move over facebook and twitter, google’s new google+ local enhances opportunities for business...
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Move Over Facebook and Twitter, Google’s New Google+ Local
Enhances Opportunities for Business-Customer
Engagement
Google has made the long-awaited move to replace Google Places with
a more evolved offering. This comes in the form of Google+ Local, making available all the
information that was before with Google Places, only now there is
greater functionality in the feature.
Users can get to the information through several different entry
points. This move looks to be a big one for Google, Google+, and the
local directory part of Google’s offerings as the review process of establishments has been changed
as well converging with Zagat to get reviews and ratings.
Above all else, though, as Google is the dominant search engine and
thus dominant place for local searching, this development will
have a large impact on local search going forward.
Preliminarily, it looks like the integration of Places with + was a
smart move given the end result in the quality of content and the value
provided to users in the multi-faceted and redesigned feature.
Taking a closer look, the New Google Local can be accessed
through a standard Google search, Google+, Google Maps, and
through Mobile apps that have the functionality as well.
This allows multiple ways for the user to get the information based on the way they search for local
information, if they are doing it on their desk or laptop, a mobile
device, and whether or not they are signed up for Google+.
The standard Google and Google Maps searches will yield results that do look different than the
previous, older searches. Results will display listings in a sleeker look with the Zagat ratings integrated as
well.
This is how many people will experience the new Local feature, namely all those not currently on
Google+.
This is important for mobile searching as many search for local
information on their mobile devices, particularly their
smartphones.
Local Via Mobile
The new Local feature will be quickly available in the Google
Maps for Mobile and in the Google+ app for Android-run
smartphones.
For iPhone users, Google has reportedly sent in updates for the Google Map app for their iOS, but even when accepted, it probably won’t be available for too long
given Apple’s expected rollout of their own Map functionality.
So, iPhone users will get the Local experience using the Places
(probably soon to be renamed) and Google+ apps, all according to
coverage from Search Engine Land. This way, the resulting presence
from the local search engine optimization that companies engage in can be seen on the
smartphone as well.
The Google+ access point is represented in the Google+ Local icon on the left side of the page
when signed into Google+.
Accessing Local through Google +, Where the Interaction Is
Searches for businesses related to a specific keyword and location result on the left side of the Google+ SERP
with a Google Maps image of the region with all the pins dropped on the various locations of the listed
businesses on the right.
Once clicked, the user is taken to the individual pages of the
businesses. These pages are clean and attractive, they integrate
photos well and potentially best of all is that the Zagat rating
information is displayed (also in the + SERP as well).
Google abandoned their own 5-star rating system to instead utilize the
30 point Zagat rating scale that allows for category specific ratings
for food, décor, service, and others, as opposed to fitting all of this into
a unified 5-star rating.
This offers great value for the web searching user as the entire archive of all Zagat ratings from their range of categories are available – free of
charge.
An additional point is that the results in Google+ can be filtered through different categories with
“From top reviewers,” “People like you,” “Just for you,” and “Your
circle.”
All these deliver specialized orders for the listings giving you improved results to get what is believed to be the most relevant results – for you.
All this information is nicely presented and very helpful for
users, but what makes the offering essential and potentially the most
noteworthy to date in terms of local search is the fact that
businesses can message their followers akin to activity on
Facebook and Twitter.
The ability to interact with customers in this way coupled with the likelihood that searchers will be utilizing the Google+ Local access point to get the most information
for their local searches makes Google+ Local the platform for local
companies to engage with their current and potential future
customers.
As a result, businesses should be looking no further than Google+ Local for their local optimization
and online marketing needs, posting information to engage with
their customers.