Mike Blumenthal

Google Map’s LBC phone validation system has been quirky (also see the old help group) over the years, working for many but failing unpredictably for some. It won’t work with a PBX system and seems to have other limitations but a recent post in the Google Help Fourms seems to indicate that currently, for whatever reason, …

Leveraging Small Business Customer Reviews and Testimonials Online – Steven Brier Great summary of all the reasons customer testimonials should be an integrated part of your customer relations strategy and how to make it so. Microsoft GeoSynth to take on Google Street View – Stuart Miles, PocketLint.com Although not due to be launched until later …

Today on NPR’s morning edition they

I received the following ad from TomTom although I am not a TomTom owner: ——————————————————- ——————————————————- The ad struck a wrong chord for me on several fronts: 1)Selling add ons through fear. The ominous tone of the ad seems inappropriate for a product that theoretically is offered to increase ones safety. Aren’t I safe just …

Yesterday released a bunch of new Street View images for cities in the UK and The Netherlands. Today Robin Goad of Hitwise reports a huge jump in traffic for Google Maps in the UK: There was an attendant increase in visit duration as well: It is interesting to note that the average visit time for UK visitors …

We don’t frequently get to peak at what Google plans are for local and local content. There have been a number of signals that all point to the obvious direction of Google wanting to increase the granularity of local information world wide and thir desire to control that information themselves. Google has been: •Including more …

Portland web designer and search consultant, David Mihm,  is heading to SES NY next week to speak. He was exploring Google Maps and he sent me this search: Morgan Library at 225 Madison Ave, NYC that he had looked up in anticipation of his trip. David noted to me that he “was looking forward to seeing the new …

Last week I made fun of blackhats that had mapjacked a listing for a hotel with the worst of reviews in an effort to rank high on locksmith related searches.  The screenshot from that incident shows that the blackhats had 7 of the 10 pack listing using a combination of illicit techniques on the phrase …

Google has been distributing ads more widely on all of its properties of late. I noted a certain discomfort with their intrusive nature deep inside the bowels of the business listing details when it was roled out in mid February in Maps. At the Maps help forum a business owner asked (caps are his and …

Gate Keepers, Digital Gazetteers and Folksonomies – Part Four and Gate Keepers, Digital Gazetteers and Folksonomies – Part Five – Mike Dobson, Exploring Local Mike Dobson has been running a great series on Google use of user generated content to create maps via their MapMaker product. In Part Four, he discusses the strategic role of …