Apple recently introduced Apple Business Connect to give local businesses more control over their presence in Apple Maps and across other Apple apps. Uberall CoreX has a direct integration with Business Connect, so you can manage information in the Apple Maps place card along with other directories from one single place.

The Value of Apple Maps for Businesses

Since its release in 2012, Apple Maps has been the default navigation app on Apple devices. For local businesses, being visible on Apple Maps and across other Apple apps is beneficial as it helps them reach more potential customers.

Furthermore, being listed on Apple Maps can also improve a business's local search engine optimization (local SEO), which supports a higher rank in search engine results.

Stats That Show the Value of Apple Maps

Let’s get a better understanding of who uses Apple Maps. Even though Apple does not publicly share usage statistics, there are a couple of data points that indicate a strong fan base—one that we can consider to be growing, given the improvements on Apple Maps that keep on coming.

1. There are 1.8 billion active Apple devices (2022, The Verge). With Apple Maps being baked into Apple devices like iPhone, iPad, Watch, and Mac, the app could be used on potentially up to that many devices.
2. According to Demandsage, there are 1.5 billion active iPhone users as of 2023.
3. The iPhone had a market share of +50% in the US in 2022— and yes, that’s more than Android.
4. As we found in our own consumer survey in 2021, Apple Maps is the 2nd most favorite application for consumers to find local business information.

Furthermore, the history of improvements on Apple Maps shows how the app has become mightier and more competitive to Google Maps since its launch in 2012. Navigating and discovering places are immersive experiences thanks to the use of augmented reality, e.g. for walking directions, or highly detailed maps to explore cities in 3D.

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What is Apple Business Connect?

Apple Business Connect a free tool that allows businesses of all sizes to claim their location place cards and customize the way key information appears to across Apple Maps, Messages, Wallet, Siri, and other apps.

Uberall customers can access those features through the Business Connect API and use them at scale. That means, you can customize your online presence across multiple locations and present the best, most accurate version of your business to Apple users.

Especially for brands, franchises, and other multi-location businesses, this new integration improves the way you sync location info between your Apple Maps place cards and Uberall CoreX. This, among other things, is what the API allows you to do:

• Manage Apple Maps location place cards via Uberall for more control and the highest level of data accuracy.
• Keep location information up to date with ease.
• Check and keep data in sync with reliable processes for data health.
• Shine with better-looking listings as you manage your profile imagery directly through the Uberall interface—be it logos, cover photos, or local photos on your listing.
• Present customers with offers and incentives with Showcases in the Apple Maps place card (Showcases are available to businesses in the US beginning today, and will be available to businesses globally in the coming months).

Post News and Local Offers to Apple Showcases

As a US business, you can already use Showcases and post news, local offers, and more to the Apple Maps place card. This helps you engage more directly with consumers in Apple Maps.

Thanks to Uberall’s connection with Apple Business Connect, publishing Showcases in the Apple Maps place cards is as easy as sharing a post on Google, Instagram, or any other directory. You simply pick your images, text, CTA, URL, and dynamic fields—and schedule your posts for as many locations and directories as you like.

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Uberall and the Business Connect API Make it Easy to Sync Your Business to Apple Maps

Apple Maps has the pull and user base to be a primary focus of your local SEO and business listing management program. And with Apple Business Connect, it has never been easier to connect your business with that service, keep the data in sync, and make your business stand out.

To Uberall customers, we’ll guide you through the steps to set up your business on Business Connect and manage it via Uberall CoreX. Reach out to your customer success team to find out more. And if you’re not an Uberall customer (yet, that is), we’re happy to show you how the new integration works and boosts your visibility—just reach out to us.

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