Using Local Classifieds to Drive Business

Go Local is the new online mantra to increase traffic and business to your website. As internet becomes more and more pervasive in our daily lives, the days of turning to the yellow pages to seek information on local services is now passé, internet is the new holy grail for information on anything and everything. If your products and services are not listed online to appear at relevant search keywords, you might as well kiss goodbye to your business.

As per a Google research way back in May 2007, 73% of all online activity is linked to accessing local content and the number has only grown exponentially since then. A ROBOcomScore throws up some good data to highlight the growing importance and need for business to be visible in local search.

The online classified industry can today be grouped into 2 broad groups, which in turn can be subdivided into 2 further types:

While their Geographic scope distinguishes them as Local Or Global, their focus ona specific niche or not determines whether they are classified as General or Vertical.Just as no discussion on classified sites is complete without the mention of Craiglist, the pioneer in the classified space, recent times have seen the splurge of new gen classified sites such as OLX & Quickr, which create a secure and user-friendly trading environment at no cost to the end consumer. In fact, OLX’s CAGR of nearly 653% ever since they set shop in India, can be attributed to its user friendliness and its focus on mobile & other effective advertising sources.

Little surprise, if one was to analyze the growth of internet population in India. In fact a McKinsey report pegs India’s projected 370 million Internet users in 2015 as the second highest in the world

In order for the online classified industry to take the next leap, however, it will have to look at improvements in the following areas:

Personalization

The current times are clearly that of personalization & offering bespoke solutions as against the era of mass marketing. Classifieds too should reflect this trend by offering tailor made solutions such as customizable search options.

Encourage Community Reviews

Classified sites need to integrate with social media & allow users to review & rank services, which on the one hand serve as great testimonials for users & on the other keep businesses on their toes

Improved searchability

Investing time & effort in improving search functionalities that can offer not just a large listing but a relevant listing for the consumer, is key. Forward looking search algorithms will clearly make a difference between a successful & an unsuccessful classified site. Robust search filters, multiple search categories are only some of the aspects that can help users sieve through reams of information to get to information relevant to them.

The Online classified industry as a whole is set to take a quantum leap forward fuelled by the growth of the internet, new technology, emerging demographic opportunities, the evolution of the mobile as well as the concept of tele-classifieds.