Local SEM firm WebVisible and Nielsen last year surveyed U.S. consumers about their local search behavior. There were some very interesting and striking findings. For example, 51% of users were doing category searches for local businesses without a geographic modifier. Today findings from a second wave of that survey were released. The second survey is broader and addresses a range of issues including consumer attitudes toward advertising in general, use of the Internet vs. traditional media for local information and offline purchase behavior.

Approximately 2000 U.S. consumers were randomly selected from the Nielsen//NetRatings MegaPanel to participate in the survey. Below I excerpt some of the findings (in many cases verbatim). At a high level, they validate the consumer reliance on search generally and for local information in particular. The survey data also reflect a consumer preference for "relevant" ads (as in SEM) vs. other forms of "push" advertising.

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