Speaking to a crowd of local search leaders from around the world, Boysman described in detail how she and her team developed a comprehensive strategy that drove meaningful local leads for her business and elicited support from the highest levels of her organization.

The presentation left the group buzzing because it outlined the type of innovative and integrated local marketing plan that many local search providers are trying to explore and develop with their clients.

I want to share some of the key learnings I walked away with after Boysman’s presentation. It’s a model for local businesses everywhere looking to navigate the complexity of today’s fragmented media environment. Let’s talk through the steps it takes to create a powerhouse marketing organization.

1.  Develop An Understanding Of The Company & Its Target Customers

The first priority is to clearly understand your company’s mission and create a marketing plan to help achieve it. Pinpoint ideal customers by drilling down their ages, genders, education levels and incomes to create distinct “customer target profiles.”

Then, research those profiles intensively to determine associated attitudes towards your company’s services and the specific obstacles in the way to getting target customers in the door and spending on services.

These findings inform strategic marketing messaging and programs that address those concerns directly, as well as provide insight on the types of media channels that should be used. By having clarity on your company’s mission and target customers, you’ll be able to start thinking about ways to bridge gaps between the two.

2.  Evaluate & Reconfigure Media Mix

Just a few years ago, many companies’ advertising strategies relied nearly entirely on print; newspapers, magazines, direct mail, and Yellow Pages. But, with a deep understanding of your target customer, you’ll be able to identify areas to diversify and expand the your marketing approach.

Think about refining your advertising model. You may find that directories continue to deliver sales volume, but newspapers do not. Or you may find your magazine spend isn’t performing as well as direct mail. Reallocate your budget where it makes sense and build out your advertising portfolio to channels you’re not reaching if the research supports it.

By adding channels over time, you’ll be able to continuously track progress and position the company to reach a greater number of target customers in the places they are searching most – whether through television commercials, direct mailings, or search engine-sponsored ads.

The choice and designated spend on each platform should be carefully planned based on understanding the attributes of each channel and how they contribute to ongoing success. It’s all about moving consumers through an engagement continuum from building awareness and response to making purchases and recommendations.

An integrated and multi-platform media mix will ensure the strongest visibility for your company. It’s vital to understand the inter-relationship of all media and how they drive awareness and response. It’s also important to create a fluid planning process that allows for implementation of major initiatives but is also nimble enough to adjust for changing trends.

3.  Grow digital & Mobile Presence

Digital plays an important role in how target customers find company services. Track Google query demand in your vertical and build out your company’s digital presence to match increases in that audience. Launch a fully optimized website, social media channels, organic and paid search, digital advertising and sponsored content and digital promotions to better connect with new and potential customers.

Also, invest in a presence on local sites including Citysearch, SuperPages, Yellowbook and YP.com. It’s a must to have an associated and integrated strategy for all of these initiatives along with key performance metrics to understand what success looks like for your clients.

4.  Measure & Contextualize Results

Measuring success is critical.  Don’t lose advertising budget because you can’t prove that what you’re doing works. Keep track of traffic to your company’s online properties – including total Web visits, unique visits and total calls and clicks for each platform.

Determine which marketing tactics are working to convert consumers into customers – whether it’s downloading a coupon or buying a product. Map out increases in revenues to justify the return on investment on advertising activities.

Remember that knowing the cost per click or the cost per call isn’t enough. The best marketers understand how much revenue a call or click generates, not just the cost of the call or click itself.

Additionally, make sure to reserve some budget to test out new tools and tactics on an ongoing basis, even if you’re not assured they’ll initially drive leads. While it’s important to make sure that your marketing influences actual sales, it’s equally valuable to try new approaches. Otherwise, you’ll quickly fall behind your competition in engaging the newest advertising trends.

Follow an approach in which you constantly analyze the outcomes of advertising efforts and make adjustments to capitalize on the positives and dial down on the negatives.

5.  Look For The Right Advertising Partners

Finding the right partners is key to ensuring your success over the short and long-term. Make sure you and your team are keeping tabs on the latest new and emerging media and exploring innovative approaches. Meet regularly with local search sales representatives to learn more about their latest offerings and what they can do for your business.

Remember that tying your advertising budget down to one or a few channels simply because of habit or personal relationships is not the right approach for your business. Also, try networking with other advertising leads in similar verticals so you can exchange ideas and advice.

Above all, make sure every advertising option you utilize makes smart business sense. When it comes down to it, proving how media drives revenue is what your job is really all about.

Without a doubt, the Yellow Pages space is in a state of transformation. Research has found that fewer people are using print directories in both numbers and frequency than they have previously, and a multitude of new platforms ranging from the Web and mobile directories to iPhone and iPad apps and daily deals offerings are fragmenting the way consumers make purchasing decisions.

Where it used to be easy to reach your intended consumer through a small number of media channels, there are now many options for a small business advertiser. Yellow Pages players have responded by introducing new offerings that leverage these areas of growth, while also working to preserve and enhance print and other existing offerings that have and continue to drive leads for millions of businesses across the country.

Inspired by Chris’ column, I propose four key reasons advertisers should think twice about abandoning their Yellow Pages relationship.

1.  Yellow Pages Providers Now Offer More Than Just Print Directories

Many have also launched Yellow Pages-branded websites, mobile apps, SEO and search services – and more innovations are on the way.

Yellow Pages providers have completely changed their playbooks. Company names and business strategies have changed to reflect a new era in which they use their experience in the local advertising space to deliver a full-spectrum of local marketing services to neighborhood businesses.

Many people would be surprised to learn that the same companies that deliver their phonebooks also provide them with the local business information they find online or access via apps on their mobile device, or the daily deals they purchase through links shared on social networks like Facebook and Twitter.

Local businesses might be intrigued to hear that the company that publishes their local directory also offers advice on areas like SEO, paid search, online advertising, online reputation and social media. Yellow Pages providers are often behind vertical websites dedicated to selling cars or wedding planning.

As BIA/Kelsey’s recent update of its Global Yellow Pages report indicated, newer Yellow Pages offerings like websites, video, social, mobile and search engine marketing will be their primary growth drivers in the coming years. And by 2015, an estimated 53% of global Yellow Pages revenues will be digital, compared with 29% in 2011. Yellow Pages providers should be judged on everything they are doing and will be doing in the near future to drive growth.

2. Yellow Pages Have Long-term Relationships With Local Businesses

This puts them in a unique position to offer advertisers personal advice and service, relative to start-ups with little history or local team members.

There are many interesting and innovative local search companies out there, but something has to be said for the close bonds that this Yellow Pages’ vast sales force enjoys with its local business advertisers and its deep understanding of their individual objectives and challenges.

Yellow Pages representatives have been working with these businesses for years and have gained their trust by delivering results that have positively impacted their bottom lines. Today’s Yellow Pages representative can counsel a client how understand and implement effective digital strategies.

If you’re a small business advertiser, take time to talk to your Yellow Pages representative and see what they might be able to do for you beyond your print or Internet Yellow Pages ad. When it comes down to it, where else can a local business go for one-stop access to all the various local advertising options now available to them – from the same companies they have worked with for years?

One of the biggest problems I see for small and local business owners is they don’t have the time to research and understand their advertising options. That’s a real need that Yellow Pages providers are equipped to address.

3.  YP Providers Are Partnering Behind The Scenes With The Search Engines

Advertising with one of these companies rarely means that a business’ listing is confined to one Internet Yellow Pages website. Many of these companies now enjoy relationships with competitors such as search engines and other popular local sites that allow them to cross-promote advertising and resell their products.

Data that fuels popular local search sites is often provided by a Yellow Pages provider because they maintain the most comprehensive and accurate listings, which is key to delivering the local search experience advertisers want and consumers expect.

Companies like AT&T and Yellow Pages Group are investing in building relationships with developers through APIs and supportive resources, resulting in the creation of dozens of new web and mobile apps that leverage their business listings. There is no doubt that these efforts will continue to grow and deliver valuable results for participating local businesses.

4.  Print Is Not Dead

It’s also not an either or proposition. Advertisers should study closely when an investment in print advertising would make sense.

In an era when a growing number of consumers DVR programming and view video content online, is there a general consensus that TV advertising is on the outs? Because less people read the newspaper today, have major advertisers simply stopped running full-page ads?

We live in a fragmented media landscape where consumers of all demographics are picking up information in a multitude of places new and old.

Our research conducted with Burke finds that nearly 8 out of 10 of print Yellow Pages searches resulted in a purchase or purchase intent. How many new local search offerings can claim such high exposure and drive so many leads?

Local businesses advertising with print Yellow Pages should take advantage of tools developed to demonstrate the value of their investment. Pay-per-call is one way; Co-Op advertising is available in many categories; surveying customers is another.

Like anything, assumptions can be made about who uses what medium more. But the real question is what the data shows, and it varies not just from industry to industry, but business to business and even as specific as product to product.

For example, a construction company owner profiled in a recent Bloomberg Businessweek story on the industry said that while print ads don’t help the customer-home building side of his business, they drive the “reactionary and spontaneous” lines of his work, such as emergency repairs and insurance-funded restorations.

As long as a print Yellow Pages investment returns more than it costs for an individual local business, it is worth their expense.

Here’s a quick guide to get you started on the path to “mobile-izing” your business using apps and search marketing.

Why Mobile Is Important

Research on the growing relationship between mobile and local is endless. Approximately 61% of smartphone users conduct local searches on their phones, according to a new study conducted by comScore and released by Localeze and 15miles.

The majority of these users are ready to buy: 72% of those surveyed said they made a purchase during their most recent smartphone-based local search. There’s simply no denying that mobile is where your customers are and where you need to be.

Search Vs. Apps? Try Both

The ways consumers conduct local business searches on their mobile devices vary. While many rely on major search engines to find a local business’ website or its listing on a local site, about half (49%) of mobile users use search-based apps, according to the Localeze and 15miles study.

It’s clear that new and potential customers are looking at a variety of channels to find you on their cell. Capturing their eyeballs requires your business to be present on as many of platforms as possible, or you risk losing customers to your competitors.

Tackle Your Mobile Website

For those trying to locate your business through a major search engine on their mobile device, your website could be the first thing they’ll find and visit. But what will their experience be when they view your site on the small screen? Will they able to easily get around and find the information they need?

Google launched an initiative recently called “Go Mo” that encourages businesses to develop mobile-friendly sites. A mobile-friendly site is a version of your desktop site that is formatted to a mobile screen, has readable text, and includes large-enough buttons for users to easily thumb through and take actions.

The initiative cites a variety of research indicating that consumers want and expect mobile-friendly sites, and that they play a key role in whether consumers engage a local business.

Some of the top findings include:

• 71% of users expect a mobile site to load as fast as a desktop site, according to a 2011 study by Copuware
• 57% of users would not recommend a business with a bad mobile site, while 40% have turned to a competitor’s site after a bad mobile experience, according to the same Copuware study
• Nearly 1 in 5 visits to a small business’ mobile-friendly site results in an immediate call to a business, according to internal Q4 2011 data from DudaMobile, a mobile website developer that partnered with Google on the initiative (and as you can see, the numbers are much higher in certain categories)

To sum it up from the start, the changes will likely provide local businesses with the ability to merge aspects of their search optimization and social media strategies into a unified approach via Google+, the company’s new social network.

The new opportunities presented by the revamp will undoubtedly deliver unprecedented search visibility for the products and services of proactive local businesses over time. Their success will be dictated by two basic needs: generating buzz about their offerings on Google+, and creating an effective business page on the site.

Lay of the Land

According to the company, Google’s new ‘Search Plus Your World’ offering “transforms Google into a search engine that understands not only content, but also people and relationships” through three basic ways:

• Further personalizing results: users are now able to find personalized information – including Google+ photos and posts from themselves and their friends – within their basic Google.com search results. Additionally, they can tab out personalized results featuring content from those they’re connected to on Google+.
• Raising profile visibility: users can immediately find people they’re close to or might be interested in following in Google+, both in autocomplete and results
• Raising people and pages’ visibility: users can find Google+ profiles and pages related to specific topics or areas of interest via basic search, and follow them instantly

Relevancy To Local Businesses

More personalized results will enable local businesses to more easily get found by users searching for keywords related to their products and services.

For example, a hungry user searching “hamburger” in their Google search could come across a post from one of their Google+ friends talking about the great meal they just had at [your] local diner.

Not only will the post get your diner’s name right in front of the hunger user – showing up right within top search results on the page – it will have added value because it came from their friend, whose recommendation they most likely trust. And right there, you could very easily have a new customer.

Raised visibility for Google+ profiles and pages via Google search could also help your local business attract new customers.

As the above example shows, users searching for simple topics like “shopping” are presented with recommendations on pages to follow in a “People and Pages on Google+” section. And as we know, once a Google+ page is followed, each time a user searches for something related to or mentioned on that page, it will receive increased visibility with the user.

It will be interesting to see how this feature builds over time. For example, I wonder if a traveling user searching “Bed & Breakfast + [location of your B&B]” will one day see your B&B’s page appear in that section. It seems that placement will be based on how prominently your page ranks in terms of followers with other pages reached by the same keywords.

What You Can Do Now

The full impact of Google’s new search offering and its heavy reliance on Google+, which itself is still in its infancy, is not yet clear. But what you can bet on is that your local business will significantly benefit from high visibility on Google+. Actions you can take now to stay ahead of the competition include:

• Create a Google+ business page. It’s simple, free, and a no-brainer.
• Incorporate your business’s Google+ page into its online presence – including its website, blog and other social media channels – as well as its advertising and offline materials.
• Similar to your business’s approach with other social media channels like Facebook and Twitter, encourage customers to follow your Google+ page for special announcements and deals.
• Update your business’s Google+ page constantly with new information, whether its links to articles relevant to your business or photos of new products, not only to keep your page relevant with customers but also to increase the number of keywords that users can search and reach you through. For example, had Domino’s Pizza not posted about its stuffed cheesy bread offering, the hungry user may not have seen it when they searched and ordered from someplace else. And obviously the newer the post, the better visibility it will receive.

Most importantly, keep your eye out regularly for additional recommendations on what your business can and should be doing to leverage Google’s new search tools. This will surely be an evolving topic that will affect how customers find you.

With a fast-growing and appealing consumer base now utilizing mobile devices throughout the purchasing process from pre- to post-sale, local businesses are taking note and investing in mobile marketing at an unprecedented rate.

Here’s a five-step process to better understand the mobile shopping phenomenon to enable your business to influence customer decisions in 2012.

1.  Recognize Mobile Is A Big Deal That’s Only Getting Bigger

Early consumer data from this past Thanksgiving holiday weekend – also known as the busiest shopping weekend of the year – shows mobile surging ahead as a leading medium for shopping digitally.

In 2010, mobile platforms were responsible for just 5.6% of online shopping traffic on Black Friday, according to the IBM Smarter Commerce benchmark of online retail activity.

This year, that number grew to a record 14.3% of online shopping traffic. And consumer activity is not limited to product or store research, but also to actual sales. IBM found that sales from mobile devices during Thanksgiving weekend reached an astonishing 9.8% of digital retail transactions, more than three times the 3.2% rate of the same time last year.

As consumers jump on the mobile bandwagon, so are local businesses – or to be more more direct, your competitors. According to Ad-ology’s 2012 Marketing Forecast released last month, more than 20% of small business decision makers said they plan to commit more resources to mobile marketing in the coming year, up from 12% who said the same last year and 2% in 2009.

Clearly, local businesses understand the value of mobile as a marketing tool and are reallocating budgets to build on the trend.

2. Understand That Mobile = Young & Wealthy Customers

Last week, IAB’s Mobile Marketing division released a comprehensive report on mobile that highlighted the strong appeal of the mobile shopping demographic.

A September 2011 comScore study included in the report found that U.S. consumers accessing mobile shopping content are younger than average mobile users (61% are under the age of 34, compared with 37% of all mobile users).

Additionally, the study showed that the average mobile users have somewhat higher average incomes, with 48% earning more than $75,000 per year, versus 42% of all U.S. mobile users. Local businesses that successfully tap into mobile now will be the best positioned to reach young and wealthy customers over the long term.

3.  Pay Attention To Where Mobile Is Hot

While we already know that urban areas are popular hotbeds for mobile shopping, the IAB report lays out which U.S. cities are home to the most mobile shopping-savvy customers.

Using an index that aggregated stats for mobile phone ownership, mobile coupon usage, mobile retail app ownership, and mobile social media app usage, IAB determined that Houston is the most mobile shopping-savvy city in the country, followed by New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Dallas-Fort Worth.

In addition, eBay data validated these findings by showing New York and Houston among the most mobile shopping cities on Black Friday. Local businesses in these cities should be extra diligent about creating and implementing mobile marketing strategies.

That said, the mobile shopping trend is truly national, so many businesses should be moving forward with mobile plans regardless of where they’re located.

4.  Influence Mobile Shoppers’ Pre-Purchase Decisions

The IAB report, citing comScore data, showed that mobile shoppers rely on their devices to help them make a variety of purchasing decisions, ranging from where to shop to what products to buy:

• About 15% of mobile shoppers look for store locations, demonstrating the importance of accurate business address, contact information and business type categorization. Local businesses should ensure that they are listed and strategically advertise on all major local sites including Yelp, Citysearch, Google Places, Yahoo Local, and many others.

• Business owners should also confirm that their print and Internet Yellow Pages listings are correct, since that information streams not only to publishers’ mobile apps, but to many local sites as well. Businesses should also make this information is easily accessible in mobile-friendly versions of their websites.

• Approximately 9.8% of mobile shoppers compare product prices, while 9.5% look for coupons and deals, making it clear that price is a major determining factor in predicting sales.

In the past, the availability of pricing information was limited unless customers scoured through newspaper ads or travelled between stores. Even when online offerings became more prevalent, the associated shipping charges gave local stores some relief.

That said, local businesses today need to take a closer look at the online marketplace to determine the average prices of products they sell, and adapt their own prices as best they can to be more in line with other retailers.

Alternatively, local businesses can make clear in their mobile advertising why buying from their store at higher prices has added benefits (more experienced staff, savings on shipping, immediate availability, better customer service, longer warranties, better deals for bulk purchases, etc.).

Local businesses should also look into posting coupons on their social media channels, featuring daily deals on sites like Groupon or LivingSocial, and other tactics that raise visibility for price-related incentives in the mobile space.

• About 9.1% of mobile shoppers research product features and 8% check product availability at specific stores. Local businesses should build their mobile sites with these considerations in mind as well.

5. Ensure In-Store Visits Result In Sales

Mobile consumers aren’t just using their devices as pre-purchase tools prior to arriving at stores – but also once they’re in stores. According to the IAB report’s comScore data:

• Nearly 20% of mobile shoppers text or call family and friends to discuss a product, while 14.2% take a picture of a product and 11.6% send a picture of a product to family and friends.

Local businesses should think of ways to enable mobile shoppers to provide compelling cases to those they call about why the products they want to buy are worth it. For example, local businesses should provide compelling top-line summaries of products on shelves that shoppers can easily read over the phone.

They can also display QR codes for mobile shoppers to scan that allows them to easily send high-resolution images and other information that makes the products in question look their best.

• More than 7% of mobile shoppers scan a product barcode to check product information, and more importantly, check prices. This new price check method is a major issue for local businesses in that it requires them to compete even more directly with big online retailers immediately prior to the point of sale.

In fact, Amazon is under fire from local businesses concerned with its new price match app, which beginning this past Saturday offers shoppers a 5% discount (up to $15) for using its app in brick-and-mortar stores. Of  more concern, the app collects information about in-store prices, giving Amazon a good sense of where to price products so they beat out local businesses’ prices.

As a result, local businesses not only need to work overtime to ensure that their prices are competitive, they also need to find additional ways to incent their customers and convince them that their higher prices are worth it, as described earlier. Also, local businesses should consider noting on store shelves that they are willing to negotiate or match prices based on what consumers find using their mobile price check app.

Whether testing her functionality to complete basic tasks like setting a calendar appointment or checking the weather – or her responses to some rather ridiculous requests like, “Siri, do you love me?” – I’m quite impressed by her capabilities and the opportunities the feature presents across a wide variety of applications.

Between Siri and Google’s Android’s Voice Actions – which offers many similar features including the ability to dictate text messages, get directions and call contacts – my colleagues in the local search industry are thinking about the impact of voice on the mobile search experience.

Similarly, many local businesses across the country are wondering what they can and should be doing to ensure that they attract and secure visibility on this additional platform.

So what does it take to get voice-activated local search tools like Siri and Android’s Voice actions to like your local business?

1.  Ensure An Accurate & Complete Google Places Page

We all know the importance that Google’s search engine plays in the traditional online and mobile search experience, and it’s not different with voice-activated local search.

Google Places provides the foundation for how local businesses get found on both Siri and Voice Actions. Therefore, it’s critical that local businesses ensure the following:

• Maintain accurate Google Places pages for each local business location – including the right business name, address, phone number and website.
• Incorporate highly descriptive keywords in the listing’s category’s section – ones that current and potential customers will most likely use when searching for the local business. For example, a business that sells women’s shoes can supplement their listing with “high heels,” “tennis shoes” and “flats” to better differentiate their offering.
• Take advantage of the business description field to provide highly-optimized keywords that clearly depict what the business does in ways that those looking for the business will search for it.

2.  Generate Positive Reviews & Add Multimedia Content

While a spiced up Google Places page won’t have an impact on how Siri users find and evaluate a local business location (more on that later), it will play a strong role in the Voice Actions experience.

When Voice Actions users conduct a local business search – for example, asking for the “best Japanese restaurants” – businesses that match those keywords within the user’s area appear in order of the quality and quantity of ratings and reviews received on their Google Places page.

Although Google Places once incorporated reviews from a variety of sites including TripAdvisor and Yelp, the offering now only includes unique reviews and ratings left by users directly on Google Places pages. As a result, it’s important that each local business location build as large of a collection of positive reviews as possible in order to appear among the top of voice-activated search results.

To do this, the local business should look for ways to encourage customers to share details of their great experiences with the business on a consistent basis. This effort can spiral into having an even greater impact, since Google Places provides personalized results that promote recommendations by users’ friends.

Google Places on mobile devices is very similar to the online experience in that it features multimedia content like photos as well, so it’s important to add visually appealing content to a local business page to make it as attractive as possible to potential customers.

3.  See Step 2 & Do it On Yelp

Most local business searches conducted via Siri are done so through Yelp, the popular local reviews site. Similar to the Voice Actions experience, results for local business searches on Siri are ranked by the quality and quantity of reviews provided on the local business’ Yelp page.

Therefore, local businesses should embark on a similar effort to create and maintain highly descriptive Yelp profiles and attract as many positive customer reviews to their Yelp pages as possible. In doing so, local businesses can also take advantage of a variety of free Yelp tools that help connect them with customers.

Once a user selects a local business via Siri’s listing, they are taken to a simple Google Map listing with the address and phone number to visit or contact the business directly.

While photos, deals and other Yelp features don’t yet play a role in the Siri experience, it’s safe to say they likely will be in the future. Additionally, I think we can expect that other popular review sites like OpenTable and TripAdvisor will be added to Siri search in due time – so building a strong depository of positive reviews on these sites will be increasingly essential moving forward.

The annual industry event — which this year included speakers and panelists from the likes of AT&T Interactive, Eniro, Facebook, Local Matters, Microsoft Advertising, Telmetrics, Urbanspoon, Yellow Pages Group and Yellowbook — explored the latest developments and future opportunities for small businesses in digital/online media, performance-based commerce and customer retention.

Here are five key takeaways relevant to local business owners in the process of planning their 2012 marketing budgets from the talks I heard at the gathering.

1.  Small Businesses Increasingly Invest Advertising Dollars Online

Total small business ad spending for online media increased to almost 40% of total ad spend in the fourth quarter of 2010, up from 22% in the third quarter of 2009, according to BIA/Kelsey’s Charles Laughlin.

By 2015, BIA/Kelsey estimates that 70% of small business marketing budgets will go to digital/online media (mobile, social, online directories, online display, digital outdoor), performance-based commerce (pay-per-click, deals, couponing) and customer retention business solutions (email, reputation and presence management, websites, social marketing, calendaring/appointment-setting).

Already, small businesses’ spend on their Web presence has increased significantly — almost doubling between 2008 and 2010 — another indication that businesses’ digital presence is becoming critical to their advertising strategies.

While businesses’ online vs. offline advertising spend ratios depend on the types of products or services they sell and their target markets, it’s safe to say that small businesses should be putting a heavy chunk of their advertising dollars into the online space in order to keep up with competitors. It’s also important for small business owners to be familiar with online advertising options available to them.

More than 75% of small businesses surveyed said their marketing budgets would stay the same or increase over the next year, according to a recent survey conducted by Infogroup. This indicates that while local businesses may be changing the way they advertise, they aren’t cutting back but instead maintaining or increasing their investment.

2.  Small Businesses Are Juggling Marketing Tools

With so many tools at their disposal, small businesses are especially struggling with how to manage social media channels and print media based on changing consumer behaviors.

Laughlin pointed out that younger businesses are significantly more oriented to social media than Yellow Pages, which are more popular among older, more established businesses.

Both platforms provide unique opportunities for businesses to reach target consumers. If a business hasn’t explored social media — or if it has, but it’s engagement has been limited — it’s time to move forward more aggressively to engage in order to keep up with new entrants in the field.

To get started, websites like Postling and Wildfire make it easier for small businesses to create and manage their presence on social networks like Facebook.

While social media has received well-deserved hype for its ability to create new connections between local businesses and their customers, Yellow Pages continue to provide strong and reliable leads to local businesses.

In fact, while 74% of consumers said they used Yellow Pages in the past year to find local businesses, only 32% of consumers said they did so via social networks. So while times are changing, Yellow Pages still provide local businesses with a strong platform to reach their target audiences.

Perhaps the most important message here is that integrating online and offline offers provides local businesses with the widest reach possible in order to reach consumers wherever they are — both now and in the future.

3.  Once Websites Are Covered, Mobile-Friendly Sites Are Next

Over the past few years, many small businesses have launched websites that are becoming the cornerstones of their local advertising strategies. But with the number of mobile Internet users set to surpass desktop users by 2015, according to BIA/Kelsey, the emphasis is increasingly on ensuring that websites can be viewed as easily on mobile as they can at the home or office computer.

Today, only a tiny fraction of websites — just 1.25% — are mobile-friendly. This void is a red flag to small businesses that haven’t looked into ways to optimize their sites, and something they should prioritize in the coming year.

Adding to this, research shows that mobile websites have a lower bounce rate and higher customer conversation than traditional websites, so moving forward with creating a mobile site will reap additional rewards down the line.

4.  Daily Deals Are Hot, Customer Retention & Deal Fatigue Are Issues

Over the past year, we’ve become increasingly familiar with Groupon, LivingSocial and the 600 or so other daily deals sites across the country. Many local businesses are embracing the opportunity to attract new customers through discounts publicized through these sites, despite the relatively high costs associated with the one-time offers.

BIA/Kelsey, which estimates that daily deals will be a $4.2 billion market by 2015, notes that increased focus on personalized and geo-targeted deals will help fuel this segment’s growth. Currently, the expansion and subdivision of daily deals sites into specific categories are helping to keep this area fresh for advertisers and consumers.

That said, there are obstacles that local businesses should be aware of. Todd Rose, vice president of business development for AT&T Interactive, who is part of the team rolling out AT&T’s Deal of the Day offering, said one issue facing small businesses who advertise through daily deals is determining how to retain customers on a long-term basis.

Generally, consumers who buy deals cash in their coupons, but they don’t convert into regular customers as much as businesses might hope. A question small businesses should ask when approached by a daily deals site is for additional information on the type of return on investment they should expect — both for the deal and in the weeks and months following.

In that vein, Rose talked about the importance of limiting the number of deals that a local business offers over a specified time frame. AT&T, for example, is capping the number of deals per merchant because sometimes it doesn’t make sense for a small business to repeatedly issue deals.

5.  Use Specific Criteria When Choosing Local Ad Partners

Small and local business owners today are approached by an average of 40 sales reps each month, so it’s often difficult for them to cut through the clutter and determine what advertising partners and offerings work best for them.

What types of characteristics should small businesses look for in their advertising partners? Mike Centorani, VP of sales training and development at MatchCraft, and Paul Plant, founder and principal at Radicle Consulting, hosted a panel to share their insights on effective models for acquiring new small business advertisers in today’s media environment.

Working from their suggestions of what local advertisers should do to attract new small business customers, here’s a list of suggestions of criteria small business owners should measure against when choosing advertising partners.

Chosen advertising partners should:

• Be able to reach the widest distribution possible and seamlessly integrate advertising across print, online, mobile, etc.
• Be focused on delivering new business leads — not simply pushing their advertising company and its products.
• Keep in touch with small business owner, be flexible and provide ROI for their investment before they receive a bill.
• Invest time in the small business, its owner, and its industry generally, and in turn demonstrate that their offerings align with the business’ objectives.
• Offer incentives and offers — such as a “try before you buy” option — so small business owners can see that the offering works for their business.
• Offer shorter-term contacts and/or big entry-level packages as much as possible so the business isn’t tied down to a bad advertising option and gets the most bang for its buck.

While Google has said it is working to fix the issue, the fact that local businesses’ presence can so quickly and effectively be compromised online raises a lot of questions about what businesses should be doing to preempt, identify and effectively mitigate threats to their online presence.

It’s time to leverage areas you control to build a positive and accurate portrayal of your business online, use opportunities with respected third-parties to reinforce those claims, and be at-the-ready to respond to reputational threats outside your grasp.

Here are four tips to take ownership of your online presence:

1.  Send A Clear Message: We’re In Business & We’re Ready To Help

Your business has tools available to reinforce to current and potential customers that it’s prepared to address their needs.

Your website is a living and breathing representation of your real-world business, and the most important online tool available to you that is completely within your control. By keeping it updated and current, you indicate to visitors that you are open, available and can be trusted to handle their requests.

In addition to the basics of outlining your business’ services and contact information, add new content on at least a weekly basis – feature a new product, special, or customer testimonial right on the homepage. Just like you’d change the storefront for each season, update the content and graphics on your site to match the time of year.

Include social media widgets on the homepage to illustrate activity and interest in your business, as well as blog headlines to showcase thought leadership in your local marketplace.

Your blog and social media channels allow you to share real-time information with both current and potential customers. By updating these platforms on a near-daily basis, you indicate to readers and followers that you are not only open, but also active, invested, and up-to-date on the latest trends in your field. Your quick responses to comments or complaints left on these channels show that you care about your customers and have the means to make things right.

As the New York Times story showed, accurate online business listings are critical to your online presence. Use the story as a wakeup call to take advantage of any and all tools available to take ownership of your listings sites like Yelp, CitySearch, YP.com and others. Most of these sites require owner verification when making changes to contact information and services, so make sure you’re registered as the point person for your business.

2. Build Relationships With Local Media & Influencers To Create A Strong Reputation

Do your fair share of PR so you have local allies and conversation in favor of your business.

Is your business opening new locations? Is it the first to sell a new product in its market? Does it have a major anniversary of its opening coming up?

Take advantage of newsworthy opportunities to reach out to local media and influencers to get your business’ name in the press and in blogs and social media. Not only will the third-party support help generate increase awareness and confidence in your company, but local media stories featuring your business will appear high in search rankings – a big plus when current and potential customers search for you directly or indirectly.

The relationships you build with local media and influencers can come in handy should you face online reputational issues like negative blog posts or comments about your business.

By laying the groundwork in advance, you can more easily reach out to and rely on your relationships to help come to your defense, or at least consider your perspective should they write about those complaints. Building trust between you and those who write about you locally is key to helping mitigate both online and offline reputational issues.

3. Have A Response Strategy In Place

Whether it’s an unauthorized change to your online business listing, a negative review, or a competitive SEM campaign that’s drowning out your placements in search, have a response strategy in place so you know exactly what to do if your online reputation is hit hard fast.

• Have a list of your online business listings –including profile URLs, login information, confirmation e-mails, etc. – at the ready in case you learn of false updates to your online business listing.  Know how to update the sites and know the process for contacting the sites in case an issue with your listing arises.

• Draft template responses to the typical complaints you receive both in the real-world and online from your customers. The responses should be drafted for use in response to media inquiries, as well as online forums, blog comments and social media updates (e.g., a post on your business’ Facebook wall, a tweet that includes your Twitter handle, etc.).

• Have the blueprint of an SEM response campaign ready to go on Google, Bing and local sites in case a new or existing competitor launches a campaign to overshadow your search results. You should have the most important keywords selected and set aside some funds to pay for it should the need arise.

4. Monitor Online Conversations & Be Ready To Respond At A Moment’s Notice

As the Google Places story showed, affected businesses saw devastating drops in demand for their services as a result of their businesses being erroneously closed online – and some didn’t even know it happened for weeks!

Monitoring is the only way to completely ensure that you’re not caught off-guard by changes to your business’ online presence, and that you can take the steps necessary to respond in a timely manner.

• Conduct daily searches of what is being said about your business in social media by viewing your Facebook page and scanning Twitter, and search Google, Bing and the major local sites on a regular basis, to evaluate and respond to changes in your profiles and search rankings, customer reviews, and comments.
• Also take advantage of Tweetdeck, Google Alerts, and other free tools to make sure you receive the latest on what’s being said about your business online.

As we head into fall, let’s catch up on the latest trends and developments in local search space – and what you should consider as you start to build out your business’s advertising strategy for 2012.

Take Charge Of Social Media

Social media is playing a significant role in how consumers find and interact with businesses on a national level, and we’re increasingly seeing that trend extend to local businesses as well.

Yet while the majority of local businesses are signing up on social networks, they’re not creating a presence on enough of them. And even when they do, their level of engagement is often too low to leave a meaningful impact with current and potential customers.

These insights are derived from the results of a recent study by Palore, which found that:

Source: Palore

• While nearly six in 10 (58%) of local businesses have a presence on either Facebook or Twitter, only 22% have pages on both Facebook and Twitter.

• The percentage of small businesses with Facebook pages is nearly double the share of those using Twitter. While Facebook dominates the social media space – and one might expect a higher number of pages – Twitter is quickly attracting a very sizable audience as well, counting approximately 13% of U.S. adults among its user base.

• Approximately 38% of Facebook pages had fewer than 100 likes, while nearly 45% of Twitter pages had fewer than 100 followers. Only a handful of small businesses’ Facebook pages had more than 1,000 likes (16%) and more than 1,000 followers (19%).

So what do these results about social media mean for your local business?

• If you haven’t launched a presence on Facebook or Twitter, the time to get on board is now. There’s no longer a doubt about whether consumers are relying on social media for local products and services. In fact, the Local Search Association’s recent Local Media Tracking Study found that 12% of consumers said they leveraged a social network within the past week to find local business information. While this is a small figure next to other major sources, the role of social media will surely grow exponentially as consumers begin to integrate it more into their daily lives.

• Make social media a integral part of your local advertising strategy by dedicating the necessary personnel and resources to ensure that your channels are successful. If you’re not social media savvy, consider hiring or dedicating one of your existing staff members who knows social media to build and manage your accounts. Integrate your sites into all of your communications and launch social media-only contests, discounts and other incentives to get people to “like” or follow your pages.

• Create dynamic content related to your business – links to insightful articles, or top-line tips based your expertise – to provide value to your followers and demonstrate that you are a thought-leader in your field. And most of all – do whatever you can to engage users by asking them for their opinions and answering any questions they may have.

Source: Bloomberg/YouGov Survey

• Always look ahead to what’s next – and right now, it’s Google+. The new Google social network launched in June, and predictions already show that the site may grow to claim 22% of online U.S. adults in a year, passing Twitter and LinkedIn to become the second-most popular social network after Facebook, according to a new Bloomberg/YouGov survey.

Already, Google+ is growing faster than MySpace and Facebook did in their early days, with more than 13% of U.S. adults signed up and another 9% projected to be added over the next year. While Google+ doesn’t have local business-related capabilities just yet, they’re sure to be coming down the line. In the meantime, make sure you or those running social media at your business get signed up fast so when the opportunity comes, you’ll have existing familiarity with the site and be ready to build a presence there.

Prep For Big Mobile Changes

And while we’re talking about Google, last week, the company made major headlines by announcing that it is purchasing Motorola Mobility, effectively rocking the mobile landscape by turning the search engine giant into a full-fledged cell phone manufacturer.

Source: comScore

Today, various manufacturers leverage Google’s Android platform – now used by 2 out of 5 smartphone users – and despite the new deal, Google has said it will keep the platform open. That said, analysts are speculating that some manufacturers may begin looking for new partners (such as Microsoft) now that Google has effectively turned into their competitor.

In addition, Research in Motion (RIM), which makes BlackBerry and has struggled to keep up with Apple and Google in recent years, is thought by some to be next in line to be purchased.

In light of these developments, what should your local business do to ensure it’s ready for what’s next in mobile?

• First of all, recognize the importance that mobile is already playing in how consumers find local business information. According to the Local Search Association’s “State of Local Search” study, 77.1 million mobile subscribers accessed local business content as of January 2011, up an astonishing 34% from a year ago. In fact, local content users now account for one-third (33%) of all mobile subscribers, up from 25% last year. Given this, mobile should play a growing role in your local advertising strategy in order to attract new customers and keep old ones moving forward.

• We can expect ongoing changes in the popularity of different mobile platforms with consumers – now more than ever after Google’s announcement. These trends are increasingly important to local businesses given the rising popularity of mobile applications, which are now used by 56% of local content users, up 34% since last year, according to the study.

• Make sure your local business is listed on as many online and mobile directories as possible – everywhere from CitySearch to Google Places to the Internet Yellow Pages (IYPs). These days, you never know where consumers will search for you, so it’s important to cast as wide net as possible. For many sites, the signup process only takes a few minutes.

While most online business directories and local sites have applications for each of the major mobile platforms, local businesses should make sure that they’re investing in those that are the most popular.

For example, an online directory may have a popular iPhone app, but a lagging Android app – so your business should compensate by finding another directory with a stronger Android presence to supplement your existing directory. On a related note, local businesses can now purchase in-app local ads on the AT&T Interactive mobile ad network, which opens another set of doors for consumer engagement.

Widen Online Exposure

This summer alone, popular search engines and local sites including Microsoft’s Bing and Foursquare continued the trend of teaming up with IYPs to help inform and expand their online directory databases.

These sites are increasingly depending on IYPs to provide comprehensive, accurate listings of local business information. Additionally, we’ve seen strengthening advertising distribution relationships with a variety of local search companies, which is broadening the exposure that local businesses receive.

How should local businesses leverage these growing partnerships in the online local search space?

• Look for opportunities to get the most exposure for your spend by placing your advertising dollars where you’re guaranteed the widest range of consumers, combining the “eyeballs” you’ll receive  with those promised by your provider through its distribution channels.

• Recognize the ongoing value that listings in established and trusted online directories, as well as other types of media, give your business by ensuring that potential and current customers are provided with your accurate contact information.

• Take advantage of opportunities to integrate your online advertising efforts with a smaller set of companies, or even with just one. Today, many online offerings provide packaged services that meet a variety of needs while simplifying and streamlining the advertising process and saving money for your business.

Extending that line of thought, I’d like to talk about another essential trend happening online – especially in local markets – the booming group advertising and daily deal offerings.

Companies like Groupon and LivingSocial have changed the way we all view coupons and deals because of their incredible success in the past year. The premise is also rather simple, which is why they have been so effective.

If this is new to you, the idea is that these companies work with advertisers to offer massive reductions in products or services – sometimes over 50% off regular prices – on everything from restaurants to spa retreats, theater tickets or vacation packages.

They localize many of these deals to various cities across the country and gather a large number of people to go in on the same offering. So the more people who commit to a coupon, the better the deal is for consumers while advertisers see more revenue and promotion.

It’s interesting to see how the landscape has changed in 2011 because we’re now seeing these models integrate into local search engines and social media. While there’s evidence of a decline in Groupon’s revenue as of late, it’s likely because other competitors are leveling the playing field.

Local Deal Sites & Local Search

The large group coupon model is also evolving into programs that offer daily deals and loyalty programs – which are becoming integrated into local search and social media.

While larger, national deals might work for vacations or that television you’ve had your eye on – what about your local restaurant or eyeglass shop? And this has sparked some grumbling from consumers about the availability of local deals.

That’s where local search engines can make a huge difference. Recently, the Wall Street Journal wrote about how AT&T is planning to offer a daily deal in local markets around the country via YP.com and YPMobile.

Through this offering, AT&T is giving users a reason to keep coming back to YP every day to see what’s available in their town. It also gives small- and medium-sized businesses a great way to offer coupons to local customers without having to offer huge bulk discounts like the Groupon and LivingSocial models.

Customer Loyalty Programs Reborn

Another approach to the daily deal market integrates the promotions with social media and a traditional customer loyalty model.

Called Social Select, this service builds on daily deal offerings by rewarding customer loyalty with extra incentives. Customers can punch a physical reward card or even use QR Codes to track their accounts, deals and purchases via mobile phones.

Social Select also gives businesses a great way to improve customer interaction online because it integrates seamlessly with Facebook and other social media. Of course, Facebook also recently announced its own group deal offering and is partnering with companies like ReachLocal, Tippr, Plum District and Zozi.

Attracting and retaining customers has always been a cornerstone of good business and it’s very interesting to see what has happened in our space in the past year. Local search engines, national deal sites and social media alike are all offering these incentives to customers.

It’s exciting to watch the local search industry integrate these new digital models and techniques while preserving its own core business – getting people the right information and listings wherever they live.

In addition to offering dynamic content like videos and virtual tours, small- and medium-sized businesses should definitely be considering the local daily deal and group coupon market through one of these models!