Yahoo Local

Similar to the Google Local directory I described yesterday, Yahoo also has a local business directory. With Yahoo, however, you have several options.

Visit Yahoo Local

As with Google Local you can set up a free business listing. The process is similar to Google's except that Yahoo does not mail a confirmation to you. They will review your submission and either reject or approve it within three business days.

In addition to the business listing, Yahoo Local also includes a free five page web site. By answering a series of questions Yahoo will automatically create a web site for your business. The only significant drawback I saw is that there were only two options for graphics, and neither image was suitable for a business such as auto repair, pizza restaurant or most local stores. If you want a greater selection of templates and images, you'll need to sign up for the Yahoo Local Enhanced service.

In addition to the free listings, Yahoo offers "Enhanced" listing for $9.95/month. This provides you with more room for descriptive text in your business listing and greater options for building a web site. Of course, the Yahoo websites are limited in their design because they are based on templates, and the generic nature of the templates is reflected in the way the web site looks. However, $9.95/month isn't a bad price for a web site, if it shows up in the search results. Yahoo local free web sites have just been introduced, so they have not been around long enough for us to see whether searchers--in particular searchers on Google and MSN--will find them.