Do͏͏ you͏͏ know͏͏ that͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ use͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ to͏͏ scrape͏͏ contact͏͏ and͏͏ business͏͏ data͏͏ of͏͏ prospects?͏͏ For͏͏ organizations͏͏ targeting͏͏ physical͏͏ businesses͏͏ (or͏͏ dealing͏͏ in͏͏ B2B͏͏ solutions),͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ is͏͏ a͏͏ goldmine͏͏ of͏͏ data.͏͏ Now,͏͏ you͏͏ must͏͏ be͏͏ thinking,͏͏ Is͏͏ it͏͏ legal͏͏ to͏͏ scrape͏͏ lead͏͏ data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps?͏͏ If͏͏ yes,͏͏ then͏͏ how͏͏ can͏͏ we͏͏ scrape͏͏ B2B͏͏ data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps?͏͏ Talking͏͏ about͏͏ the͏͏ legal͏͏ aspect,͏͏ while͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ discourages͏͏ the͏͏ use͏͏ of͏͏ any͏͏ scraping͏͏ tool͏͏ or͏͏ process͏͏ to͏͏ access͏͏ its͏͏ content͏͏ outside͏͏ the͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ Service,͏͏ extracting͏͏ publicly͏͏ available͏͏ data͏͏ is͏͏ completely͏͏ legal͏͏ as͏͏ long͏͏ as͏͏ you͏͏ are͏͏ not͏͏ violating͏͏ the͏͏ privacy͏͏ rights͏͏ of͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps.͏͏ The͏͏ rest͏͏ of͏͏ your͏͏ questions͏͏ regarding͏͏ the͏͏ lead͏͏ data͏͏ scraping͏͏ process͏͏ and͏͏ tools͏͏ have͏͏ been͏͏ answered͏͏ in͏͏ detail͏͏ in͏͏ this͏͏ blog.͏͏ Let’s͏͏ read͏͏ it͏͏ out.
Data͏͏ Points͏͏ You͏͏ Can͏͏ Scrape͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps
You͏͏ can͏͏ scrape͏͏ a͏͏ wide͏͏ range͏͏ of͏͏ data͏͏ about͏͏ local͏͏ businesses͏͏ (such͏͏ as͏͏ restaurants,͏͏ banks,͏͏ institutions,͏͏ and͏͏ brick-and-mortar͏͏ businesses)͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps,͏͏ including:
- Business/Store͏͏ Name
- Working͏͏ Hours
- Physical͏͏ Address͏͏ &͏͏ Geographical͏͏ Coordinates͏͏ (Longitude͏͏ &͏͏ Latitude)
- Email͏͏ Address
- Contact͏͏ Details
- Website
- Ratings͏͏ and͏͏ Customer͏͏ Reviews
- Images/Videos
- Business͏͏ Status͏͏ (Currently͏͏ Open,͏͏ Permanently͏͏ or͏͏ Temporary͏͏ Closed)
- Popular͏͏ Times/Peak͏͏ Hours
- Service͏͏ Areas
Benefits͏͏ of͏͏ Scraping͏͏ Data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps
You͏͏ must͏͏ be͏͏ thinking,͏͏ why͏͏ prioritize͏͏ scraping͏͏ lead͏͏ data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ when͏͏ there͏͏ are͏͏ plenty͏͏ of͏͏ other͏͏ sources͏͏ to͏͏ collect͏͏ business͏͏ information?͏͏ This͏͏ is͏͏ because͏͏ the͏͏ data͏͏ extracted͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ holds͏͏ its͏͏ own͏͏ significant͏͏ advantages,͏͏ such͏͏ as:
1. Facilitates͏͏ Local͏͏ Targeting͏͏ for͏͏ Effective͏͏ Lead͏͏ Generation
The͏͏ biggest͏͏ benefit͏͏ of͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data͏͏ is͏͏ that͏͏ it͏͏ helps͏͏ you͏͏ find͏͏ and͏͏ target͏͏ local͏͏ (or͏͏ offline)͏͏ businesses,͏͏ which͏͏ is͏͏ very͏͏ critical͏͏ yet͏͏ often͏͏ overlooked.͏͏ Using͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ identify͏͏ areas͏͏ where͏͏ your͏͏ services͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ highly͏͏ in͏͏ demand͏͏ and͏͏ then͏͏ connect͏͏ with͏͏ local͏͏ businesses͏͏ in͏͏ those͏͏ regions͏͏ to͏͏ pitch͏͏ your͏͏ offerings.͏͏
For͏͏ example,͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ are͏͏ a͏͏ healthcare͏͏ insurance͏͏ provider͏͏ looking͏͏ to͏͏ partner͏͏ with͏͏ medical͏͏ institutions,͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ find͏͏ areas͏͏ with͏͏ a͏͏ large͏͏ number͏͏ of͏͏ hospitals.͏͏ You͏͏ can͏͏ easily͏͏ collect͏͏ the͏͏ contact͏͏ details͏͏ of͏͏ these͏͏ institutions͏͏ to͏͏ schedule͏͏ a͏͏ face-to-face͏͏ meeting͏͏ and͏͏ explore͏͏ possible͏͏ collaborations.͏͏ According͏͏ to͏͏ a͏͏ Forbes͏͏ survey,͏͏ in-person͏͏ meetings͏͏ support͏͏ more͏͏ meaningful͏͏ connections,͏͏ improving͏͏ decision-making͏͏ by͏͏ 82%.͏͏ For͏͏ these͏͏ reasons,͏͏ businesses͏͏ can’t͏͏ ignore/neglect͏͏ local͏͏ targeting.
2. Supports͏͏ Competitor͏͏ and͏͏ Market͏͏ Analysis
Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data͏͏ is͏͏ not͏͏ only͏͏ useful͏͏ for͏͏ B2B͏͏ businesses͏͏ but͏͏ also͏͏ for͏͏ B2C͏͏ organizations.͏͏ Just͏͏ like͏͏ you,͏͏ your͏͏ competitors͏͏ are͏͏ also͏͏ listed͏͏ on͏͏ Google͏͏ My͏͏ Business,͏͏ providing͏͏ critical͏͏ details͏͏ to͏͏ you͏͏ for͏͏ market͏͏ research.͏͏ The͏͏ data͏͏ collected͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ identify͏͏ the͏͏ number͏͏ of͏͏ competitors͏͏ in͏͏ a͏͏ particular͏͏ region,͏͏ analyze͏͏ their͏͏ customer͏͏ reviews͏͏ and͏͏ ratings,͏͏ and͏͏ identify͏͏ their͏͏ areas͏͏ of͏͏ strengths͏͏ and͏͏ weaknesses͏͏ to͏͏ optimize͏͏ your͏͏ offerings.
For͏͏ instance,͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ are͏͏ planning͏͏ to͏͏ expand/open͏͏ your͏͏ fitness͏͏ center͏͏ in͏͏ a͏͏ particular͏͏ region,͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ identify͏͏ the͏͏ existing͏͏ competitors͏͏ in͏͏ that͏͏ area.͏͏ By͏͏ reviewing͏͏ their͏͏ customer͏͏ feedback,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ figure͏͏ out͏͏ what͏͏ people͏͏ like͏͏ or͏͏ dislike͏͏ about͏͏ them-͏͏ maybe͏͏ they͏͏ love͏͏ the͏͏ fitness͏͏ equipment͏͏ over͏͏ there͏͏ but͏͏ are͏͏ not͏͏ happy͏͏ with͏͏ the͏͏ customer͏͏ support.͏͏ Or͏͏ maybe͏͏ those͏͏ fitness͏͏ centers͏͏ are͏͏ not͏͏ providing͏͏ 24/7͏͏ access͏͏ or͏͏ specialized͏͏ Yoga͏͏ or͏͏ HIIT͏͏ classes.͏͏ By͏͏ finding͏͏ these͏͏ opportunity͏͏ gaps,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ tailor͏͏ your͏͏ offerings͏͏ to͏͏ stand͏͏ out͏͏ in͏͏ a͏͏ saturated͏͏ market.
3. Optimizes͏͏ Local͏͏ SEO͏͏ Strategies
By͏͏ scraping͏͏ competitors’͏͏ data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps,͏͏ such͏͏ as͏͏ their͏͏ service͏͏ description,͏͏ keywords,͏͏ and͏͏ NAP͏͏ information,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ optimize͏͏ your͏͏ Google͏͏ My͏͏ Business͏͏ profile͏͏ to͏͏ improve͏͏ search͏͏ rankings͏͏ and͏͏ visibility.͏͏
For͏͏ example,͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ run͏͏ a͏͏ dental͏͏ clinic,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ scrape͏͏ data͏͏ of͏͏ top-performing͏͏ clinics͏͏ in͏͏ targeted͏͏ areas͏͏ and͏͏ identify͏͏ common͏͏ terms͏͏ such͏͏ as͏͏ “emergency͏͏ dental͏͏ care,”͏͏ “pediatric͏͏ dentistry,”͏͏ or͏͏ “invisalign͏͏ specialist”͏͏ to͏͏ optimize͏͏ your͏͏ profile͏͏ description.͏͏ Additionally,͏͏ you͏͏ might͏͏ notice͏͏ that͏͏ businesses͏͏ with͏͏ consistent͏͏ NAP͏͏ information͏͏ across͏͏ platforms͏͏ and͏͏ positive͏͏ reviews͏͏ are͏͏ ranking͏͏ higher.͏͏ Based͏͏ on͏͏ these͏͏ insights,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ optimize͏͏ your͏͏ strategy͏͏ and͏͏ make͏͏ necessary͏͏ changes͏͏ in͏͏ your͏͏ GMB͏͏ profile.
4. Supports͏͏ Personalized͏͏ Marketing͏͏ Campaigns
The͏͏ data͏͏ around͏͏ customer͏͏ reviews͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ extracted͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ to͏͏ craft͏͏ highly͏͏ targeted,͏͏ personalized͏͏ marketing͏͏ campaigns͏͏ that͏͏ resonate͏͏ with͏͏ your͏͏ target͏͏ audience’s͏͏ interests.͏͏
For͏͏ example,͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ are͏͏ a͏͏ digital͏͏ marketing͏͏ agency͏͏ providing͏͏ ORM͏͏ (online͏͏ reputation͏͏ management)͏͏ services͏͏ to͏͏ hospitals,͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ analyze͏͏ relevant͏͏ businesses͏͏ that͏͏ have͏͏ poor͏͏ ratings.͏͏ You͏͏ can͏͏ reach͏͏ out͏͏ to͏͏ those͏͏ businesses͏͏ with͏͏ a͏͏ personalized͏͏ email͏͏ stating͏͏ how͏͏ their͏͏ business͏͏ is͏͏ losing͏͏ potential͏͏ clients͏͏ due͏͏ to͏͏ poor͏͏ GMB͏͏ ratings͏͏ and͏͏ how͏͏ your͏͏ offerings͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ them͏͏ improve͏͏ their͏͏ brand͏͏ loyalty.
Possible͏͏ Ways͏͏ of͏͏ Extracting͏͏ Lead͏͏ Data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps
There͏͏ are͏͏ several͏͏ ways͏͏ of͏͏ scraping͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data.͏͏ Depending͏͏ on͏͏ your͏͏ technical͏͏ expertise͏͏ and͏͏ business͏͏ needs,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ consider͏͏ any͏͏ one͏͏ of͏͏ the͏͏ following:
No-Code͏͏ Scraping͏͏ Programs/Tools
No-code͏͏ tools͏͏ are͏͏ ideal͏͏ when͏͏ you͏͏ have͏͏ no͏͏ programming͏͏ knowledge͏͏ and͏͏ want͏͏ to͏͏ scrape͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data͏͏ into͏͏ a͏͏ spreadsheet͏͏ or͏͏ web͏͏ form.͏͏ There͏͏ are͏͏ tools,͏͏ such͏͏ as͏͏ OctoParse,͏͏ PhatomBuster,͏͏ and͏͏ ParseHub,͏͏ that͏͏ come͏͏ with͏͏ a͏͏ user-friendly͏͏ interface͏͏ and͏͏ point-and-click͏͏ functionality͏͏ to͏͏ scrape͏͏ specific͏͏ details͏͏ with͏͏ zero͏͏ coding͏͏ skills.
While͏͏ these͏͏ tools͏͏ are͏͏ effective͏͏ for͏͏ basic͏͏ data͏͏ extraction,͏͏ they͏͏ can͏͏ struggle͏͏ to͏͏ bypass͏͏ Google’s͏͏ Anti-bot͏͏ measures,͏͏ such͏͏ as͏͏ CAPTCHAs͏͏ and͏͏ rate͏͏ limiting.͏͏ Also,͏͏ Google͏͏ keeps͏͏ updating͏͏ its͏͏ interface͏͏ and͏͏ underlying͏͏ HTML͏͏ structure,͏͏ and͏͏ if͏͏ these͏͏ tools͏͏ are͏͏ not͏͏ updated͏͏ as͏͏ per͏͏ the͏͏ latest͏͏ changes,͏͏ they͏͏ can͏͏ end͏͏ up͏͏ collecting͏͏ inaccurate/inconsistent͏͏ data.
Google͏͏ Places͏͏ API
It͏͏ is͏͏ an͏͏ official͏͏ API͏͏ of͏͏ Google,͏͏ allowing͏͏ developers͏͏ to͏͏ access͏͏ and͏͏ scrape͏͏ relevant͏͏ details,͏͏ such͏͏ as͏͏ contact͏͏ numbers,͏͏ email͏͏ addresses,͏͏ and͏͏ company͏͏ descriptions,͏͏ to͏͏ integrate͏͏ directly͏͏ into͏͏ applications͏͏ or͏͏ databases.͏͏ Although͏͏ the͏͏ Google͏͏ Places͏͏ API͏͏ is͏͏ a͏͏ reliable͏͏ method͏͏ for͏͏ businesses͏͏ to͏͏ access͏͏ POI͏͏ (point͏͏ of͏͏ interest)͏͏ data͏͏ in͏͏ a͏͏ structured͏͏ format͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps,͏͏ it͏͏ comes͏͏ with͏͏ a͏͏ limited͏͏ number͏͏ of͏͏ free͏͏ requests.͏͏ Also,͏͏ the͏͏ API͏͏ enforces͏͏ strict͏͏ compliance͏͏ with͏͏ Google’s͏͏ terms͏͏ of͏͏ usage,͏͏ restricting͏͏ how͏͏ the͏͏ scraped͏͏ data͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ used͏͏ or͏͏ stored.
Custom͏͏ Web͏͏ Scraping͏͏ Scripts
Custom͏͏ scripts͏͏ are͏͏ better͏͏ when͏͏ you͏͏ want͏͏ to͏͏ scrape͏͏ multiple͏͏ layers͏͏ of͏͏ data͏͏ (such͏͏ as͏͏ detailed͏͏ reviews͏͏ or͏͏ nested͏͏ business͏͏ information)͏͏ or͏͏ a͏͏ large͏͏ amount͏͏ of͏͏ data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ in͏͏ a͏͏ specific͏͏ format͏͏ (CSV,͏͏ JSON,͏͏ Excel).͏͏ With͏͏ custom͏͏ scraping͏͏ scripts,͏͏ you͏͏ don’t͏͏ have͏͏ to͏͏ face͏͏ rate͏͏ limits͏͏ or͏͏ quota͏͏ restrictions.͏͏ However,͏͏ these͏͏ scripts͏͏ demand͏͏ expertise͏͏ in͏͏ coding͏͏ languages͏͏ such͏͏ as͏͏ Python͏͏ and͏͏ Javascript.͏͏ Also,͏͏ you͏͏ need͏͏ to͏͏ update͏͏ custom͏͏ scripts͏͏ to͏͏ align͏͏ with͏͏ updated͏͏ to͏͏ Google’s͏͏ DOM͏͏ structure.
Manual͏͏ Research͏͏ and͏͏ Data͏͏ Collection
While͏͏ the͏͏ manual͏͏ approach͏͏ is͏͏ more͏͏ time-consuming,͏͏ it͏͏ is͏͏ ideal͏͏ and͏͏ preferred͏͏ when͏͏ data͏͏ quality͏͏ is͏͏ prioritized͏͏ over͏͏ data͏͏ quantity.͏͏ Automated͏͏ tools͏͏ or͏͏ scripts͏͏ can͏͏ efficiently͏͏ scrape͏͏ business͏͏ data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps,͏͏ but͏͏ that͏͏ data͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ outdated,͏͏ incomplete,͏͏ or͏͏ incorrect͏͏ in͏͏ certain͏͏ scenarios.͏͏ In͏͏ such͏͏ cases,͏͏ manual͏͏ research͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ cross-check͏͏ the͏͏ scraped͏͏ information͏͏ with͏͏ other͏͏ sources͏͏ and͏͏ validate͏͏ the͏͏ lead’s͏͏ authenticity.
Outsourcing͏͏ -͏͏ A͏͏ Practical͏͏ Solution͏͏ to͏͏ Overcome͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ Data͏͏ Scraping͏͏ Challenges
While͏͏ all͏͏ the͏͏ above-mentioned͏͏ approaches͏͏ are͏͏ effective͏͏ for͏͏ scraping͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps͏͏ data,͏͏ they͏͏ all͏͏ come͏͏ with͏͏ their͏͏ limitations.͏͏ As͏͏ a͏͏ business,͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ don’t͏͏ have͏͏ the͏͏ technical͏͏ expertise,͏͏ resources,͏͏ or͏͏ time͏͏ to͏͏ address͏͏ these͏͏ challenges,͏͏ outsourcing͏͏ web͏͏ data͏͏ scraping͏͏ services͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ a͏͏ practical͏͏ solution.
Professional͏͏ data͏͏ mining͏͏ service͏͏ providers͏͏ have͏͏ required͏͏ expertise͏͏ to͏͏ handle͏͏ scraping͏͏ challenges͏͏ such͏͏ as͏͏ Google’s͏͏ anti-bot͏͏ measures,͏͏ CAPTCHAs,͏͏ and͏͏ IP͏͏ blocking.͏͏ Additionally,͏͏ they͏͏ have͏͏ access͏͏ to͏͏ advanced͏͏ scraping͏͏ tools͏͏ and͏͏ custom͏͏ scripts͏͏ to͏͏ handle͏͏ large-scale͏͏ data͏͏ extraction,͏͏ so͏͏ you͏͏ don’t͏͏ have͏͏ to͏͏ invest͏͏ in͏͏ infrastructure.͏͏ They͏͏ can͏͏ extract͏͏ required͏͏ data͏͏ as͏͏ per͏͏ your͏͏ criteria͏͏ by͏͏ complying͏͏ with͏͏ Google’s͏͏ data͏͏ usage͏͏ policies,͏͏ so͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ focus͏͏ on͏͏ using͏͏ the͏͏ scraped͏͏ data͏͏ effectively͏͏ rather͏͏ than͏͏ spending͏͏ time͏͏ collecting͏͏ it.
Conclusion
By͏͏ scraping͏͏ lead data͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ not͏͏ only͏͏ optimize͏͏ your͏͏ outreach͏͏ efforts͏͏ but͏͏ also͏͏ increase͏͏ the͏͏ chances͏͏ of͏͏ conversions.͏͏ However,͏͏ for͏͏ effective͏͏ data͏͏ scraping͏͏ from͏͏ Google͏͏ Maps,͏͏ you͏͏ must͏͏ know͏͏ which͏͏ approach͏͏ would͏͏ work͏͏ best͏͏ for͏͏ you.͏͏ You͏͏ can͏͏ go͏͏ for͏͏ automated͏͏ tools/scripts͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ have͏͏ the͏͏ required͏͏ expertise͏͏ or͏͏ can͏͏ outsource͏͏ data͏͏ mining͏͏ services͏͏ to͏͏ a͏͏ reliable͏͏ company͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ are͏͏ falling͏͏ short͏͏ on͏͏ time,͏͏ resources,͏͏ or͏͏ skills.͏͏ Whatever͏͏ approach͏͏ you͏͏ choose,͏͏ make͏͏ sure͏͏ the͏͏ data͏͏ you͏͏ get͏͏ is͏͏ accurate,͏͏ relevant,͏͏ reliable,͏͏ and͏͏ complete͏͏ for͏͏ tailored͏͏ use͏͏ cases.
Chris Mcdonald has been the lead news writer at complete connection. His passion for helping people in all aspects of online marketing flows through in the expert industry coverage he provides. Chris is also an author of tech blog Area19delegate. He likes spending his time with family, studying martial arts and plucking fat bass guitar strings.