No, I don't use it and most people don't. Focus on traffic from social bookmarking sites, guest posting and the serps.

I disagree with you. I think if the ten minutes that it takes to complete the Google Local Business Center its really worth the time. If its free then why not spend the couple of mins?

If you are a insurance agency in NYC there is no point in doing it. But if you own a cleaning company in North Dakota you will be all over the place. You have to see what city and how many "results" you are competing against to be on the front page. I used to do alot of maps for my clients and it either worked really well or just sucked for them. So I recommend everyone to do it.

If you need help doing it, send me a PM and ill help you out!