google will know where you are, almost to your exact location. GPS is supported, but most laptops or desktops do not have GPS devices built in yet (yes, yet).

The reaction to this from advertisers and searchers are split. A WebmasterWorld thread has advertisers excited that Google's geolocation capabilities will be able to target their ads better. But searchers are not yet 100% comfortable with Google knowing their exact whereabouts, at all times while using Google properties. Personally, I am not about privacy - I actually am considering wearing a GPS enabled device with me at all time to track me where ever I go and then publish that data on my personal web site. :)

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Google is on march to make sure to continue monetizing searches in any way possible. This time, Google has added AdSense to Google Maps, in some cases. This was reported at Search Engine Land, Digital Inspiration and Bloggle first. Let me take you through it.

Doing a search for my corporate address returns a map of my location, with businesses listed on the left hand side. If you click on a business, let's say the first dental one, Google then displays a small single line ad (AdSense like) to the bottom of the map. Here is a picture:

The ad shows a relevant dental ad. But sometimes you do not need a business address, sometimes an ad for office space might come up. It has in my case.

This seems to be a test right now, so we will see how long this lasts.

Google has been testing and posting local ads for a while now. For more on local business ads at Google, see here.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Google Maps Guide Tom has given us a summary of the most recent updates the Google Maps team enabled on the Google Maps for Mobile product. Tom created a Google Groups thread detailing each point and they include:

• The Sony Ericsson device memory issues should be addressed really soon.
• Touch screen support coming to LG Vu users soon
• Internal/External GPS issues are being worked on
• Google Maps desktop version data takes several weeks to come down to the mobile version

If you want more details, make sure to check out the Google Groups thread.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

A Google Groups thread reports many business owners having difficulty accessing the Google Local Business Center.

The error people are getting is:

System Error

We're sorry, but we are unable to serve your request at this time.

Please try back in a few minutes.

Personally, I have no problem accessing it, but it seems like many are having issues.

The issue has been reported back on September 24th and it still is an issue for many, even today. On October 1st, Google Maps Guide Jen said, "Thanks for bringing this to our attention; we're looking in to it right now." But even since then, many still are reporting issues accessing the Google Local Business Center.

There is no ETA on when the issue will be resolved for these users. Nor did Google explain what the issue may be.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Recently, maybe a few weeks or months ago, Google Maps added street data for Israel. Before, they only had limited Satellite data for the country. But now, you can get street outlines with very limited street names in the map product.

Here is an static image of the map of the "Old City" in Jerusalem. The blue markers represent where I stayed and learned for about 4 months of my life. The green patch at the bottom was a place we played soccer. The outline with the square box and circle in the middle, is the Western Wall and Temple Mount.

Notice the interactive version still has no street data. Here is a live embedded map, which will likely change to show streets in the future:

View Larger Map

In any event, a Google Groups thread asks when the street outlines will be coming to the mobile version. Google Maps Tom hinted that it would be soon, he said:

Map data that appear on the desktop version Google Maps generally makes its way over to the mobile version. I don't have an exact timeframe for when roads in Israel will be updated, but you can expect that they'll appear eventually :)

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

When Google Maps redesigned a couple months back, many users became extremely upset. Why? Because Google pulled a few features that users felt were critical to the mapping product. Those features included the ability to reorder the your destinations and also the time it takes to go between point A, B, C and so on.

Google's Maps Guide Brian has announced in a Google Groups thread that those features are back.

Here is a quick video of the new design and how reordering works:

As Brian explained and as you can see from the video above, "you can control everything in the box displaying all of your locations at the top of the left panel. When you scroll over the green circles, you'll notice that you can click and drag locations to rearrange them." Plus, Google added back the "driving times between segments of a multi-way trip."

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

A Google Groups thread reports a possible bug in Google Maps. In March, Google launched the ability to add videos to your Google Local Business listing. But it seems that if you add a video to your business listing, then it will remove a photo from showing up in the Google Maps search results. Let me illustrate.

A search for haircuts 60641 returns several listings, some with photos and some without. Here is a screen capture:

The first result actually does have a photo, but it is not being displayed. Why? Well, the theory is because the listing also have a video result. Take a look at the photos and videos of that listing, it has both photos and videos. While all the others listed with photos, only have photos added, but no videos.

So why is my listing for web 10901 coming up with a photo when I added videos back in March? If you take a look at my photos and videos, no videos are displayed currently. Why? I am not sure, they are in my Local Business Center area when I log in. But they are still not being displayed in my Google Maps listing, which does then show a photo in my listing, because there is no video results for my listing being displayed.

An interesting bug, which Google's Map Guide Tom said they are looking into.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Google Maps Guide Brian announced in a Google Groups thread two minor but important features Google has added to the new, blue Google Maps.

1. Printable Street Views were added to the new Google Maps. Brian said Google received "a lot of feedback that users wanted a way to take Street View images on the road." Brian said, "now you can." All you need to do is when viewing a Street View image, just click on the "Print" icon.
2. Avoid Tolls was added to the "avoid highways" option. You can now select "avoid tolls" and/or "avoid highways" at the top left of the Google Maps interface, after searching for directions. So if you are sick of paying for tolls and high gas prices, at least you can avoid paying the tolls.

Like I said before, there are many people excited about the new Google Maps features and design, but there are many people unhappy with the changes. I guess it is true what they say, you can't please them all.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Maps Guide Sirene announced in a Google Groups thread that Google Maps has finally added the "fix incorrect marker location" back to the Google Local Business Center.

If you login, and edit your business listing, you will see a link that reads, "Fix incorrect marker location" on the right side of the page. Clicking on that link will open up a smaller window that looks like this:

Then you can click and drag the red marker to the new location and click save. Google Maps will then register that update and in the future note the new location for your business's listing in Google Maps.

We have been reporting the outcry over Google removing this feature for over a month now. You can see how the old version worked over here.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Google announced that they have updated Google Maps with a new design. They made the top cleaner and bluer. But with that, they removed some features that really make Google Maps users upset.

Last night, I saw the new Google Maps interface, but this morning, it seems like Google reverted back to the older interface. Why?

A Google Groups thread announced the update and has a lot of criticism from users. Here are the main problems users are citing:

• You can no longer reorder your destinations
• You can no longer collapse the details of each destination
• The driving miles & estimated drive time have also gone missing when searching multiple destinations

Google Maps Guide did say some of these are just temporarily missing:

Don't worry...you'll still be able to drag destinations in the left panel. The only difference is you'll use the little green circles in the "launcher" area where you input each address. I understand that this functionality isn't working properly for everyone, and I've escalated these issues to the appropriate parties. They're taking a look to find out what's going on. I'll keep you posted.

But interestingly enough, Google Maps now is the old yellow version now. Maybe they decided to revert back until they get the blue version working with the features above?

Here is a list of the new features in the blue version, in case you missed it:

• You can perform all types of searches using the single search box at the top of the page
• The "Get Directions" link is now in the left panel, right underneath the Google Maps logo
• You can collapse the left panel by clicking on the double arrow ( << ) that appears in the upper left-hand corner of the map view.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Google Maps Street View feature has always been on the to-do list of privacy advocates. Over a year ago, Google gave us a way to report images to be removed from Google Street Views. Tamar did a great job walking us through the Report Inappropriate Image feature in Google Maps. Does it work? I am not sure - but I suspect it does. We do know it doesn't work too well with Google images.

In any event, it is a bit funny when these privacy issues actual hit home and impact one of us. By us, I mean the SEM industry and specifically a well-known and respected journalist in the industry. Greg Sterling, journalist at Search Engine Land and quoted all over the place, wrote at his blog StreetView Now Shows My Driveway. That street views picture shows his two cars in his driveway! Yes, the license plates are blurred out but still.

Greg said, "now the joke is on me" and it is.

Here is a video on how to remove images from Street Views, I do wonder how long it normally takes:

Forum discussion at Cre8asite Forums.

A Google Groups thread lead me to believe that Google Maps will soon be offering walking directions to everyone, in the near future. So, I decided to check the example I was watching, i.e. 200 Madison Ave to 200 Lexington Ave in New York and I see walking directions!

I lead off this post that this was coming soon, but it is now here, at least for me.

Yes, I covered signs of this at Search Engine Land, where Google Operating System had screen captures of Google testing out walking directions within Google Maps. Again, now I personally see it, do you?

Here is a screen shot of the NY example I mentioned above:

For a full size screen shot, check the image on Flickr.

So, when Maps Guide Brian from Google said in the Google Groups thread "stay tuned here for updates," in regards to the release of walking directions, then I guess he means now?

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Update: Everyone I asked to try my example above was able to see walking directions. I have several responses already at my Plurk request, so it seems like this is indeed live.

Update 2 (at 1:45pm): The Google LatLong Blog has now officially made it official with one of their own blog posts announcing the new feature.

A Google Groups thread has discussion on the topic of dynamically creating pages to target localized searches. For example, this particular webmaster wants to be able to target 28 different zip codes for his client's A/C business. He summarizes what he wants to do:

Johns A/C does work in 28 different zip codes. He creates 28 webspages, page names reflect the township AC_service_City_zip.htm, meta tags reflect city, zip such as Johns AC serivce serving the "City" and "zip code" area. Then the body is a template and the city and zip are filled in for each city/zip area.

This way when someone does a search for AC service "zipcode" or "city" there is a good chance his page will be included.

This was a popular SEO tactic years and years ago. These days, it is much harder to rank well for terms using the automated city database methodology. We actually covered some of the databases you can purchase to accomplish this back in 2005. But is this legit?

According to Google, no it is not. In fact, Googler, Reid, said that the manner in which this webmaster wants to go, seems to be a "doorway page." Reid said:

I agree with webado in this scenario. If the body of these pages is a template and the only thing that changes is the city and zip code, this sounds a lot like doorway pages:

google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?answer=66355

Why push the limit on how much duplicate content a page can have? Pages with unique content often perform the best in Google's search results, are better for users, which in turn, is probably better for your business.

Your best bet in this situation is to create useful and unique content for each page. How? Well, take a look at some of the major local portals and see how much effort they put into their localized pages.

But would you consider these to be doorway pages? Google defines a doorway page as:

Doorway pages are typically large sets of poor-quality pages where each page is optimized for a specific keyword or phrase. In many cases, doorway pages are written to rank for a particular phrase and then funnel users to a single destination.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Ever since Google launched Universal Search, SEMs have been trying to leverage it to get their site into the first position within the vertical search engine that is ranking in the top slot.

So for searches like new york hotel where Google Local results dominate the top of the first page, securing a spot in those results may be critical to your SEO campaign for those search terms.

One webmaster posted a thread at WebmasterWorld that suggests his local result, along with the 8 other competitors of his, were "hacked" out of the listing. He explained that a new site popped out of no where, somehow displaying all the other sites. He did notice this weird behavior:

I checked the reviews for the site which has appeared all of a sudden and all of the 475 reviews are guest reviews for a large local hotel. It looks like someone has somehow hacked the local business listing for the hotel and changed the contact info to their own.

Forum administrator, Tedster, thinks it may be a data import issue - while some others feel it may be some sort of Google Maps spam.

This has been reported to Google and they are looking into the issue. Google maps is known to be plagued with spam issues.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

A WebmasterWorld thread asks how much of an impact will a site see if it is moved from a Dubai host to a USA based host? The answer is not really all that known.

This webmaster's main concern is that he receives "80% of traffic from UAE and have lots of content and back links related to UAE." He wants to continue to receive higher rankings in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) regions. He is concerned that by moving his site to a host in the US, it will drop his rankings for searches conducted in the United Arab Emirates region.

Senior member, wheel, said that when he moved a site from one country into the US, he said Google has yet to pick up on that change. He said, he had a "heck of a time getting Google to realize it was a US site." Wheel explained that the site still comes up for "country specific searches" in the old region.

The overall recommendation is that the webmaster continue to obtain links from the UAE region. Plus, if possible, specific in Google Webmaster Tools that the site is specific towards that UAE region. But before doing that, Tedster warns, specifying the region in Webmaster Tools may result in you "forfeiting a lot of international traffic."

I'll track this thread and write a new post based on the results seen by this specific webmaster.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Google's Local Business Center, the place businesses go to add or edit their local business listing at Google Maps, is having some major technical issues.

A single post by Google Maps Guide at Google Groups really sums it up quickly:

We understand some users are encountering system errors in the Local Business Center. We're working quickly to resolve these issues. Stay tuned for an update!

Mike Blumenthal's blog has been recently covering some of the major changes and glitches with the local business center.

In short, if you are eager to make changes to your business's listing - I would wait it out a week or so. Or at least until you see the Google Maps Guide update this Google Groups thread with good news.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

David Mihm spent a considerable amount of time compiling a great local search ranking factors guide where he talks about the various factors that influence local search. In the document, you can see the emphasis on a variety of optimization techniques, including how experts weigh in on the importance of city/state in title tags, address/phone number in contact page, location keyword in website URL, participation in local Pay Per Click, and more. It's a very comprehensive guide and is extremely informative. David, this is awesome :)

Most forum members agree that this is a great piece of information. While there's a bit of disagreement in some of the areas, overall, the document has been very well-received.

I suggest you check it out.

Forum discussion continues at Sphinn.

Google Universal Search has been around for a while now. But today, Sam asked me to look at a search for scuba diving, which shows the local results smack in the middle of the page. Now, Sam (via Tamar) did not see that, same saw a box at the top that shows "Looking for local results for scuba diving? Enter location."

Let me first show you what Sam saw, which I can replicate using a different browser, a browser I did not use to search with Google Maps in.

Now, on my primary browser, where I use Google Maps and have a default location, I don't get that box. I get the results immediately, in the middle of the page, which is classic Universal Search. But, there is a slight change, it adds "near 2 executive blvd., 10901 change location," which is my location. Here is a screen capture:

If I click on the "change location," I get this:

Then clicking "back to results" brings back the previous screen.

Going back to Sam's example above. Google will ask you for your location, when it doesn't know it. You do not need to be logged into Google. You just need to have searched with a default location on Google Maps in the past to see the map pop up. If you have not, then Google will ask you for your location. When you enter it into the web search results in Sam's example above, then Google will show you a map at the top and not in the middle of the page. But, if you search again, Google may show you the map in the middle of the page, depending on the query.

Forum discussion at Search Engine Roundtable Forums.

Last week Yahoo added a nifty feature to Yahoo Local Search. For example, let's say you are looking for the nearest ATM machine. You can type in ATM, and then your zip code. But you won't be shown the nearest ATM within an X mile radius always.

Yahoo let's you plot the diameter of the circle and drop the center of that circle anywhere you want. Yahoo will then refine the local results based on the radius you selected and the center of the circle. Here is a quick video demo:

It doesn't seem like this tool is without bugs. A WebmasterWorld thread reports a blackhole issue.

I went looking for pizza places in Manhattan and noticed certain places disappeared even if you move the circle a hundred yards or so. You'd suddenly find black holes in the middle of Manhattan where there were, according to yahoo, no pizza places. Budge the circle over an eighth of an inch and the same pizza-free streets would suddenly fill with pizza joints, so there's still some work for them to do.

In any event, a unique and interactive solution to searching locally.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

A Google Groups thread confirms that Google Maps is lacking support for a common feature needed both here in the States and overseas, support for multi-language listings.

A Google Groups member asked:

As a multilingual company our website is in more than one language and each language has the same name but different URL. Should I create a listing for each language?

Google's official response is that there is no way to add more than one language URL for a single listing and that you should not add more than one business profile for the same physical address. Google Maps Jen said:

We don't have any way to handle multi-language listings at this point in time, and we strongly encourage businesses to only create one listing per physical address. However, it's a great suggestion to support these types of business listings - maybe we'll be able to support this in the future.

I am pretty sure many local search engines ask for languages spoken at the company when creating a business profile. I am not sure if those are one of the questions asked by Google Local. In any event, if multiple languages are spoken, adding a special URL for each language, should not be too hard.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

You can now enter any category that you feel is best for your company in the category section of your Google Local Business Center listing. In the past, you had to select a specific category that was in Google's database. Now, if the business category is not listed in the database, no worries - you can still enter it.

For example, "web software" is not an available Google Business Local category. But I added it below and clicked "next" with no problem.

I discovered this new feature via a Google Maps Guide post at Google Groups, where Google Maps Guide Jen said:

Up until a few weeks ago it was true that we couldn't create new categories.

However, thanks to your many request, and to our Local Business Center team, you can now enter free form categories for your business in your Local Business Center account.

I believe the category you set in the Google Local Business Center is extremely important in ranking well for local specific results in Google Local and Google Web Search, when universal search kicks in.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Back about 6 months ago, one of the main factors in ranking well in Google Local and other local engines, like Yahoo, was to have your address as close to the center of the city as possible.

A new Search Engine Watch Forums thread comes out showing that this pattern seems to have changed. Whereas once it was the center of the city that seemed to be one of the most important factors in ranking well for specific sets of local searches, now that may not be the case.

Jazajay, Search Engine Watch Forum moderator, has been watching a few local spots for a long time now and has noticed this new pattern based on his Dad's business:

• My dads listing has 1 review in G maps, the bussiness in position A doesn't.
• He has his bussiness name in the title, as I suggested to him, the site above does but listings below him do and don't, agian no noticable pattern.
• My dad's listing doesn't have the category name in nor does the one above it. Listings below do.
• He has submitted to my knowledge to 2 local directories since listing. The competior below and above him has submitted to quiet a few, they are the same listing. Same bussiness that has submitted 2ice.

So I decided to check my local results. I was never number one for web design, 10901 in the local Google results. But now I am:

So what I did was search on 10901 and looked where Google placed the center arrow (green arrow). I then overlaid that arrow on top of the local results for that query, to see which result is the closest to the center of the town (if the center of the city is that arrow, which is my assumption). Take a look:

Based on this, it seems like A, which is me, is not as close as C and B much further than C and the others. So other criteria is now coming into play, possibly ratings, possibly PageRank, possibly other factors.

It has changed, I wasn't always position A for that query and the consensus of the thread suggests Google Local's ranking algorithm has changed.

Forum discussion at Search Engine Watch Forums.

In a post entitled Does Your Business Qualify for Local SEO?, Cre8asite forum member SEOigloo poses the question about whether your business website can take advantage of local SEO. Here's what's necessary:

If the business serves only within a fixed geographic region, Local SEO is a no-brainer for you. You need to optimize the tags, footer, on-page copy for that magic combination of product/service + location, and you need to register your business with the various local business centers and IYPs.

What are the pluses? Beyond regular optimization, she says that "Local SEO can be used as a form of keyword expansion that will get you ranking for additional terms that do relate to your business."

It's also helpful to take advantage of getting your business listed in Google Maps. Sometimes this isn't entirely possible, like when your business doesn't have a physical address, but it should also give you a traffic boost if you do.

Forum discussion continues at Cre8asite Forums.

Mike Blumenthal posted a thread at Google Groups reporting issues with Google Maps not showingCitysearch's content.

Google's official maps representative, Maps Guide Jen, responded that this seems to be a temporary issue between Citysearch and Google.

Citysearch's content is currently missing from Google Maps. We are taking steps to resolve the system error and repost their listings.

Citysearch provides some reviews to Google Maps, to help add content for Google local users.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

A Google Groups thread reported that the bulk upload solution was returning 504 errors and not functioning properly since December 22nd.

Google provides this bulk upload for to allow businesses to easily add their listing to Google Maps. If you have multiple locations, this is the easier way to do so. Yes, this solution has been taken advantage of and Google has been working up solutions to prevent local and map spam from happening too often. But yet, there are concerns of business listing hijackings and other concerns.

In any case, Google Maps Guide Jen, replied to the thread saying it has now been resolved.

This issue should be resolved! Thank you for bringing our attention to it so promptly.

So if you missed this feature, it is now back in action.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

Update 1/8/08: This is still not working, an update comes from Google Groups where Maps Guide Jen confirms they are still working on a fix.

Sorry, as you've all noted, it's still broken. Work continues... Thanks for continuing to be patient.

A WebmasterWorld thread points to recent research on mobile search in a document entitled Deciphering Trends in Mobile Search (PDF link).

The Google team (a Ph.D student and senior staff researcher) analyzed data on over 1 million page views from Google logs and found the following:

• The average mobile query was 2.56 words.
• The most popular searches are listed in the chart below:
  
• Mobile queries are less homogeneous which may be attributed to the diversity of mobile users.
• More users are clicking on search results in comparison to 2005.
• There is a reduction in the amount of time it took to enter a query, possibly due to better keyboards or greater experience with mobile devices.

Some of these results come as a shock to users, especially since local searches are not as heavily emphasized as originally thought.

There are some surprises in this research for me - in fact, some of it has me scratching my head in bewilderment. I've always assumed that mobile search would be HEAVILY about Local Search.

But the data may not be completely accurate, as administrator Brett Tabke notes:

As it stands today (just checked) they are not properly detecting several browsers and a mobile browser variations on google.com. This was one of the main topics I talked about down at the mobile conference in Orlando last week. The fact that Google misidentifies Opera, Netfront, BlackBerry/RIM, and Thunderhawk.

Regardless, the findings are interesting and are worth a read if you're interested in mobile search.

Forum discussion continues at WebmasterWorld.

Local Launch has been officially acquired by R.H. Donnelley.

Local Launch! is a privately held company and terms of the transaction were not disclosed. R.H. Donnelley does not expect this acquisition to affect the current guidance for full-year 2006 revenue, EBITDA, free cash flow or debt at year-end.

This is huge news for the search community because Local Launch was run by two WebmasterWorld mods. Justin known at WebmasterWorld as Chicago and Brad know at WebmasterWorld as eWhisper(blog here) sold the company to R.H. Donnelley.

It is kinda funny, because bakedjake, Jake Baillie, owner of TrueLocal and also a WebmasterWorld mod said in a joking manner, "Justin and Brad - want a job? :-D"

Everyone is happy for them, even AdWordsAdvisor popped into say congrats!

Justin (Chicago) and Brad (eWhisper) did pop in to thank the community.

Chicago said;

Thanks guys. We appreciate it.
We aren't going anywhere. This is our space. LocalLaunch is our company. And this is our community.

We'll see you in Vegas if not sooner.

Justin

eWhisper said;

Thank you for all the support. It's been a great day.
A big thanks to the entire LocalLaunch family. Many hang out, read, and post here at WebmasterWorld.

See everyone in Vegas.

Brad

Huge congrats to them!

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

The local paid search industry is expected to double in a year, according to a MediaPost report on a Borrell Associates study.

Paid local search is expected to remain the fastest-growing ad category, nearly doubling to $1.8 billion and accounting for almost a quarter of local online ad spending.

So where will the money go? Online Yellow Pages? Major Search Engines (Google Local, Yahoo Local, MSN Local, Ask Local)? Local Search Engines (TrueLocal, LocalLaunch, etc)?

Also where are the ad dollars coming from?

A WebmasterWorld member said;

My spending on local advertising has migrated from traditional print sources to the web.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

TrueLocal, the owner is a very well known forum personality from WebmasterWorld, bakedjake, has launched a Canadian version of TrueLocal at http://www.truelocal.ca/. As an FYI, Jake lives in Canada.

The article Brett Tabke linked to from the WebmasterWorld thread says;

The site offers a localized search engine in English and French that consumers can use to track down more than 1.3 million Canadian brick-and-mortar businesses, ranging from nearby dentists or contractors to car dealers or golf courses.

The website asks what you're searching for and where. It then displays a list of businesses matching the search term, along with contact information and driving directions.

To access the English version go here and for the French version go here. If you get stuck, use the links at the top to get back to your localized language of choice.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

As we saw from early tests, Google has officially launched Google local business ads beta. They do not seem to be called GeoAds as we thought, but rather, Google local business ads, pretty straight forward.

Google AdWords is introducing local business ads, a new ad type that allows advertisers to promote location-based products and services to interested users worldwide... Local business ads appear with an enhanced map component on Google Local and in a text-only format on Google.com and other sites in the Google network.

More information on what it is at https://adwords.google.com/select/localbusinessads.html. Here are also, two useful frequently asked questions.

Community buzz on this topic has yet to fully begin, there is currently only one thread that I have found, and it is at Search Engine Roundtable Forums.

Update: I posted a full how to with screen captures at SEW Blog.

Google is testing placing icons within Google Maps, for some Google Local searches. For example (it only works if you are on a PC), conduct a search on booksellers nyc at Google Local. You will notice little coffee icons in within the maps. If you click on the coffee icon, you will see a "sponsored listing" for Barnes and Noble. This was first discovered by Shimon Sandler and then I blogged it over at the SEW Blog (check the SEW blog for screen shots of this in action).

In the past, Google tried sponsored listing in Google Local and Google Maps with blue balloons.

Forum discussion at Search Engine Watch Forums

There are currently three forum threads I have found on this news that News Ltd, an Australian online search directory, launched a new site named True Local at http://truelocal.com.au with "rumored" knowledge that the http://www.truelocal.com/ we all know has been around for a while.

Jake Baillie, president of TrueLocal, said: "News Ltd was made aware of TrueLocal's existence and expansion plans for Australia in 2006 prior to the launch of their service, but decided to proceed despite the obvious brand confusion. TrueLocal will be taking all appropriate steps to protect our brand in Australia and worldwide."

A spokeswoman from News Interactive, the News Ltd division behind the venture, said the company had no comment to make other than that it had launched in Australia first.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld, Cre8asite Forums and ThreadWatch.

Last night Google publishes a press release named Froogle Local saying;

Today Google announced the addition of local merchants' content to Froogle http://froogle.google.com. By entering the item you're looking for and your location information, Froogle will show locations nearby that offer the product and pinpoint the stores on a map. So, whether a user wants to order it online or run out and grab it for a holiday party the same evening, Froogle can help.

I tested it out in my area, by doing a search in Froogle Local on DVD Players, pretty neat.

Hey, what if you want to get listed on Froogle Local, well just go to the Froogle Merchant Center at www.google.com/sellonfroogle/ and follow the instructions.

Currently, I have only found forum discussion on this topic at WebmasterWorld and I would like to pull out a quote from one of the replies for you;

This is the first step towards the nirvana of mobile consumer comparison shopping:
1. Point camera phone at product in store.
2. Phone scans UPC or takes pic and OCR's make & model number.
3. Phone finds nearby stores with lower price on identical product.
4. You pick store, your phone gives you driving directions to that store.
-OR-
4. You still buy at the store you are in because the price difference isn't that great (or they provide added value).

Chris Sherman has the Search Engine Watch editorial write up on Google Launches Local for Mobile. There is a good short write up at Yahoo! News;

For instance, users won't have to type in their location before getting directions to a specific location, as long as their phone has Global Positioning System, or GPS, capabilities, said Deep Nishar, a director of Google's mobile products.

More information at http://www.google.com/glm.

Forum discussion at DigitalPoint Forums and WebmasterWorld.

Yesterday, Yahoo! improved its Maps product. Matt Cutts, the face behind Google's spam fight discovered and posted an entry named More Yahoo strangeness, where he notes that if you type in Google headquarters address, up comes The Dude's Fish Store, weird - yes. Steve is the first to comment at Matt's blog saying, "Something fishy going on here!!" cute. :)

There is a DigitalPoint Forum thread on the topic.

News come way of the Yahoo! Search Blog that Yahoo! Maps addsdrag 'em, search 'em, hack 'em. So its more interactive, with drag and drop features (like Google Maps). Yahoo! also added multi-point driving directions, deeper Integrated Yahoo! Local, and a new usability component - new overview map. Plus a ton of new small features and enhanced developer support with APIs and Ajax support. Jeremy Zawodny has more on the developer side and Chris Sherman has a nice wrap up article on the release.

I started a complimentary thread at Search Engine Watch Forums.

An excellent post was made at WebmasterWorld under the title of YP Category Usage Percentages by a member named inbound. I am going to quote the whole post right here.

I just completed some research based on a variety of industry data, here are my rough figures for overall offline YP category use. It should not be a shock to many of you but I thought it might help some people in search of general data. Take your pick on the number of lookups, 15 Billion seems a nice round figure for the year. % - Category

15.6 - Health
14.2 - Food
13.8 - Automobiles
10.2 - Shopping (Consumer)
7.1 - Construction
4.2 - Supplies (Business)
3.6 - Finance & Insurance
3.5 - Home & Garden
3.4 - Professionals
3.2 - Entertainment
2.9 - Travel
2.5 - Beauty
2.2 - Pets
1.9 - Government
1.8 - Education
1.5 - Repairs
1.4 - Transport & Haulage
1.1 - Property & Real Estate
1.0 - Utilities & Fuel
1.0 - Domestic Cleaning
0.7 - Business Services
0.6 - Media
0.5 - Communication
0.4 - Weddings
0.4 - Motorcycles
0.4 - Employment
0.3 - Boats
0.3 - Agriculture
0.3 - Small Package Delivery

Moderator of that forum, Chicago, then posted some other resources, including "Top Ten" Category Searches in Print and Internet Yellow Pages Reveal What Consumers Want (PDF) by the Yellow Pages Association.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Google announced today Google Merges Local and Maps Products. Google explains that "users can visit http://local.google.com to find local search and mapping information in one place." Chris Sherman clarifies that (1) Google Maps North America is out of beta and (2) that http://maps.google.com/ still works. On WebmasterRadio.FM this morning, during the SearchCast, Danny Sullivan said he thinks this is an easier way for Google to monetize Google Local and Maps but he doesn't like the merger.

Forum discussion currently at WebmasterWorld.

It is very interesting to watch Local Search grow and mature. Today I found a WebmasterWorld thread named Yahoo Local Integrates Editorial Reviews. That is right, instead of the normal user reviews, they have added professional editorial style reviews. One example is of Connie's Pizza in Chicago, IL, with an editorial review.

WebmasterWorld members note that the link to vote if the review is helpful or not, is missing from the editorial reviews and is only an option for the user reviews. Here is one member's concern;

I agree with you about the potential problem of Editorial reviews trumping user generated reviews. A novice user could easily interpret the logo'd Gayot review as the authoritative opinion on the business. On the other hand, when I buy a book from Amazon the first review is always the editorial review, and then I scroll down to read user reviews. I know the difference between the two, but I can't speak for novice users. This would be interesting to explore.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Last week we discussed Yahoo! Local twice; (1) Yahoo Local & 360Ëš Adds Vertical Reviews and (2) Yahoo! Local Using Wrong Localized English. Today, I want to point you to a thread I started at SEW Forums the other week, named Yahoo! Local Driving Web Leads?

Basically, some are seeing a positive affect from having a listing at Yahoo! Local and also Google Local. I personally have not "noticed any significant referrals from Yahoo! Local in my stats." (I just quoted myself)... Member, MoneyMan said, "It's worth noting that in terms of "click-through" and viewing detailed business data, the results I have seen from YLocal on clients have been fantastic."

It is a bit early to tell, but I would love to get more feedback at the thread or over here.

The other day, when I was reporting on Yahoo Local & 360Ëš Adds Vertical Reviews I stumbled across my company's profile also at http://local.yahoo.com/details?id=11262068.

What I noticed was that under the "Payment" type section, it reads "Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Cheque."

Notice anything weird? "Cheque" is not how good American's spell "check." Yahoo! is a US based company, they know that my business is in New York, USA - they should know to spell using American English, right?

I know, I am giving them a hard time. I just thought it was funny so I posted a thread at Search Engine Watch Forums named Yahoo! Local Bad with Localized Language describing this. It lead into people rating my company, which I already got myself in trouble with (see bottom).

Many of you know I am a big fan of Yahoo! 360, I use it, I believe, the way Yahoo! intended. That is, I use it to connect the dots in my life, work and blogosphere. One recent addition was the ability to use the new Yahoo! Local at http://local.yahoo.com/ to conduct vertical reviews. By vertical, we mean, rate a restaurant based on food, ambiance, service, value and a hotel based on amenities, room quality, service, and value.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld. Also you can view all my yahoo local reviews if you want, I only have four or so.

Yahoo! released its updated user interface and and feature set for Yahoo! Local. John Battelle has a very nice write up on it with inside information from Paul Levine, head of Yahoo Local Search. Danny Sullivan gives a write up of feature sets. Let's not forget to add Jeff Weiner's thoughts on local search and the changing face of media.

Forum discussion on this topic at WebmasterWorld.

Update: Moderator, Chicago's thoughts on this new Yahoo! Local:

- A deeper more broad definition of "local search"
- Fostering a sense of community
- Movement from business lookup to an augmentation of local behavior patterns
- The realization that local search includes events, activities, and other time-based local actions
- Personalization and leveraging user data
- Deeper content integration from disparate local based content within the Y network in a local destination
- Drill down: From city to neighborhood
- Freshness
- Destination: City portal characteristics
- Further emphasis on user generated content
- One step closer to the integration of social networking

On April 14th, 2005, WebmasterWorld Local Search Moderator, Chicago, started a thread named Ingenio Pay Per Call to Launch on AOL tomorrow. About one month later, there is mostly positive feedback on the Pay Per Call advertising model launched by Ingenio. Chicago's full review can be found in that thread message # 5, but here are the bullet points:

AOL Display: Excellent - Premium Position, Professional Display
AOL AD Distribution: Very low - 1 ad per category will display for user query. Broad categories are mapped to keyword queries.
Tracking: Very good interface
Landing Page: Very good - Map, Coupon, descriptions, etc.
Ad setup process: Good and getting better
Bid process: Intuitive but restrictive due to category (not keyword) distribution
Bid Levels: Some really nice opportunities exist for early movers

Member GameMasterM posted a rave review on Ingenio's Pay Per Call service;

We have real estate ads in California and we are capturing a good part of the state (major and minor cities) unchallenged right now. $2.15 per call and loving it. I believe we are unchallenged because no one is selling the idea. It is word of mouth from what I see. Our FindWhat campaign has a little more competition. Not as many calls because we are not showing statewide (by choice).

Yesterday was a slow day in the office, so I took the time to update My Yahoo! 360 Page. I added a blog entry, updated my blast, added information to my profile and then decided to add a "local review". I clicked over to the local reviews and then decided to review my company, which is listed under Yahoo! Local as Rustybrick, Incorporated, it should read RustyBrick, Inc. - so that kind of bothers me. Anyway, I posted a review under my screen name "rustybrick". My review read:

I am sure that after I publicly report that I have abused my own company's user reviews, that it will be removed but it is important to report on. After submitting the review, Yahoo! said that it may take 24 - 48 hours to be reflected in the reviews section. They said something to the effect that the review must be first manually reviewed by a Yahoo! quality assurance individual, to ensure that it is not biased. I thought to myself that the review will never go through, but it did. So here I am, a company with a 5 star review!

If you have Yahoo! 360 or even if you want to give us a review, go ahead. Local reviews, I hope, will be a major factor in online marketing in the future.

Update: Randy Farmer from Yahoo! has sent me a Yahoo! 360 Email that he has removed my biased review. This is a good thing, I think. :)

Thanks for reporting the inappropriate review in Yahoo! Local [even if you used an unusual venue to make the report]. It has been removed.

:-)

Not sure if this SEM blog is an unusual venue, it did get the job done. :)

A thread at WebmasterWorld named Verizon Rebrands SuperPages: Offline, that is pointed me to a blog entry at the Kelsey Group's blog named Did Verizon Demote SuperPages?

What immediately caught my eye was that Verizon had changed the name of its directory from SuperPages to Verizon Yellow Pages.

John Kelsey continues by writing, "As it turns out, Verizon did not give the SuperPages brand the backing it needed and some said SuperPages.com wasn’t seen as the incumbent Yellow Pages."

Local is going to be huge, so I will try to get more entries on the local topic here. Plus I have will create a Local Search category, which you should see below.