Many online searchers now use Local Search specific keywords to get a search return that is within or nearby the city they reside in.  For example, typing into Google the keyword phrase "search engine optimization" will yield tens of thousands of SEO websites that are located across the country. On the other hand, typing in "Denver Search Engine Optimization" will yield Denver Colorado search engine marketing companies that are more relevant to the online searcher.

Local Search is broken down into two categories. The first category of Local Search is using the Google Map feature.  Optimizing business website content for Google Local is a little bit different than search engine optimizing for the organic search engine results. Optimizing for Google Local requires getting excellent Citations, identifying where the center of the city is on the map and creating the Google Local business profile page.

Google Universal Search

Google's Universal Search offers a blended set of search results in addition to just listing websites.  

For example, Google searchers do not need to visit Google Video's to find videos that are aligned with their keyword search term.  Now using a single keyword term searchers can see search results that list websites, maps, news, images, videos, shopping and gmail.   

Acperion has been doing Universal Search Optimization as part of its standard SEO launch plan.  

• Corporate press releases
• Videos
• Blogs
• Local listings
• Images 
• Twitter feeds

By search engine optimizing all of this meta data, it increases the probability to achieve multiple listings when a search user does one search and increases the likelihood that your online content will get the visit and not one of your competitors.