A common display in local Google searches has been what come to be known as the “7 Pack.” When someone searches for say “insurance” a display of pages and Google Maps results would show. Like this:
It appears though that Google has decided to replace this with a new “3 Pack” Like this
That's good news for the 3 businesses that get displayed in the 3 pack but it means that it's much harder for others to gain this prominence. Additionally in some markets Google is experimenting with doing away with the map pack altogether and replacing it with a paid display pack. (see SEO & What Matters )
Right now I'm only giving this information as an FYI, something to consider. There are a lot of changes going on right now at Google and it's too soon to know how the dust will settle.
For another post on thesempost.com that goes deeper into these changes, Click Here