Sources & method
Every number
has a name
behind it.
Marketing is full of stats nobody can trace. Here is every outside source this site leans on, what I use it for, and the rules I follow before a number goes on a page.
LocaliQ Digital PartnerHow I handle numbers
- Every stat names its source. If I quote a percentage, you can click through to the survey, study or government table it came from.
- If I cannot trace it, I cut it. Stats that only show up on other agencies’ blogs, with no original study behind them, do not go on this site.
- I quote what the source actually says. Not a rounder number, not a stronger version. When I find I got one wrong, I fix it and the fix goes everywhere it appeared.
- Old research gets labeled as old. The famous lead-response study is from 2011. I still cite it, but as a direction, not as today’s numbers.
- Local numbers come from the Census. Population, land area and business counts on every town and trade page come from U.S. Census Bureau data, not estimates I made up.
Research and surveys
BrightLocal · February 2026
Local Consumer Review Survey 2026
How consumers read reviews, how recent they want them, how replies change their choice, and how many now ask AI tools for local recommendations.
BrightLocal · March 2026
Nearly Half of Consumers are Asking AI for Business Recommendations
How people who use AI tools check the reviews and sources those tools cite.
Oldroyd, McElheran and Elkington, Harvard Business Review · March 2011
The Short Life of Online Sales Leads
The Lead Response Management research behind most response-speed claims. Built on data from roughly 2007 to 2011, so I treat it as directional, never as current numbers.
Baymard Institute · September 2025 update
Cart Abandonment Rate Statistics
The documented average online cart abandonment rate, averaged across 50 separate studies.
Google, web.dev · Current guidance
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
What Google counts as a fast page: main content showing within 2.5 seconds.
Google Business Profile Help · Current guidance
Tips to improve your local ranking on Google
Google's own explanation that local results come down to relevance, distance and prominence.
Law and regulation
Federal Trade Commission, Federal Register · Published August 2024, effective October 2024
Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (16 CFR Part 465)
The federal rule against fake reviews, review suppression and paying for reviews.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration · Current guidance
State Plans
How federal workplace safety rules and state plans fit together.
Government data
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · Published monthly
Consumer Price Index (CPI-U)
The inflation index service agreements can tie price changes to.
U.S. Census Bureau · 2023 data
County Business Patterns and ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023
Business counts by county, ZIP code and industry on every town and trade page.
U.S. Census Bureau · Vintage 2024
Population Estimates, Vintage 2024
Town populations on every town page.
Spot a number on this site that does not trace back to one of these? Text me at (508) 546-9942 and I will fix it.