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Google’s recent announcement they are building a local sales presence is an indication they understand that the only way to mine the advertising dollar is about serving the local market.  Small companies can’t afford to spend their dollars on establishing a local presence, which is why the Yellow Pages are still popular.  But what if someone was willing to do most of your heavy lifting and posts not only your business name but also you location?  Combine that with a good search engine and you have a competitor for the local Yellow Pages.  The challenge for the Yellow Pages has been maintaining an up to date book, Google can solve this problem for itself, by getting Google users to help them populate the database for cheap.  The Yellow Pages also tend to resonate with wired telephone users.  Google is popular with a specific demographic.  The Yellow Pages may actually lose traction with a specific demographic.  Google may end up becoming the new Yellow Pages for the next generation.

As for Google using college students as the local presence of salespeople, well it is not only a lot cheaper to use students but it’s also a heck of a great idea when it comes to accumulating information on businesses.  Google is not targeting a guy like me – rapidly passing through middle age.  Google is targeting the new emerging workforce that loves to drop money on tech toys and uses the web.  Use students who are not experienced sales people and they will likely go to businesses they will frequent.  Use a professional salesperson and you will be wondering whether or not they figured out how to use the system, avoid expending personal energy, and make a buck off of you.  The best professional salesperson looks at working smarter, i.e. making more money with less labor.  You would never know if you got businesses that your customers frequent or businesses that the salesperson could get to advertise quickly.  The college student will likely think it’s a cool way to make a few bucks and actually interact with business they frequent.

Furthermore, Google’s actions are raising awareness amongst the local businesses of Google’s ability to help them.  Some of these businesses may actually drop their ads with the printed Yellow Pages and opt to go the route of Google.

As for a local Yellow Pages challenge, if Google is going through this trouble of getting local businesses to advertise without the intention of challenging the Yellow Pages than Google is clueless.  The Yellow Pages was once the local telephone companies’ single most important way of communicating to its customer base.  The challenge for the telephone companies has been keeping the phone book up to date.  The telephone companies have gone online to supplement the printed word but the reality is that most wired telephone company users who are looking up a local plumber for help will not go online to find that local plumber – it is just plain easier to grab the book and look up the plumber. 

Google on the other hand resonates with a specific customer base and hence they are use to that online experience.  The Google telephone book may end up looking like a telephone book for the 18 through 34 year old demographic.

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