First Ever 'What, Where and With?' Search Engine Introduced by EZlocal.com
OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill., July 21 /PRNewswire/ -- While Google, Yahoo and Bing continue to compete for dominance in universal search, EZlocal is introducing a new search technology to the local search market which could help it gain market share from competitors like DexKnows and Yellowpages.com. EZlocal, Inc. announced today that it has been issued Worldwide Patent Number 61/352115, which is broadly directed to processes developed by EZlocal for "what, where and with?" search functions. The patent covers what the company believes is the only system and method available for providing searches including a "with" in addition to the traditional "what" and "where" search parameters to further improve the ability for searchers to have more precise and predictable search results.
To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, please click http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/first-ever-what-where-and-with-search-engine-introduced-by-ezlocalcom-97889094.html
"The concept for adding a 'with' parameter to local search was born out of the insight that online consumers often know exactly what they want before they conduct a search. Up until our product release, search engines like Google and Yahoo and top Internet yellow page sites were not effectively organizing and delivering this. We overhauled our search algorithm to address this disconnect between user and data, and in the process created something highly useful," says Dave Cosper, vice president of marketing, EZlocal Inc. "The applications and future scaling of this technology are capable of reshaping the way online business information is searched for, organized and delivered."
To facilitate this, EZlocal has developed a series of badges, called Zuluz, to categorize popular "with" searches on its site. The initial launch includes 16 popular Zuluz categories for criteria like "accepts credit cards," "open late" and "Wi-Fi hotspot." Businesses who have claimed or been awarded Zuluz for a particular feature or service are prioritized in search results. All Zuluz badges are free for business owners to claim. Over three million Zuluz have already been awarded. A business owner wishing to claim their free business listing and add search optimized Zuluz can simply go to ezlocal.com and complete an easy step by step registration.
The brainchild of Jim Tracy, long-time advocate of small business, EZlocal was conceived as a resource for consumers to quickly and easily find products and services in their community (and elsewhere), providing an easy reference map, customer reviews, and detailed business profiles. "Our goal at EZlocal is to create the most robust and user-friendly local search directory on the Internet," says Tracy who is also president and founder of EZlocal. "Adding the 'with' component to our site is perhaps a long overdue evolution to local search as a whole. In the same way consumers demand faster and more capable cell phones, we're upping the ante and delivering something that works more efficiently for users in the real-world of local search."
Imagine this: it's a late night out with friends and you're craving some food. You're looking to find a pizza place that's both "open late" and "accepts credit cards." Before, no matter what site you used, this would normally take several search steps - assuming this information was even available. Now, with ezlocal.com, you can do this all at once. Type in "pizza," "your town or zip" and choose as many Zuluz categories as you want to get the search results you're looking for -- in one easy step.
Traditional search results tend to be vast and unorganized. Keywords are generally used by businesses to better enable searchers to locate a website or business listing. The keywords are generally matched with a "what" search parameter to determine whether the search results should include the content specific to the keywords. Such a search scheme provides unpredictable results because commercial entities do not always use the same terminology. There is an entire industry for search engine optimization to provide businesses better ways to be "found" during local searches and EZlocal is expecting to corner a sizable portion of this market.
About EZlocal
EZlocal (http://ezlocal.com) is a local search site connecting local listings with ready-to-buy consumers – giving businesses access to more highly targeted Web traffic. The site contains robust business information including enhanced data powered by Localeze and CityGrid. EZlocal also provides local search optimization services with simple tools to help businesses promote their products and services and place higher in local searches on Google, Bing, and Yahoo!
Related Links
For media inquiries contact Alan Lifchultz at (877) 416-2378, ext. 244 or email al[at]ezlocal[dot]com
SOURCE EZlocal, Inc.
Share this article