Google is now using an AI-based system called neural matching to improve the quality of local search results and confirmed on Tuesday that the rollout is now fully completed after starting a month ago.
The ‘November 2019 Local Search Update’ is built around new tech that will allow Google to better understand the interplay between words in a search query and how they relate to concepts.
Google’s latest rollout follows on quickly from the arrival of the cutting-edge BERT algorithm update, which promised to understand general searches better than ever before.
The local search update first went live in early November and has now launched in all languages and countries.
While Google said that one in 10 searches would be affected by BERT, it has not divulged a specific figure for the extent of the local search impact.
However, it did explain the tech behind the new changes in a tweet published on Monday (2nd December).
Google’s SearchLiason account noted: “The use of neural matching means that Google can do a better job going beyond the exact words in business name or description to understand conceptually how it might be related to the words searchers use and their intents.
Google also claimed that it was a sort of “super-synonym system” in a tweet published several months ago.
The tech does mean that users will now get the most relevant local businesses served to them when making a query, even if the keywords used do not match the business name or description.
