Your #1 result becomes #28 with local search

[silverbytes]

I noticed that terrible effect of new google love for local results: you site has done all possible and is #1 result. Well done. You stay there for years BUT, now Google decided that local results are better for everybody.

Let's say you sell "Widegets in anywhereland" but since you are a widgets seller, you also sell widgets in anywhereville and so on.

You used to be #1, but now google lists in first place up to 3 horizontal adwords ads on top of page (not to mention those on right column) then the 1st result is a big map with up to 24 results of local business with urls, directly clickeable (without browsing the google map).

And then comes the first result formerly your site, what used to be #1, (the first "organic" result besides google map).

Now you are 27 positions below the others. What causes that, well depending on nature of your business you are sunken. Personally I'm noticing a 65% less traffic.

So if you notice something is not ok, check local search.

The most awful part is you can't do nothing about it, because you can't list your only business in several local results. In fact depending on where your business is you can't even list it in local search which is available to certain countries only.

So the only choice you have is to pay the first position in adwords, even you you have the first position in organic search, which is odd an pricey.

[tedster]

A 65% traffic drop just because a Google Maps box was added to the SERP - that sounds mighty painful. I assume you mean a 65% drop on traffic for just that keyword. Your market niche must be very location focused, because that's a huge drop.

Sounds like you're confronted by the need to rethink your marketing strategy. That can be a very creative but difficult moment - something like physical world marketing when the bus route gets changed and no longer goes by your store.

[silverbytes]

Your market niche must be very location focused,

Of course it is!

It's a real pain. Those business didn't even listed their own! And the niche is completely "destination" dependent. What is worst a huge portion of total costumers arrive via web, close to 80%. So leaving web to go for other channels is not very promising.

[tedster]

I didn't mean you should necessarily leave web marketing - I only meant to offer a parallel kind of challenge (and one that I've faced in a previous life.)

But given what you describe with this particular keyword, it sounds like search marketing for you may need a strategic re-think. There may well be other opportunities on the web than this single SERP, especially now that Google is apparently going to clean up Local Search.

Also, there may be some value for you in our Local Search [webmasterworld.com] forum.

[DiscoStu]

the 1st result is a big map with up to 24 results of local business with urls, directly clickeable

24 results next to the map? i've never seen this...am I misunderstanding you somehow? Please give an example...

sucks about your situation btw, hope you can find some way to recover

[AnkitMaheshwari]

The most painful part of these local listing is that it is complete spam with same business listed with many different location. I hope Google would soon take steps to clean the multiple entries of same business with multiple ids...

[silverbytes]

specially now that Google is apparently going to clean up Local Search.

What do you mean exactly?

My only hope is that people hates the google map on first place hahah. Is like google is picking their own result as the best. They are spamming themselves. Haha.

[edited by: Robert_Charlton at 6:28 pm (utc) on June 3, 2009]