Google Local Business Center - going Local with stickers

Google is going local with a sticker, more than 100,000 chosen businesses have been mailed a “We’re a favorite place on Google” decal with a unique bar code to put in their store windows. This unique barcode is in the form of a QR code. Inquisitive customers, upon scanning the barcode (which will more than likely be one of the millions of mobile phones with a camera, will be taken to the relevant “place page” which reveals various details about the business including hours of operation, reviews, photos, directions, phone numbers, brands carried, menus (if a restaurant), and even mobile coupons if available. Furthermore, the users can rate the business and have the option to submit their own review, this threads on the feet of Yelp and other local user-generated reviews services. Google is also counting how many times people search for a business, look up directions to it, or click through to its web site, thus tracking customers right to the doorway of your business. This move by Google really puts real businesses into the virtual world. Local business are allowing google to access to even more data voluntarily in exchange for customers on their doorstep, isn’t that nice !   

Just something to note is that this is another move by Google into the mobile domain, today the Web, tomorrow the mobile device. I suppose the Web now lives on mobile devices so this is a natural direction for google to move in. The next big gold rush therefore will be mobile platforms, and because they are mobile, location based service and search are a big part of Goggles future.

Here are 2 videos, the first on Google favourite places and the second on local business centre, enjoy.