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Pizza grabbed four of 10 spots in a recent list of mobile-directory restaurant searches in US metropolitan areas, according to V-Enable, as reported by TechCrunch (via MarketingCharts). Pizza Hut, Domino's, Papa John's and Little Caesar's all made the top six.
Results of the study suggest directory-search trends point to evidence of the lagging economy. Sit-down, full-service restaurants such as Olive Garden, Applebee's and Red Lobster have dropped in the rankings, while lower-priced, convenience-oriented operations have gained ground.
Some 380 percent more searches for Pizza Hut were conducted between October 2007 and June 2008 than previously, and searches for Domino's Pizza have increased 980 percent during the same period.
Top mobile restaurant searches (Oct. '07 to June '08):
- Pizza Hut
- McDonald's
- Domino's Pizza
- Starbucks
- Papa John's Pizza
- Little Caesar's Pizza
- Taco Bell
- Burger King
- Wendy's
- Denny's
People are staying home and ordering in because of the economy, and they are opting for less expensive meal alternatives, according to V-Enable, which pointed to other evidence from searches pointing to the economic downturn:
- U-Haul, which was never in the top 50, is now #23 in general search. V-Enable suggests this might be indicative of more foreclosures and the need to move.
- Macy's dropped from #17 to #49 in retail searches, possibly suggesting that shopping for discretionary items has slowed.
- Motel 6, which has never been in the top 50, is now #37 in general search. This could be because travelers are looking for budget alternatives to pricey hotels.
About the study: The study was conducted with a random sampling of 20,000 searches in major metropolitan areas from customers of V-Enable partner carriers, including Alltel and MetroPCS. According to V-Enable, mobile search happens in real-time and is unaffected by SEO, making these statistics more reflective of consumer sentiment than web search.
