Local search engine Local.com has struck a deal to distribute results and consumer reviews from community-based directory Insider Pages.
Starting in Q1 2006, Insider Pages’ pay-per-call ads and merchant reviews will appear in search results pages on Local.com, where they are relevant to the category and geography of the search. Insider Pages offers consumer-generated content in the form of personal recommendations of local small businesses from hair stylists to financial planners; registered users can then share these reviews with their social networks. Merchants have the opportunity to capitalize on favorable reviews by running pay-per-call ads that only cost them when potential customers contact them by phone.
“Adding content from Insider Pages will further enrich our users’ search experience,” said Greg Parker, director of strategic alliances for Local.com’s parent, Interchange, in a release. “Our strategy is to drive repeat usage by providing deep, rich, value-added content to our consumers, which ultimately enhances their ability to make more informed purchase and shopping decisions.”
The Insider pages deal is the latest in a string of recent enhancements offered by Local.com. Others include the incorporation of LookSmart’s Furl.net bookmarking feature, a distribution deal with ShopLocal to display store specials and promotions alongside merchant information, and improvements to its overall search relevance. Local.com, which launched its pilot in August, says it notched 5 million unique visitors and 21 million page views in November—up from 1.5 million unique visitors and 6 million page views in October.
