With the invention of online maps, accessing far-away locations has become much easier. And when we talk about our current tech eco-system, location-based apps turn out to be necessary for a seamless functionality of services. Besides, they help us to get acquainted with communities and neighboring towns at the comfort of our fingertips. The point is, not all maps are created as per everyone’s requirements. This makes it necessary to hunt for solutions that offer customized options in map creation with little or no complexities.
As we all know, map making is blending data artistically to guide people in different ways. Many of you may think that creating customized maps requires advanced knowledge of cartography and geographic information system (GIS). Although it was true a few years back, the online map makers have now made it easier to create custom maps within a fraction of seconds. In this article, you’ll come across a handful of steps that help you create online maps with the utmost ease and achieve your goals of tracking different services.
What are the benefits of maps?
If you own a business, you would like to watch where your drivers go or where your service is on the way. In such cases, interactive maps help take delivery or transportation services to another level by giving a live update on its progress. Besides, the maps are not only easy to use and understand but also attractive as compared to any static content. Also, they help attract customers and build a client base through different marketing campaigns. That’s why you will see that map creator is one of the top searches on Google search engine.
Steps to create online maps:
So, let us start integrating maps for your service without putting a strain on your pocket. Whether you want to see your location or build a community tracking service, these steps will help you create a great map without any coding requirements.
Choose the template
Choosing a template is one of the fundamental steps in creating online maps. You should be clear with your requirements and vision to find the right template for your business type. The online tools available on the internet have made this step’s execution easier by offering many pre-designed templates for different choices. You can select any template from those designs and start creating your online map. You can even explore the library for more templates if the presented ones don’t satisfy you.
Still, if you don’t find anything relevant, you can start designing your own template. You can start working on your own canvas by logging into the software and creating a new project. In this way, you can start developing a map of your choice.
Select the region
It is apparent that you need to create a map of a specific city, state, country or region. Hence, you first need to specify the region of your choice to make a relevant map. To do this, you can search for the region name by typing it on the search bar and selecting it from the list. If you want to create a map for a large region or a world map, you can do that too. Once you are done selecting the region, start editing and inserting the data on the map.
Data Input
The next step in creating your online map is to add data relevant to your business need. For that, you should first understand what type of data you need to add to the map. There are many types of elements, such as population statistics, medical cases, vote history, restaurants, bus stops, etc., that you can enter into the map.
All you need to do is go to add more data option and insert the data gathered from different sources. Ensure that you collect data from the most reliable sources to avoid any misguidance. You can paste data either from Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel. Besides, you can choose how many columns of information you would like to include in your map. Whatever data you insert, make sure to give an appropriate title to the column for a clearer understanding.
Choose color codes
There are thousands of map variants online and each of them differs because of their unique color code combination. A color code or a theme helps you create a unique map design that appears different from other available maps. No matter which maps creator app you choose, you will always have options to select color of your choice and add a fantastic feel to your map. You can choose different hues for different locations and highlight specific parts of your data.
Although there are countless color options available in the app, make sure you don’t fall prey to the initial color suggested by it. Go unique with your color choice, and if you find difficulty in coming up with a color scheme, then you can go for the auto coloring option. Through this option, the tedious and cumbersome task of choosing color becomes easy to achieve in a matter of seconds.
Adjust settings
If you want to modify the default settings of your map, you can change them according to your requirement. There are two modifications you can do in the setting tab such as:
Style settings
You can change the style of the map on map creator software. Some software also allows you to use the global map color for a realistic experience. If you have created a geographical map, you can show the state borders and any relevant information. So, when your cursor hovers over the designated area on the map, it will automatically show the filled data.
Data settings
Data settings allow you to activate the area value. Here, you can select from the columns you added from the sheet and modify the range of values you added into it.
Sharing the map
Once you are done with all the required elements of your map, it will be ready to get published. You need to click on the share button and choose an appropriate option to share your map online. While publishing for the web, you would end up generating a link. You can also share this map link on social media and emails.
These are the steps you need to follow on any map creator software for creating the desired map. The steps are simple and convenient to understand, so make sure you take advantages of them and give a new start to your business.
