MapQuest Survey: Americans Value Simple Features

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Posted Aug 15, 2011
Anne Pilon

Online navigation sites such as MapQuest have been helping people find their way for years. Anyone can look up maps and directions in just a few seconds with ease. But as technology evolves, will people’s needs and wants change as well?

maps

Online Navigation

Though sites like MapQuest are a popular source for maps and directions, 36.4% of respondents in Ask Your Target Market’s latest survey said they rarely use this type of technology. 29% said they use it monthly, 21.3% use it weekly, and 5% use it daily. Only 8.4% said they never look up maps or directions online.There are many sites where people can go to look up maps and directions online. The most popular of which seem to be Google Maps, which is used by 55.4% of respondents, and MapQuest, which is used by 52% of respondents. 14.4% use Yahoo Maps, 7.2% use Bing Maps, and 5.4% use other sites for navigating.

Mobile Navigation

A growing trend in the last few years is mobile navigation devices and apps. Though 32.9% of respondents use a GPS or navigation system and 20% of respondents use navigation apps on their phones or iPods, 49.8% of respondents said they still have never used a mobile device for navigation. Only 15.1% of respondents said that mobile capabilities was an important feature when choosing a navigation site.

Important features

When it comes to choosing a site to use for navigation, people seem to enjoy simple and functional features. 65.1% of respondents said that ease of use was a determining factor when choosing a navigation site, and 64.9% said that accuracy was a determining factor. 39.9% of respondents would like to see updates on road closures, construction projects and new roads, and 25% value a clear site design.Whether looking up a map or using a mobile application to find directions, the way people navigate is constantly evolving. People seem to value simple features in their navigation sites, but will this change as technology evolves?Photo Credit: Maps from Flickr