"To make local search work," says Jupiter research analyst Gary Stein, "you have to get all the plumbers and dentists on there, then you have to get people to shift over to thinking about using Google to find plumbers." Don't expect local search to be a significant moneymaker for anyone until national retailers hop on board to let you know where the closest Home Depot is and whether they have that sander in stock you're itching to buy.
It's obviously too early to pass judgment on any of these emerging online marketing techniques, although each has significant flaws. Remember that GoTo.com, the precursor to Overture, was laughed at in its early days for selling simple keywords on a search engine. No matter which, if any, succeed, what's clear is that these models for segmenting, targeting, and reaching customers are forever changing the way companies think about advertising as a sales tool. When you can select your target customer by geography, actual (not projected) buying patterns, and browsing behaviors -- and track the return on investment of each ad by following a customer from the time she is targeted to the time she makes the purchase -- it's hard to go back to fuzzy math and schmoozy ad salespeople. The technocrats will have the last laugh, even if it's at the marketers' expense.
Alison Overholt is a Fast Company staff writer.
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