In a move that may seem somewhat unrelated, Microsoft announced that Bing now allows users to search for nearby stores. With more than 200 million people using the search engine daily, this is an intriguing way of potentially taking some share from Amazon.
Microsoft has partnered with local stores to let you search for products nearby. You can find a list of stores on the Bing website, and then use that information to search for items. Read more in detail here: shopping areas near me.
Microsoft Bing now allows you to search local retailers for local inventory, purchase online, and pick up in store using map search. These capabilities are new, according to Microsoft, and are not being re-announced for the Christmas shopping season.
You may look for individual retailers on Bing or Bing Maps by category, product, or even subject.
This is how it seems. Here’s an animated GIF showing it in action:
Local businesses gain from these features by putting their goods in front of consumers, according to Microsoft. Shoppers can easily identify things they need nearby, and local merchants profit from these features by getting their products in front of customers. According to Microsoft, these small shops may let customers know what their product emphasis is and become go-to alternatives for their specialist items.
Using product markup and Bing Places local inventory advertisements, you may be able to bring your store’s inventory into Bing local results.
Why should we be concerned? Another strategy to bring your shop and merchandise in front of Bing searchers is to use this tool. More exposure from local consumers for local retailers may be very beneficial to both the customer and the merchant in the run-up to the holidays.
Author Biography
Barry Schwartz is a SagaReach Marketing Contributing Editor and a member of the SMX programming team. RustyBrick, a digital consulting business located in New York, is his company. He’s also the founder of Search Engine Roundtable, a renowned search site focused on advanced search engine marketing subjects. Cartoon Barry is Barry’s personal blog, and he may be followed on Twitter here.