I live nearby in Sarasota, about a 30 minute drive south. Palmetto, FL is a waterfront community with restaurants, RV campgrounds, mobile homes, rather rural, not heavily populated. An outsider, like a tourist, is typically easily to identify, sometimes by the way they act, dress, car tag, etc.
If this guy had visited this area in the past, he may have made connections related to his business. I suspect his business is probably the root of why he's missing. Maybe he was traveling with cash, gold, gem stones or something he wouldn't, or couldn't, take on an airplane.
Palmetto isn't a business hub like Sarasota, Tampa, Orlando. It's a dot on the map as you pass thru to get on I-275 to St. Pete or Sarasota.