Today, Google launched its new Google Offers app for iPhone on its official blog. iPhone users can now find, buy and redeem Google Offers in their area from their mobile phones. Here are some of the key features of Google Offers for iPhone:
iPhone users can find offers near them in map view or search for deals by category
There is no need to print a voucher, users can buy and redeem their offers with their iPhone instantly
Users can track purchased and saved offers in “My Offers” online or on the iPhone
Users can get notifications sent to their iPhones when new deals become available in their area or when a deal they’ve purchased is about to expire
Google has made some significant changes to its local search pages. Google Places has been replaced by Google+ Local, which means a new review system, a Local tab and more. Want to find out what’s different and how your business can use the new Google+ Local? Read on.
What’s Different?
Your link to your Google Places listing in the search results will now be a link to your Google+ Local page
A new Local tab has appeared in the Google+ interface
There is a new integration of the Zagat review system
Businesses will appear depending on recommendations from friends’ Circles. In other words, if someone in one of your Google+ Circles recommends a business, you are likely to see that same business high up in your search results
This chart compares the features of the different Google local pages:
Types of Pages:
Google+ Local Page: This is Google’s replacement for Places. It is the local business listing that shows up in the search results. It can be linked with an already existing Google+ for business page. Users can review the business and find general business information on this page.
Google+ Page: This can be for a business or a person. This is Google’s social media network. Businesses can post “status updates” and connect with customers and potential customers through social media marketing on this page.
Hybrid Google+ Local+ Page: This is a combination of the Google+ page and the Google+ Local page, which means it functions as both a local search page and a social network. A hybrid page occurs when a business links the two pages together. This can be done here. Businesses can post “status updates,” and users can leave reviews on the hybrid Google+ Local page.
Zagat Reviews:
Google+ Local has integrated the Zagat scoring system into its reviews. Reviews are now scored out of 30 and there are different categories (Food, Décor, Service, Cost) that make rating more specific. Once a user reviews a business, they can choose to share the review with their Circles on their own Google+ page.
As Google continues to fine tune these changes, Local Splash will continue to report the updates so don’t forget to check back often to stay on top of the latest local search news.
According to an article on TechCrunch.com, Bing and Yelp announced a partnership that will bring Yelp’s local business content to Bing’s local search pages. The pages will now say “Powered by Yelp,” and will integrate Yelp’s reviews, photos and business information with Bing’s local search pages.
The partnership with Yelp is not the only agreement Bing has made lately. It has also partnered with Qwiki, a video startup that translates text content into video and integrated with Facebook. These partnerships aim to increase the quality of Bing’s search results in an attempt to take on the search giant, Google.
In late 2009, Google was considering buying Yelp for half a billion dollars. However, tensions grew between the two companies after Google crawled Yelp’s content and used it for its Places application without forming a partnership. Google then decided to buy Zagat instead and get rid of all of Yelp’s information. Zagat is now a chief component in Google’s newest local search application, Google+ Local.
Although Bing’s new partnerships look promising for the search engine, getting people to switch from Google to Bing is a tough job. Which search engine do you use? Do Bing’s recent attempts to better its service entice you to switch from Google to Bing?
