Yahoo Localworks is the latest incarnation of the popular Yext directory listing service, which aims to boost small businesses' exposure online. With a Localworks subscription, you can sync business listings across more than 60 online directories including Yahoo, Google, and Yelp. In minutes, you can completely revamp your web presence across dozens of local directories by changing your:

• Business name
• Physical and mailing addresses
• Phone and fax numbers
• Email address
• Regular and holiday hours
• Photos, videos, brochures, and other marketing materials
• Staff profiles, language options, and any other pertinent information
• Current and upcoming sales and promotions

A solid business page is a good start, but Localworks also improves your online presence by giving you complete control over your:

• Business categories, tags, hashtags, and other search criteria
• Folders and website hierarchy
• Location labels and other tools to enable advanced filtering

Sounds great, right? Unfortunately, that's about all Localworks offers for its basic subscription service. Localworks is also one of the more expensive offerings out there for local directory management. The bare-bones package described above doesn't offer any advanced features such as duplicate content prevention, and you can only check a handful of reviews at a time. Despite its shortcomings, Localworks still costs $29.99 a month or around $360 a year, which is expensive for a basic directory syncing service but cheaper than the company's old $480 per year price. You can add more advanced features such as reputation management, but these features can easily double or even triple your subscription's monthly rate.

Don't Cancel... or Else!

With Localworks, you're not buying directory listings so much as renting them. The minute your subscription expires, all of your listings immediately revert back to their pre-Localworks state because the service uses data overlays to cover up the existing listings including their descriptions, photos, and other information. That information still exists, but you can't see it.

This isn't a big deal if you're just trying out Localworks for a month or two, but after a few years, unsubscribing from Localworks can be catastrophic. You could even lose some listings entirely, which can cause an overnight drop in business. If you're a current subscriber, we recommend hiring another local directory management firm before canceling your Localworks package.

Rebranding

As previously mentioned, the only thing that's new about Yahoo Localworks is its name. The same service was originally available under Yext before it became known as Aabaco Small Business. Like most instances of rebranding, this particular example stems from Yext's reputation for being both expensive and relatively ineffective. Yahoo remains one of the more recognizable online brands, so the corporate rebranding served to boost the service's name recognition. Unfortunately, the rebranding did nothing to lower the monthly cost or improve the service in any way.

No Niche or Industry-Specific Directories

Perhaps Localworks's most glaring shortcoming is its complete lack of support for industry-specific directories. For all the sites like Google and Yahoo, there are a dozen more like TripAdvisor and Edmunds. These are popular directories that each boast millions of unique daily visitors, and if you're not listed on them, you're losing out on a substantial amount of business.

Bottom Line — Is Localworks Worth Your Money?

For all of its downsides, Yahoo Localworks still offers a convenient way to sync all of your business listings across dozens of general directories, but it's impossible to enthusiastically endorse the basic package when better services exist at lower prices. For example, Synup costs just $30 a month for a single location, and lower rates are available for bulk listings. With Synup's basic package, you'll be able to control and sync your listings across more than 45+ different listings including many of those industry-specific directories that are so important.

Additionally, you can scan for and remove duplicate listings, which at best make your business look unprofessional and at worst give unauthorized users access to your directory listings. Every duplicate listing is a potential headache because you'll have to prove that you're the business owner, but automatic duplicate removal saves you the hassle.

Customer reviews can mean the difference between a small business running in the black or shutting its doors after just a few months. Aabaco Small Business by Yahoo does offer a limited review compilation tool, which allows you to check a few reviews at a time, but it doesn't even come close to the review checking tool offered by Synup. By compiling reviews from all of your listings into one convenient location, you can easily gauge customer reactions and quickly make adjustments when necessary. If you want the Yahoo name, choose Localworks, but if you want to try a solid alternative, sign up for Synup. Want to change to a different directory listing service after a month? You can cancel at any time, and all of your listings will remain intact, so you have nothing to lose!