Google Maps is now I think rolling Discover through photos feature. I got the access to the first one last week but still don’t have access of the second one.
Here is how Discover through photos feature looks like in Google Maps.
When searching for “japansese noodel Melbourne” and if clicking on the “View photo map” then it shows map overview in top half of screen and below that its photo results. Also I posted a screen recording showing this in action on my LinkedIn.
Also note that Discover through photos was first demoed by Google in their India even back in Oct 2024 and they called it “Image-first results” in Google Maps. And at the same time Google said it will be showing photos from reviews which users have posted on a Google Business Profile (GBP).
That’s why I think that business owners can’t specifically optimise the images that they upload to their business profile to get visibility in this feature because Google has specifically designed this to show ONLY users posted photos. That’s why I posted this on X and said that Google choosing show photos uploaded by users in this feature alings with their general push for UGC style and social media content in their usual search results.
But definitely business owners should encourage their customers to post, high quality photos while leaving a Google review, that’s the way to get visibility in this new feature.
Also this new Discover through photos is almost similar to Products nearby Google Maps feature which Google launched back in Nov 2024. Only difference is that it shows photos instead of products.
Leave a Reply