Is Local Digital Marketing growing? Google Announces a 4-fold increase in "open now near me searches"

Last Tuesday, October 26, Alphabet, the parent company of Google announced its results for the 3rd quarter of 2021. Besides the fact that the revenues of the group's various entities are increasing, a particular point caught my attention, the figures related to local digital marketing. 

During this COP26 week, I also wanted to mention that, recently, Google Maps proposes, in the USA, a new feature, the possibility to choose, in addition to the fastest route, the most “eco-friendly”. The announcement effect is interesting in the middle of this climate conference. We hope that users will follow this evolution which is certainly of interest. 

The local presence is increasingly prominent within the purchasing processes

The point that resonates with me the most in this conférence quarterly présentéd by Alphabet is, of course, the one lié to Local Digital Marketing and là, the figures are quite impressive. They reinforce the message that we are efforçing to get closer to our customers and, although post-covid reéopenings do not occur in the same way in all countries, globally, the Google results lié to proximity searches are très encouraging for brands. 

Now they must get up à date to répondre the consumer expectations that demand a ever more omnichannel experience. The consumer, at the end d’année 2021, is more flexible than ever and seeks à simplify life. Retailers must therefore offer them the maximum d’options d’achats to attract them and give them the desire to fill their basket, whether it is virtual or réel. 

4 times more searches "open now near me"

The first interesting figure is the evolution of what Google calls “near me searches”, near me searches, i.e., searches made by consumers to find products/services/points of sale near the place where they are located. According to Google, from a global point of view, there would be, between Q3 2020 and Q3 2021, a fourfold increase in the number of these “near me” searches. multiplication by 4 of the number of these “near me” searches. We must, of course, take a step back regarding these figures as they are global and refer to: 

• An increase in the number of consumers using Google tools to conduct local searches. 
• An increase in the number of searches performed by existing users. 

Alphabet does not provide detailed figures on these aspects from a local point of view. At Mobilosoft, depending on the industries, we can see fairly variable growth. Still, it is a fact that the search volume has been constantly increasing for many years.  

Source: Seekingalpha, Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Q3 CEO Sundar Pichai on 2021 Results - Earnings Call Transcript, October 26th 2021

Google is investing in highlighting increasingly precise information

Thanks to our clients' reports, we were able to understand that, for the past 3 years, local queries have changed dramatically: 

• Three years ago, 70% of searches were related to a brand + a location, consumers were looking for their favorite brand. 
• Today, these searches represent only 30% of the volume. Specifically, searches are increasingly directed towards products, services, or even types of brands. 

This evolution of local search habits is echoed in the investments that Google is making at the local level, a train that some advertisers have already boarded, as mentioned by Jim Friedland, Director of Investor Relations at Google: 

• “advertisers are increasing their paid campaigns in parallel with their free listings”. 
• “we have launched new formats (paid and free) to enable them to do so”.
• “they increased their return on Ad Spent by 30% compared to the same period before covid”.

And further reinforced by Philipp Schindler, SVP & Chief Business Officer at Google as well: 

• “a strong growth in local searches shows that consumers are looking more for physical points of sale before going there”.
• "By adding product feeds to their campaigns, advertisers achieve on average 60% more conversions at a lower price.".

Towards an omnichannel strategy with a predominant role for physical points of sale

Knowing that each brand has the possibility of setting up various pages for their points of sale (Facebook, Google Business Profile, Store Locator), it is therefore necessary to understand that these have a primary role. These pages and their content are referenced locally by Google, so the products and services added there are also referenced. 

Let's take a brand that sells Nike sneakers and has 1000 points of sale in Europe, if it references the different Nike models sold on the store pages of its 1000 points of sale, the brand gains as many local mentions as it has stores and pages. Then, it will be able to redirect consumers either to the store page on the Store Locator, or to the e-commerce site, depending on their expectations. Such a strategy therefore has an omnichannel impact: it promotes both online and in-store sales.  

An advantage for retail networks?

The link is made quickly, while some marketplaces like Amazon are opening physical points of sale to promote an omnichannel experience, brands with a deeply rooted network can take advantage of the implementation of a real local strategy, each point of sale becoming a new entry point that references: 

• The brand
• The type of retail chain 
• The products or services offered

How can retailers gain a competitive advantage in the digital world? 

If you want to offer a true omnichannel experience to your consumers, here is the recipe to follow: 

• Create local pages for your points of sale on Google Business Profile, Facebook places and on your website (Store Locator). 
• Stimulate and respond to customer reviews to strengthen your local brand positioning. 
• Enrich your pages with your products and/or services on local pages. 
• Include, on local pages, a catalog featuring the most searched products for each store!

And if, in parallel, you offer an e-commerce site, your brand will have an infrastructure that none of your marketplace competitors will ever have. This infrastructure will respond to the evolution of demand which, according to Google figures, is increasingly omnichannel!

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