Local advertising meets search engine optimization with new tool for marketers.
You probably know Citysearch as a local online media site. You may know OrangeSoda as an SEO provider. Together, they make a tasty, sophisticated cocktail.
They’ve come together to make your life easier. And now that the day is three seconds shorter due to the Chilean earthquake, you’re gonna need solutions like the CityGrid Complete.
What CityGrid Complete offers is a network of 100 web and mobile partners for online advertising, including search. What OrangeSoda offers is search engine optimization for organic listings.
Despite loss, they beat the Street.
IAC, the parent company of Ask.com, today reported its Q4 2009 earnings. While revenues in their Search division were up 3%, IAC had to report a loss of $1 billion. The loss is related to impairment charges, which has to do with the reduction in value of a company’s goodwill.
Even so, IAC beat expectations by a $0.03. Wall Street is reacting favorably. IAC stock is up 4.21% at the time of this post.
Besides Ask.com, IAC’s Search division includes CitySearch, Dictionary.com, and Fun Web Products. CitySearch’s revenue was down due to lower display ad revenue.
The app is free and available in the Android Market. It provides access to 15 million local business listings.
Here’s what you can do with it:
- Submit reviews on the go
- Share merchant details, reviews and tips via text, e-mail or Twitter
- Search and sort your city via auto-identification of your location using GPS
- Search by keyword, category, distance, cost and Citysearch rating
- Access leading Citysearch content such as user and editorial reviews, editor’s picks and featured merchants
- Save time and money with the Tip Calculator and Split the Bill features
Through MapQuest’s relationship with CitySearch, over 700,000 new business listings have been added to the online mapping service. The listings include popular categories such as restaurants, bars, clubs, hotels, shopping, and spas.
In addition to the listings, MapQuest has added greater editorial content for their business listings. Such content includes ratings and reviews, coupons, business hours, and restaurant menus.
MapQuest and CitySearch entered into their partnership in August of 2008.
Ask.com and Citysearch parent company IAC released its third quarter earnings for 2009. Overall revenues came in at $336.6 million down 9% from the same quarter last year. However, profit for the quarter came in at $21.7 million, up from the $14.8 million loss suffered last year. The profits are largely due to the sales of OpenTable and Match Europe.
IAC’s Media and Advertising Division, which contains Ask, Dictionary.com and Citysearch (among others), brought in $172.3 million in revenues, down 11% from last year.
