Google Local Guides are about to flood Google Maps listings with video.
It appears that video can now be uploaded by Local Guides using Android Maps and those videos will be visible from search. A 10-second video can be captured with the Android Google Maps app or a 30-second video can be uploaded directly.
The possibilities of showcasing video within maps are virtually endless - and while that is exciting for some it is not comforting at all too many enterprises.
In a perfect world, Google's local guides will upload videos of the inside of their favorite store or show the menu at their neighborhood restaurant. Of course, this is not a perfect world and the few merchants/retailers we have spoken to in the last few hours express fear that enabling anyone and everyone to upload video is going to need a fair amount of oversight.
Google has published guidance on how guides can
create videos that stand out on Google Maps but without some formal control over what is appearing, Google (and the brands that rely on the search engine to help them drive awareness) is just asking for a whole host of problems.
Google has apparently thought somewhat about the issue and has set up a way to report problems related to video and maps but very little information has been provided on how that will work, how quickly videos can be deleted or modified.
Will you encourage visitors of your business (local guides specifically) to upload video to Google Maps?
