November 17, 2006
Even with geocoding provided for free by companies like Google (and thus finding an enterprise paid solution should not be much of a stretch), it seems like most local search sites have no clue how to find an address.
Lets try the ubiquitous search of 'pizza'. Our sample address: '1495 Union Ave, Memphis, TN' Memphis is a big city, but doesn't get the attention that cities like SF and NY get.
Google: pass
Yahoo: pass
Local MSN pass
Insider Pages: fail
JudysBook: fail
Local.com: pass (but all those ads make me want to gouge my eyeballs out)
Yelp: fail
TrueLocal: fail
YellowPages.com: pass (barely - it actually just did it by ZIP. Good enough, but not good enough for a domain that cost $100,000,000).
Tooting my own horn:
iBegin Memphis: pass
Just a caveat - iBegin Memphis isn't ready for primetime. But just like I mentioned in my earlier post about why Google keeps winning, the small details matter.
November 17, 2006
Because Google knows what it is like being a webmaster. You don't want to wait around - you want it done asap.
I read today that Google, MSN, and Yahoo had all standardized on a sitemaps format. More information at Sitemaps.org. Kudos on that.
But the submission process is crappy. You can submit directly to Google, but that is well hidden. Otherwise you have to sign up for their Webmaster Tools site. A bit cumbersome, but it is rather nifty. That is for another day.
MSN lets you submit a URL, but it asks you for a captcha every time. Really - this is just annoying. If I am an automated robot that beat your captcha the first time, I can damn well beat it the second time. Plus, sitemaps are supposed to be guidelines. I would imagine that once a domain/site has enough trust/authority, the sitemap would then just be a way of getting in. So boo for hassling me in that manner.
Yahoo - they have Site Explorer. So okay, like Google, they make me register. Fine. But the entire process? Way behind Google. Google makes you upload a blank file with a name, and then immediately verifies it. Yahoo? You must upload some text (for most people, not a big problem, but for me and how I work online, creating a file is 100x easier than adding content in it). On top of that, the verification is 'queued'. I now sit six hours later, with my sites stuck in pending.
Google: Makes me register, but instant verification, two methods, and tons of interesting data
MSN: No registration required, but damn annoying captcha (it adds up with each URL)
Yahoo: Makes me register, cumbersome verification, no idea if I get any associated information.
Google still gets it, while MSN and Yahoo are still left looking.
November 9, 2006
I recently did a guest over at The daily j.d.a where I talked about headaches associated with user verification and validity.
