Google Knows Where You Are And Has The Goods To Show For It.

Having lost the 1/2 billion dollar bid to acquire Yelp, it was obvious Google was moving aggressively to win the local war. It’s no surprise then that the search giant announced location will now be a critical factor for the search results that come up, especially if you are using Google’s mobile search support for which was launched in September.

For example, if you search for a “Chinese restaurant” and you are standing in Tulsa, the first result you get is going to be the restaurant closest to you. It won’t matter how maxed out with metadata the Chinese restaurant in Oklahoma, Des Moines or New York City is, it won’t overcome the geographic data of the local diner next door. In Google’s thinking, when people Google for a restaurant, a plumber or a veterinarian, they are looking for someone near them to call for services.

Google has also beefed up its Local Business Center, which allows businesses to provide specific information to appear on the Google Maps feature. Google looks to have all intentions of turning its map into the world’s most comprehensive business directory, answering not only where a business is and what it does, but also taking care of the tip-of-the-tongue issue.

“What’s that place across from Grandma’s house that sells lawn furniture?” There’s an map for that now.

Question is will there be enough mainstream adoption of local search? This is what points to Google’s bet on local to be spot on. As smartphones reach critical mass, more people outside of the die-hard technology crowd will make this their default search tool for things near them if they see it as viable alternate for directory assistance. To back its bet Google will use Android to push not only its offline strategy but its online strategy; this should become top of mind to marketers as Google seeks to win the war over local.

What the Google Local push speaks to is the growing granular nature of information on the Web and how it’s now just as valuable (if not more so) to know who are your businesses neighbors as it is to hit No. 1 in SERPs.