Search Users Choosing the Local Option: comScore
Use of local online search in the U.S. increased about 43% from July 2005 to the same month this year, according to a survey by comScore Media Metrix.
The study found that in July 2006, 109 million people searched for local content online. That figure represents 63% of the total universe of internet users.
ComScore found that 41% of those doing a local search were looking for something in their home area, as opposed to researching a locale they planned to visit. Among those at-home searchers, 59% were looking for a restaurant or entertainment location such as a movie theater, them park or sightseeing attraction. Fifty-two percent of home-area searchers said they were looking for a business address or phone number. And 41% of users doing local searches were looking for a local service on their home turf, including car rental outlets, dry cleaners and law offices.
Those local searches converted regularly into consumer action, the comScore study found. Thirty-seven percent of local searchers studied during the second quarter of 2006 made contact online with a provider because of a local search; 41% made contact offline. Forty-seven percent of local searchers visited an area merchant as a result of their search activity.
“With approximately 849 million local searches conducted by Americans in July, local advertisers have a sizable market that can be reached through local search sites,” said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix in a statement.
