Facebook recently launched a service for members that provides recommendations and ratings on shops and service providers, a move that puts it in direct competition with Yelp.
The tool provides star ratings on local service providers, including doctors, veterinarians, event planners, health spas and auto repair shops.
Users can leave references on the site detailing their experiences with certain merchants or service providers. Maps also are available.
Impact on Rivals
Yelp appears to be the main target of the new service. The company, founded in 2004, provides reviews for Web surfers on their home computers or mobile devices, boasting a monthly average of 89 million unique mobile visitors during the third quarter.
Yelp also provides an app called Eat24, which lets users order food delivery from their favorite restaurants.
If Facebook is able to drive enough traffic to its listings, that would present a potential “gold mine of local advertising opportunities.
Service Beyond Ratings
Angie’s List, another key competitor, is a subscription-based site that provides recommendations heavily geared toward home improvement providers, including plumbers, home contractors and exterminators. It also provides ratings on doctors, dentists and other service providers.
More than 3 million households use the service, and users submit about 60,000 reviews per month on various service providers. The company provides discounts to users for various services as well.
The company provides guarantees on quality service and fair prices on e-commerce products for eligible members.
Taking Its Time
Recommendations are a natural extension of Facebook’s service when you consider that the company is in the business of connecting people. Facebook is probably laying low on the addition as it is experimenting with the best way to engage its user base. In addition, as a homegrown and new recommendation service, it will take some time to build a useful list of recommendations.
Google made a similar shift a few years back, he noted, when it folded local business recommendations and related advertising into its Maps application.
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