Local search is no longer just about ranking for “pizza near me” queries. With AI deeply embedded into search engines, maps, and discovery platforms, the way users find and choose local businesses has fundamentally changed. Instead of scanning long lists of results, people now expect instant answers, tailored recommendations, and frictionless actions such as calling, booking, or ordering.

AI sits at the center of this shift: from Search Enginge Optimization (SEO) to Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). It interprets intent, summarizes reputation, personalizes results, and often decides which few businesses are even shown. For local businesses, this means visibility is no longer driven by keywords alone, but by clarity, trust, and relevance reflected in their business profiles, reviews, and local data.

Some key facts to prove it:

1. 84% of consumers search for local businesses online daily and 60% click on AI‑generated overviews in Google Search
2. When local searchers do click 76-88% visit or call a business within a day, so losing visibility in AI surfaces means losing very high‑intent traffic
3. By 2026, analysts predict that over 75% of local business discovery will be influenced or mediated by AI systems, compared to about 45% in 2023. This shift is happening faster than most businesses are adapting their local presence

All of that directly affects local intent. General local SEO stats for 2025 show 98-99% of people have used the internet to find a local business, with around 80% doing so at least weekly and 32% daily.

This raises a practical question: what has actually changed for businesses, and how should they respond?

What’s changed for businesses

AI has transformed local search from a ranking problem into a comprehension problem. Search platforms are no longer asking “Which business uses the right keywords?” but rather “Which business best fits this user’s situation right now?”

Key changes include:

• From listings to summaries: Businesses are increasingly represented by AI-generated summaries built from reviews, photos, attributes, and and real user interactions, rather than standalone listings.
• From clicks to actions: Calls, directions, bookings, and messages often happen directly from search results, reducing website visits.
• From static rankings to personalization: Different users may see different local results for the same query.
• From volume to credibility: Review quality, consistency of information, and real-world signals now outweigh sheer quantity.

For businesses, this means that incomplete profiles, vague positioning, or inconsistent data can directly translate into lost visibility-regardless of past SEO performance.

How to Act?

To succeed in AI-driven local search, businesses must shift from isolated optimization tactics to clarity and usefulness across their business profiles.

Focus on the following actions:

1. Maintain consistency everywhere
   Align name, address, phone number, hours, and descriptions across directories, maps, and social platforms.
2. Strengthen your narrative through reviews
   Encourage customers to leave detailed reviews that mention specific services, use cases, to promote your business in AI summaries.
3. Use visuals with intent
   Upload photos and videos that answer real customer questions: interior, exterior, menu, results, accessibility, and atmosphere.
4. Treat listings as conversion assets
   Optimize profiles for calls, bookings, messages, and directions, not just impressions.

Conclusion

Websites are increasingly acting as data sources for AI, while local discovery shifts toward AI-generated experiences built on maps, profiles, and reviews. Local results, in particular, are likely to be absorbed into AI-generated summaries as Google and other search engines expand their AI-driven search modes. In this environment, brands must focus on precise data, consistency, and delivering a cohesive, highly personalized experience across every touchpoint.

If you want to understand how AI systems interpret your local presence today, reviewing real-world cases or starting with a simple local presence audit is often the fastest way to get clarity.

Curious how we can help your business do the same? Check our case studies or reach out to us at sales@geojet.io or via a live chat.

The HoReCa industry across Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is experiencing a swift digital evolution. In a region known for high mobile usage and intense competition, maintaining a strong online presence and managing digital reputation has become essential for hospitality brands. Today’s consumers heavily depend on platforms like Google Maps, search engines, and social media to discover, evaluate, and choose where to dine or stay. In this environment, customer experience (CX) plays a pivotal role, as seamless omnichannel engagement and timely responses to reviews significantly shape guest perceptions and influence brand loyalty.

Key trends and statistics highlight the importance of these factors:

• Coffee and café culture have emerged as significant trends within the GCC food service sector, particularly in the UAE. Coffee consumption in the country has soared, with more than six million cups consumed daily and an annual spend exceeding USD 630 million.
• Customer expectations have shifted toward seamless digital experiences. According to KPMG, 96% of companies in GCC consider CX improvement their top priority
• The GCC HoReCa market is projected to reach USD 61.55 billion in 2025 and is expected to grow to USD 109.9 billion by 2030, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.29% over the forecast period (2025–2030)

Alongside the trends mentioned above, there are additional important market developments to consider:

• A decline of 1.5 points in a business’s average review rating can lead to an 11% decrease in sales.
• According to Total Food Service, 80% of diners are more inclined to choose a restaurant that has positive reviews highlighting the quality and taste of its food.

Therefore, cafés and restaurants must substantially strengthen their digital strategies. Google Maps is a critical part of that equation, given that Google accounts for 96% of online traffic in the GCC. To maintain accurate location listings, manage customer reviews effectively, and boost visibility in local searches, businesses need a well-defined digital location management strategy. With this in mind, let’s dive into our key findings.

What HoReCa are going to be analyzed?

Our latest analysis explores the digital footprint of 21 major cafés and restaurants operating across 6 GCC markets: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, and Qatar. Drawing from an extensive dataset comprising 7 102 Google Maps locations, 5 021 359 customer reviews, and 1 721 303 user-generated photos, we focused on HoReCa with the highest number of physical locations. This approach not only highlights regional trends but also ensures balanced representation across the GCC, providing valuable benchmarks for businesses invested in location-based customer engagement.

Our findings reveal clear opportunities for GCC restaurants and cafés to optimize their visibility and accuracy on Google Maps. Notably, 19% of the analyzed HoReCa lacked key business information such as address, phone number, category, website, and photos.

In particular, 828 out of 7 102 Google Maps listings (11.7%) were unclaimed or unmanaged by the brand. For HoReCa businesses, this is a cautionary signal: unclaimed profiles risk misleading customers with outdated hours, incorrect locations, or missed service opportunities, all of which directly impact foot traffic and guest experience.

On average, data completeness across GCC cafés and restaurants reaches 81%, with many locations missing critical business details that directly affect customer engagement. For instance, 986 locations (13.9%) lack website links, and 921 (13.0%) have no telephone number listed.

These gaps reinforce a broader issue: a significant portion of physical locations remain unmanaged at the brand level, increasing the risk of customer dissatisfaction due to outdated addresses or incorrect operating hours. Compounding this, many listings also omit key attributes and business descriptions, reducing visibility in local search and undermining trust. HoReCa businesses with multiple branches must actively fix these issues to protect both footfall and reputation.

The average rating across GCC cafés and restaurants is 4.0, based on 5 021 359 reviews, which leaves clear room for improvement. Nearly 50% of locations fall below a 4.0 rating, and 12.7% have no reviews at all, indicating low customer engagement and missed SEO opportunities.

For HoReCa brands, this highlights the value of proactive review management. Even a 0.1 increase in rating can drive up to 25% more conversions, making underperforming locations a smart focus for quick wins in visibility and customer trust.

With 1 721 303 photos analyzed, visual content shows strong engagement potential. However, quality is lacking. For HoReCa brands, maintaining updated, high-quality visuals is key. Locations with relevant photos see 15% more views, making photo management a simple but powerful driver of foot traffic.

GCC Local Search Trends for HoReCa

Our analysis across 6 GCC countries reveals key local search trends impacting HoReCa brands. These insights power the Geojet Performance Index, helping multi-location businesses benchmark and improve their online visibility. Explore the map below to see performance by country.

The Geojet Performance Index is built on 7 core metrics:

1. Verified locations
2. Data completeness
3. Average rating
4. Reviews per location
5. Photos per location
6. Total number of locations
7. Population

Focusing on the first five gives HoReCa brands the biggest opportunity to strengthen their local search performance. Here's why these metrics matter—and how to improve them

1. Verified Locations. Verification builds trust. A verified listing signals to customers that the business information is accurate and brand-managed making it the most heavily weighted metric. Kuwait leads here, with 92% of locations claimed by HoReCa brands.
2. Data Completeness. Complete profiles help customers make confident decisions. Missing information creates friction and lowers trust, which is why this metric also carries significant weight. UAE sets the standard, with 83% of cafes and restaurants providing full business details.
3. Ratings. Customer ratings offer a direct view into satisfaction and service quality. While not fully controllable, maintaining strong ratings is essential for credibility and conversion. Kuwait leads with average ratings of 4.1.
4. Reviews per Location. Reviews indicate engagement and customer voice. While quantity matters, quality and active response are more influential. This metric carries moderate weight. As the largest market, Saudi Arabia naturally leads in review volume.
5. Photos per Location. Photos enhance visibility and influence customer perception. Although a supporting factor, relevant and up-to-date visuals improve engagement. Saudi Arabia again leads, with 1 204 326 photos posts that reflects strong interaction.
6. Number of Locations. While it’s important to list every physical site, this metric holds lower weight. Once locations are live, the focus should shift to data verification and customer experience.
7. Population. This contextual metric helps normalize comparisons across countries with different market sizes. Though not influenceable, it ensures a balanced, data-driven view, especially between markets like Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Conclusion

For cafés and restaurants in the GCC, managing online presence across multiple locations is increasingly complex but it’s also critical for growth. Using the Geojet Performance Index, we identified actionable insights that help GCC HoReCa operators improve their local SEO and customer experience. Impressively, 6 out of the 7 key performance indicators can be fully managed through the Geojet dashboard, thus empowering brands to take control of their digital footprint with ease.

While our research focused on Google Maps, forward-thinking HoReCa brands should also monitor emerging platforms like Bing Maps and Yango Maps. Yango, backed by Yandex, is rapidly expanding in the region and presents new opportunities for early adopters.

When well-managed, digital map platforms become powerful tools to attract new guests, drive traffic, and boost operational accuracy. Neglecting them, however, can lead to poor customer experiences and eroded brand trust.

At Geojet, we’ve helped one of our clients achieve the following:

• 52% increase in discovery searches
• 37% increase in created routes
• 21% increase in site visits

Curious how we can help your business do the same? Check our case studies or reach out to us at sales@geojet.io or via a live chat.

The telecommunications sector in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is undergoing rapid digital transformation. With a high mobile and fierce competition among operators, ensuring a strong digital presence and reputation is more critical than ever. Consumers increasingly rely on online channels, such as Google Maps, search engines, and social media, in order to evaluate telecom brands before making decisions. Meanwhile, customer experience (CX) has become a defining factor, with seamless omnichannel interactions and prompt responses to reviews influencing brand perception and loyalty.

Key trends and statistics highlight the importance of these factors:

• Digital engagement in GCC is at an all-time high. Internet penetration in Saudi Arabia has reached 99%, and smartphone penetration in the UAE exceeds 97%. By 2030, 5G adoption in the region is expected to reach 93%, outpacing global averages and further driving digital engagement.
• Customer expectations have shifted toward seamless digital experiences. According to KPMG, 96% of companies in GCC consider CX improvement their top priority
• Reputation influences operator choice. While trust in telecom brands is improving (23% of global consumers say the industry's reputation has strengthened over the past five years), customer confidence remains moderate and lower than in banking or pharmaceuticals. Negative reviews about billing issues, service disruptions, or poor customer support can significantly impact a brand’s image.

In addition to the above-mentioned omnichannel trends there are other important market tendencies:

• The GCC telecom market will continue to grow from USD 76.13 billion in 2024 to USD 128.67 billion by 2029, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.07%
• Growth in sectors like e-commerce and retail will drive telecom providers to enhance their capabilities further.

Thus, telecoms will need to significantly enhance their digital strategy. And Google Maps could not be omitted, as Google is responsible for 96% of online traffic in GCC. To ensure accurate store listings on Google Maps, effectively manage customer feedback on review platforms, and enhance local search visibility, telecoms need a strategic approach to digital location management.  With that being said, let’s deep dive into our findings.

Which Telecoms are going to be analyzed?

Our research analyzes the online presence of 13 leading telecoms across 6 GCC countries: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, and Qatar. We analyzed a robust dataset of 2 587 Google Maps locations, 478 144 reviews, and 62 268 photos. We prioritized the largest GCC telecoms by location count, as their expansive store networks offer key insights into regional trends while ensuring a balanced representation across all GCC countries.

GCC telecom providers have significant opportunities to enhance their Google Maps presence, with 30% of the analyzed companies missing essential business information. Our assessment of key data fields included address, phone number, category, photos, website, description, and attributes. Additionally, many telecom providers are not actively managing customer reviews and have numerous unclaimed profiles. Out of 2 587 Google Maps locations, 629 (24.3%) are not directly managed by the brand, which can lead to issues such as customers visiting incorrect locations or facing service disruptions due to inaccurate business hours.

The average data completeness for GCC telecoms stands at 70%, with many missing critical details. For example, 694 locations (26.8%) lack website information, while 584 locations (22.6%) are missing telephone numbers. This reinforces the earlier finding that a significant number of physical locations are not directly managed by the brand, potentially causing customers to visit incorrect addresses or arrive outside of operating hours, leading to frustration. Additionally, many locations are also missing key business attributes and descriptions.

The average rating across analyzed telecom locations is 3.7, based on 478 144 reviews, which still has significant room for improvement. 1 791 locations (69.2%) have ratings between 1.0 and 3.9, only highlighting improvement possibilites. Additionally, 260 locations (10.1%) have no ratings at all, signaling low customer engagement and potentially impacting their online reputation.

For telecom providers focused on local SEO, prioritizing these locations can yield quick wins, as even a small rating increase of 0.1 can boost conversions by 25%. Enhancing customer engagement and review management can significantly improve search engine visibility.

Across the analyzed telecom locations, we identified 62 268 photos, indicating strong social engagement. However, many of these images were irrelevant, highlighting the need for telecom providers to focus more on this area. Notably, 1 006 locations (38.9%) have fewer than three photos, which can negatively impact customer engagement, as locations with updated and relevant visuals are viewed 15% more often.

To strengthen their online presence, telecom providers should prioritize uploading high-quality, relevant photos while actively flagging and removing irrelevant ones.

GCC Local Search Trends for Telecom

Through an in-depth analysis of the statistics above, we identified local search trends across GCC countries, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. These insights were compiled into the Geojet Performance Index, which you can explore on the map below.

The Geojet Performance Index is calculated based on seven key metrics:

1. Verified locations
2. Data completeness
3. Ratings
4. Reviews per Location
5. Photos per Location
6. Number of locations
7. Population

By prioritizing the first five metrics, telecoms can significantly boost their Performance Index. Let’s dive into why these factors matter and how to optimize them.

1. Verified locations are crucial for establishing trust and credibility. A verified business reassures customers that the information is accurate and legitimate. Given its strong influence on customer trust and decision-making, this metric carries the highest weight. Kuwait leads in the verified locations metric, with brands claiming 90% of locations.
2. Data completeness is essential for helping customers make informed decisions. Incomplete profiles can lead to confusion and reduce trust. To reflect its importance, this metric also holds a high weight. Saudi Arabia leads in data completeness, with 72% of telecom companies providing full business information.
3. Ratings provide direct insight into customer satisfaction and overall experience. While businesses cannot directly control their ratings, maintaining high ratings is key to building a strong reputation and attracting new customers. Monitoring and improving this metric is vital. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman lead in customer ratings, both with an average rating of 3.5.
4. Reviews serve as a valuable indicator of customer engagement and feedback. While the quantity of reviews matters, their quality has a greater impact. This metric is assigned moderate weight, recognizing its significance without overemphasizing it. However, actively managing and responding to reviews can indirectly influence ratings. Saudi Arabia leads in customer reviews, which is expected given its status as the largest country in the region.
5. Photos help customers visualize telecom facilities and services, playing a role in their decision-making process. Although they contribute to the overall perception of a business, they are just one piece of the puzzle. As such, this metric is weighted moderately. Nonetheless, businesses should upload relevant photos to enhance their online presence and customer experience. Saudi Arabia leads in terms of photos with 35 873, demonstrating high customer engagement.
6. Number of locations is a less influential metric. While ensuring all physical locations are accurately listed online is important, once this is done, the focus should shift to maintaining high-quality information and managing customer interactions.
7. Population has the least impact on the index. Since businesses cannot influence this factor, it primarily serves to provide context and balance data analysis between countries with varying population sizes, such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE. It should be considered as a complementary metric rather than a core driver of performance.

Among brands that take care of these issues properly we can suggest to take a look at Etisalat.

Conclusion

Assessing the digital footprint of the GCC’s telecom sector is a complex challenge. This study highlights key obstacles by analyzing telecom providers’ presence on Google Maps using various performance metrics. With insights from the Performance Index, telecom operators now have a clear strategy to enhance their visibility and effectiveness on Google Maps. Notably, 6 out of 7 key metrics can be easily managed through the Geojet dashboard.

While our analysis primarily focused on Google Maps, telecom providers in the GCC should also consider alternative platforms such as Bing Maps and Yango Maps. Yango Maps, in particular, deserves special attention, as Yandex, being the world’s third-largest search engine, is making significant investments in the region. When properly managed, online maps can be a powerful tool for attracting customers and resolving service-related concerns. However, poor oversight of map listings and customer reviews can pose serious risks to a brand’s reputation, as demonstrated in this study.

We at Geojet know how to achieve that and were able to drive the following results for some of our telecom clients:

• x2 increase in created routes on online maps
• 22.84% conversion from views to actions
• 40% increase in replied reviewsThis research focused on telecom providers, and further analysis covering other industries is on the way.

If you’d like to see similar insights tailored to your business, reach out to us at sales@geojet.io or contact us via chat.

We continue our analysis of the GCC retail sector. In our previous article, we explored the digital presence of GCC Non-Food Retail, which you can find here. Given the differences in customer behavior and product selection between Food and Non-Food retail, we have divided our research into two parts. This article focuses on GCC Food Retail, which accounts for a significant share of the GCC retail market:

• Food retail will keep growing. According to Alpen Capital, food retail sales are anticipated to increase at a CAGR of 4.9% between 2022 and 2026, while non-food retail sales are forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 6.2%.
• According to Statista, in 2023 food retail sales in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries were estimated at 127.2 billion U.S. dollars. In 2028, the value of food retail sales in the GCC was forecast to reach around 162 billion U.S. dollars.
• The GCC's growing population is expected to reach 59.7 million by 2025, which will drive food consumption and encourage innovation and variety in the food market, driving the food market growth.
• There are some other important factors that shouldn’t be overlooked, such as rising disposable income, GDP growth, urbanization and modernization, expanding food services sector, rise in tourism sector, etc.

As the market expands, competition intensifies, and consumer behavior becomes increasingly digital, food retailers in the GCC must pay special attention to online maps and review platforms. Keeping location details accurate, engaging with customer feedback, and building a strong online reputation can boost foot traffic, enhance brand loyalty, and drive higher sales. With that being said, let’s take a look at GCC Food retailers' digital presence.

Which Food Retailers are going to be analyzed?

Our research examines the online presence of 11 major food retailers across 6 GCC countries, utilizing a comprehensive dataset that includes 3 467 Google Maps locations, 2 656 385 reviews, and 922 789 photos. We chose to focus on the largest food retailers in the GCC by the number of locations, as these companies boast the most extensive networks of offices and branches. This approach enabled us to identify regional trends and ensure representation of all GCC countries.:

• We analyzed the following Food Retail companies: Panda Retail Company, Herfy, Al Othaim Market, Farm Superstores, Carrefour, LuLu Group, West Zone,  Al Maya Group, Al Meera, Americana Group, and Nesto

The current state of Google Maps for GCC food retailers presents several opportunities for improvement, as 26% of them lack essential business information. This figure was determined by assessing the completeness of fields like address, coordinates, phone number, category, photos, website, description, and attributes. Furthermore, many retailers are not effectively managing reviews and have numerous unclaimed profiles. However, this is only a small part of the overall issue, so let's explore our research in more detail.

Out of the 3 467 Google Maps locations, 825 or 23.7% are not directly managed by the brand. This lack of direct oversight could result in negative outcomes, such as customers arriving at incorrect locations or times.

The average data completeness is 69%, with food retailers frequently missing key information, such as websites for 744 locations (21.4%) and phone numbers for 543 locations (15.6%). This reinforces the earlier finding that many physical locations are not directly managed by the brand, which can result in customers visiting businesses at incorrect times or addresses, leading to dissatisfaction. Furthermore, many locations lack essential business attributes and descriptions.

The average rating for the analyzed locations is 4.1, based on 2 656 385 reviews. While this is quite good, 1 299 locations (37.4%) have a rating below 4, and 107 locations (3%) have no rating at all. For those working in local SEO, we recommend prioritizing these locations, as improvements here can lead to quick results and significantly boost the company's search engine visibility. Even a slight rating increase of 0.1 can enhance conversions by 25%. For more information on how to achieve this, we recommend reading one of our articles.

For the locations mentioned above, we identified 922 789 photos, which reflect strong social engagement. However, many of these photos were irrelevant, and we strongly advise companies to pay more attention to this area. Notably, 414 locations (11.9%) have fewer than 3 photos, leading to reduced customer engagement, as locations with updated and relevant photos and videos are viewed 15% more frequently. To improve their online presence, companies should begin by uploading relevant photos and reporting irrelevant ones for removal.

GCC Local Serach Trends for Food Retail

Through a thorough analysis of the statistics mentioned above, we were able to identify local search trends for each GCC country analyzed, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. These metrics were consolidated into the Geojet Performance Index, which you can check on the map below.

This percentage for Geojet Performance Index was counted by measuring 7 metrics, such as:

1. Verified locations
2. Data completeness
3. Ratings
4. Reviews
5. Photos
6. Amount of locations
7. Population

By prioritizing the first 5 metrics, retailers can significantly enhance their Performance Index. Here’s why these metrics are critical and how they can be improved.

1. Verified locations play a key role in establishing trust and credibility. Verification assures customers that the provided information is accurate and that the business is authentic. Due to its strong impact on customer confidence and decision-making, this metric holds the highest weight. The leader in verified locations metric is Kuwait with 92% of locations claimed by brands
2. Maintaining complete information for each location is crucial in helping customers make informed decisions. Incomplete profiles can lead to confusion and diminish trust. Therefore, data completeness is assigned a high weight to emphasize its significance. The leader in maintaining complete information is the UAE with 72% of food retail companies providing full information about their business.
3. Customer ratings directly reflect their experiences and satisfaction levels. High ratings are crucial for building a strong reputation and attracting new customers. While businesses cannot directly control their ratings, this remains a key metric to track and analyze. The leaders in customer ratings are Qatar and Kuwait with 4.1 average rating.
4. Customer reviews indicate engagement and provide valuable feedback. However, the quality of reviews has a greater influence than sheer volume. Consequently, reviews are assigned a moderate weight, acknowledging their importance without overstating their impact. That said, actively managing and responding to reviews is essential, as it can significantly influence overall ratings. The leader in customer reviews is Saudi Arabia, which shouldn’t be surprising as it’s the biggest country in the region.
5. Photos help customers visualize a retailer’s facilities and services, playing a crucial role in their decision-making process. While important, they represent just one aspect of a retailer’s digital presence. Therefore, photos are assigned a moderate weight to balance their visual appeal with other key informational metrics. However, businesses should still upload relevant images to enhance the customer experience and create a more engaging online presence. The leader in photos is Saudi Arabia with 456 519, which clearly shows high customer engagement.
6. Amount of locations is a less influential metric. While retailers should ensure that all their physical locations are listed on online maps, the primary focus should be on maintaining accurate information for each location and actively managing customer reviews.
7. Population is the least impactful metric, as it is beyond a retailer’s control. It primarily serves as a contextual factor, helping to balance data analysis across countries with significant population differences, such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE. As such, it should be viewed as a complementary metric rather than a key performance indicator.

Conclusion

Understanding the online presence of food retailers in the GCC is a multifaceted challenge. This study highlights key trends and obstacles by analyzing how Food Retail performs on Google Maps using various metrics. With insights from the Geojet Performance Index, GCC food retailers can now leverage a clear strategy to enhance their visibility and customer engagement on Google Maps. Notably, 6 out of 7 key metrics can be efficiently managed through the Geojet dashboard.

While our research primarily focused on Google Maps, GCC food retailers should also explore other platforms such as Bing Maps and Yango Maps. Yango Maps, in particular, deserves attention, as Yandex, the world’s third-largest search engine, is heavily investing in the region to expand its mapping services with Yango Maps.

When properly managed, online maps become a powerful tool for attracting new customers, optimizing location data, and addressing potential concerns. On the other hand, neglecting map listings and review management can severely impact a brand’s reputation, as this study has demonstrated. We at Geojet know how to leverage and with one of our retail clients, we were able to achieve the following:

• Provide a 52%  increase in discovery searches
• Provide a 37% increase in created routes
• Increase site visits by 21%You can check our cases in more details here.

If you would like to see the same results for your business, let us know at sales@geojet.io or contact us in a chat.

Intro

We continue our GCC research of multi-location businesses. Last time we wrote about banks, and if you’re curious about that definitely go and check our article. In this study, we would like to focus on retail. Retail is a dynamic and highly competitive industry where businesses must constantly adapt to shifting consumer expectations, digital advancements, and local market conditions. The Gulf Cooperation Council countries, such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, are no exception. There are a few facts to prove it:

• This industry will continue to show growth tendencies according to Alpen Capital. The retail industry is forecasted to grow at a pace of 5.7% CAGR between 2022 and 2026 to reach US$ 370.0 billion
• Non-food retail sales are forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 6.2% while food retail sales are anticipated to increase at a CAGR of 4.9% between 2022 and 2026.
• Special attention to luxury retail. 70% of consumers in the Middle East claim to have increased their spending on luxury goods compared to 53% in more mature markets.

To stay competitive, retailers must adapt to these shifting trends. For multi-location businesses, leveraging online maps and review services, essential channels for growth and customer engagement, is no longer optional. A few key facts to highlight that:

• Sebastian Buss, Chief Marketing Officer at the Statista-operated database EcommerceDB, states that: “Consumers in the Middle East, roughly 50%, like to touch things before buying them, which hinders e-commerce on the one hand, and promotes malls on the other.”
• It’s not just GCC citizens who continue to make in-store purchases – tourists do too. Dubai's strategic initiatives and government support have positioned it as a key driver of the retail industry's expansion, and its status as a global retail hub for shoppers is expected to solidify further, attracting tourists and investors from around the world.
• According to Newmetrics, retailers heavily invest in omnichannel. As customers engage with brands across various digital and physical touchpoints, the need for a seamless and consistent omnichannel experience has never been greater.

Therefore, to maintain accurate store listings on Google Maps, manage customer feedback on review platforms, and optimize local search visibility, retailers must adopt a strategic approach to digital location management. However, it’s important to separate food and non-food retail as they might need to tackle different issues despite having the same objectives.

Food retailers like grocery stores, quick-service restaurants, and cafes face unique challenges, including health regulations, fluctuating inventory, and real-time demand. On the other hand, Non-Food retailers, like fashion stores, electronics shops, and home goods brands, focus more on long-term inventory, seasonal trends, and customer service experiences. Because of these key differences, separate research would provide more targeted insights, helping each type of retailer refine its online presence and maximize the impact of maps and review services.

With that being said, let’s start with the analysis of the Non-Food Retail digital presence on Google Maps, as Google is responsible for 96% of online traffic in GCC.

Which Non-Food Retail are going to be analyzed?

Our research examines the online presence of 22 retailers across six GCC countries, analyzing a comprehensive dataset of 2 888 Google Maps locations, 920 044 reviews, and 276 521 photos. We focused on the largest GCC retailers by location count, as their extensive store networks provide valuable insights into regional trends while ensuring balanced representation across all GCC countries.

• Among brands that participated in our research are: Savola Group, SASCO, Jarir Bookstore, Extra Stores, Al-Hokair Group, ADNOC, The Chalhoub Group, Al Futtaim Retail, Al Tayer Group, ENOC, Emarat, Apparel Group, Landmark Group, Al Shamsi, Azadea Group, Rivoli, BMA International Group (BMA), Woqod, Al Shaya Group and KNPC, Bapco, and OOMCO

Google Maps presence for GCC retailers has significant room for improvement, with 27% of the analyzed companies missing essential business information. This was determined by assessing data completeness across key fields such as address, coordinates, phone number, category, photos, website, description, and attributes. Additionally, many retailers are not actively managing reviews and have numerous unclaimed profiles.

From a total of 2 888 Google Maps locations 772 or 27%, are not directly managed by the brand. This lack of direct management may lead to negative consequences, such as clients arriving to incorrect locations at incorrect times.

The average data completeness is 73%, with many retailers missing critical details. For instance, 976 locations (33.8%) lack website information, and 679 locations (23.5%) are missing telephone numbers. This highlights the earlier finding that numerous physical locations are not directly managed by the brand, which can lead to potential customers visiting businesses during incorrect hours or at the wrong addresses, resulting in frustration. Furthermore, many locations are also missing key business attributes and descriptions.

The average rating across analyzed locations is 4.0, based on 920 044 reviews, which is relatively good. However, 1 044 locations (36.1%) still have ratings between 1.0 and 3.9. Additionally, 188 locations (6.5%) lack ratings altogether, indicating low customer engagement and potentially harming their online reputation. For those in local SEO, we recommend prioritizing these locations, as improvements here can lead to quick results and significantly enhance the company's search engine visibility. Even a small rating boost of 0.1 can increase conversions by 25%. For tips on how to achieve this, check out one of our recommended articles.

Across the locations mentioned, we identified 276 521 photos, reflecting strong social engagement. However, many of these photos were irrelevant, and we strongly advise companies to focus more on this area. Notably, 895 locations (30.1%) have fewer than three photos, which can reduce customer engagement since locations with updated and relevant photos and videos are viewed 15% more often. To improve their online presence, companies should prioritize uploading relevant photos and flagging irrelevant ones for removal.

GCC Local Search Trends for Non-Food Retail

Through a thorough analysis of the statistics mentioned above, we were able to identify local search trends for each GCC country analyzed, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. These metrics were consolidated into the Geojet Performance Index, which you can check on the map below.

This percentage for Geojet Performance Index was counted by measuring 7 metrics, such as:

1. Verified locations
2. Data completeness
3. Ratings
4. Reviews
5. Photos
6. Amount of locations
7. Population

By focusing on the first 5 metrics, retailers can significantly improve their Performance Index. Let me explain why these metrics are crucial and how to enhance them.

1. Verified locations are essential for building trust and credibility. Verification ensures customers that the information is accurate and that the business is legitimate. Given its strong influence on customer trust and decision-making, this metric carries the highest weight.
2. Having complete information about each location is vital for customers to make informed choices. Incomplete profiles can create confusion and erode trust. As a result, ensuring data completeness is also given a high weight to reflect its importance.
3. Ratings by customers serve as a direct reflection of their experiences and satisfaction. High ratings are vital for establishing a positive reputation and attracting new customers. While businesses can't directly control their ratings, it’s an important metric to monitor
4. Reviews can reflect customer engagement and offer valuable feedback. However, it’s the quality of the reviews that has a greater impact. As a result, reviews were assigned a moderate weight, recognizing their significance without overemphasizing them. However, that’s important to note that work with review is extremely important and might influence rating
5. Photos assist customers in visualizing retailer's facilities and services, playing a key role in their decision-making process. While they are important, they are just one element of the overall picture. As such, photos were given moderate weight to balance their visual impact with other informational metrics. Nevertheless, businesses should still upload relevant photos to create a more complete and engaging customer experience.
6. Amount of locations is a less impactful metric.While retailers should ensure all their physical locations are listed on online maps, once this is done, the focus should shift to providing accurate information for each location and managing reviews.
7. Population is the least impactful metric. The population metric, which a retail company cannot directly influence, mainly serves to provide context and help balance data analysis between countries with large population disparities, such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE. As such, these metrics are best viewed as complementary.

Conclusion

Understanding the online presence of the GCC’s retail sector is a complex task. This study identified key challenges by analyzing the Non-Food Retail presence on Google Maps through various metrics. With insights from the Performance Index, GCC retailers now have a clear roadmap to significantly improve their performance on Google Maps. 6 out of 7 metrics can be easily managed through the Geojet dashboard.

While our analysis primarily focused on Google Maps, GCC retailers should also consider platforms like Bing Maps and Yango Maps. Special attention should be given to Yango Maps, as, despite Yandex being the third-largest search engine, the company is making substantial investments in the region with Yango Maps.

When managed effectively, online maps can be a powerful tool for attracting a growing customer base and addressing potential issues. Conversely, poor management of online maps and review services can pose significant risks to a brand’s reputation, as demonstrated in this study.

In this study, we covered Non-Food retailers and the research with a focus on Food retailers is coming. If you would like to see the same results for your business let us know at sales@geojet.io or contact us in a chat.

We’ve been describing companies’ online digital presence in various regions. Among industries that we’ve described in our previous research, you can find Retail, Banks, Telecom, and Airlines in such regions as the EU, US, India, and MENA. This time we would like to pay special attention to the Gulf Cooperation Council countries that include Bahrain, Kuwait , Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates. Among niches we would like to start with the banks, as this is one of the most important business niche for any country. In addition to that banks all around the globe heavily invest in digital innovation and GCC is no exception here.

However, before we proceed with our analysis let us explain why we decided to start with that region. GCC is a rapidly digitalizing market that is not surprising to anyone. And the rapid level of digitalization affects businesses and consumers likewise:

• GCC continues to grow. The World Bank’s research shows that in 2024 the region’s GDP (gross domestic product) growth is projected to strengthen to 3.6 percent, and in 2025 by 3.7 percent, fuelled by robust oil prices and vigorous non-oil activities.
• According to KPMG, customers in the GCC region are increasingly sophisticated and expect more from their brands, including personalized experience, greater value for their money, and seamless, omnichannel processes.
• Statista reports that the GCC region's efforts toward economic diversification and digital transformation are driving the growth of the digital banking sector. With governments in the region promoting innovation and technology adoption, digital banks are well-positioned to take advantage of these opportunities.

The banking sector in the GCC has seen consistent growth fueled by infrastructure developments, initiatives for economic diversification, and the demand for diverse banking services from a young, wealthy population. Customer behavior indicates that appropriate actions to meet this demand are expected:

• Insights from a Backbase Research survey, which polled 2,016 individuals in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, clearly show that consumers desire their banks to go digital. One of the top three factors driving customers to switch banks was the prospect of an enhanced customer experience.
• GCC customers are active online. KPMG and Data EQ  analyzed sentiment index of the GCC banks on X (formerly known as Twitter) and presented some interesting findings. Saudi Arabia dominated the conversation within the GCC’s banking sector with an overwhelming 83.3% of total online conversation, while the UAE led with the highest proportion of positive mentions, garnering praise that accounted for 21.1% of its conversation

According to EY, integrating primary customer research with transactional and behavioral data can yield actionable insights into customers' changing needs and expectations. To achieve true customer centricity, a customer-focused approach must be embedded and scaled across the entire organization. And this market is clearly understood by business as 87% of business leaders identified CX as their top growth engine.

However, which channels apart from social networks could be valuable sources for understanding customer sentiment? Where else are customers looking for brands and sharing their opinions? The answer is online maps and review services, and let me explain why. Where exactly are customers searching for services?  Most probably they would start with a search engine. Search engines will show location-based results. From there customers could read reviews about banks on online maps and review services and create routes to go from online search to offline branch or visit a website.

However, what are the biggest search engines in the GCC? According to our research it’s Google, Bing, and Yandex. These search engines account for 99% of online traffic and companies can't afford to overlook them.

According to Statista, Google pretty much dominates the search engine in GCC. However, in TOP-3 also could be found Bing and Yandex.

Search engines will pull information from their online maps (e.g. Google from Google Maps, Yandex from Yango etc). Thus, it’s important to keep correct information about businesses not only on websites but also on online maps.

However, simply keeping information updated is not enough, as according to Zendesk banking customer experience research, 62% of customers say that personal reviews are more important than an overall description. In addition to that, prominence is still among the most important local SEO factors, as that’s how the customers could be assured that the business is trustworthy. Therefore, GCC multi-location companies should also focus on managing reviews, especially negative ones, as they can significantly harm their online reputation.

Nevertheless, with a proper strategy and right tools, multi-location businesses could turn even highly critical clients into loyal fans:

• According to McKinsey, improving customer experience can increase a customer’s loyalty to a bank by 72%.
• A study by Lee Resources found that 70% of customers who complained and received a satisfactory response from a business representative are likely to return and give business another chance.

Thus, implementing online maps and review services into an omnichannel customer experience strategy is an essential step for banks in order to react to a growing customer demand. With Google as a search engine that is responsible for 96% of online traffic in GCC, it’s necessary to pay attention to Google Maps first, but also don’t forget about Bing Maps and Yango Maps.

Which banks are going to be analyzed?

Our research analyzes online presence of 25 banks in 6 GCC countries by tracking an extensive dataset comprising 15 317 Google Maps locations, 348 416 reviews and 110 540 photos. We’ve decided to focus on the biggest GCC banks by the amount of assets, as these banks are leading digital innovation in the region. That allowed us to highlight regional trends and represent all countries of the GCC accordingly:

1. Saudi Arabia - 7 banks in total. Among them such banks as SNB, Al Rajhi Bank, Riyad Bank, SAB, BSF, Alinma Bank, ANB
2. UAE - 6 banks in total. Among them such banks as FAB, Emirates NDB, ADCB, Dubai Islamic Bank, Mashreq Bank, ADIB
3. Qatar - 4 banks in total. Among them such banks as QNB, Qatar Islamic Bank, Commercial Bank of Qatar, and Masraf Al Rayan
4. Kuwait - 3 banks in total. Among them such banks as KFH, NBK, Burgan Bank.
5. Bahrain - 3 banks in total. Among them such banks as ABC, Ahli United Bank, Al Baraka Bank
6. Oman - 2 banks in total. Among them such banks as National Bank of Oman (NBO), and Bank Muscat

The situation with Google Maps for MENA banks has opportunities for significant improvements as 22% of them are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps. The count was determined by verifying data completeness for fields such as address, coordinates, telephone, category, photo, site, description, and attributes. Additionally, they are not managing reviews and have numerous unclaimed profiles. However, this is just a small part of the issue, so let's delve into our research further.

From a total of 15 317 Google Maps locations there were 3 482 branches and 11 835 ATMs. Of these locations, 4 413, or 28.8%, are not directly managed by the brand. Specifically, this includes 649 branches and 3 764 ATMs. This lack of direct management may lead to negative consequences, such as clients arriving to incorrect locations at incorrect times.

The average data completeness stands at 78%, with banks often lacking crucial information such as websites for 3,533 locations (23.1%) and telephone numbers for 2,983 locations (19.5%). This supports the earlier observation that many physical locations are not directly managed by the brand, leading to potential clients arriving at businesses during incorrect hours or at wrong addresses, causing dissatisfaction. Additionally, many locations are missing essential business attributes and descriptions.

The average rating of the analyzed locations is 3.6, derived from 348,416 reviews. This falls short, as customers tend to perceive companies with an average rating of 4.0 or higher as more reliable. This issue is particularly pronounced for MENA banks’ brick-and-mortar locations, where 10 151 (66.3%) have ratings between 1.0 and 3.9. Additionally, 3 641 locations (23.8%) have no ratings at all, indicating a lack of customer engagement and potentially harming their online reputation.

For those working in local SEO, we recommend focusing on these locations first, as improvements here can yield immediate results and significantly enhance the companies' search engine presence. Even a small rating increase of 0.1 can boost conversions by 25%. For guidance on how to achieve this, we suggest reading one of our recommended articles.

For all above-mentioned locations we also found 110 540 photos that indicates a strong social engagement. However, many of these photos were irrelevant, and we strongly recommend that companies pay closer attention to this aspect. Notably, 10,713 locations (69.9%) have fewer than five photos. That results in lower customer engagement, as locations with updated and relevant photos and videos are viewed 15% more often. To enhance their online presence, companies should start by uploading relevant photos and filing complaints to remove irrelevant ones.

GCC Local Serach Trends for Banks

By extensively analyzing the above-mentioned statistic we were able to identify local search trends for each analyzed GCC country, such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates. All of these metrics were defined as Geojet Performance Index and could be seen on a map below.

Thus, by working with first 5 metrics banks can significantly boost their Performance index. And let me explain in details why it’s important and how to boost them. Verified locations are critical for trust and credibility. Verification assures customers that the information is accurate and that the bank is legitimate. Given its significant impact on customer trust and decision-making, this metric was assigned the highest weight.

Complete information about each location is crucial for customers to make informed decisions. Incomplete profiles can lead to confusion and a lack of trust. Thus, ensuring data completeness was given a relatively high weight to emphasize its importance. Therefore, banks should start working with verification of their locations as well as upgrading data completeness, as these metrics ensure trustworthiness and comprehensive information.

However, such metrics as rating, reviews, and photos are also impactful for the business and here is why. Customer reviews are a direct reflection of their experiences and satisfaction levels. High ratings are essential for building a positive reputation and attracting new customers. These metrics were given a significant weight to highlight their role in influencing potential customers' perceptions.

The number of reviews can indicate the level of customer engagement and provide valuable feedback. However, it's the quality of reviews (reflected in the rating) that has a more substantial impact. Therefore, reviews were given a moderate weight, acknowledging their importance but not overemphasizing them. However, by working with reviews, or customers’ opinions in a broader sense, businesses could eventually improve their ratings by winning over customers who left negative reviews and convincing them to give a business a second chance.

Photos help customers visualize the bank's facilities and services, contributing to their decision-making process. While important, they are one part of the overall profile. Thus, photos were assigned a moderate weight to balance their visual appeal with other information metrics. However, businesses still should upload relevant photos in order to establish a proper customer experience.

The least impactful metrics are amount of locations on Google Maps and population. Talking about the amount of locations, of course bank should put all their brick-and-mortar locations on online maps. However, when this is achieved it will be more important to provide relevant information to all of these locations and work with reviews. Such metric as population, could not be influenced by a bank directly and here it is mostly to provide context and balance data analysis between countries with a huge population difference (such as Saudi Arabia and UAE). Thus, these metrics could be considered complementary ones.

From some other interesting factors we would like to highlight some interesting social engagement metrics: Qatar has the biggest amount of photos per million on Google Maps, while UAE has the biggest number of reviews per million. That clearly shows that people also would like to interact with bank in these channels more often.

Conclusion

Understand the GCC's banking sector online presence is a multifaceted task. This study captured certain problems by examining Google maps banks’ presence via various metrics. With the highlighted local trends from Performance Index, GCC banks have a roadmap on how to significantly improve their performance on Google Maps. 6 out of 7 metrics could be easily maintained from a Geojet dashboard.

Whilst, our analysis was mostly about Google Maps, GCC banks should also pay attention to Bing Maps and Yango Maps. A special attention should be addressed towards Yango Maps. Despite Yandex  being only 3rd as a search engine, a company is heavily investing in that region with Yango Maps. That could be especially crucial for the UAE as, according to Yango Maps is among other Top Navigation Apps, such as Google, Apple Maps, and Waze, while driving in Dubai. We also did a research on Yango Maps improtance and you can check it out for more details.

When properly managed, online maps can be a powerful tool for attracting a growing consumer base and mitigating potential controversies. On the other hand, poorly managed work with online maps and review services can present significant challenges to a brand’s reputation. All of that leads us to the conclusion that GCC banks still have a significant opportunity to grow. We at Geojet have experience in providing the following results for banks:

• Increase the number of created routes from online maps by 44%. That brought more potential clients from online maps to offline branches.
• Increase discovery visits by 45%, meaning that ATMs and branches became discoverable not only via their names/addresses but also via their categories
• The number of site visits has increased by 24%

You can check our cases in more details here. If you would like to see the same results for your business let us know at sales@geojet.io or contact us via a chat.

It is no secret that MENA has been a well-known region for its digital innovation over a couple of decades. And the banking sector is no exception. The MENA banking sector is undergoing rapid expansion, fueled by robust economic growth and development across several nations.

• According to EY, the MENA region is forecasted to become one of the world’s fastest-growing banking markets, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.8% from 2020 to 2023.
• In 2023, the total banking market in the MENA region is expected to reach US$2.8t, with the top five markets (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, and Egypt) accounting for more than 70% of the total market.

However, not only the MENA banking sector is rapidly changing, customers' habits are also evolving:

• With a projected CAGR of 15.39% (2021–2026) coupled with smartphone penetration rates reaching 75% in Qatar, 73% in the UAE, and 60% in Saudi Arabia, the digital payments landscape in the Middle East is primed for substantial expansion.
• 87% of business leaders identified CX as their top growth engine.

All of that signifies a progressive shift in consumer lifestyle, behavior, and expectations and banks should catch on. Despite some attempts, according to PWC research, the biggest pain points for customers were still slow turnaround time and non-responsiveness. And especially that should be done in channels where customers are looking for banks: online maps where they create routes to reach a physical branch or review services where customers read opinions before putting money on a deposit.

That’s why we’ve decided to analyze MENA’s banking digital presence on Google Maps.

MENA Banks

Banks' digital presence has been analyzed in 9 MENA countries: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, and Bahrain. The situation with Google Maps for MENA banks has opportunities for significant improvements as 58% of them are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps. That number was counted by checking data completeness for such fields as address, coordinates, telephone, category, photo, site, description, and attributes. Moreover, they are also not working with reviews and have lots of unclaimed profiles. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg, so let’s talk about our research in more detail.

In total, we’ve analyzed 27 402 locations including 14 937 branches and 12 465 ATMs. From all analyzed locations 14 101 or 51,5% are not being directly managed by the brand. To be even more precise from these locations 7 376 branches and 6 725 ATMs. That might lead to negative consequences as clients could come to incorrect locations at incorrect times.

Average data completeness is 58%, where banks mostly miss such information as website information (14 147 locations or 51,6%) or a telephone number (12 287 locations or 44,8%). That could also add to the previous statement regarding brick-and-mortar locations being not directly managed by the brand, as potential clients could come to the businesses with wrong working hours or an incorrect address, which of course wouldn’t make them happy. Lots of locations also miss business attributes and descriptions.

The average rating of the analyzed locations is 3.6., which is based on 281 126 reviews. ​​That might not be enough, as customers view companies with an average rating of 4.0 as more reliable. That is especially applicable to MENA banks’ brick-and-mortar locations, where the average rating for 17 370 locations varies between 1.0 and 3.9. In addition to that 9 510 or 34,7% don’t have any rating, meaning that they don’t possess reviews and therefore not engaged with their customers. That could severely damage their online reputation.

We would recommend anyone working with local SEO to start with these locations as it could bring some immediate results and seriously influence the search engine presence of these companies. That might bring results quickly, as an increase of rating even by 0.1 might boost conversion by 25%. If you are curious how to do that we can recommend one of our articles to start with.

However, the fact that was surprising is that for analyzed locations we found 125 681 photos. Lots of these photos were not relevant, so we would also strongly recommend companies to pay more serious attention to it. 22 318 locations have less than 5 photos. That leads to a lesser engagement with customers as companies’ locations with updated and relevant photos and videos are being opened 15% more often. Analyzed companies could start by uploading relevant photos and filing complaints about irrelevant ones to get rid of them and cement their online presence.

This situation is especially interesting if we compare MENA banks to various regions that we’ve analyzed previously:

• 67% of European banks are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps
• 63% of Indian banks don’t pay serious attention to Google Maps

Thus, MENA banks with an average data completeness of 58% stand higher than European and Indian banks. Some of the MENA banks even have unified branding.

Conclusion

All of that leads us to the conclusion that MENA banks still have a significant opportunity to grow. And that opportunity could be easily caught on by integrating online maps and review services into banks' digital strategy. These opportunities should be caught on not only on Google Maps but also on various other online platforms. For instance, special focus should be paid to Yango Maps, which is rapidly scaling in MENA.

We at Geojet have experience in providing the following results for banks:

• Increase the number of created routes from online maps by 44%. That brought more potential clients from online maps to offline branches.
• Increase discovery visits by 45%, meaning that ATMs and branches became discoverable not only via their names/addresses but also via their categories
• The number of site visits has increased by 24%

If you would like to get the same results - let us know :) Meanwhile, you can check all our cases here.

If you want to get access to our research data - request it at sales@geojet.io

In our previous research, we’ve been mostly focusing on Google, Apple, and Bing Maps. However, when we’re talking about MENA it is necessary to take into account a relatively new player - Yango Maps. At the moment they are available in 20+ countries in such regions as Africa, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East. Their application is available in  English, French, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, and many other languages, which truly makes Yango a global player.

You might wonder why we need to mention Yango Maps specifically for MENA. The answer is simple, they recently launched in Dubai with some cool and exciting features and have been scaling throughout the region. In such a vibrant city with lots of international competition, they are about to rival Waze and Google Maps. So, let’s dig into their features to understand how they plan to outcompete those global juggernauts.

By using Yango users can create efficient and quick routes for driving, walking, or using public transport, all while benefiting from a meticulously detailed map featuring impressive 3D models of landmarks. The application additionally offers an intelligent display of driving routes and recommends convenient parking locations. Yango Maps is available for free on both Google Play and App Store, featuring interfaces and voice directions available in both English and Arabic.

Yango Maps not only delivers up-to-the-minute traffic updates but also offers advanced voice alerts for speed limits. When heading to destinations like department stores, business centers, or popular districts, Yango Maps proactively showcases nearby parking options before you hit the road. In addition to that, Yango Maps offers an authentic portrayal of Dubai, showcasing a detailed representation of its roads, buildings, and underground crossings, and even incorporating natural elements such as trees. Remarkably, the roads are presented with precision, mirroring the reality as seen, encompassing over 3,000 km of Dubai's road network in detail.

However, it is focused not only on the drivers. With built-in access to the Yango ride-hailing service, users can book rides, check bus schedules, and explore walking routes. This versatility ensures convenience in navigating the city using any mode of transport. And one of the most interesting competitive features, which could be especially interesting for locals and visitors - Yango displays the most iconic landmarks in full-color 3D. That feature includes Burj Khalifa, Dubai Frame, the Museum of the Future, and the Jumeirah Mosque. And that’s not yet it! Enabling dark mode seamlessly activates lifelike lighting effects on the 3D models, authentically mirroring the ambient charm of the city during the evening. All of that should create one of the best navigational experiences available not only for drivers but also for pedestrians.

Alexander Baksheev, CEO of Yango Maps, also emphasized the importance of Yango’s continuous improvement: “We make sure to keep Yango Maps up to date to provide an accurate, hassle-free navigation experience. To put it into perspective, we add roughly three million updates to the map every month. New businesses, roads, speed cameras, and interchanges go live in Yango Maps shortly after they appear in the real world, which is especially important for constantly changing, innovative cities like Dubai”

In addition to that, Yango Maps is a part of the ecosystem that includes Yango Delivery, Yango (e-commerce software), Yasmina (AI-based voice assistant, and Yango ride-hailing service. That variety should attract more and more users. The main goal of such an ecosystem was to provide high-quality services to meet the day-to-day needs of the city's residents according to Abdul Karim,  General Manager of Yango GCC.

Yango seems to attract more and more people. That includes not only locals but also lots of tourists as Yango Maps has many features to help them navigate easily in a new destination. Therefore, companies shouldn’t miss this channel as it already has a lot of traffic and a serious potential to grow further. We at Geojet have expertise in working with Yango and are ready to help you integrate this channel into your marketing strategy.

In our research, we’ve analyzed a total of 26 254 locations. Interesting that the amount of locations that are not being managed by the brands is reaching 10909 locations or 41,6% of all analyzed locations. That is significant as almost in 50% of cases customers might encounter some sort of inconvenience, such as missing information such as a website or a telephone number. That could seriously affect their curiosity about companies’ offers. That could turn potential customers to other companies with competing offers.

Findings from our research also show that the average data completeness for 26 254 locations is 72%. The most common cases are missed websites (19% or 4993 locations), and missing cell phone numbers (28.7% or 7528 locations). Missing websites could affect companies’ online stores because clients wouldn’t be able to visit a website in order to do online shopping. What was surprising is that among all analyzed locations only 4 had reviews, meaning that 99.9% haven’t been described properly. That could affect not only client satisfaction but also stores SEO, meaning that they will be shown less frequently compared to stores with descriptions.

In addition to checking data completeness, we also checked the average rating, which brought some additional findings. The average rating for all analyzed locations is 3.8, based on 1.6M reviews. Among that for 11 796 (or 44,9%) of analyzed locations, the average rating is between 1.0 and 3.9. That brings a significant untapped opportunity for growth as we recommend increasing it to at least 4.2. or even better to 4.5, as companies with an average rating of 4.5 reach 3 times more clients than companies with a rating between 3 and 4. If you wonder how to do that we recommend one of our articles to start with.

Furthermore, the amount of locations without reviews or ratings is 5 446 or 20,7 %. That clearly shows that by engaging with their customers on online maps and review services food retail companies could not only push their ratings higher but also convert negatively focused customers to give them one more chance. Engagement could be also increased by uploading relevant photos and getting rid of irrelevant ones. The total number of photos for 26 254 analyzed locations is 277 946, with lots of irrelevant ones. Moreover, 8 540  locations have fewer than 5 photos, which clearly shows that Turkish food retail has one more path to improve its online digital presence.

However,  our insights still show that Turkish food retail has an untapped opportunity to attract new clients. We at Geojet have expertise in turning untapped opportunities into results. For one of our retail clients, we provided the following results:

• Provide a 52%  increase in discovery searches
• Provide a 37% increase in created routes
• Increase site visits by 21%

You can check that case in more detail here. If you would like to get the same results for your company will free to contact us at sales@geojet.io

In comparison to other business niches, there are not too many telecom companies in Turkey. However, that’s fine as all local markets usually tend to be dominated by 3-5 companies, and Turkey here is just no exception with such mobile operators as Turkcell, Vodafone Turkey, and Turk Telecom. It is also worth mentioning such local players as Bimcell and Lifecell and each of them offers various business options including prepaid and postpaid options. But in our research, we will focus on Turkish telecom Big-3.

In our research, we’ve analyzed a total of 6 989 locations. Interesting that the amount of locations that are not being managed by the brands is reaching 3030 locations or 43% of all analyzed locations. That is significant as almost in 50% of cases customers might encounter some sort of inconvenience, such as missing information on a website or a telephone number, that could seriously affect their curiosity about companies’ offers. That could turn potential customers to other companies with competing offers.

Findings from our research also show that the average data completeness for 6 989 locations is 59%. The most common cases are missed business attributes (68,1% or 4758 locations) and what was surprising descriptions as we haven’t found a single location that had it! However, other crucial cases of incomplete data consist of missing phone numbers (56% or 3946 locations) and website information (38% or 2704 locations). That could affect companies’ reach as fewer clients would be able to get the newest offers from the website or clarify some questions via a phone call.

In addition to checking data completeness, we also checked the average rating which brought some additional insights for potential improvements. The average rating for all analyzed locations is 3.5, based on 32 564 reviews. Among that, for 3113 (or 44%) of analyzed locations the average rating lies between 1.0 and 3.9. That brings a significant untapped opportunity for growth as we recommend increasing it to at least 4.2. or even better to 4.5, as companies with an average rating of 4.5 reach 3 times more clients than companies with a rating between 3 and 4. Suppose you wonder how to do that we recommend one of our articles to start with.

Furthermore, the amount of locations without reviews or ratings is 1706 or 24%. That clearly shows that by engaging with their customers on online maps and review services telecom companies could not only push their ratings higher but also convert negatively focused customers to give them one more chance. Engagement could be also increased by uploading relevant photos and getting rid of irrelevant ones. The total number of photos for 6989 analyzed locations is 82 923, with lots of irrelevant ones. Moreover, 4913 locations have less than 5 photos, which clearly shows that Turkish telecom has one more path to improve its online digital presence.

Based on a detailed analysis of Turkish telecom it is also interesting to check how they stand in comparison to other MENA telecom and to be honest Turkish companies are performing slightly better than the MENA average, as  85% of MENA telecoms are missing crucial information on Google Maps about their businesses. Therefore, in MENA that is an international problem that presents a huge opportunity to increase revenues with a few easy fixes. According to Salesforce research, 87% of customers research products online before they purchase in offline stores, so managing your data online in order to drive this traffic to offline stores presents a significant opportunity to grow.

Our findings clearly present that Turkish telecom has an untapped opportunity to attract new clients. We at Geojet have expertise in turning untapped opportunities into results. For one of our telecom clients, we provided the following results:

• Provide a 50%  increase in site visits from local search
• Provide a 50% increase in created routes on online maps
• Increase replied reviews by 40%, thus establishing a proper channel for communication with customers You can check that case in more detail here.

If you would like to get the same results for your company will free to contact us at sales@geojet.io

We’ve been describing companies’ online digital presence in various regions. Among industries that we’ve described in our previous research, you can find Airlines, Retail, and Banks in such regions as the EU, US, India, and MENA. This time we would like to pay special attention to Turkey and especially to such niches as retail, banking, and telecom. But before we proceed with our analysis let us explain why we consider Turkey an interesting market.

Turkey is a rapidly digitalizing country and there are some facts to prove it:

• According to Statista, digital payment transactions between 2018 and 2022 in Turkey grew 3 times from 21.38 to 63.45 billion dollars. And that’s not even the final numbers because the growth projection is set to almost 137 billion U.S. dollars by 2027
• Turkey experienced rapid growth in selling and buying goods and services online since the pandemic and has been positioned as one of the fastest-growing markets worldwide. According to Statista, in 2022 nearly 64 percent of the Turkish population made online purchases

With this rapid growth in online transactions, companies should ensure they can catch these digital waves. However, that’s not it. There are also some additional habits that are changing for Turks:

• According to Meltwater research, researching products and brands online is one of the 5 most important reasons why Turks are using the internet (58.9% of the population)
• Google accounts for 77.19% of all web traffic and therefore being present on Google Maps is extremely important. In addition to that companies shouldn’t forget about Yandex and Bing as they are responsible for 16.73% and 3.30% respectively. Thus, these Top-3 ranking search engines are responsible for 96% of online traffic.
• 36,6% of consumers use search engines as a primary source to look for new products, brands, and services
• Reviews from other customers are among Top-5 factors that help to make decisions about what product to purchase

Thus, most Turkish consumers are looking for products and brands online, which is obviously not surprising. But where exactly are they looking for it? TOP-3 search engines in Turkey are Google, Yandex, and Bing.  Most of the results are going to be location-based, and that’s where locations of brands and companies from Google Maps, Yandex Maps, and Bing Maps will be shown. Because these search engines are responsible for 96% of online traffic, companies can’t miss on it.

Therefore, it’s important to get information about their businesses correct not only on their websites but also integrate online maps in their CX strategy. However, solely keeping information updated is not enough, as according to the above-mentioned stats reviews are among Top-5 factors for Turkish customers before making a decision about what product to purchase. Turkish multi-location companies also should be paying attention to work with reviews especially with negative ones, as it could seriously damage your online reputation.

By properly working with negative reviews you could turn even highly critical clients into loyal fans. As was highlighted by a Lee Resource study, 70% of customers who complained and received satisfying feedback from a business representative will come back and give this business a second shot. Implementing an omnichannel customer experience strategy should also help.

As was highlighted by Gartner’s Research “Treat your observable data as your most precious monetizable asset”. Making sure that this data is consistent, working with reviews, and ensuring that the online reputation is fine are necessary steps for all multi-location businesses that would like to attract new customers from online maps and review services. Therefore with Google as a search engine responsible for 77.19% of online traffic it’s necessary to pay attention to Google Maps first, but also don’t forget about Yandex Maps and Bing Maps.

Thus, we got curious about how companies from various niches work with Google Maps in Turkey. In our following series of articles, you can find our analysis for banks, retail, and telecom. And let us begin with banks.

Turkish banks

Banks' digital presence has been analyzed in Turkey for 11 banks. Among these banks, we’ve analyzed Ziraat Bank, İşbank, Vakifbank, Garanti, AKBANK, YapiKredi, Halkbank, QNB, Finansbank, Denizbank, Turk Ekonomi Bank, Sekerbank. The situation with Google Maps for Turkish banks has opportunities for significant improvements as 61% of them are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps. That number was counted by checking data completeness for such fields as address, coordinates, telephone, category, photo, site, description, and attributes. Moreover, they are also not working with reviews and have lots of unclaimed profiles. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg, so let’s talk about our research in more detail.

In total, we’ve analyzed 27 154 locations with 7 719 ATMs and 19 435 branches. From all analyzed locations 8 255 or 30% are not being directly managed by the brand. To be even more precise from these locations 6 587 ATMs and 1 668 branches.  That might lead to negative consequences as clients could come to incorrect locations at incorrect times.

Average data completeness is 61%, where banks mostly miss such information as telephone numbers (11 624 locations or 43%) or websites (6 366 locations or 23%). That could also add to the previous statement regarding brick-and-mortar locations being not directly managed by the brand, as potential clients could come to the businesses with wrong working hours or an incorrect address, which of course wouldn’t make them happy.

The average rating of the analyzed locations is 3.0., which is based on 82 930 reviews. ​​That might not be enough, as customers view companies with an average rating of 4.0 as more reliable. That is especially applicable to Turkish banks’ brick-and-mortar locations, where the average rating for 9 387 locations varies between 1.0 and 3.9. In addition to that 12 200 or 45% don’t have any rating, meaning that they don’t possess reviews and therefore not engaged with the customers. That could severely damage their online reputation.

We would recommend everyone working with local SEO to start with these locations as it could bring some immediate results and seriously influence the search engine presence of these companies. That might bring results quickly, as an increase of rating even by 0.1 might boost conversion by 25%. If you are curious how to do that we can recommend one of our articles to start with.

However, the fact that was surprising is that for analyzed locations we found 125 012 photos. Lots of these photos were not relevant, so we would also strongly recommend companies to pay more serious attention to it. 19 793 locations have less than 5 photos. That leads to a lesser engagement with customers as companies’ locations with updated and relevant photos and videos are being opened 15% more often. Analyzed companies could start by uploading relevant photos and filing complaints about irrelevant ones to get rid of them and cement their online presence.

This situation is especially interesting if we compare Turkish banks from various regions that we’ve analyzed before:

• 67% of European banks are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps
• 93% of MENA banks are missing crucial information on Google Maps about their businesses
• 63% of Indian banks don’t pay serious attention to Google Maps

All of that means that Turkish banks stand significantly higher than the MENA average with 61% against 93% and even higher than European banks! In addition to that 39% of Turkish banks are paying attention to online maps and review services by not only keeping their information relevant but also by working with reviews and sometimes even by managing unified branding. However, they still have a massive opportunity to develop their online presence further and improve customer experience.

All of that leads us to the conclusion that Turkish banks still have a significant opportunity to grow. We at Geojet have experience in providing the following results for banks:

• Increase the number of created routes from online maps by 44%. That brought more potential clients from online maps to offline branches.
• Increase discovery visits by 45%, meaning that ATMs and branches became discoverable not only via their names/addresses but also via their categories
• The number of site visits has increased by 24%

You can check our cases in more detail here. If you would like to see the same results for your business let us know at sales@geojet.io or contact us in a chat.

In the past, we have demonstrated our collaborations with banks, retail, telecom, and various other industries. However, in this article, we aim to highlight the potential application of our platform in the insurance sector and its ability to generate new traffic to both online and offline business sites.

Intro

As businesses increasingly recognize the significance of incorporating online maps and review services into their marketing strategies, experience of the insurance companies in 2022 sheds light on the challenges they faced without a platform to manage their online presence across various online services. Similarly, our client, who has over 700 locations, also encountered that.

The lack of an appropriate tool resulted in many issues: crucial information, including phone numbers and websites, was missing from numerous company locations, some profiles contained incomplete and inaccurate data, and certain profiles remained unclaimed or were erroneously claimed by different individuals. Moreover, the insurance company discovered that some of their physical store locations needed to be included in the digital landscape.

With a steadfast commitment to digital marketing and elevating the customer experience, the insurance company began looking for a strategic partner in order to manage its local search, online maps, and review services. And that’s how our partnership kicked off marking the inception of a fruitful alliance in the insurance industry.

The Problem

Insurance Company & Geojet set up certain goals:

• The data completeness across all locations should be >90%. Prior to the start of work, it was only 59%
• Data accuracy for brick-and-mortar locations should be adjusted accordingly
• Integrate data from reviews and competitors’ presence into the company’s BI system
• Analyze the presence of duplicated and fake accounts and remove them

The Solution

Geojet achieved an exceptional level of data accuracy that is reaching 99%. Missing or erroneous information was promptly rectified across various online maps and review services, with particular emphasis placed on platforms such as Google Maps, Yandex Maps, and 2GIS including some insurance-related review services. These actions ensured that over 97% of the insurance company's physical store locations are effortlessly discoverable on online maps and have appropriate information.

Furthermore, an extensive competitive analysis was conducted and integrated via API into the internal BI system. Nowadays, management can check on a daily basis via dashboards not only brick-and-mortar stores and ratings but also Top-5 competitors for each location. Based on that information management is able to make more appropriate business decisions. In addition, it allowed the insurance company to increase the number of communications with clients on online maps and review services and appropriately regulate the capacity of each physical location.

All of that led to:

• 32% increase from a view to action
• 400 duplicates have been eliminated
• 64% increase in the number of locations being present online
• 100 hours (0,6 FTE) saved by automating local posting

Are you interested in achieving comparable outcomes for your business? Reach out to our team today to explore how our expertise can assist you in accomplishing your goals.

Geojet works with a number of different multi-location companies and enterprises and we would like to share with you some of our cases, so you can take a look at how we’re solving real-life problems. Our next case will be with Sephora.

Intro

In 2022 Sephora began to integrate online maps and review services into their marketing strategy. Having more than 70 locations they didn’t have the platform to manage all of them in multiple online services. That led to the following problems: a lot of company locations were missing crucial information, such as a telephone number or a website, some profiles were having not only incomplete, but also incorrect data, and other profiles were unclaimed or even claimed by different people. In addition to that, some of the existing brick-and-mortar locations were not present in the digital world.

Sephora pays serious attention to digital marketing and customer experience and therefore they started looking for a partner, who could help them to navigate a tricky world of local search, online maps, and review services. That’s how our cooperation began.

The Problem

Sephora & Geojet set up certain goals:

• The data accuracy across all locations should be 90%. Before the start of work, it was only 75% and contained heaps of irrelevant photos
• Completeness of the business profile should be adjusted accordingly
• Establish a platform to work with reviews
• More than 90% of brick-and-mortar locations should be present online

The Solution

With Geojet the data accuracy was set to 98,6% and missing or incorrect information has been fixed accordingly. That has been done on various online maps and review services with special attention to Google Maps, Yandex Maps, and 2GIS (used mostly in CIS). The digitalization of brick-and-mortar locations has been also successfully implemented and more than 98,6% of Sephora’s locations can be easily found on online maps.

Moreover, a comprehensive competitive analysis has been conducted where 8691 business competitors have been analyzed. The semantic analysis allowed Sephora to understand what’s being said about them and their competitors in customers’ reviews. In addition to that, the process of making posts and posting stories to online maps and reviews services also have been automated.

All of that led to:

• 100% response rate
• x2 increase in discovery searches
• 50% decrease in spent time working with reviews
• x2 increase in time efficiency on posting content such as photos and local posts

Would you like to get the same results for your business? Contact our team to find out how we could help you.

If you haven’t checked your Google Business Profile for a while, prepare for significant changes. Google has recently released a set of GBP updates known as the New Merchant Experience In-SERP. Google had been releasing these updates over a few months in 2022 and notably changed Google Business Profile listing and a new user-interface standard by the end of 2022.

The New Merchant Experience was released in response to the changing nature of shopping behavior in the digital age. With more and more customers turning to online shopping, businesses need to adapt to stay competitive. One of the key benefits of the New Merchant Experience In-SERP is that it allows businesses to showcase their products directly in Google Search results, providing customers with a more comprehensive shopping experience. Previously, customers would have to navigate away from the search results to find detailed product information, which could be time-consuming and frustrating.

However, all of these changes are being made by removing the Google Business Profile dashboard that seriously changes users' behavior. Thus, if editing directly in search engine results page is nothing new, removing the Google Business dashboard is.  In some opinions, Google Business Profile is being turned into some sort of social media profile specifically for local businesses in order to improve their rankings with local SEO and customer reviews, but simultaneously making it harder to manage for multi-location businesses.

Opinions about these changes are polarized and customers might also get confused about what to do and how to manage listings. In this article, we will analyze and explain that for you.

What has been changed exactly and how it has been changed

There are a lot of updates, so we will structure it into two groups and make it easy for you to process that information We’d like to start with the major changes as they might affect businesses the most.

• No Google Business Dashboard. The biggest and arguably the most crucial change is the loss of the ability to work within the dashboard. From the inception, most features were available via the Google Business Profile dashboard. Over time, Google started adding some of that option in the SERP and from now on the SERP will be the only option where those features will be available.

• The new interface is called Merchant Panel and there you can see the main menu, cards, three-dot menu, and your Business Profile in the right corner
• That’s also important to highlight,  that the display of the Merchant Panel depends on the business categories. So, what you will see might be different from business to business and from industry to industry.
• New Settings. Heaps of Google Business Profile Functions are hidden in 3 dots. So, let’s take a look at what there ->

There is the following information included:

• Advanced setting with ID profiles, store codes, labels, etc.
• Notifications that allow users to work with different communication channels, such as customer reviews/messages, Q&A, Bookings, etc.
• A possibility to add, remove and edit profile managers. The same applies to business profiles.
• Manage linked accounts
• That’s also interesting to pinpoint that some settings might still send users to the old dashboard. However, that’s inconsistent and most likely will not be left like that. With that being said, it’s better to get used to the new dashboard.

Some old features are gone. There is also a list of features that are no longer with us. Among them we can highlight the following:

• Photo insights. This data had been often criticized for being unreliable and inaccurate. The Photos Insights are no longer available in the GBP API and if they are going to be reintroduced in the future is still unclear.
• The second feature that is no longer available is “how customers search for your business” meaning that the pie chart (which is also attached below) that shows searches for your business within 3 groups (direct, discovery, and branded visits) is no longer available.

Minor Changes

There are also some minor changes where we could highlight the following:

• Google “posts” in the dashboard are labeled as “updates”.
• Google has re-labeled “users” that are now referred to as “managers.” That also shows the change in how Google sees Google Business Profile and that they probably want to give more power to users
• Location information. Some businesses used that feature in order to track seasonal spikes and that will also no longer be available.

Conclusion. What should be expected?

All of these changes are leading to the change in Google’s attitude towards Google Business Profile. With the loss of the dashboard and even re-labeling of “users” to managers, Google shows that it wants to give more power to smaller businesses. However, it makes the management process significantly harder for multi-location companies.

We will definitely recommend businesses do the following:

1. Adjust to it as the new normal. If you like or dislike the new interface, start getting used to it. Google will definitely work with that interface from now on. Some of the old features are still available, but Google will sooner or later get rid of them.  
2. Glitches might happen. Due to a lot of changes, some features could not be working as they suppose to. That’s not critical, but on average happens more often than at other times. If you see something weird happening while you’re working with your Google Business Profile,  just reach out to Google Support or to someone who’s managing your listing.
3. Play around with the new interface. Even if you have nothing to update at the moment - still play around with the new interface. Thus, you will be ready and feel more comfortable about the new interface in the future.
4. Hire an agency to manage listings. If you run a multi-location business the new interface makes it significantly harder to manage all of the listings by yourself. Agencies might not only manage it for you but also provide additional features, such as Competitive Analysis and Semantic Analysis and we at Geojet could do just that.

You might have not a positive view of the current Google Business Profile changes. However, if it’s a good or a bad update - only time will tell. For now, we recommend businesses play around and get acquainted with that or get in touch with some agencies that will explain to you listing management in all details. And we at Geojet could definitely provide that 🙂

Airlines' digital presence has been analyzed in Europe, North America (USA, Canada, Mexico), and MENA. We’ve analyzed 30 airlines in Europe, 15 airlines in North America, and 12 airlines in MENA. We should also point out that for airlines online maps and review services could be less significant than for banks and retailers, as they don’t have as many locations compared to stores and ATMs.

However, taking care of online maps and reviews services could be as crucial because it could help customers to find a relevant airline stand at the airport as fast as possible in case of any problem with their flight. For instance, a flight could be delayed, a customer could have some additional questions, or simply be late. In our research we came to the following conclusion:

• Among the 15 biggest North American Airlines, 93% are missing crucial information on Google Maps about their businesses, not working with reviews, or have unclaimed business profiles. North American Airlines don’t take online maps and review services into account when they are planning their online digital strategy. They have a lot of missing information (e.g. working hours, photos, websites, and often all of that at the same time). In addition to that, they work neither with positive nor negative reviews.
  
• 83% of European airlines are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps. Among those analyzed EU airlines performs better in comparison to North American one, however, this result is still far from being satisfactory. European airlines also have lots of missing information in every county analyzed (e.g. Germany, UK, France, Poland)  and work with reviews only occasionally. Occasional work with reviews tells us that some attention is being paid, but probably it’s local office managers' initiative. Most of the locations are unclaimed, meaning that 3rd parties could easily get access to it. They don’t have any software to help them with online maps and review services.
  
• MENA airlines should pay significant attention to their digital presence. MENA Airlines have inconsistent data about their business in almost every analyzed location, don’t work with reviews at all. They obviously don’t have online maps and review services in their digital strategy and can easily try them out to track results.

Our analysis shows that there is a significant opportunity to grow, as airlines haven’t been considering online maps and review services as something worth attention. Combined with our expertise in various sectors we are sure that we would be able to drive more traffic to airlines from online maps and review services.

Just some brief results of our partnership:

• Banks. Increase the number of created routes from online maps by 44%. That brought more potential clients from online maps to offline branches.
• Telecom. Increase replied reviews by 40%, thus establishing a proper channel for communication with customers
• Retail. Provide a 37% increase in created routes

Conclusion

With that article, we’re finishing talking about our International Google Maps Presence findings. To sum it up, we came up with the following conclusion:

Banks' digital presence on Google Maps

• 67% of European banks are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps.
• Among the 14 biggest MENA banks, 93% are missing crucial information on Google Maps about their businesses, not working with reviews, and have a lot of unclaimed business profiles.
• Among Indian banks, only 63% of 19 banks don't have an appropriate digital presence.

Retail digital presence on Google Maps

• 25% of European retailers are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps.
• 47% of MENA retailers are missing crucial information on Google Maps about their businesses, not working with reviews, and have unclaimed business profiles.
• 85% of MENA telecoms are missing crucial information on Google Maps about their businesses.

Airlines

• Among the 15 biggest North American Airlines, 93% are missing crucial information on Google Maps about their businesses, not working with reviews, or have unclaimed business profiles.
• 83% of European airlines are missing necessary information about their business on Google Maps.
• MENA airlines should also pay significant attention to their digital presence on online maps.

There is no doubt that a seamless customer experience is built on trust. In our digital era businesses should keep in check and update working hours, contact information, photos, offerings, etc. In addition to that businesses should work with customer feedback to show that they care about their clients and that needs to be done in every location.

That should be done not only on social media but also on online maps and review services because that’s where customers are trying to find businesses and create opinions based on reviews. In addition, online maps and review services are among the most critical factors, if we’re talking about local rankings in search engines.

Thus, working with these channels could help businesses to show up even if potential clients would be looking for them in search engines (e.g. Google). We at Geojet have been helping multi-location companies to integrate online maps and review services in their omnichannel strategy for a while. If you are curious to know more about why online maps and review services are important to build a proper omnichannel strategy we recommend you check out this article.

If you got curious about our research and cases or looking for a digital solution in the analyzed field - feel free to let us know :)

If you’re curious about our methodology - please review our methodology article. If you want to get access to our research data - request it at sales@geojet.io