Today local search agency 15 Miles released its annual Local Search Usage study. Now in its fifth wave, the comScore administered study (n=4,000) also included Localeze’s participation for the first time.

It’s quite a “data dump” with lots of different findings about how consumers look for and find local businesses. This includes four main areas: local search, mobile usage, deals and social media influence. Here are a few highlights.

Mobile/Tablet Local Search Shaping Local Search Buying Behavior
�64% of tablet users (vs. 45% of mobile phone) conduct weekly local business searches on the device
�86% of tablet users made a purchase from their most recent tablet-based local search

Social Local Search on the Rise
�67% increase in social local business search since 2010
�35% of those that primarily use social networking sites for local search do so on a daily basis

Online Local Search/Listings Results Most Important to Searchers
�61% consider local search results to be more relevant (vs. 10% of paid search results)
�58% consider local search results to be more trustworthy (vs. 9% of paid search results)

Local Searchers Pleased with Daily Deals
�60% use daily deals and report high satisfaction with the purchases from these sites
�86% have or plan to purchase future deals from these businesses

I have a report in the works that digs a lot deeper into some of the mobile findings, and what they mean. My colleagues will likely do similar reports on the social and local search aspects. There’s a lot there to discuss. For now, here’s a hodgepodge of data, infograph-style.