Yahoo! Local

From ElateWiki

1 Introduction
2 History
3 Business Uses
4 Customer or Personal Uses
5 Disadvantages
6 Two Types of Listings Provided
7 Displaying Local Listings
8 Requirements of Listings
9 Search Categories of Listings
10 Additional Information
11 Yahoo! Local Video
12 Creating a Listing
13 Conclusion
14 See Also
15 References

Introduction

According to Yahoo!, Yahoo! Local Listings is an online local advertising system that gives businesses the ability to provide detailed business information to millions of potential customers on Yahoo! Local.

Its main webpage is http://local.yahoo.com/.

History

Yahoo! Local is part of Yahoo! Search Marketing, an Internet advertising service provided by the corporation, Yahoo!. Yahoo Search Marketing began after Yahoo! acquired Overture Services, Inc in 2003. Overture Services, Inc was formerly called GoTo.com, the first successful pay-for-placement search service. GoTo.com offered advertisers the option of bidding on how much they would be willing to pay to appear at the top of results in response to specific searches. GoTo.com was renamed Overture Services, Inc in 2001. Yahoo! was one of Overture Services, Inc’s main partners by allowing Yahoo! to collect money on the millions of web searches made each day on their site. After Yahoo! acquired Overture Services, Inc., the name was changed to Yahoo! Search Marketing to continue Yahoo’s vision of rebranding all their products with the Yahoo! name. Now, Yahoo! Search Marketing offers many features including Sponsored Search, Product Submit, Travel Submit, and Yahoo! Local Listings.

Business Uses

Yahoo! Local offers many advantages to local business. First, a listing on Yahoo! Local has the ability to reach millions of potential customers that are a mouse click away. The business’s name and image is searchable to a larger market by using a popular search engine such as Yahoo!. Also, the listing may be searchable on other search engines giving the business the ability to reach a limitless amount of potential customers. In addition, Yahoo! Local allows small businesses to advertise for free or at a minimal cost. This a very affordable advertising tool compared to other advertising methods. Lastly, Yahoo! Local provides customer feedback to the company to help improve their business and to better serve their customer base.

Customer or Personal Uses

Yahoo! Local also offers many advantages to the customers accessing the website. One of the biggest advantages is the ability to research businesses for a certain city or town. If a customer wants more information about businesses that offer a certain service or product in a specific town, Yahoo! Local gives the customer the ability to search businesses that are located in a certain city or town. Furthermore, it is a great search engine for customers considering traveling to an unfamiliar city. If a customer is traveling and is unsure of good restaurants, hotels, or shopping, Yahoo! Local gives the traveler an unlimited amount of information. In addition, the advertising tool allows past customers to give feedback about their experience with the business. In return, this feedback gives potential customers information and reviews about businesses they are considering. With past customer reviews, a potential customer can make an educated decision on whether to visit the business.

Disadvantages

As with most Web 2.0, there are some disadvantages of Yahoo! Local. First, the person accessing the website must be a registered Yahoo! user to create a listing or write a review on the company. If the user does not have a Yahoo! account, one must be created before any input may be allowed. Also, a disadvantage for the business would be negative customer comments. Negative feedback detailing a bad experience may damage the business's reputation and their ability to gain customers. In addition, a detailed listing of the business requires a fixed monthly fee. A basic listing is free, but a detailed listing with extra advertising benefits charges a low fee of $9.95 per month. This amount is very low comparing other advertising methods, but it may still be an unwanted expense of many businesses. Lastly, the listing takes approximately five business days for a local listing to appear. Yahoo! must approve of the business listing and make sure it meets all the requirements before the listing appears on the Internet using their advertising search engine.

Two Types of Listings Provided

The first type of listing is referred to as "Basic Listing". This listing is provided to businesses for free of charge. A listing using "Basic" allows a business to display the following information:

- Operation information: This includes information such as hours, email, years in business, and payment methods.

- Contact information: This includes business name, address, and phone number.

- Information about services provided and products sold: This includes additional information about products sold, brands offered, services provided, and affiliated associations.

- Link to website: This allows one hyperlink to a website. Many times, businesses include a link to their main business webpage.

- List in up to five categories: This allows businesses to display their listing in up to five category specific and subcategory specific data fields.

The second type of listing is referred to as "Enhanced Listing". This listing is provided to businesses for $9.95 per month per location. A listing using "Enhanced" allows a business to display everything included in the "Basic Listing" plus the following information:

- Provides maximum exposure for the business and allows for the business to track site visits and search counts.

- Allows for the addition of photos, a company logo and tagline, a more detailed business description and two additional links.

- Companies can place coupons for users to print off or provide promotions on specific products. This helps the company promote their business and get more customers.

Displaying Local Listings

Local listings display key information, which includes the business’s name, address, and phone number, on the search results page. Listings are displayed in Yahoo! Local search results in response to relevant user queries. For more detailed information users can then click on any listing to reach a Details Page, which includes additional information.

Requirements of Listings

To list a business on Yahoo! Local the business must have the following:

- Be based in the United States

- A physical store location or service a local region

- A functional website, in English

- Provide either a website for the business or detailed information about the business, such as hours of operation, credit cards accepted, or other information that is valuable to the user

- No illegal activity promoted on website

Search Categories of Listings

There are main categories with sub-categories underneath for a business to choose the one that is most appropriate for their business. The main categories are found in the picture below:

Some of the categories found in the picture above are as follows:

- Food & Dining

- Entertainment & Arts

- Travel & Lodging

- Health & Beauty

- Retail Shopping

- Automotive

- Real Estate

- Legal & Financial Services

Additional Information

Some additional information that a local business might like to know would be each business can only be submitted once with duplicate or substantially similar listings not being accepted. The category selected by the business must be appropriate. The business can edit their listing 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and their listing may take up to five business days to appear.

Yahoo! Local Video

Creating a Listing

To create a listing for Yahoo! Local there is six easy steps:

1. Go to http://listings.local.yahoo.com/ and click sign up.

2. Sign in using a Yahoo ID, if you do not have a Yahoo! account you can sign up for one here.

3. This is where you enter your account contact information, location information, hours of operation, payment methods accepted, additional information.

4. Select a master category and sub-category with the option to choose up to 5.

5. Preview your local listing and check for any changes you wish to make.

6. Last but not least, you submit and confirm your listing for review by Yahoo! Local, with up to 5 business days before listing is available for viewing.

Conclusion

Yahoo! Local is a great Web 2.0 tool that can be used by any business and customer. There are several advantages for local businesses to create a listing and use the site as an inexpensive advertising tool. Also, Yahoo! Local offers two business listing options that can meet any business's needs. Furthermore, customers may use the website to help make informed decisions on which business to visit. Yahoo! Local offers many searchable categories in any city that allows customers to make speedy searches whenever needed. Clearly, Yahoo! Local may be used as a very resourceful Web 2.0 that benefits both the business and customer.