Why Google Places Reviews Are Important, And Will Become Even More Important In The Future.


If there is one thing that pretty much all tech commentators can agree on is that smartphones are radically changing how people use the internet, and with over 500,000 new activations every day, the Android operating system already has the largest market share, and it is conceivable that at some point it will have more market share than all the other smartphone operating systems combined – Android market share to surpass 40 percent this year.

Here is a screen-shot from my Samsung Galaxy S Android phone after I tap the ‘internet’ icon:-

Here is what happens when I tap ‘Restaurants’:-

If I’m visiting the Portaferry area, and I’m looking for a restaurant, what do you think the chances are of me visiting the Cuan?

How much do you think this will affect restaurants in Northern Ireland when 40% of the population not only has an Android phone but knows how to use it?

Here is another scenario – someone has mentioned the Cuan might be worth visiting, and I decide to search for “The Cuan” on Google on my phone – here is the result :-

Do you think the 39 5 star reviews, and the wonderful comment will sway me at all?

I contest that it doesn’t matter so much if the Facebook Page for your restaurant has thousands of fans, and your Twitter account has thousands of followers. Good reviews for local businesses are far more important.

For the record – I also give The Cuan 5 Stars if anyone values my opinion in any way (and in the interests of fairness, if you are in the area, The Saltwater Brig and The Quays are also 5 out of 5).

While on the subject of local (Northern Irish) reviews, check out the local review site that was developed, and run by local people – http://lookaly.com. It’s a great site, and if you add your review there, it will generally get scraped by Google and make it’s way into Google Places…

PS – for anyone wondering how to get a screen-shot on their Galaxy S (As I was until 5 minutes ago) – see How to take Screenshot with Samsung Galaxy S without Rooting, no PC. (Although I has to press the home key twice for some reason).

Android market share to surpass 40 percent this year

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