What Do Local Searchers Do On IYPs?
Mon ami Sebastien blogged about Amdocs' Eitan Ackerman's talk on Categorizing Consumer Activities on Merchant Listings or in other words - What do people actually do on Yellow Pages sites?
Here's what Eitan found:
- Search to call: I am looking for the merchant’s phone number, often a core element of a business directory site.
- Search to book: I want to schedule an appointment or make a reservation.
- Search to purchase: I want to buy the product online (e-commerce)
- Search to navigate: I want to get to the store and I’m looking for the address, map, driving directions, etc.
- Search for additional information: I’m looking for hours of operations, brands carried, etc.
- Click to save: I want to save/bookmark the information in my personal address book for future use.
- Click to share: I want to share the merchant information with friends/contacts via e-mail, social networks, etc.
To which Seb concludes:
I like this categorization of activities because it tells us about potential proof of value points to measure advertising ROI.
In the post Seb asked if he had forgotten anything. IMNSHO*, Eitan seems to think that all people want to do on IYPs is to find businesses. Perhaps some other activities to look for and measure:
- Search to review: I like writing reviews, have nothing else better to do with my time and I am ready to slam that mechanic that ripped me off
- Search by accident: I was doing some searches on Google and because your SEO consultant rocks, your site shows up for everything. I somehow stumbled upon it - now it's up to you to keep me there and coming back for more - or more likely in most cases to get me to click on an ad.
- Search for friends: I am looking for other like-minded souls online who share the same passion for fat-laden food and want to tweet with me
And of course let's not forget that marketers are consumers too:
- Search to learn: I am a marketer and I want to understand what the competition is doing right and wrong
- Search to SPAM: I am a marketer and I want to write some fake reviews to either praise a business or slam a competitor. I may even be looking for ways to add fake addresses and fake businesses to dominate a particular query. Also see Search to review.
- Search for dofollow links: Can I get a link from this site if I claim a profile or write a review/comment?
- Search to Friend/Fan/Like: I am a marketer and I want to find key influencers in the local social graph who can help me get the message out. Also see Search for friends.
Did I miss anything?