How do they do it and how much does someone pay to get their name/business to show up on Google maps when a random googler is navigating to an entirely unrelated destination?
Did you search for them at some point? In my experience you have both random stuff popping up and past searches hits. I suspect the absolute random stuff ro be related to advertising.
The squares with rounded edges are definitely ads.
A squircle.
I have a business registered on Google Maps as an actual place, and frequently get contacted by email asking if I’d like to pay to have it promoted
I’ve never used it but the option is there
Those are indeed ads.
I believe the business pays per click. I’ve seen (edit) only one estimate for the cost, claiming $2 to $6 per click. (https://www.shopify.com/retail/google-maps-ads)
(I previously had mentioned a second estimate but that was for regular ads)
Better then when the business won’t show up on maps, unless you type the name in. There are a ton of businesses that even if I zoom all the way in on that business it will not show the name of the business. But if I type the name in it will show in the correct place. It’s annoying as hell. I know there is a certain business there. I can see the building in maps. I just can’t remember the exact name. I need the phone number to know if they have a part or an item. Have never been able to figure out why Google maps and Apple maps does this crazy stuff.
