RaveAboutIt.com.au - Business listings and reviews

Aussies will like RaveAboutIt.com.au, a site that lets you search and review any local business, mainly those which provide services, such as florists, hairdressers, tailors, and childcare providers. RaveAboutIt is a community site which lets you join for free, and it is powered by its members, so the consumers are the ones creating the buzz about local businesses. The site lets you read the latest opinions and ratings that other members of the Rave About It community give about businesses and services that they use. Businesses can list their services for free and then the site members pick which ones they want to review. Every day the site posts a new “review of the day.” Each review is accompanied by a rating, a detailed account of the user´s experience with the business, the business´s address and contact information, a map of the location, options for printing or e-mailing a friend, tags, and other similar businesses you might be interested in. This is a great example of how the web allows consumers to take control of what services they choose from by using word of mouth over the web.

“Rave About It aims to provide an enjoyable way in which users can search, rate and discuss what they think of services in their local area and beyond. We feel that word of mouth is the most accurate representation of how well a business services their customers. In addition to helping businesses make themselves heard through real testimonials, small businesses are able to market themselves through other features that the site offers.

By giving power to the people, the site creates opportunities for local businesses to grow and attract customers. Businesses will be held more accountable by sites like these, and people will have incentive to keep submitting reviews if they find it to be a useful service.

The site is only for Australian businesses, so it is a bit limited. Maybe these sites all over the world could work together to create some kind of international database.