Mobile devices are becoming vital to Canadian consumers when they are searching for local businesses. Brick and mortar foot traffic is increased as a result with 65% of consumers who search on mobile devices going directly to a brick and mortar locations to complete their purchases. Maps are also a key factor for mobile search with 85% of smartphone users finding local map inclusion in search results at least somewhat important. When consumers actually perform a search, 94% of searchers prefer to use mobile browsers over mobile apps.

Social media is key for reviews and recommendations of products and local businesses. Eighty-six percent of respondents reported that ratings and reviews were an important factor for them when making a purchase decision. Consumers not only like to see what other people have to say about products they have used or businesses they have visited, but they also like to provide their own reviews. Thirty-seven percent of respondents said that they were likely to post about a purchase they have made to their social media network.

Here are some other key findings from the Annual Kantar Consumer Search Behavior Study:

— Consumers continue to show greater confidence in “organic search” results over pay for click

— Consumers prefer mobile browsing compatibility over mobile app availability (by a factor of 9)

— 60% of Canadians search for local business information at least once a week (27% at least a few times a week)

— 48% are conducting searches directly through search engines like Bing, Yahoo and FireFox or Google (opposed to searches within company websites or directory listings)

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With online search fragmentation and social media emergence driving prodigious growth forecasts for the reputation management sector (BIA/Kelsey projects $3.5 billion in ERPM revenues by 2014), agencies and publishers are both in the market for technology that adds this tool to their client offerings. Canadian agency (directory and digital) DAC Group has jumped on board, teaming with chatmeter to enable clients to manage and optimize their online presence across search engines, directories and social networks.

The partnership makes logical sense considering that many of DAC Group’s clients are national franchises that need to better monitor ERPM for local stores. This is especially so as national brands increasingly employ online advertising and social networking to drive local store traffic. The Groupon phenomenon and the recent debut of Facebook Deals are two stark examples of national-local opportunities.

Through chatmeter, DAC Group will not only provide local listings maintenance, but also analysis related to these results and a recommendation engine that will build off detailed tracking data to pinpoint campaign adjustments. Competitive benchmarking is becoming a critical component of reputation management, and chatmeter allows for businesses using its platform to size up their online performance directly against local competitors.

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