I’ve given a lot of coverage the last week or so to Google’s Latitude. Why? What makes Google Latitude matter to small businesses? Simple. Many small businesses are service businesses – plumbers, doctors, restaurants and hotels – that will depend upon local, mobile and social search engines to drive their business. Latitude matters, because, for the first time, many consumers will be aware of location-based services.
Consider this: Google’s most likely competitors right now are OnStar and Garmin. Why? Because these “search engines” – though few consumers think of them that way – represent frequently used alternatives for consumers to locate businesses and services they need. Sure, other location-based services exist, such as BrightKite.
But look at BrightKite’s traffic over the last year:
Sure, it’s grown tremendously.
Except when you graph it against Google:
See what I mean? Which location-based service do you think your customers are going to hear about?
Hell, Latitude may be the best thing ever to happen to BirghtKite. Seriously. It’s much better in business to do something you don’t have to explain to your customer.
Small businesses that rely on search – which is to say most of them – can benefit from growth in any of these services.
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Well. Google’s Latitude – as predicted – definitely got some notice. Apart from Scoble’s original FriendFeed discussion, lots of folks on the Interwebs, social, local and mobile had something to say about Google’s entry into the field. Here’s the roundup.
PC World thinks you can use it to track workers, a la that Sprint “What if delivery people ran the world commercial.”
What do you think? Has Google gone too far? Or is all the hype overblown? Tell us what you think in the comments below.
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We looked at location-based services earlier this week. And, as discussed, privacy concerns seem to be the hot button issue. Scoble’s comments about Latitude’s privacy controls are valid. You can limit whether your friends can see your location. Of course, as true privacy advocates will tell you, your friends aren’t the ones you should worry about.
Still, this marks a major step forward for the local, mobile, social web. Not because it’s the first application of its kind; it’s not. Jaiku, Nokia FriendView, BrightKite and others have offered similar functionality for some time. However, Google has one thing those other services don’t. Mass appeal. And that’s why Latitude matters. Latitude will either open your customers’ eyes to the power and value of location-based services or scare the hell out of them and foster a dialogue of online privacy. Or both. In either case, don’t expect this to go away quietly.
Are you getting enough value out of your small business website? Want to make sure your business makes the most of the local, mobile, social web? thinks helps you understand how to grow your business via the web, every day. Get more than just news. Get understanding. Add thinks to your feed reader today. Or subscribe via email.
