When is a "deal" not a deal?
Posted on: 01-1-2012 by: Edgar Reihl
The simple answer is, when Bing or Google decides it isn’t!
You may be familiar with Google Places and Bing Local. These are both great tools for local businesses and organizations to spread the word, and they are both free (so far)! There are some differences between the two; Bing offers more features, but Google Places is somewhat easier to work with and you can get your listing online more quickly.
Both Google Places and Bing Local currently allow you to post a “deal” for your business at no charge. Now that is a deal! But Google is changing their policy and it appears that you will soon have to pay for these ads. Also, the interface has changed significantly, so if you haven’t used this feature in awhile, you should take time to go through their tutorial. Personally, I don’t like the new format.
I am still evaluating these changes. We don’t know how much Google is going to charge for these ads (or whether Bing will follow suit). Other types of advertising, like Facebook or local search sites, may turn out to be a better fit for certain types of small businesses. I will revisit this topic in a future post.
The simple answer is, when Bing or Google decides it isn’t!
You may be familiar with Google Places and Bing Local. These are both great tools for local businesses and organizations to spread the word, and they are both free (so far)! There are some differences between the two; Bing offers more features, but Google Places is somewhat easier to work with and you can get your listing online more quickly.
Both Google Places and Bing Local currently allow you to post a “deal” for your business at no charge. Now that is a deal! But Google is changing their policy and it appears that you will soon have to pay for these ads. Also, the interface has changed significantly, so if you haven’t used this feature in awhile, you should take time to go through their tutorial. Personally, I don’t like the new format.
I am still evaluating these changes. We don’t know how much Google is going to charge for these ads (or whether Bing will follow suit). Other types of advertising, like Facebook or local search sites, may turn out to be a better fit for certain types of small businesses. I will revisit this topic in a future post.