57% of US smartphone owners have done "near me" searches when shopping, food is #1 category

A new report by digital location marketers Uberall based on a July 2018 survey of 1000+ US smartphone users found:

• 69% use their smartphones for shopping.
• 82% of those - so 57% of total - have done a "near me" search.
• Millennials are the heaviest users of "near me" searches.
• 93% of those who have done "near me" searches said they are "very likely" (60%) or "likely" (33%) to click on one of the top 3 search returns.

Things most frequently shopped for via "near me: searches were:

1. Food 84%
2. Entertainment 56%
3. Banking 50%
4. Apparel 41%
5. Personal care 38%

Most popular search terms used in "near me" searches were:

1. Specific retailer 48%
2. Generic product 29%
3. Brand of product 23%

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So, actionable items for tourism-related businesses that want to make sales to visitors doing in-destination smartphone searches:

If you run a restaurant, convenience store, entertainment venue or personal-care service:

• Be visible in local search.
• Do sufficient SEO to get ranked in top-3 positions on your most profitable offerings.
• Make sure all your digital marketing and advertising is mobile-friendly.
• Do whatever it takes to keep Google happy - use call extensions in your ads, have a complete Google My Business profile, make sure your location on Google Maps is correct and add photos, get good reviews.