Apple Maps emboldened its local knowledge this week with place data for restaurants and golf courses. Specifically, it announced a collaboration with the MICHELIN Guide, The Infatuation, and Golf Digest to bring in better listings data in these categories. This should further boost Apple Maps’ utility.
Taking those one at a time, Apple Maps users, starting in the U.S. for now, will be able to filter their searches to see restaurants with Michelin ratings. That of course means the top-rated dining experiences. Michelin content in other categories, such as hotels, will also be included.
Sticking with the restaurant category, being able to filter based on Michelin ratings fulfills a high-value use case, but isn’t always what consumers will be looking for. That’s where The Infatuation fills a gap. The restaurant recommendation website will be able to point users to a wider range of restaurants.
Moving on to golf, the Golf Digest integration will let Maps users filter searches to find the top-rated golf courses. Like the Michelin-starred filtration noted above, this will be a narrower use case in terms of frequency, but a high-value one. That could have implications for Apple Maps monetization.
Altogether, there’s a theme to these updates in that they represent high-class and arguably bourgeois activities. There’s nothing wrong with that, and Apple is casting a wide net for the personas it’s trying to attract and engage with Maps. We’ll keep our eyes open for more upper-class fare in Apple Maps.
On Brand
Stepping back, this move is on brand for Apple Maps. It has developed a clear strategy around assembling best-of-breed data partners in various verticals. Rather than index everything on its own (Google’s approach with Mapping and everything else), it’s building a comprehensive UX via partners.
But though that strategy remains in place – as shown in these latest integrations – Apple is notably trying to build more first-party data into Maps. That’s where Apple Business Connect comes in. A sort of counterpart to Google Business Profiles, this program lets businesses claim and update their listings.
The benefit for Apple in doing that includes having more first-party data. That way, it owns the data, rather than relying solely on partners’ data, which gives it more control. Altogether, it’s building a mapping UX using both approaches, which gives it the best of both worlds for comprehensive listings.
Another thing Apple Business Connect does is establish direct relationships with local businesses. Once they claim and update their listings – which they’re incentivised to do given Apple Maps’ prominence – they can represent a pipeline of potential paid advertisers for local search & mapping.
That last part hasn’t yet developed. And to be clear, planting the seeds for local business ad revenue is our speculation versus anything Apple has announced. But it sure seems that this is where Apple is headed. We’ll keep a close eye on the other puzzle pieces & moving parts that fall into place.
