The leap from physical to digital maps was game-changing for marketers and consumers alike, but what's next on the horizon? Columnist Brian Smith explores some possibilities for the future of mapping.
We’ve come a long way since the days of unfolding a paper map across a dashboard just to plot the next move on our road trips. Though it’s unlikely maps will soon make another leap so dramatic as going from inhabiting our glove compartments to inhabiting our cell phones, digital maps continue to
evolve at an astonishing pace.
Here’s a look at the direction future maps are heading — and its implications for local marketing.
Going beyond and below the pin
Today, the digital map is dominated by the pin. That’s not likely to change. Pins simply make it easy to find locations on a map — too easy to ever fall out of use. However, that doesn’t mean the area around the pin will remain static. In fact, we’re seeing the buildings the pins represent undergoing a radical transformation in their clickability.
We’ve come a long way since the days of unfolding a paper map across a dashboard just to plot the next move on our road trips. Though it’s unlikely maps will soon make another leap so dramatic as going from inhabiting our glove compartments to inhabiting our cell phones, digital maps continue to
evolve at an astonishing pace.
Here’s a look at the direction future maps are heading — and its implications for local marketing.
Going beyond and below the pin
Today, the digital map is dominated by the pin. That’s not likely to change. Pins simply make it easy to find locations on a map — too easy to ever fall out of use. However, that doesn’t mean the area around the pin will remain static. In fact, we’re seeing the buildings the pins represent undergoing a radical transformation in their clickability.
