Most people who search for specific services do so with a local area in mind. They do this in hopes of finding a service provider they know and can actually visit in their immediate area.
This is why local business owners can benefit from using Google Local. Not only does it allow the business page to appear in local search, but it also provides different business details and offers depending on the information entered by the searcher.
Get your page in the Google Places Directory for free. You will need a Google account. Sign up for Gmail, Google's email, to get it.
Adding to Google Local is not automatic, so the business owner must go to the Google Business Center and google review buy enter their local business information. However, sometimes you will see a listing for your business in the Google Places Directory. If you haven't listed it there, you need to claim this listing and make sure all the information is correct. You will probably need to add more to make it complete.
To find a business center, simply type Google Places Directory into the Google search box (or use this URL places.google.com/business) and the search engine will take you there. One thing to keep in mind is that every field in your Google Places Directory listing should be filled out. Businesses with more information filled in have higher priority in Google local search, so this section is very important.