They say imitation is the highest form of flattery. So Yahoo must be giving a hat tip to Google with the latest update to its local search results. The new Yahoo local search results give detailed information about a business à la Google when clicking on the listing from the results.
From Yahoo’s announcement:
Whether you’re searching for the nearest open restaurant or your local coffee shop, you’ll see a snapshot of the business alongside our refreshed Yahoo Maps experience – information like a company overview, photos, hours of operation, parking availability and more. With a noticeably larger map that stays put on the sidebar, it’s easier to find the location closest to you.
Here’s an example of what that detailed listing looks like for a particular restaurant in San Francisco:
And, in case you’re wondering, here’s that same search listing on Google’s local results:
Yahoo’s CEO Marissa Mayer is a former Googler, and seems to knows a good thing when she sees it. It’s not the first time Yahoo has borrowed concepts from Google either, with other recent inspiration seemingly derived from Gmail and applied to redesigning Yahoo Mail.
Yahoo mentioned in its announcement of the new local search results that detailed business information is available in the U.S. only for now.