Business 2.0 has reported that Google Maps, the 3D mapping service of search giant Google, will begin paying users for taking digital photos of local shops and verifying their operating hours and payment options. The idea is to create a digital Yellow Pages to layer on top of Google Maps, the article stated.

The new Business Referral program will effectively turn Google Maps users into paid contractors, in which representatives can earn $10 for supplying information. More specifically, Google will pay $2 for basic contact information and $8 for getting the company to verify it by sending a postcard or approving it online.

Referrals are approved by Google based on the completeness and quality of data supplied by representatives. As long as their earnings total at least $25 a month, representatives will receive a monthly check.

These referral efforts could also have long-term financial benefits. These representatives will also tell each small business about Google’s AdWords programs in the hope that they’ll sign up to buy ads across Google’s sites, the article added.

The move is important for the search giant as it competes with the mapping and Yellow Pages services of Yahoo, AOL and MSN. The most comprehensive service will likely rule the nascent mobile market, too. Local and map search are becoming integral parts of the mobile experience, as users with smartphones are most likely to search for relevant local information.

If Google can create the most comprehensive directory of local venues, it will have both a better shot at recruiting them as advertisers, and a more comprehensive local product.