Hold the Phone: Web More Popular for Finding Local Businesses Than Phone Books

Local Search More Popular Than Phone Books

Phone books still make good booster seats around the Thanksgiving table, but they are quickly using their appeal as the best way to find a local business. According to the second annual Local Search Usage Study from TMP Directional Marketing, conducted by comScore, consumers are turning to search engines first to find local businesses. According to the study, 31% of Americans begin with search engines to find local business information, compared to 30% that start with the good old phone book.

Also of interest in the study, researchers found that while the majority of research is done online, consumers still make most of their purchases offline. This means more and more potential customers are searching for your goods and services online, so they can do business with you offline.

As far as trends to watch, the study also found that 1-in-5 consumers with Internet-enabled phones have performed a local search on their phone. You can expect these numbers to increase as more and more consumers move to Internet-enabled devices like the popular iPhone.