I don't really get it, places helps Google deliver the most locally relevant data, which seems useful looking for a business like this. The preferred alternativ

I don't really get it, places helps Google deliver the most locally relevant data, which seems useful looking for a business like this. The preferred alternative is to infer similar information from other similar services online? Things like citysearch and yelp are even built into the places listing, seems better than just having the one that has the best SEO visible.