Google Places and Local Listing Sites?

[Klaas Koopman]

Hi Sitepointers!

I have a question. Currently I am in contact with a person selling a nice local listing network. But now I wonder, is it possible to outrank google places? And would people actually be interested in buying a spot on your site?

And ofcourse there are other sites like YELP that are in thesame business, which aren't easy to crack either.

Would you guys reckon to go on with the deal or just step out of it, as it's almost impossible to make it a positive business opportunity?

Thanks in advance!

[Stevie D]

For a long time Google has been trying to promote actual businesses and demote aggregator sites, directory listings etc. I won't say they've always been successful, but that's definitely their direction of travel. With Google Places now coming into the frame for searches that seem to be looking for a physical business, that's going to make it harder for any kind of aggregator or directory site to do well, unless you've got a really strong brand already.

I'm not sure it's a type of website that I would want to be involved with these days.