Using the Internet to locate specific local services
Posted on October 18, 2011
If you are looking for a service, a company or an individual to perform some sort of task for you, the yellow pages will still work. However, the industry for service acquisition has changed dramatically. Today, whether you are looking for a Naperville caterer, an Illinois DUI lawyer, Detroit Limo Company, or literally anything else the internet is the source to turn to.
Internet postings are usually up to date, often to the day. This makes massive online referral or classified sites like craigslist or online newspaper classifieds fantastic for locating temp work or opportunities on a tight timetable. For instance, if you are looking for an intern or part time worker, make a quick post with contact info and throw it out there or look for people who are posting resumes and profiles online.
Long tail phrases are best. For instance, “Cook County Illinois DUI lawyer” when entered onto Google will return incredibly specific results pertinent to your situation. “Lawyer” will return millions of hits, obscuring the actual object of your hit. Industry specific referral sites may also be helpful in your quest as they will also list specific leads and resources appropriate to your search.
Also keep in mind that the internet is crawling with scams. If at all possible use online resources to check the credentials of your leads or look up testimonials posted on open sites like yelp. These will help give you perspective from previous individuals who used these services, often revealing the best and worst of what they got. If nothing exists you may do well to reconsider the authenticity of your lead.
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