Google Maps… with logos
Street signs. Google has begun trialling the slotting of ads into maps in Australia. Brands can now pay to have their logos inserted into their locations on Google Maps, visible when users zoom in. Initial sponsors include Bankwest, JB Hifi, LJ Hooker, NAB and Chemist Warehouse.
“As well as making it easier for you to find the nearest burger joint or ATM at a single glance, this new feature helps local business owners promote their physical location on the map via an easily recognisable logo, and therefore connect with a larger audience,” Google writes in its Aussie blog. “Advertisers will pay to have these sponsored map icons appear on the Map instead of a generic icon, helping to generate awareness of their locations among the millions of people who visit Google Maps every day.”
