Before we get to the topic of this post, the last post included a poll asking how you handle temporarily inactive accounts. I was pleasantly surprised to see that a majority of the poll responses do charge temporarily inactive accounts, whether it’s continuing to bill them or by assessing a fee.

Google Maps error

I was involved in a sales presentation last week and had an interesting experience when I clicked on the Mapping link within our Utility Management software. I always set the service address of my demo account to the prospect’s office address so they recognize the map.

The pushpin for the address appeared in the correct place, but the Google Business icon for the utility office was on the house next door! I commented on this and the utility staff laughed and said, yes, customers often drive past their office and have to turn around next door.

I said “Let’s fix that.” and clicked on the “Report a map error” link in the lower right corner of the inset map (this link is called “Send feedback” if you are in native Google Maps). I was able to drag the icon to the correct building on the map and, within minutes, received an email from Google confirming my correction had been made.

Step-by-step instructions to correct a map error

Back in 2012, I wrote about updating your listing in Google Places (now called Google Business). In case your Google Map listing is misplaced, as was the case with Auburn Water System, here are the steps to correct it.

  1. Click the “Send feedback” link in the lower right corner.
  2. Select “Edit the map” from the Send feedback menu.
  3. Click on the icon for the business you want to correct, in this case Auburn Water System.
  4. Check “Marker is placed incorrectly on the map” beside Location on the Suggest an edit menu.
  5. Drag the marker to the proper place on the map.
  6. Click submit.
  7. A message will pop up thanking you for improving Google Maps.
  8. Once your edit has been approved, you will receive an email from Google Maps letting you know it was a success!

The end result is the pushpin is now directly on the Auburn Water System office building! I guess now I should do the same thing for Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative, who share the same building with Auburn Water System.