Maps come in different types. Many maps are static two-dimensional, geometrically accurate, showing lines defining countries, states or territories visually. While others are dynamic or interactive, even three-dimensional (3d maps).
Far from being just a means of getting from a to b, in the Internet age, maps become digital and they become an important part of websites and online marketing strategy of many companies, and are also used as online presentation tools. They are used to display territory assignments, store locators, country selector, directories, and for many other applications.
For example, by embeding a clickable interactive map on your website, visitors can quickly click an area on the map to find out where your company's stores, warehouses, plants, or offices are located. You can also pinpoint locations with mouse hover image or tootips to display additional information as necessary. The phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words" holds even more true in the Internet age. Your website visitors can better relate to your information and stay on your website when they're able to view an illustrative map.
Sometimes a map is called a site plan, which maps out the different parts of a site or building, and helps people find their way about. Site plan are used most often in shopping mall, exhibition, hospital, convention centers, campus, or as floor plan for home and offices. Many real estate, hotel and property finder websites are seen adapting to the latest online technology, and are using interactive site plan as a part of a powerful online marketing strategy.
The philosophy behind interactive map (or site plan) on these websites, is to offer customers a truly insightful experience that help them to decide where (be it a shop, hotel room or booth) to visit or reserve, clarifies about the entry and exit points, and gives a real view of the building prior to their arrival. Not only interactive maps can help visitors to navigate, to indicate where the schools, hospital, booth, resorts etc are, but are also able to show additional information with simple mouseover.
In order to create an interactive map for your website, you can use Google Map, or do a web search for Interactive Map Software. Google Map is a very powerful online map tool, and free. You can use Google Map to create maps with details upto street levels, zoom in and out easily. You can also add 'bubbles' anywhere on the Google earth map to pinpoint a location, and search locations by simply type in an address.
However, Google Map might not always be suitable to use on your business website as a navigation tool.
For instance, you might need
- a basic US Map, generalize all states or regions for users to use as a state selector
- a single state map (e.g. California) within the USA, showing counties border lines.
- a world map, set colours of each continent or country, use as a country selector
- import your own map (e.g. a campus map), adding points and interactive functions
These tasks cannot be done easily in Google map -- because Google Map needs to load the entire globe map everytime and is co-ordiate based. You can not set a mouseover function for a region (continent, country, state or county) without dig deep into the Google Map API.
For these type of usage, you can use an interactive map software. An interactive map software is a program which you can install on your windows desktop to create flash clickable map easily. It comes with a set of ready-to-use map templates, including World, Europe, USA, China, Asia, Africa, North and South America, Australia and other maps. In addition, you can import your own photos or illustrations instead of country map templates, so to convert any ordinary image file into a interactive, clickable map.
For example, you can import an image of your local surburb map, and add to the map points of interest, and use icons, mouseover descriptions, drawing lines and arrows to indicate restaurants, shops, museums and cinemas. Everyone can do it with few mouse clicks, and without any API or programming.
You can also export the created interactive map to JPG image format for using in other applications, such as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Publisher, freehand, PowerPoint, etc. The map can then be displayed in company brochures, newsletters, magazines, bulletins, prospectuses, etc.
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