Glossary of Terms

 

  • Constellations – with reference to virtual tours, constellations are 3 dimensional layouts mapping the navigable interconnections between the virtual spaces that make up the tour.
  • CTR – See Click Through Rate
  • Click Through Rate (CTR) – is the number of users that click on a resulting link to a relevant website from a search impression (a search resulting in your business being returned as relevant answer to the search term).
  • HDR – High Dynamic Range
  • High Dynamic Range (HDR) –  is an image where areas that would normally be under or over exposed when taken with a single shot are removed by blending other images of the same scene taken using different exposure levels.
  • Google Business View – The original name for Google’s virtual business tours before being officially launched as “Google Maps Business View” in March 2014.  Also see Google Maps Business View.
  • Google Maps Business View – an interactive virtual online tour of a business premises.  Each tour is made up of professionally taken 360 degree panoramic images (referred to as panos or virtual spaces) that are linked together.  Users can move to different locations (virtual spaces) within the tour just like they were at the business premises, virtually  experiencing the ambiance and decor of a business.  Officially launched as of March 2014.
  • Google My Business – is an online profile of key business information used by Google’s various search platforms.  Each business location Google finds online has a separate My Business profile.  This profile is automatically populated with details of your business collected from the web.  Normally this is from your business website.  Google provides the My Business dashboard where a verified business owner can simply and efficiently manage their business information from a single location, for all  Google’s various platforms like: Google Search, Google Maps, Google +.
    The “Google My Business” dashboard was previously known as “Google Places for Business” or “Google+ Pages”
  • Google Trusted Photographer – is an independent freelance photographer trusted by Google to officially complete and submit Google Maps Business Views.  All Google Trusted Photographers have to successfully complete a number of examinations and tests before becoming trusted by Google to complete photo shoots for Google Maps.   Only an official Google Trusted Photographer can submit a Google Maps Business View.
  • GTP – See Google Trusted Photographer
  • Pano – short for panoramic (also see virtual space)
  • Point of Interest (photo/image) (PoI) – Point of Interest images are photographs taken to a high standard that project your business in a positive and appealing manner.  Each photo is directly related to your business and either shares information about your business or conveys why your business is unique.
  • PoI – See Point of Interest (photo)
  • TIP – Trusted Independent Photographer. See Google Trusted Photographer
  • Virtual Space (VS)- A location within a virtual tour.  Each Virtual Tour is made up of Virtual Spaces.  Each Virtual Space is a 360 degree panoramic image where the user can steer and change the direction of their view.  Each panoramic image is made up of separately taken images of different Fields of View (FoV).  This can be from just 4 x 180 degree Field of View images, to over 40 images depending on the resolution and dynamic quality of the final image.  All of the Field of View images are then blended and seamlessly stitch together to produce a 360 degree panoramic image that can then be user navigated using a specialised image viewer.
    Virtual Spaces within Google Business View tours are constructed from 12 images, producing a High Dynamic Range (HDR), 360 degree panoramic view.
  • VS – See Virtual Space
  • Virtual Tour (VT) – A Virtual Tour is a set of Virtual Space (360 degree images), interconnected by navigable paths so users can move from one Virtual Space to another.  Maps of Virtual Tours showing these interconnections between Virtual Spaces are often referred to as constellations, with each Virtual Space representing a star.
  • VT – See Virtual Tour