Locator Data Verification

Our Spot Check Locator Data Verification service was created after doing some research on the accuracy of geocoded points used in locators. We found:

• Most locators have just had their addresses geocoded by a computer application and not manually verified. This school is outstanding in their field (the actual building is a couple of hundred feet away):
• Geocoding estimates the position of the address, usually based on Census data which has address ranges, but no specific address to lat/long info. We recently checked our local area and found a popular motorcycle shop 8 miles from its location!
• We've found many typos, missing info, inaccuracies and inconsistencies in locator data. For instance, we've seen some locations for a company with upper-case names while other names were mixed case, phone numbers formatted various ways, and missing locations. Standardized formatting looks far more professional.
• Computerized driving directions being incorrect and / or incomplete. Have you ever been misguided by a GPS?

One of the first tests we did was on a large, national insurance company's site. Our local office's location was over 1/2 mile off. We called the office and neither they nor the headquarters were even aware that their location was inaccurate. Our saying is Lost Customers = Lost Business! If they can't find you, they will go elsewhere.

We created Spot Check to verify the information for each location:

• You can send us your address data and then you can verify it or have us do it. The verified data can be used in the SpotOn locator, or your current locator.
• We will personally contact each location (store, dealer, etc.) that you have in order to verify its information.
• We will standardize the contact info using the same format for all phone numbers, use proper case for all names and addresses, etc.
• If you are using the SpotOn locator, it allows each location to have specific instructions which will be added to the end of the directions such as, "We're in the Shops of Peoria Mall, South Entrance, next to Macy's." We call this 'Real Directions' as opposed to only having computer-generated directions.
• We have created our own Spot Check tool for each location to view their current pushpin location on a high-res aerial or satellite view and verify that the pushpin is at the main entrance. If not, all that they need to do is drag the pushpin and click the Update button. They can also verify the name and hours of operation, plus add Real Directions. See below for an example of what they might see:

This video explains the need for Spot Check and shows how easy it is to validate your locations. It may take a moment to load ...

Pricing

The locations can be verified by your company, or we can validate the data for you. If verified by your company, we charge 50 cents per record, sold in pre-paid blocks of 100 records, with a $250 minimum charge. If you have large amounts of records, call us for volume pricing.

If you want us to verify the data, we will personally contact each location and edit the information in the database for $.99 per record. This would require an accurate contact name and email address for the primary contact (such as the store manager) for each location. If emails are ignored, we will make multiple phone call attempts to the location. We maintain a log of all changes and who authorized the changes. We employ U.S. citizens and don't outsource this service to foreign companies where English isn't the primary language. There is a $500 minimum charge.

The way this will work is that you'll send us your current locations and we will import them into a database. If you will be verifying the locations, you can define batches for different people to update (for instance, a regional manager could verify all locations within their region). When a location has been updated, it won't prompt you again for it. You can start and stop as you please and it remembers where you left off.

You also have the option of having the locations emailed to each location. They will just be able to update their one location. You would be responsible for following up on locations which haven't been verified.

If you have purchased the SpotOn Locator, you can have 'Real Directions' updated as well which helps guide people to your location such as 'If coming from the North...' These directions will appear at the end of the computer-generated directions.

If you believe that your locator may be missing locations and can provide us with a data file of locations from another source (such as an accounts payable vendor list), we'll cross-reference the files for an additional fee.

If you aren't able to provide your data in our standard format, we can also convert it for you for a reasonable fee.