Mapping Out Your Strategy: Using Maps as a Means for Marketing

Google Earth recently launched its iPhone app, so what does this mean. I think this means more non-profits and organizations taking notice on how to literally, map out their strategy.

Mapping Fun

Mapping, mainly through Google earth and Google maps, has been increasing in use. I was first introduced to mapping glorious-ness by my fiance. When we went to Rome last year, he created a Google map highlighting all the Gelato hot spots in Rome. What more can I ask for than a man who not only shares my second love of ice cream, but plans it as key stopping point while we tour Italy? Now, In terms of relevant non-profit mapping, I was moved by 1) Wild Apricot’s recent post about Google Earth outreach, and 2) a SB Reader.

As Wild Apricot shares:

Google Earth and Google Maps let anyone create a custom map — and share it by sending a link, or embed on a web page. Personalized and annotated, even enhanced with photographs and videos, online maps can help to engage your supporters in a way that bare text never can. New features now let you collaborate with others and import geographical data to customize a map.

Case Study Highlight

SocialButterfly reader, Dan, at Tutor Mentor Connections recently shared with me how he and his non-profit are utilizing mapping technolgoy. Over the past six months, Tutor Mentor Connections have developed a library of maps that are intended as tools that leaders use to support the growth of volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs in specific geographic areas in Illinois. I conducted an email interview with Dan which I will feature later this week, but here is a sneak preview:

Why mapping?

“Maps are one form of visual communications. Pictures are worth thousands of words in communicating ideas. Generals use maps to distribute troops in time of war. They do this to make sure they have forces everywhere they are needed. A city could have a telephone directory full of youth program listings, and still not have programs in half of the places where they are needed. Maps can help leaders understand where there are programs, and can be used to help build business/non profit collaborations. They can be used as tools in any leadership strategy.”

I look forward to sharing Dan’s work with you as I think Dan is doing a fantastic job of creating a 1, 2 Punch when it comes to tackling giant issues (i.e. poverty and education) through mapping technology. Crafting data, supported by research, and translating that creatively through meaningful, visual representation.

Others Examples of Non-Profits Mapping

1. Google Earth’s outreach blog highlights 10 example case studies on how non-profits have used Google Earth for their efforts. These groups include: the U.N. Environment Programe, EDGE, The Jane Goodall Institute, U.S. Holocaust Museum, Sierra Club and others. Whether this means providing virtual tours, highlighting the location of endangered species, or elevating the work of researchers and scientists, mapping can provide innovative and creative ways to communicate a message visually.
2. The New Orleans Food and Farm Network used Google Maps to show how residents in devastated areas where to find food, from grocery stores and restaurants, to farmers’ markets and emergency kitchens. Additional related outreach included the distribution of paper and PDF maps.
3. Mobilizing Youth – Though an older post from August 2007, the blog lists over 25 examples of non-profits using maps to conserve rainforests to raising awareness for child cruelty.
4. Factory Farm Map – Food & Water Watch, a nonprofit consumer organization concerned with clean water and safe food issues, had the goal to illustrate the growth of factory farms across the United States, mapping US Census data to show how and where animal production is becoming concentrated in different regions of the country. (Wild Apritcot) Thus, enter mapping technology to bridge the disconnect between dense data and understanding.

Where to Get Mapping

Tools

• Google Earth, Google Earth Plus, Google Earth Pro
  • According to Wild Apricot’s summise, NP’s can use Google Earth Free, but it is not to be used to provide paid services. Compare Google earth packages to determine the one you need for your project. For the Pro version, organizations. To see what financial assistance may be available, be sure to check out Google Earth’s grant program.
• Google Maps
• CommunityWalk.com
• MapBuilder
  • A mashup development tool that builds custom Google and Yahoo maps without any knowledge of the Google/Yahoo Maps API and JavaScript.
• PlaniGlobe
  • Create interactive maps using a vector architecture base.
• Zee Maps
  • Quickly create interactive world maps through a service that allows you to add your own search query, allow for user-admins and is multiple-user friendly.
• Frappr
  • Frappr collects three pieces of information: an online guest book, a hit log and a map. Using Google Map technology, visitors to Frappr can enter their name, zip code and other information. Their locations are then marked on the map with a clickable flag that pops up their information. (Netsquared)
• WayFaring
  • Create, view, share and and personalize your own custom made map. The user-interface on this tool looks very user-friendly.
• DataPlace
• Dabble DB
  • Helps you create online databases to manage, share and explore data and to build web applications. Some that can be represented in the form of a map to help breakdown and identify trends.
• MapPoint
  • A product of Microsoft, this tool helps you visualize and translate your data into meaningful information.

Apps

• Mashups – i.e. Fast Food Maps, Housing Maps, and more
• Mobile Apps – Google Earth App for iPhone
• Widgets – i.e. Platial, ClustrMaps, Google Maps, Widgetbox maps

Wrap Up

Mapping is a great visual. However, for the map to be both effective and useful, it must be fueled by great content while also being data-driven. Thought this research document is from 2002, skimming through it shows just how data can be re-constructed to be meaningful and cohesive. However, this is where I believe mashups come into play too.

What are your thoughts on mapping technology?

Photo credit: flickr, dannysullivan

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Google Health Launch: Furthering Health 2.0? You Decide

I will come out and say that I am excited about the Health 2.0 movement….but I do not want to overlook serious issues of privacy and security for personal information. Simply defined, Health 2.0 = the merging of social media into healthcare.

Today, the beta for Google Health officially launched. With my blog, I try to bring up points on both sides, and pose questions for discussion, and here I definitely may need your help seeing more of the positives…or educating me on how the danger of the drawbacks is being decreased. With Google Health allowing the option of importing of medical records and information, tracking medical histories and all being added into the giant that is Google, I feel there are reasons for concern.

According to the site, Google Health can

• Organize your health information all in one place
• Gather your medical records from doctors, hospitals, and pharmacies
• Keep your doctors up to date about your health
• Be more informed about important health issues

Automatically, upon reading this, I see a big challenge Google will face in launching this service: getting people to provide their medical records. I already am hesitant. Just how secure of a network will this be? I like to aim for objectivity, but with this new product, I will need your help as I see a few benefits, but many more drawbacks.

Benefits

• Makes juggling you and/or your family’s health records, coverage, medications, etc. easier as it allows for people to set up accounts for others, importing of medical records from medical, dentistry or eye care.
• Allows for self-management in a central location and for one to be more informed and educated about health choices and decisions…as well as better following finances for your health coverage.
• Users of Google Health can import medical records from U.S. pharmacies and medical facilities that include Longs Drug Stores, Walgreens Pharmacy, the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and several others.

Drawbacks

• Google says there is no financial incentives for its partners and has a Google Health Advisory Board, but I’m not yet convinced…especially when this service is still in Beta format.
• Privacy and Security Concerns: Who at Google will see this information? What will be done with it? Why does Google want to get into the Healthcare field….beyond wanting a competitive edge with Microsoft.
• In particular, this question in Google Health’s FAQs makes me raise a brow:

Does the data I store in Google Health get used for other Google products, like Search?

Yes, we share information between Google products to enable joint feautres. But no personal or medical information in your Google Health profile is used to customize your Google.com search results or used for advertising. For example, you could not search for your personal medical records on Google.com search.

Seems like we have to now with Facebook, continue to possibly update our security settings to secure our information.

How It Works

Google lists 7 Steps to Easy Use of Google Health

1. Sign Up: For you and Google’s Health Partners, the service is free. (Must be 18 or older to create a profile.)
2. Start tracking your medical history and learn about your conditions
3. Import Your Medical Records from your doctor’s office or pharmacy. (Walgreens is already a partner.)
4. View Your Medical History
5. Discover and learn how your different medications interact
6. Use Google Health to your own advantage: get second opinions, request prescription refills
7. Search for doctors and hospitals

Survey Says…

1. Dave, at Insomniac Dreams, is optimistic about Google Health and looks forward to having a central place for health information management.
2. James Niccolai, at PC World, did a nice write up about the Google Health Service, recognizing its underlying mission, but also hinting that tweaks still may be needed.
3. In late 2007, people may remember Microsoft launching HealthVault…some allude that the long-delayed launch of Google Health is a fighting match for Google to get some more competitive edge. In March, The Washington Post gave a view on Microsoft’s HealthVault versus Google Health here…concluding that perhaps the motivation isn’t 100% to aide those with their medical management, but perhaps to cash in on a growing ‘cash cow.’
4. Be sure to update me, let me know your thoughts or if you posted on Google’s Heath Beta…it may be too early to draw conclusions, but I’m curious what other people’s first impressions may be…. =)

The Jury is still out…

What’s Your Favorite Earth Day Logo? Google? Yahoo? YouTube? and others join in!

Today was an exciting day off- and on-line. In celebration of Earth Day, many company’s changed their company logo. Which was your favorite?

Ask.com

Search Engine RoundTable

AOL.com

Google

Cre8asite Forums

Yahoo (Original is in Flash)

Kentucky.gov

Other’s that had Earth Day logos that I couldn’t get to upload during my mini-break in thesis writing include: MSN, the BBC and YouTube’s.

What ones have I missed and what ones are your favorites?

Cheers!

9 Useful [& free] Web Analytic Time Killers

From searching for web analytic tools and social media that encourage evaluation tools lately, I have been able to generate a fun list of sites that you could easily kill time with….while also having fun and learning technical insights into web analytics. Enjoy, =)

1. SEO Website Grader (Thank you Dr. Stephen Dann for this amazing tool!)

This site allows you to receive a monthly report providing helpful and useful SEO information on any site of your choice, AND to compare it against competing sites. A great resource for any search engine optimization or interactive marketing plans. Warning: Hours of time will go by before you realize it! 😉

2. Is your website Hott or Not….err, ok or ko?

Ok, we’re not in high school anymore, but don’t act like you’ve never checked out the infamous Hott or Not website or uploaded your friend’s picture to the site as a joke…

Well, now you can rate websites based on the design of their homepage with a 1-10 ranking and see the average rating other websites have received. To become a repeat visitor, register your website into the bank and see what other users rate it!

3. Blogpulse

Blogpulse is a Nielsen Buzzmetrics tool that allows one to create customized graphs based on keyword trends for chosen keywords. Other tools include featured keyword graphs based on popular keywords, conversation tracker which follows trackbacks and permalinks between blogs and blogger profiles that show the most recent posts, the sources used, numbers of times the bloggers is cited by fellow bloggers and a list of 10 related blogs. This is great for monitoring how the blogosphere views your brand, topic or organization and helps identify blog networks.

4. Ice Rocket

Ice Rocket is like a smaller version of Blogpulse and allows you to make keyword trend graphs, but only for the most recent three months, while Blogpulse lets you make a graph for the last 6 months.

5. Popular Viral Video Aggregate

Like PopURLS, only for videos, this site shows the most popular videos for YouTube, Metacafe, MySpace, Yahoo, ifilm, Break.com, Grounder and Google.

6. See Google’s top sites based on non-keyword metrics

This link takes out all the keyword data in Google and shows you what sites Google sees as the best ranked with the most traffic.

7. Alltop Topic: Social Media

Alltop is a blog aggregate that provides the most recent 5 posts from the top 40 blogs, sorted by topic. Topics include social media, nonprofit, moms, life, dads, career, celebrities, games, SEO, Macintosh, Windows, Journalism, world news, photography and more!

8. PopURLs

PopURLS is an aggregate that provides the most popular links across the web including digg, del.icio.us, flickr, reddit, Truemors, YouTube, Google and Yahoo news, AOL Video, Mahalo, Twitter and more!

9. Hits Log

Hits Log is an SEO tool that allows you to discover your site’s Google Pank Rank and search engine rank. Though not as useful as Website grader, it may be easier for some to use.

Feel free to add to the list.

9 Useful [& free] Web Analytic Time Killers

From searching for web analytic tools and social media that encourage evaluation tools lately, I have been able to generate a fun list of sites that you could easily kill time with….while also having fun and learning technical insights into web analytics. Enjoy, =)

1. SEO Website Grader (Thank you Dr. Stephen Dann for this amazing tool!)

This site allows you to receive a monthly report providing helpful and useful SEO information on any site of your choice, AND to compare it against competing sites. A great resource for any search engine optimization or interactive marketing plans. Warning: Hours of time will go by before you realize it! 😉

2. Is your website Hott or Not….err, ok or ko?

Ok, we’re not in high school anymore, but don’t act like you’ve never checked out the infamous Hott or Not website or uploaded your friend’s picture to the site as a joke…

Well, now you can rate websites based on the design of their homepage with a 1-10 ranking and see the average rating other websites have received. To become a repeat visitor, register your website into the bank and see what other users rate it!

3. Blogpulse

Blogpulse is a Nielsen Buzzmetrics tool that allows one to create customized graphs based on keyword trends for chosen keywords. Other tools include featured keyword graphs based on popular keywords, conversation tracker which follows trackbacks and permalinks between blogs and blogger profiles that show the most recent posts, the sources used, numbers of times the bloggers is cited by fellow bloggers and a list of 10 related blogs. This is great for monitoring how the blogosphere views your brand, topic or organization and helps identify blog networks.

4. Ice Rocket

Ice Rocket is like a smaller version of Blogpulse and allows you to make keyword trend graphs, but only for the most recent three months, while Blogpulse lets you make a graph for the last 6 months.

5. Popular Viral Video Aggregate

Like PopURLS, only for videos, this site shows the most popular videos for YouTube, Metacafe, MySpace, Yahoo, ifilm, Break.com, Grounder and Google.

6. See Google’s top sites based on non-keyword metrics

This link takes out all the keyword data in Google and shows you what sites Google sees as the best ranked with the most traffic.

7. Alltop Topic: Social Media

Alltop is a blog aggregate that provides the most recent 5 posts from the top 40 blogs, sorted by topic. Topics include social media, nonprofit, moms, life, dads, career, celebrities, games, SEO, Macintosh, Windows, Journalism, world news, photography and more!

8. PopURLs

PopURLS is an aggregate that provides the most popular links across the web including digg, del.icio.us, flickr, reddit, Truemors, YouTube, Google and Yahoo news, AOL Video, Mahalo, Twitter and more!

9. Hits Log

Hits Log is an SEO tool that allows you to discover your site’s Google Pank Rank and search engine rank. Though not as useful as Website grader, it may be easier for some to use.

Feel free to add to the list.

Web 2.0 Wednesday – Super Tuesday Super Cool: When Google Met Twitter

 

So, I’ll leave the political analysis to those more qualified, but I will point out a super cool social media event that also took place on Super Tuesday: Google Met Twitter.

Google teamed up with Twitter and Twittervision to show on Google maps, people’s comments through Twitter about the elections and Super Tuesday. and, it was live! Every few seconds the map would change and take you halfway across the world to a person’s comment in Malta, then to Australia, then to Southern California. This continued throughout the day. Then, as the night continued, reported live results too.

Talk about relevance!

This is what social media is all about…and can be about when used and optimized to full potential. Many social marketing clients may get nervous when venturing into new territory, and then again, nowadays, anyone can make a MySpace or a Facebook. But, taking the risks, venturing outside the box, adding to the tools in your belt, and you can come up with fun, interactive, attention-getting technology and marketing.

Wanted to share the tidbit.

Click here to check it out. Not sure how long Google and Twitter plan on keeping the application live however.