The accuracy of the online information presented to searchers about local businesses is a critical concern for those who provide it. This includes all the various Internet Yellow Pages, the Local Search Engines (including the big boys, like Google Maps) and the multitude of social/local and new/local websites such as Topix, Yelp, Insider Pages and the like.

Displaying incorrect data and map points can cause a great deal of inconvenience to someone who drives to a local enterprise’s location only to find they are closed, don’t carry the products for which they were shopping, have moved or have perhaps even gone out of business. It’s a matter of trust and if searchers cannot trust the information a website gives them, they will look for another source.

The best source of information about a local business is the merchant. This is why nearly all sites involved in Local Search encourage business owners to claim and verify their listings. Nearly all of them permit all merchants to create or edit a free basic listing on their site to insure they have accurate and current data.

However, the shear number of valuable Local and social websites out on the internet where an owner can have a business profile is already overwhelming and is continually growing. Just keeping up with the new sites is a big job and, if something about your business changes, updating all of those profiles is a daunting task. So what do you do?

Create a Master Business Profile

A master business profile pushes the information you provide about your enterprise out to dozens of sources of local data all across the web. While this service has been available for several years, it is just now gaining mainstream attention and, unfortunately many of the vendors who promote it don’t really understand it very well themselves. That’s why you need to know how it works!

You log into a database, where you input as much information as it will accept. This usually includes a logo image, address, phone and fax numbers, map location, a link to directions, a description of who you are and what you do, hours of operation, payment types accepted, special discounts and coupons, the services you provide, the brands and products you carry and anything else you may wish to brag about, such as memberships, accreditations, certifications, awards, etc. Try to fill your profile up with as much information as it will hold.

Then, at regular intervals, the service feeds the information from their database out to their partners, who consider them to be trusted sources. The partners update their databases at varying intervals, so it can sometimes takes weeks or months to see any changes you make to your master profile. The system is far from perfect. However, it is far and away a better option than trying to manually keep all your listings up to date.

In addition, the profile page that is created can serve as a mini website for small businesses with small online advertising budgets. Most profile platforms are built with SEO in mind and it’s not usual to see these pages ranking for hyperlocal and long tail search terms. Most also include some simple tracking that will tell you how many people visit the page and how they interact once there. Some also offer printable coupons and call tracking from the profile page to assist you in determining conversions.

Choosing a Service

• Register Local is a Local Launch product that I have used for 2 years for hundreds of clients with excellent results. They are part of the Kelsey Group of companies and are owned by RH Donelley, the original Yellow Pages provider, so they have a good understanding of small business advertising needs.
• Localeze is a long time player (in internet years) in the Local Search space. They have many valuable online partnerships and are a highly trusteed source of business information.
• Local Promote is a service of Local.com, one of the biggest independent Local Search Engines. They, too have widespread partnerships and plenty of trust within the industry.
• Universal Business Listing is an industry initiative that’s only about 6 months old and is designed to allow all business owners to participate in data distribution at a comparatively low cost. Unlike the other services I am familiar with, a profile created at UBL does not exist as a stand alone page on the world wide web. Therefore it cannot act as a mini website. However, it still makes your data available to important websites across the web. In my opinion, this service will grow nicely in usage and trust as more and more local businesses scramble to get on the internet.