How cool is this? My wife was telling me the other day that she wanted to find a local photographer that could take a specific size photograph and develop it in a certain way. So she browsed over to Google Local, searched for the business, and it had this “call” link. She clicked it, typed in our telephone number, and up rings our phone with the business number on the caller id. She answers it and the phone says, “connecting.” Then Google routed her phone call to the business… for free. :-) I thought at first… “mmm-kay, whoopie doo…” but it actually is pretty neat, and convenient for those who happen to google businesses regularly.
You don’t even have to press the numbers on the telephone for the business you are calling anymore! :-) I’m not sure if it will connect you to the business if your number is outside of the US, and I tried checking out google.ca to see if our Canadian friends had the same ease of use, but it doesn’t make the “call” link on the webpage.
The US side is fully functional however. Give it a shot at Google Local. Just type the name of the business, or type of business… and where it’s at, like “Chicago, IL” and it will have a little “call” link next to it. Type your phone number in, click “Connect for free” and your phone will ring. :-)
I love innovation.
