In all events, Google allows other businesses to claim your listing. Pretty sneaky. I think I discovered a guy who did that to me and went to the Maps group for help. Instead, a forum troll reported me as a spammer and I was removed from Maps.

I fired the webmaster who set up maps for me. Too late, Maps Jen says I am out for the “foreseeable future”. I have suffered at least a 30 percent drop in business.

What’s worse, is that the other sites my guy copied are all still submitting multiple listings for the same location, using multiple mirror sites with different url’s, submitting fakes firm names, that are really keyword names, and are totally controlling all the traffic from Maps.

Do you have any suggestions as to getting back into Maps and to get Maps to enforce its rules in a just manner, rather than the arbitrary and capricious manner they enforce their rules now? It really killed my phone.

Don’t you think they should offer amnesty or a second chance?

So, perhaps the question becomes…is Google willing to staff local in a manner that will lead to the accuracy we are all longing for?

Miriam

Seriously, business owners will work hard to make sure the locals notice them (by advertising on the radio, TV, in the Yellow Pages, etc.) but many seem to ignore the Internet either because it’s too confusing, a fad or not really part of their marketing model. Once the people who run these businesses realize what an impact having good information about their company online will do for them, then it’s up to everyone else to try their best.

We all just need to have a commitment to our local companies and do it the Yelp and Wiki way…get the word out online, tell everyone we know and eventually the actually companies themselves will get on the ball!

Mike

We discussed the differences between the quality of info from the mapping companies providing information for mapquest, google, yahoo, etc.

Per this employee, the quality standards and detail required by the companies that are supplying the web are less than those of ADC. He referenced things like the requirement to drive new roads, contacts with governments, etc.

At various times I’ve checked the web maps detail against ADC. ADC has always been more accurate.

It could be that the effort and work and investment into one aspect of local….the development of maps, are inferior to that which used to exist.

That doesn’t even address the algo’s that create driving directions. But if the map info isn’t detailed enough, it suggests ultimate problems with the algo’s. Anecdotally, I regularly hear how directions get messed up as one gets close to the final turns for a drive.

It is interesting that perhaps besides the need for significant local involvement there is a a potential deficiency in the production of a core element of local, based simply on the fact that the producers are shorting the investment in one aspect of local information and consequently creating an inferior product.

I am one of the folks that expressed interest in the Google Local ambassador (??) 10 - 99 adWords and Local Search program a few months ago.

I really hopes this comes about - I see so many dupes in local using fake addresses and a plethora of ‘phone #s…. all leading back to the same person.

Yahoo! is also plagued with this so I have a paid monthly ad to bring a bit of reality to the top.

Cheers

David
Charlotte NC British Bloke

I’ve seen a lot of web sites try to offer services on a national level, installing a generic approach that ignores local and regional differences, and I think that’s an invitation for smaller sites that have a passion for a local area to succeed.

For example, it wouldn’t bother me to see a number of New Yorkers build a web site about New York City, including business listings, maps, reviews, personal tales of the City, and local community involvement. I think that they would have some things that I see Google and Yahoo lack, like a passion for getting things right, and a pride in showing off their City and community.

“I’m not sure that local can succeed without the actual involvement of people on a local level who have incentive, inspiration, and impartiality to verify, to explore, and to arbitrate.”

To me, that seems to be the direction that Yahoo is headed, based on Matt McGee’s recent interview with Brian Gil. http://www.smallbusinesssem.com/the-sbs-interview-brian-gil-yahoo-local/1124/
(You’ll have to scroll down to where Brian starts talking about Consumer Submit)

There needs to be some sort of community element to Local, and combatting the spam is always going to be difficult, but I’m confident that there’ll be a solution eventually.

My biggest beef, as those who read Miriam Ellis, or Will Scott, or myself will know, is that Google in particular has elevated the 10-pack without having these issues figured out, alienating real businesses and providing poorer search results than standard organic listings by doing so. But that’s just one opinion