Google Favorite Places Could Complicate the Local Search Game

A little over a month ago, Google announced that it was sending brick and mortar businesses decals to put on their windows, with barcodes that people can scan with their phones to bring up business listings.

These were made available to the businesses Google deemed "favorite places". Over 10,000 businesses in the US got them right off the bat, and Google will most likely expand that number in the future.

An article by Digital Third Coast brings up some good points about why the physical world may need to start being considered in local search optimization practices, and the potential issues that could arise if this program of Google’s really takes off. The author thinks it could have "serious implications" for local search, saying:

The first hint that this is the case is the manner with which Google decided which companies would receive the decals. Their formula for the top 100,000+ Favorite Places was based largely on user interaction with local listings, including how many people searched for driving directions to a given location.

Some have argued that this may have unintended consequences: certain types of businesses are likely to receive a phone call from potential visitors rather than more-easily tracked user engagement with Google. Or, certain businesses’ clientele may be less keen on using Google Maps for directions. As a result, these businesses are unintentionally penalized by the company’s formula for PlaceRank. Like web search, the structure of the system may be limited in determining the actual popularity, community standing, or other relevant factors in determining the popularity of a given business.

The author also suggests that a business with a code that is scanned more frequently will have an advantage in PlaceRank over other businesses. Other potential complications mentioned include the possible favoring of businesses in areas with a lot of walking traffic. These businesses would be more likely to be scanned than those that are more commonly driven to.

It’s best not to jump to any conclusions at this point because they are really only speculative right now, but it makes for an interesting discussion about where things could be headed. This is of course only one of many factors in the ever-changing landscape of local search.