Did you know that the majority of searches that are performed online are considered to have "local intent"?  

"Local Intent" occurs when a searcher is looking for a company or service located geographically close to them and depending on which report you reference, the numbers are somewhere between 45% and 70% of all searches! 

These numbers consider "intent" regardless of whether or not the search uses what is called a "local qualifier".  If someone is searching for a "dentist", for example, it is usually safe to assume that they are looking for a dentist close to them and not in another county or country - even if they don't use the "local qualifier" as in "dentist Portsmouth". 

The reason these numbers are important is that some companies don't need to be promoting themselves nationally or globally at all and so full "search engine optimisation" is not required and could potentially be a waste of money and effort. 

If you are running a business where your target audience is within 50 or 100 miles of your location, then you should be focused on "local search engine optimisation".

Currently, a few companies are offering local search services that fall into one of three (3) groups:

1. Online Directory.  A lot of service companies have created their own directories in an attempt to capture the local market.  These companies offer listings for free with a paid for premium service that may involve search marketing services such as PPC for a limited budget.  They also have a limited level of effectiveness.
2. PPC Only. The PPC providers like Google AdWords have made Geo targeting much simpler and so there are many companies that are offering a "Local Search" service that is purely based on the geo-targetted variations of the major search engines.  Many times a service company will try to control the marketing process completely and will create a separate web page or two on their own site for you and promote this site with AdWords (instead of promoting your own website).  It does have the benefit of servicing the needs of businesses that do not have a web site at all. 
3. Listings on Established Sites.  Some companies who have established and strongly ranking web sites in Google are selling listings / pages on their site.  These are simply pages (usually automated) that are created on a separate site from the main business - purely as a lead generation vehicle (not unlike a directory).  Once again they do not promote your web site - but promote a separate page that describes your business. If you stop working with them, your rankings will disappear.

There is a 4th group that Vertical Leap has been pioneering called "Local Search Engine Optimisation".  Unlike many of the other services in this space, our aim is to promote a client's existing web site in search engine's and directories so that they are prominently placed for their local target and can rely on long-lasting placements.  This is done by making actual ("on-page") changes to the client's web site as well as promoting the site in various search engine, directories and social media sites.

As you can see, promoting your business locally can be done in a number of ways, but if you have your own web site - you should be working to promote your own website in the major search engines, local directories, and social media sites..   If your business is regionally based, you have a much better chance of being in a first page position for your niche than perhaps you would be globally and the evidence shows that there is an increasing number of users who are using search engines to find businesses near them.