The following has been cross-posted from the adCenter Blog.

Today at Social-Loco, I had the opportunity to share Bing’s thinking around local search advertising – specifically around how consumers are embracing locally targeted content on the PC and mobile, and because of that shift, how Bing is helping advertisers engage consumers at the important moment of decision.

For context, many know that mobile has become a medium where consumers are looking to complete tasks. According to a study we recently conducted with ROI Research, 37% of consumers are leveraging mobile to look for more information after seeing a product advertised via newspaper, radio, outdoor or TV. Offering local search advertising is more important today than ever, as 44% of local business plans will include local advertising this year, according to Borrell.

With that in mind, I provided a sneak peek into our plan to launch new local features for Bing in the U.S. that will help marketers - large and small ­- reach their local audience. These new mobile local ad offerings build off of the momentum generated from the recent Bing Business Portal and Bing Mobile Deals announcements and include:

image-- Radius Targeting for Search Ads that will allow advertisers to segment a specific five to 100 mile radius around an address to display their copy. We believe this will increase ad relevancy for consumers as well as campaign efficiency and ROI for businesses. Radius Targeting Ads will be available in all adCenter markets in the coming months.

-- Local Search Ad Attributes that will allow advertisers to define certain attributes to their ad, such as a merchant’s address or a phone number. Those attributes will be served to local queries and within advertisements, both on the PC and mobile. Local Ad Attributes will begin rolling out in adCenter in the second half of the calendar year, depending upon publisher and mobile device.

-- Bing Vision taps into the idea that once a customer is inside a store, the brand’s goal is to get them to “marry” its product. Bing Vision utilizes the camera on a customer’s smartphone to provide the customer with additional product information, reviews and prices. The system is easy: all a customer has to do is take a photo of the product and Bing Vision will detect the text, QR Scanner or MS Tag, returning the product results - helping the customer further engage and hopefully purchase the product. Bing Vision has already launched with the Bing for iPhone app, and will be available on other mobile devices later in the year.

Through these different offerings we’re helping consumers use the digital world to help them accomplish what they want to in the real world. And, we’ve just begun working to help our advertisers reach those consumers with advertising that is both meaningful and actionable, while also giving local marketers the ability to reach consumers with increased efficiency.

Look for more from me on Bing’s strategy around local search advertising at MediaPost’s Search Insider Summit, Saturday, May 7 in Captiva Island, Florida. And, as always, if you have feedback or thoughts please share!

Cheers,

Dennis Glavin, Group Product Manager and Lead on Local Search Advertising for Microsoft

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