Google announced today on their Mobile Blog that they've expanded their 1-800-GOOG-411 service to cover all of Canada. Canadians can now find business listings by dialing 1-800-GOOG-411 from any phone for free. Apparently the delay was thanks to our unusual dialect.
At Google, we work hard to tailor products to specific markets and regions. We believe that accounting for the unique characteristics of each country can make the difference between an OK service and a great one. Although English is spoken in both the US and Canada, there are enough differences between the way it's spoken in the two countries that we engineered GOOG-411 especially for Canadian English. We incorporated some Canadianisms such as "eh," "Traw-na," "Cal-gry," and, of course, "aboot." We also took into account geographical differences. Whereas users in the US are prompted for "city and state," Canadians are asked for your "city and province."
After making a couple test calls, it's clear that 1-800-GOOG-411 performs best when you know the name of the business you're after. For example, instead of memorizing or making a note of the digits of your favorite restaurant, you can call 1-800-GOOG-411 and connect directly to make a reservation. Very handy.
The service is still experimental but offers all the same features available in the US, such as free call, free connection, SMS info, and iPhone "Map-It" integration. Suddenly being listed in Google's local search results just became that much more important.
photo credit: W4W Toronto
Awesome. Works as promised too!
Hi, this is great. Very impressive. Thanks.
Freebies anyone? You can also use ASK411 to look for your listings. It's free until jan. 31/09. No need to talk to an operator or to an automated machine. Go ahead try it, your number is one click away. For more information check out their website ask411.com.
Hi thanks for the information Hayden Madden. I saw the site and tried ASK411 and it worked. I just type the listing along with the city and state where I need it and I sent it to 275411, and before I knew it, the answer is already texted to me. Thanks so much! Yes, its free until the 31st.. but can they just extend it???? Just kidding.. At least after the 31st the charge isn't like the other 411 services, its far cheaper. I thinks its just 50 cents per text.
I would love to use this, but it does not seem to recognize the province of Quebec. Has anyone tried it?
