Yelp.com and CitySearch.com are competing to be the go-to search site for everything local.

While both sites offer virually the same concept, they each have different features, some of which might help you to make up your mind about which service works better for your needs.

Yelp.com says real people, real reviews drive their site. It works better for larger, metropolitan areas. I searched my local area, and there are some reviews on the site, but many of them are random and there are only a handful of restaurant reviews for my area.

Yelp offers the option of receiving weekly emails detailing what is hot in your area, as well as ways to connect with other yelpers in your area. Their mobile site is basic, but very reliable,

CitySearch.com is another review site, and the standard experience is very similar to Yelp. CitySearch, though, has released a Beta version, which rolls out its Facebook Connect  tie in. The beta draws the search down into neighborhoods and also all which allows Facebook users to review and participate without creating a CitySearch Id.

They’ve alo rolled out a way to balance the reviews between users and businesses. This will allow reviews to be voted up or down.

The mobile experience has been modified as well. It is using Google Gears for anyone using a phone with Windows Mobile 5 or higher. This will customize the content to be more relevant to the current users location.

Article Tags: CitySearch | Connect | mobile | reviews | searching | Yelp

Filed under: Brand Extension, Digital Customer Service, Digital Marketing, Networks, New Marketing, Search Marketing, Technology