But while Amazon-inspired search managed to claw back some ground in a difficult 2020, display ad spending (powered by video’s strong showing) forged ahead in the digital shakeout. Last year, it surpassed search for the first time as the predominant ad format, accounting for 48.9% of total digital ad spend against search’s 44.6%.

During the pandemic, consumers made fewer local searches, and local search advertising dropped dramatically.

On today's episode, we discuss social media moderation: How is new regulation keeping social media marketers honest, which social platforms are taking the lead on self-moderation, and how have brands already fallen foul of local laws. Tune in to the discussion as eMarketer principal analyst Bill Fisher hosts senior analysts Jasmine Enberg and Matteo Ceurvels.

Approximate location targeting: For advertisers, approximate location can deliver more contextually relevant advertising based on weather, local stores, or local news without impinging on personal privacy. Local search: Google and other search engines often use location signals to point users to nearby stores that have products in stock.

Trend No. 4: Local Search Will Recover Strongly. During the pandemic, consumers made fewer local searches, and local search advertising dropped dramatically. Some formats, such as local inventory ads (LIAs) and Google Map Ads, dropped between 75% and 100% in Q2, and they have still not fully recovered, according to Merkle data published in October.

eMarketer junior forecasting analyst Nazmul Islam shares our digital ad spending numbers in India and the impact of Facebook, Google and local sites.

Location data is a core way for retailers to drive consumers to a local store by targeting customers primarily, but not exclusively, through social media and search ads. Even for marketers, location intelligence is more widespread than location targeting.