Is local content important for you?
Do you geotag your articles?
SEO: Localized user generated content is becoming more important
Localizing your content if possible is important. Behind the curtains Google is pushing localized search results and user profiles more and more. The anouncement of Google My Maps in April 2007 opened the borders of easy to create geotagged placemarks to the wide audience. Beside the possibility to track your personal walkabouts Google My Maps opened up new SEO and SEM possibilities.
If you have localized content you should geotag your articles in Google My Maps!
Why you should use Google My Maps
Localization in search results is becoming a strong ranking factor. In Google SERPs I see more and more small Google maps with links beside them linking to localized Google profiles for that keyword phrase. As one of my websites is a local blog for Hamburg I love to see my local business profile show up in the Google SERPs.
- Example: Hamburg St. Georg Fotografie (No map shows up here if searching for 'Photography').
- On the SERP I see here I 'own' the map on #1 and all in all I can see 7 direct and indirect links to my site in the Top Ten.
Many of my Hamburg articles are localized on a Hamburg Google My Map. Basic reasons for geotagging my articles in Google My Maps:
- It's simple. Dragging a Google My Map placemark on the right spot requires no skills.
- Adding the text is a Copy&Paste action from the source code of an article to the HTML source code mode in the Google My Map placemark editor.
- Embedding a picture from i.e. Flickr is also a Copy&Paste action.
More and more I start to embed Google My Maps inside of articles. To be able to do so I have to create a placemark instead of only embedding a generic Google map for an address. The advantage of embedding a personal map is that all my surrounding placemarks are shown too and you get a good chance that readers visit more than only one page.
More and more Google integrates user generated content from the personal maps into the search results. If your content for the placemarks contains valuable information it will show up on Google pages. Today there are still some navigation issues but if you search for services inside Google maps you will already find a 'more from user generated content' link. Examples:
- Matchrace Hamburg St. Georg (single entry)
- Flohmarkt Hamburg St. Georg (flea market in Hamburg St. Georg) - Check A and B.
- Wow, the integration of my geotagged pictures from Flickr is new to me: Markus Merz geotagged pictures The pictures must come from my Flickr photo feed.
Collaboration
Last not least a strong argument for the usage of Google My Maps is the collaboration feature.
- You can invite people as cooperators to add entries to your personal map.
- (optional) Cooperators may invite other people.
- (optional) You can even open the map to everybody.
Monetization
Making money with a Google My Map is a brand new subject to me. Some rough thoughts:
- Why shouldn't you be able to sell text links for specific placemarks?
- Image Ads linked to a corporate site?
- Service: Create a Google profile and a Google My Map for a company?
If commercial activity must be hidden has to be checked against the local Google Maps Terms and Conditions. For en_us the following looks pretty clear:
... For individual users, Google Maps, including local search results, maps, and photographic imagery, is made available for your personal, non-commercial use only. For business users, Google Maps is made available for your internal use only and may not be commercially redistributed, ...
To create a service package instead of directly selling text links or other ad forms seems to be the best recommendation.
Related
What are your experiences with localizing content?
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