You can browse and register without it, but you cannot publish a listing until your phone number is verified.
It exists because a directory anyone can post to without any identity behind it fills up with fake and duplicate entries, and the people who lose from that are the real businesses.
How to verify
- Start adding a listing, or open the dashboard.
- When prompted, confirm the phone number shown or correct it.
- Enter the code that arrives by SMS.
Use a number that can receive SMS. A landline will not work.