Are “near me” searches mostly about proximity signals now?

Something interesting keeps coming up in local marketing discussions lately we’ve seen lately. “Near me” still matters, but it feels less like a keyword thing and more like an intent + proximity signal problem.

Some local teams are noticing that things like Google Business Profile category alignment and user behavior (calls, direction requests, repeat engagement) seem to influence visibility more than traditional “near me” page optimization.

With conversational search growing, queries like “best HVAC repair near me open now” carry a lot more context than they used to.

Curious what others in this sub are seeing right now… are proximity signals and behavioral engagement becoming the real drivers for “near me” visibility in 2026?