TRANSPORTATION - MAPS & ROUTES - 10.06.2011

Use stars in Google Maps

Customers calls. Suppose you have to call on a customer this afternoon and you wish to find out in advance where you can park your car. In such situations you can always rely on Google Maps (http://maps.google.co.uk): this popular Web-based service lets you look up any address and shows the exact location on a map. And if it appears that the car park you had in mind is full or isn’t accessible because of roadworks, you can enter the customer’s address in Google Maps again using your smartphone. However, when traffic is dense and given the tiny keyboard of your mobile phone, typing the address can be stressful…

Anticipate. That’s why it’s a good idea to attach a star to your customer’s address in Google Maps. Here is how: click on the desired location on the map and in the information pop-up window that appears, click on the white star, which will turn yellow. All the addresses you’ve given a star are collected in one central location: My Maps. When you subsequently open My Maps, you will see all your “Starred Items” - on your smartphone this is also possible in the Local tab. You can resubmit the customer’s address to Google Maps simply by clicking on it. This is a lot less complex than retyping it on the tiny keyboard.

Note. To have access to your starred addresses, you should be logged in via your Google account.