15 Stats Proving the Value of Online Listings for Brands

Online listings are powerful marketing assets that help your brand or business get found online. With a sound local listing management strategy, you can improve your visibility in search results, attract new customers, and supercharge your traffic and revenue performance.

What are Online Listings?

Online listings are pages that display your business’s information on directory websites, search engine results pages, social media and business review sites. Popular sites found in the top business directory list include Google, Yelp, Facebook, Tripadvisor, and Trustpilot.

When people search for your brand or business name online — or when they search for the types of products and services you provide — your online local listings are (ideally) displayed in their search results.

Creating and managing your business’s listings should be an integral part of your marketing strategy. By publishing and distributing correct information about your company across the Web, you can improve brand awareness, boost your search engine visibility, build buzz around your brand, and drive sales.

15 Stats that Prove You Need an Online Listings Strategy

To emphasize the importance of online listings today, let’s take a look at some stats:

97% of people learn more about a local company via the Internet than anywhere else. (SEO Tribunal)
46% of all Google searches are looking for local information. (GoGulf)
“Near me” or “close by” type searches, which primarily display listings in search engine results pages, grew by more than 900% over two years. (HubSpot)
92% of searchers will pick businesses on the first page of local search results. (SEO Expert Brad)
Users often apply rating filters when they search for businesses online because they don’t trust the online listings of companies with lower than 4-star reviews. (Online Reviews Statistics)
Roughly 75% of new business is influenced by only a handful of business review sites and directories: Google, Facebook, Yelp, Tripadvisor, Apple Maps, and Bing Maps. (Local SEO Statistics)
Approximately 86% of people search for a location of a business on Google Maps, making it critical for brands to have updated online listings on Google. (99 Firms)
Online listings and search result information will send 70% of consumers to a physical store that’s relevant to their search results. (Expand Digital)
72% of consumers that perform a local search visit a store within 5 miles of their current location. (Intergrowth)
Consumers look for specific trust signals when looking at listings of businesses. The top 3 factors that influence their decision to choose a business are: photos, Google reviews, and position on the search engine results page (SERP). (Local SEO Statistics)
73% of consumers need to see positive online reviews on online listings before they place their trust on a business. (SEO Tribunal)
94% of consumers say they have avoided a business after reading a negative review. (Online Reviews Statistics)
74% of in-store shoppers search for information such as the closest store near them, locations, in stock near them, hours, directions, and contact information before going to the store. (Think with Google)
45% of consumers say they’re more likely to visit a business if it responds to negative reviews on its online listings. (Online Reviews Statistics)
43% of consumers will do online research even while they’re in the store. (SEO Tribunal)

Final Thoughts: Manage Online Listings as Part of Your Marketing Strategy

Judging by these online listings stats, every marketer should incorporate local listing management as part of their strategy. More consumers than ever utilize local search to find information about companies and brands. By creating, updating, and optimizing your business’s listings, you can increase your online visibility, target the right groups of customers, and position your brand in front of ready-to-buy audiences.