Google Maps

Google Maps API

Introduction
Whether searching for the perfect restaurant, checking out the best hotels
or finding the nearest bank, millions of people around the world get Google
Maps to do the hard work for them.
So why not do the same for your own website?
The Google Maps API is one of those clever bits of Google technology that
helps you take the power of Google Maps and put it directly on your own site.
It lets you add relevant content that is useful to your visitors and customise
the look and feel of the map to fit with the style of your site.
With over 150,000 sites already using the Google Maps API, we couldn’t
fit them all into this booklet so we picked out a few of the most useful and
innovative examples to help inspire you.
And if after that you’re still hungry for more, check out the back of this booklet
for links to more examples and technical information.
— The Google Maps Team
Intoscana www.intoscana.it

“Google is a strategic partner for

our innovative web activities.
Google Maps and Street View are
the ideal platforms to provide a
virtual tour of the historical and
artistic monuments and places
of our cities.”
Mauro Tanzi
President of Fondazione
Sistema Toscana

Visitors who use Google Maps

Intoscana is Tuscany’s official web site and was created to expose the beautiful
with Street View spend on average
Tuscany region with it’s rich history and culture to the rest of the world.
30% more time exploring content
With Google Maps and Street View Intoscana provides an easy way for people
to play virtual tourist and walk through the historic city center of Florence (an on the website.
UNESCO World Heritage Site) and explore world famous landmarks.
How to get started and technical documentation: code.google.com/apis/maps
More Google Maps case studies and videos: maps.google.com/casestudies
Key features: Street View
Drimki www.drimki.fr

“Google Maps with Street View

offers our users a powerful feature
which adds value to real estate
listings. The potential purchaser
can virtually walk in the street
in which he wants to buy a flat
and view the surroundings of the
property described in the listing.
This information can be of crucial
value to the decision process.”
Thomas Laurentin
CEO of Drimki

Drimki is a real estate website dedicated to properties located in Paris and

After adding Google Maps with
uses Google Maps with Street View to provide a better overview of properties.
Users can not only view information about a property but they can also explore
Street View Drimki has doubled the
the surrounding neighborhood by virtually walking though the streets of Paris time spent by users on the map.
improving the overall experience of finding a new home in one of the most
beautiful cities in the world.
How to get started and technical documentation: code.google.com/apis/maps
More Google Maps case studies and videos: maps.google.com/casestudies
Key features: Street View
 “Google Maps provides the ideal
solution to an age-old problem
for runners: ‘how far have I run?’
Previously people drove round streets
or used a piece of string on a map.
We were amazed by the consumer
uptake of Route Finder.”
Simon Charlesworth
Running Marketing Manager

Nike In the first ten months since launch,

Nike Run London was designed to motivate Londoners who
need relief from the strains of living and working in the city.
Key features:
40,000 unique running routes
Nike’s Route Finder was built to allow users to map their
running route, see how long it is and save it to their profiles.
3 User-generated content
3 Customised map controls were created.
The social element of the map means users can share their
running routes or browse the library of runs others have created.
The site was initially so successful in London that Nike
quickly scaled to 11 supported languages, leveraging Google
Maps’ global coverage. nikeplus.nike.com
 “Google Maps has provided a great
platform for getting fans more
involved in our live performances.
Now they can see footage, pictures
and chat about our gigs – even if they
couldn’t make it there in person –
it builds up a real buzz.”
Tom Rowlands
The Chemical Brothers

Built by 3ev
The Chemical Brothers Visitors spend 1min 35s on the site,
The Chemical Brothers have been making dance music for
over a decade. They wanted their website to provide not only
Key features:
86% more time than the average
useful information but also to involve their fans in something
that reflected their world of music.
3 User-generated content
3 Multimedia content spent on websites.*
*Nielsen Netratings, Dec 2007
Their site uses Google Maps to clearly show where all the
upcoming gigs are and also integrates user-generated
content into the concert placemarks. This allows the fans
to tag relevant YouTube videos or Flickr photos and add
comments about a concert to its “shoutbox.” www.thechemicalbrothers.com
 “In order to make the EscapeMap
a success, we knew the tool would
have to be innovative and engaging,
but at the same time intuitive and easy
to use. Google Maps was the perfect
way for us to achieve this; everyone
is familiar with its usability and format.”
Paul Treanor
Head of Marketing

Opodo Those that use the EscapeMap are

Opodo is an internet travel site that aims to bring an end
to online travel frustrations by providing its users with the
Key features:
twice as likely to make a purchase
tools, information and inspiration they need. When analysing
customer experiences, Opodo identified that some users
3 Real-time data feed
3 Multimedia content than those that don’t.
wanted them to act more like a travel agent, advising them
Conversion rate
on where to go and what to do.
EscapeMap user 2×
As a result Opodo developed the EscapeMap. Once users
submit their price and holiday criteria, they can review
Standard site user 1×
various flight options displayed in a clear geographical way. www.opodo.com
 “The Map has formed the backbone
of our campaign for two years now.
It’s a powerful illustration of our ability
to mobilise society to help end cruelty
to children and for our supporters
to feel part of something bigger.”
Ian MacArthur
Creative Director and
Head of Brand Marketing

NSPCC Of the total 35,400 registrants

The NSPCC is a UK charity whose purpose is “to end cruelty
to children. Full stop.” As part of its campaign objective
Key features:
to date, the conversion rate*
to mobilise the public to take action, the NSPCC used the
Google Maps API as its main activation tool.
3 User-generated content
3 Multiple layers of content of signing the petition was 54%.
*The percentage of people who signed the petition to the number of unique visitors.
By registering on the site, users could locate themselves
on the map, pledge deeds to help the campaign and invite
friends to join. This connected each user to a national
movement of like-minded people, while also connecting
them on a local level. www.bethefullstop.com
 “We decided to use Google Maps
because of its advanced technology,
its coverage and its easy user
interface. Google Maps is one of the
core components of our online site
and the window to geolocate our
FON world.”
Martin Varsavsky
Founder and CEO

FON FON visitors use the mapping

FON is the largest WiFi community in the world and has
made wireless internet universal, secure and free for all its
Key features:
function of the website
members. The FON community members, called “Foneros,”
open up their home internet connection to other Foneros
3 User-generated content
3 Multiple layers of content 900,000 times every week.
and gain global access to every FON WiFi spot in return.
FON uses the Google Maps API to easily connect all its
worldwide members. All Foneros list their location on the
site’s map, enabling visiting Foneros to easily connect to their
WiFi, share the location with a friend or find nearby amenities. www.fon.com
 “If you want to go beyond the
basics into more complex mapping
implementations, it’s not only possible
with the Google Maps API, but also

nestoria well documented. Using Google maps

helps us move very quickly, which
is critical when engineering resources
are limited (as they always are) –
the API is key to our growth.”
Ed Freyfogle
Co-founder Nestoria

Nestoria Total unique visitors (in thousands)

Nestoria is a real estate search engine that makes finding Key features: 18 months after 700

launch, Nestoria
600
property in the UK and Spain easy and simple. The Google
3 Real-time data feed 500
Map is a core component of the site that goes beyond
normal real estate maps by overlaying relevant information
3 Customised map controls
3 Multiple layers of content
already attracts 400

300
such as nearby tube stations, shops and schools.
700,000 unique 200

users a month.*
100
Ed Freyfogle, one of the co-founders, gives a little more insight
0
into the Maps API: “Google provides a stream of innovative May
2007
Jun
2007
Jul
2007
Aug
2007
Sep
2007
Oct
2007
Nov
2007
Dec
2007
Jan
2008
new free tools. Our users frequently remark on how useful
*comScore, Jan 2008
they find the seamless integration of so much layered data.” www.nestoria.com
 “Users’ experience of 360Cities
is greatly enhanced with the

360
geographical features offered by the
Google Maps and Earth APIs. These
are an integral part of our application
and have been critical to our fast
growth over the past year.”
Jeffrey Martin
Founder and CEO

360 Cities Users spend 59% more time

360Cities is a global project which showcases beautiful
panoramic, fully-immersive images taken by some of the
Key features:
viewing panoramas on the map
world’s leading virtual reality (VR) photographers. The
Google Maps and Earth APIs give contributors a vital tool
3 Multimedia content
3 Customised map controls than on other pages.
3 Earth API
for adding new content while also providing an intuitive way

for users to browse the available images. Since launching

last year, 360Cities has grown rapidly to cover locations all
around the globe and now has thousands of high quality
panoramas of some of the most interesting places on earth. www.360cities.net
 “I initially pulled together what would
become Twittervision in about four
hours on a Sunday afternoon. The
ease of implementing Google Maps
was a real factor in deciding to pursue
this project – it’s a key part of the
Web 2.0 landscape and a joy to use.”
Dave Troy
Founder Twittervision

Twittervision 50,000 daily visitors to the

Twittervision is a real-time geographic visualisation of
Twitter, a social networking and microblogging service that
Key features:
site translates to more than
allows users to easily make personal updates through SMS,
instant messaging and the web.
3 User-generated content
3 Real-time data feed 50M Twitter posts a day.
Dave Troy, the creator of Twittervision, explains a little more:
“I wanted a simple answer to a simple question: who is
Twittering near me? As a data junkie, I was able to pull this all
together very rapidly using standard tools from Twitter and
Google Maps.” www.twittervision.com
 “The map is the ideal way to organise
our international news reports
from all over the world. It offers our
audience a new way to discover our
content: Instead of watching a linear
news programme, they decide for
themselves what they want to explore.”
Eckart Gaddum
Head of New Media

ZDF Google Maps has allowed ZDF

As a public German broadcaster ZDF is always looking for
ways to enhance and improve accessibility to its content and
Key features:
to make hundreds of videos more
they were looking for a way to provide easy access to their
international news reports.
3 Real-time data feed
3 Multimedia content accessible and discoverable.
3 Customised map controls
As a result ZDF created the ZDFgeothek which allows users 3 Flash API
to explore the news and virtually travel from story to story
using a map. ZDF chose to use the Google Maps API for
Flash as this allowed them to more easily integrate their
existing video material with Google Maps. geothek.zdf.de
your data, with our mapping technology, on your site
How to get started and technical documentation: code.google.com/apis/maps
More Google Maps case studies and videos: maps.google.com/casestudies
Unofficial blog for more innovative examples: googlemapsmania.blogspot.com
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