Google Maps Platform Allows Buy Online and Pick Up in Store Options on Websites
According to Google, one of the most commonly received questions from retail businesses is how can' buy online' and 'pick-up in store' options be added to their websites.
Here we outline the different ways users can add these options to their website with the help of APIs to make their customer's purchase journey as easy and quick as possible.
Locate the Most Convenient Pick-up Location
With the current COVID-19 pandemic taking the world by storm, a majority of purchasers prefer not to stray far from home when picking up essential items from stores. Google offers retailers a combination of Distance Matrix API and Geocoding API along with the standard Maps API for Android, iOS, and JavaScript. Retailers can use these tools to narrow down on the pick-up location nearest to their customers and showcase it to their customers via maps.
To accomplish this, retailers can use Autocomplete to retrieve their customer's home address. The Geocoding API can then be used to identify the latitude and longitudinal position of the customer's address.
This latitude and longitudinal information can now be used by the retailer to search through their database to identify the closest pickup point for the customer.
A point to note, the results from the database are typically straight-line distance and do not usually represent actual distance in terms of driving of walk times. Google recommends making use of the Distance Matrix API to filter these results by actual driving or walking distance. This can be supplemented with historic and real-time traffic information for more accurate results.
This tutorial by Google explains how to use the Distance Matrix API.
Once retailers have identified the most convenient store for a customer pick-up, this location is displayed to users with a map showing customers exactly where they need to go, and the directions to get there.
In case you are not clear on how a map and a marker can be added to your website, take a look at this guide. The Directions API can be used to show customers the most direct route from their location to the pick-up point.
Enable a Smooth Pick-Up Experience - Provide Customers with Real-Time Directions
Once retailers know the pick-up location for their customers, they have the option to provide customers with real-time directions to help them get to the spot.
With the help of Google's Direction API retailers can provide their customers with real-time traffic information as well as turn-by-turn directions. In a situation where people may be forced to take a trip into new neighbourhoods, Google's Street View imagery can be embedded to make it easier for customers to locate the pick-up location or store.
Real-Time Traffic Information Provides Retailer's with the Customer's Estimated Arrival Time
This is especially useful for retailers when dealing with orders received through a mobile application. Retailers can use the customer's location to anticipate the order's pick-up time and ensure that the order is ready for delivery.
Retailers can regularly poll the device for the customer's latest location and then engage the Distance Matrix API to anticipate the customer's approximate arrival time based on the existing traffic situation.
Safeguard the Privacy of the Customer's Location
Retailers that use the above measures to identify their customer's location in real-time need to ensure that they in compliance with the end-user location privacy terms as detailed in the Terms of Service for Google Maps Platform.
Google Maps Allows 'Buy Online' & 'Pick-up in Store' Options for Websites