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"The Transformation of Local in a Search Driven WorldModerator:    * Michael Boland, Analyst, The Kelsey GroupSpeakers:    * Bob Armour, Chief Marketing Officer, ShopLocal\n    * Scott Dunlap, CEO, NearbyNow\n    * Manish Patel, CEO, Where2GetIt\n    * Richard Rosen, CEO, FastCall411 Richard Rosen FastCall411 started off talking about how they connect consumers with local service providers faster, easier and more reliably than any other search platform. Consumer Expectation / Current Market Reality    * Of 250,000.000+ calls per month, 2 out of 3 sent to merchants who are not \u201Cavailable\u201D\n    * 87% of consumers say availability is an important factor when hiring a local vendor\n    * 10,000,000 merchants are not relevant to the customer\n    * Proximity is the wrong approach to local search. Meta data is poor Local search is frustrating for the customer; an effective business model hasn\u2019t been materialized    * Bad base data (old listings, no relevant, poor meta data)\n    * Not enough user generated content \u201Creviews\u201D\n    * Difficult prospecting and selling local merchants\n    * Poor match of \u201Cleads with needs\u201D\n    * Poor concentration of lead volume to individual merchants Identify \u201Cavailability\u201D as part of a completely new approach to local searchConnect consumers to relevant available local merchantsThink outside the \u201Cweb\u201D Manish Patel Consumers want choice    * Where 2 buy\n    * When to buy\n    * How they buy\n    * They want basic questions answered\n    * Where is the nearest?\n    * Where is it available?\n    * How do I get there?\n    * What is the price? Consumers have adopted search but other very relevant mediums still exist    * Search engines\n    * Retailer websites\n    * Manufacturer websites\n    * Vertical directions\n    * Comparison shopping engines\n    * Social media Getting found = retailer websiteMost visited section on their clients websitesConsumers are much more savvyFiltering functionality Move ready to buy customers from the product page to where to buyAnswer questions like:    * Where is the product sold?\n    * What price?\n    * Is it in stock?\n    * Can I buy from you directly? Getting found using search    * Organic\n    * Vertical\n    * Paid Search Get found in emerging mediaEven Adidas has a MySpace page Consumers are in control and you have to be found everywhere whether selling a product or serviceNearly 80% of online searches follow up offine via in sotre visit or phone cal.  Of these 66% go on to make a purchase Engage with Relevant information If your are selling a product or service today    * Add Local Content to your Website\n    * Add Mobile Extensions\n    * Add Registrations Scott Dunlap Example \u2013 Mobile Targeting    * Shoppers see signs for service on mall directories\n    * Opt-in by texting \u201CNEARBY\u201D\n    * Retailers can target nearby customers in real-time\n    * Limit 2 ads per hour\n    * Service shuts itself off after 90 min Mobile can extend existing media    * Can be used to extend in-mall advertising\n    * Shoppers choose preferred retailer\n    * From emotion to action\n    * Make existing media more measurableEx: Text \u201Cng1\u201D to NEARBY to find the nearest store that carries this \u201Cwidget\u201D If you have buy online pickup in store option, it quickly becomes about half of your online salesIf you put the ability to get a mobile receipt about 35-45% of online sales will use that Bob Armour ShopLocal helps advertisers drive in-store sales using the web Driver #1The Internet is being used more as a research tool than a buying too92% of shoppers use internet to do product research but 95% of retail sales happenin store Driver #2The web\u2019s influence on offline sales will continue to grow to almost half of all retail sales by 2011 (over $1 trillion) Driver #3Advertising spend will follow consumers media time On advertiser\u2019s sites:-          Smart Circular (The web version of what you get on your Sunday paper)-          53% of shoppers visit store within 1 week; 95% within the month-          267 milion page views on Black Friday 2007, up 84% over last year All across the internet:-          smart media (Local promotions in rich media)-          \u201Cclose the loop\u201D test: CPG retailer + Large publisher + consumer tracking panel \u2013 test produced 2x planned lift.  Results were \u201Ctoo good\u201D-          Interaction time: 17 seconds vs 10.7 seconds for standard rich media On ShopLocal.com:-          56% of shoppers bought the items they saw on the site in a store-          Over \u00BD of purchasers would not have bought if they didn\u2019t see the ad online  Contributed by: Justin Davy is a search engine marketing specialist for the E.W. Scripps Company and a guest writer for SER."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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