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Do you run a local business WordPress website? Like a real-estate company or an eCommerce website with a physical store. Or maybe you run a travel blog and would like to leave locations to interesting places for your audiences. Then you need to embed Google Maps into WordPress. It helps you provide your visitors with valuable information and a more interactive experience.
There are several effective methods to embed Google Maps into your WordPress website. You can use a WordPress plugin or integrate it through Google Maps’ embed feature or WordPress theme.
In this blog, I’ll cover how the professional WordPress developers implement each of these methods in detail. But first, let’s see why it would be beneficial to have it on your website.
Why Add Google Maps to Your WordPress Website?
Google Maps is the most widely-used location application around the world, with over 10 billion downloads on Google Play Store. So having it on your website or page will surely make it more user-friendly and offer other advantages, like:
- Visual Clarity: Maps provide a clear and intuitive way to represent locations, so it’s easier for visitors to understand your business’s geographic context.
- Engagement: Interactive maps can capture the attention of visitors and encourage exploration, leading to longer engagement times.
- Local SEO: Embedding Google Maps can improve your local search engine ranking, so it’s more likely that potential customers in your area will find your business.
- Customer Convenience: Maps can help customers easily find your location, whether they’re planning a visit or looking for directions.
- Contextual Information: Maps can provide valuable context for your content, such as displaying the locations of events, landmarks, or points of interest related to your topic.
With Google Maps on your WordPress website, you can add value to your content and improve the visibility among the target audience.
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How to Embed Google Maps into Your WordPress Website?
Aligning with its user-friendliness, WordPress offers a few different ways to embed Google Maps into the website or page. You can do so with or without plugins or through the theme. Let’s discuss each method in detail.
Using a WordPress Plugin
The biggest contributor to WordPress’ customizability and user-friendliness is its plugins, of which there are numerous available. Installing a WordPress plugin can simplify the process of embedding Google Maps into your website.
Step 1: Log into the WordPress dashboard and install and activate the plugin.
Step 2: Access “Maps” (or something similar, based on your installed plugin). That will open the maps plugin settings.
Step 3: Configure the different options like height, width, map type, zoom level, and more.
Step 4: Drag your mouse to the desired location on the map and select it.
Step 5: Click on the “Save map” button (or something similar, based on the plugin).
Step 6: Finally, copy the shortcode provided by the plugin and paste it in your WordPress page or post.
Now, there will be a map on your page based on the settings and configurations done by you.
Some of the best plugins available for embedding Google Maps are WP Go Maps, WP Maps, MapPress, etc. You can choose the best plugin based on factors like features, ease-of-use, reviews, and more.
Using Google Maps’ Embed Feature (Without a Plugin)
This method is, perhaps, the easiest one to execute. But you will need some basic experience with the Gutenberg block editor. Let’s take a look at how you can embed Google Maps into your WordPress website without a plugin.
Step 1: Go to Google Maps and click on the location you want to embed.
Step 2: Then, click on the “Share” button available in the right-hand-side menu. That will open a pop-up menu with two options: “Send a link” and “Embed a map”.
Step 3: Click on “Embed a map” and copy the HTML code displayed on the screen.
Step 4: Now, open the WordPress editor and edit the page or post you want to embed Google Maps in.
Step 5: Click on “+” and search for a block named “Custom HTML”.
Step 6: In the subsequent text box, paste the copied HTML code. Now you get an option to preview how the Google Maps block will look after being posted.
Step 7: If you are satisfied with the preview, save the draft or publish the post.
Through WordPress Theme
You already know of the immense popularity of Google Maps. This popularity means several WordPress themes come with built-in features for integrating Google Maps directly into your website. This can offer a seamless and convenient way to add maps without requiring additional plugins.
Your theme’s settings panel will likely have a section dedicated to Google Maps. This is where you’ll configure the map’s appearance and functionality. For example, with Divi builder, you can divide the page into rows and columns and add modules for different features like Maps.
After clicking on “Map”, you’ll be asked to enter a Google API key. After that, you can choose the location or position on the map and add markers as you desire.
This will help embed the maps into your WordPress website or page. If you need help with executing this process or any other feature into your post or page, our WordPress development services will be of help.
FAQs on Embedding Google Maps into WordPress
To Conclude
Embedding Google Maps into your WordPress website is a simple yet powerful way to enhance your content and provide valuable information to your visitors.
There are several methods to embed Google Maps, including using WordPress plugins, the Google Maps API, or your theme’s built-in integration. Each method offers its own advantages and considerations, so choose the one that best suits your needs and technical expertise. Remember to optimize your embedded map for performance, accessibility, and mobile devices.
If you need help with embedding this feature on your website, our WordPress professionals will be of help.