July 23, 2020
When looking for information on local businesses, 4 out of 5 people rely on search engines. And these types of searches are on the rise – searches for businesses “near me” or “close by” increased over 900% in two years. This type of search is called “local search.” It is similar to normal search, but the results are focused on a specific location. Local search is powerful for consumers, as it helps us find products and services in our community. And it is powerful for businesses. Local search makes it possible for your hearing clinic to show up when someone searches for “hearing clinic close by” – and you don’t need to compete against every hearing clinic around the world for a top spot. You just need to be better than the hearing clinics in your region. Here is what hearing clinic owners and marketing teams can do to help their clinic show up in local search results. What is local search Local search is just like normal search, but the results are filtered according to a location. When someone wants to learn more information about how ears work, the geographic location of the information isn’t too important. But when searching for a local business, the desired location is essential for accurate results. Two types of local searches Let’s say someone is looking for a nearby hearing clinic. They will likely search one of two types of phrases: “hearing clinic” + Location “hearing clinic near me” or even just “hearing clinic” Even when the location isn’t specified within the query, search engines will assume you’re looking for a local hearing clinic. People tend to add a specific location when they are searching for something in a place where they are not currently at. And people assume that just “hearing clinics” will bring up results for locations around them. What local search looks like You’ve seen local search results when looking up the nearest gas station on your phone or searching for your next meal. Google shows local search results in Google Maps or in integrated boxes within normal search results.