Results 1 to 17 of 17

Thread: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

  1. #1
    Commercial Operator
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    Sussex by the Sea
    Posts
    9,276
    Rep Power
    15

    Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by bigdjiver View Post
    Ceroc HQ were informed of the importance of having venues on the Google map years ago, along with many other search optimisation issues.
    The problem with Google maps is that it will not allow you to enter multiple venues for your single account. You end up with your home address or head office being the only venue. This is worse than useless. Does anybody know of a way around this?

    I'm thinking of solving this by setting up a Google account for each venue - but I then need the venue to receive a post card and pass it on to me. That isn't always as easy as it sounds - most village halls don't have a letterbox! And I'd probably need to give each account the same name and Google probably have a way of stopping this.

    Does anyone know of a more elegant solution?

  2. #2
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    South
    Posts
    5,424
    Blog Entries
    22
    Rep Power
    11

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Maybe I'm missing something, but I can create a map on Google, drop markers in as many places as I like and save it as private or public.

    Is that not what you're trying to do?

  3. #3
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    bedford
    Posts
    4,899
    Rep Power
    13

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by Gav View Post
    Maybe I'm missing something, but I can create a map on Google, drop markers in as many places as I like and save it as private or public.

    Is that not what you're trying to do?
    No, its not.

    A business can register an address with Google and when someone does a search in a suitably sparse area a map will appear with little alphabetic pointers.

    Try http://bit.ly/k3j2Bt which is a search for dance class Perth Scotland. As usual Franck is a heroic leader on my PC, hitting page one of the results.

    On my PC Zumba makes page 1 as well, and that is another global brand, so the "only one venue" theory that worried Andy is wrong.

    Google is ramping up its local marketing so it gives ranking preference to companies that are on its map.

    It also owns Youtube and gives higher rankings to sites with relevant video content so another way to head for the coveted page one of the search results is to have video content that is recognisably relevant eg dance_class.wmv and use relevant tags.

    The problem with Ceroc's coveted Flash graphics is that search engines are still very poor at best, and usually blind, at reading graphics.

    I say "on my PC" because Google tailors its search results to what it perceives as your interests. The fact that you often do a search on Ceroc related items means that you will preferentially see Ceroc in your results. This may be very different to what someone with no previous interest in dance will see. That is why I advocated the use of a proxy like www.proxify.com, that hides "you", to do the tests.

    HTH

  4. #4
    The Dashing Moderator
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    Midlands
    Posts
    3,556
    Rep Power
    12

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Is that the same as Google Places?

    This page suggests you can load multiple markers and it seems to be free. I've not tried it though.

    Edit: Or is this the problem? From here
    You cannot create Places listings for stores [venues/ village halls?] which you do not own, but which stock your products. Instead, consider asking the store owner to update their own Places listing with a custom attribute specifying brands or products they stock, including yours.
    Last edited by DavidY; 8th-June-2011 at 08:02 PM.
    Love dance, will travel

  5. #5
    Commercial Operator
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    Sussex by the Sea
    Posts
    9,276
    Rep Power
    15

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by bigdjiver View Post
    On my PC Zumba makes page 1 as well, and that is another global brand, so the "only one venue" theory that worried Andy is wrong.
    That Zumba venue is not Franck's.

    My problem is that I couldn't enter my venues on Google maps. Google want to send a postcard to the venue address and I'm not at that venue. I just rent the venues once or twice a week.

    How do I put those venues on Google maps?

  6. #6
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    bedford
    Posts
    4,899
    Rep Power
    13

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by Andy McGregor View Post
    That Zumba venue is not Franck's.

    My problem is that I couldn't enter my venues on Google maps. Google want to send a postcard to the venue address and I'm not at that venue. I just rent the venues once or twice a week.

    How do I put those venues on Google maps?
    I know the Zumba venue is not Franck's it is a Zumba venue. Like Ceroc that is a franchise operation with each franchisee running one or more venues, just as Ceroc does. Zumba manages to get multiple venues on the map, Franck does too, so it is possible. Perhaps an email to Google, or a phone call, will discover how they do it.

  7. #7
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Sri Lanka
    Posts
    770
    Rep Power
    8

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    What ratio of Ceroc venues are franchised? I mean it was the case that all the venues outside London were franchised but those in London were owned by Ceroc themselves with the exception of the Casbah.

  8. #8
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Glasgow
    Posts
    2,119
    Rep Power
    9

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Just a thought - Why not ask Franck how he does it ?? Revolutionary I know!


    Franck... Are you online today??

    WT

  9. #9
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    bedford
    Posts
    4,899
    Rep Power
    13

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by whitetiger1518 View Post
    Just a thought - Why not ask Franck how he does it ?? Revolutionary I know!


    Franck... Are you online today??

    WT
    Ceroc help the opposition?



    Perhaps Andy will tell us how he he did it when he finds out?

  10. #10
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Glasgow
    Posts
    2,119
    Rep Power
    9

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by bigdjiver View Post
    Ceroc help the opposition?



    Perhaps Andy will tell us how he he did it when he finds out?
    And here was I thinking it was a technical question about the big G!!

    WT

  11. #11
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Location
    Nottingham
    Posts
    346
    Rep Power
    8

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Erm. Add the venue to Google maps, not your business there.

    I know Ceroc Addiction is on tonight. I've never been to that venue before, but their website tells me the name of the venue. If that venue were on Google Maps I'd be able to find it, and tell whether it's nearer Marie's Chippie or King Kebab.

    If every bugger that rents out that venue puts their business on Google Maps at that location, the map will be lost in noise.

    It also means a Google postcard to the venue asking "Do you exist" will receive a simple "Oh. Yes. Thanks for asking." which is kind of easy for the venue owner.

    Or am I thinking like a general member of the public here, rather than a commercial operator?

  12. #12
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    bedford
    Posts
    4,899
    Rep Power
    13

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by cederic View Post
    Erm. Add the venue to Google maps, not your business there.

    I know Ceroc Addiction is on tonight. I've never been to that venue before, but their website tells me the name of the venue. If that venue were on Google Maps I'd be able to find it, and tell whether it's nearer Marie's Chippie or King Kebab.

    If every bugger that rents out that venue puts their business on Google Maps at that location, the map will be lost in noise.

    It also means a Google postcard to the venue asking "Do you exist" will receive a simple "Oh. Yes. Thanks for asking." which is kind of easy for the venue owner.

    Or am I thinking like a general member of the public here, rather than a commercial operator?
    Google answers your search query. If you ask about dance classes you will see all the dance classes at tht venue that Google knows about. You should not see a search result for the Judo club or the choral society that meets there.

    Google gives priority in the search results it shows to businesses that are on the map because it wants to sell advertising to the Fish & chip shop around the corner etc

    If you look for a Salsa class you used to be likely to see a Ceroc HQ paid ad. That adword campaign may still be running.

  13. #13
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    bedford
    Posts
    4,899
    Rep Power
    13

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?


  14. #14
    Commercial Operator
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    Sussex by the Sea
    Posts
    9,276
    Rep Power
    15

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by bigdjiver View Post
    Thank you. It's very similar to the situation for dance teachers. We are like the brewery. It looks like I'd have to get my venue to get their own entry on google places.

    I actually did a search on goole to see if there was anything useful. What I found was my original enquiry to google support! Here is the link.

    http://www.google.com/support/forum/...f87cce25&hl=en

    I'm starting to wonder if the only way to get a proper google places entry for each venue is to set up separate google accounts for each venue as if each venue was a separate company. I'd be like a mini Ceroc, I'd have 'Rocsters - Worthing', 'Rocsters - Horsham', etc. Does that seem like a reasonable and workable solution?

  15. #15
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    bedford
    Posts
    4,899
    Rep Power
    13

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by Andy McGregor View Post
    ...
    I'm starting to wonder if the only way to get a proper google places entry for each venue is to set up separate google accounts for each venue as if each venue was a separate company. I'd be like a mini Ceroc, I'd have 'Rocsters - Worthing', 'Rocsters - Horsham', etc. Does that seem like a reasonable and workable solution?
    It should not be necessary, Zumba knows how to do it. I will ask one of the Google guys on Twitter.

    Having a separate website or blog entry for each venue is one way to get better ratings from search engines, but using tailored relevant content. Google does not like duplicated pages/content. The sites/blogs linking to each other helps too. Keeping the sites active also helps.One way to do that is a Twitter or Facebook feed.

  16. #16
    Commercial Operator
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    Sussex by the Sea
    Posts
    9,276
    Rep Power
    15

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    Quote Originally Posted by bigdjiver View Post
    It should not be necessary, Zumba knows how to do it. I will ask one of the Google guys on Twitter.
    Thank you

    Quote Originally Posted by bigdjiver View Post
    Having a separate website or blog entry for each venue is one way to get better ratings from search engines, but using tailored relevant content.
    This is a great idea

  17. #17
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    bedford
    Posts
    4,899
    Rep Power
    13

    Re: Putting your venue on Google Maps?

    I was very disappointed to find that my local venues did not come up on the first results page of a Google search for "Dance classes Bedford". It seems I had not grasped the scale of the problem.

    A Google search for "site:ceroccentral.com Dance classes" comes up with no hits, the text is not on the standard Ceroc site template. Nor are "dance lessons" "dancing lessons" and other common phrases people type in to find dance classes.

    OTOH a search for "site:cerocpassion Dance classes Higham Ferrers" does get a hit on page two because that phrase occurs in the venue description supplied by the Franchisee.

    I suggest Ceroc Franchisees try to make up for the search deficiencies of the standard site template by using the pages they can change, like venue descriptions and News, to show phrases someone searching for dance classes might use.
    eg Dance classes (highest use I have found) Dancing Lessons,

    I suggest that franchisees get as many sales phrases as possible into the pages they control. If they can upload photos they could rename them things like "dance_class_venue_Bedford" You can compare the number of times phrases are entered here:

    BTW One phrase the standard template does contain is "partner dancing", it is on the home page. "We have been introducing people..." The problem is that Google actually downgrades sites that contain exactly the same text as many others, and there are dozens of standard Ceroc franchisee sites on the web. Ceroc Passion get hits for "partner dancing" because it appears in the description of the Rugby venue. I did not look deep enough to find the home page.

    HTH

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Sara White's Purple Party - Saturday - Venue Change
    By Twirlie Bird in forum Cancellations & Urgent Notifications
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 29th-July-2009, 05:08 PM
  2. Jive + oxford Venue change tonight
    By Simon r in forum Let's talk about dance
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 12th-April-2009, 03:12 PM
  3. Favourite Regular Venue and Freestyle for 2008
    By Maxine in forum Let's talk about dance
    Replies: 24
    Last Post: 2nd-January-2009, 06:13 PM
  4. New Inverness Venue - Help wanted!
    By Franck in forum Social events
    Replies: 11
    Last Post: 14th-July-2005, 01:46 PM
  5. Cool Catz - Putting our money where our mouth is
    By Gus in forum Let's talk about dance
    Replies: 70
    Last Post: 9th-December-2004, 05:46 PM

Tags for this Thread

Bookmarks

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •