New research reveals dramatic effects on local search and provides insights into how to monitor search habits at the local level and use these changes for better economic performance.
The study tracked consumer trends across over 200,000 locations in various sectors.
The report covers these categories:
- Business Services
- Financial Services
- Sit-down Restaurants
- Quick Service Restaurants
- Retail
- Healthcare
- Hospitality
It’s widely recognized that the business impact was significant. This research highlights how the pandemic affected website clicks, click-to-call actions, and clicks for driving directions.
According to the research:
“COVID-19 had a massive impact on the local search landscape in 2020. Across the over 200,000 locations in various sectors that were tracked, local searches were volatile, experiencing initial drops, recovery, further volatility, and a gradual return to pre-pandemic levels. Sectors that adapted to the uncertain economic climate weathered the pandemic better, but no sector was untouched.”
Total Views
All sectors saw a decline in total views from February through April. Recovery began in May, and by the fourth quarter, all metrics stabilized at similar growth and decline percentages.
Click to Call
"Click to Call" saw significant performance during the pandemic, skyrocketing in March and peaking in April and May 2020. This metric was particularly volatile for most sectors but ended the year with a higher rate year-over-year for sit-down restaurants.
Financial Services
Financial services experienced a significant decline in views from March through May, after which there was a gradual rise. However, total searches and clicks ended the year higher than pre-pandemic levels from January 2020.
Business Services
Business services suffered during the pandemic due to the work-from-home phenomenon.
According to the report:
“What started as a strong year in terms of views plummeted in March, only beginning to regain traction in June. Local searches and views took a significant hit in March and April 2020. The business services sector recorded the largest percentage changes for all metrics, with most metrics increasing significantly in May 2020.”
Restaurants
The pandemic hit the restaurant business particularly hard. Restaurants typically operate under pressure, especially smaller startups with a failure rate of approximately 27%. The pandemic emphasized the importance of being able to pivot in response to changing conditions.
Note:
“…views and clicks were down throughout 2020. Only clicks to phone calls and clicks to websites surpassed pre-COVID metrics.”
Retail
Retail managed to perform well during the pandemic. Clicks saw the smallest dips compared to other sectors, continuing to grow.
Observation:
“From October to December 2020, total views surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Total searches also trended upwards, peaking in December 2020 due to holiday shopping. Retail experienced less turbulence compared to other sectors affected by COVID-19.”
Healthcare
Healthcare began with declines but started to regain views and searches beginning in June 2020. Clicks to phone calls and websites nearly reached pre-pandemic levels.
Hospitality
The hospitality sector struggled initially but began to rebound modestly in June. The trends indicated fewer consumers, but those who did search were more active.
Observation:
“By June, both searches and views started making a slow comeback and have remained steady. While fewer consumers were searching and viewing hotel listings, those who did were taking action, especially from July through September.”
Local Search & Consumer Behavior
The pandemic caused lasting changes in how users interacted with maps and business listings to contact and do business with local businesses. Monitoring user behavior is crucial for responding to rapidly changing local search consumer trends.
Citation
For more insights, Search Engine Journal readers can download the full report titled "An In-Depth Analysis of Google My Business Insights Trends in 2020."
