How to become a regional expert reviewer?

[Stetson U]

Hi, this account is used by a university to edit the map of our campus on Google. However, whenever we go to make edits, Google's reviewers tend to fight us more on minute details that are hard to prove over the internet (such as greenspaces, names of university roads, etc.). I don't understand why we're fought so much, seeing as we're the official account of the university's marketing department.

I recently heard of the regional expert reviewer program. How does one apply to this program, and would becoming a regional reviewer help us in this situation?

[Jaxcoffee]

You might be better served by finding out who is the Regional Expert Reviewer in your area already, and take the time to build a relationship with them.

What state are you in? 

The link I am providing can help you in your effort.

RER Map

Just look for the green "R" in the area your mapping in, and then look on the General Map Maker forum for that person, and make contact.

Hope that helps.

[John]

RERs are generally invited by folks from Google who see great mapping coming from a user.  Not quite sure of any defined criteria, it just...happens if it happens.

Now, this is not legal advice at all.  I'm far from a lawyer.  But one tricky thing about edits is always the copyright status of third-party resources cited in pending edits.  I guess there might be some benefit to being officially from the university, as I guess there might be some kind of status allowing someone there to authorize Google to use the university's data like this.  I don't know - but if there are green lights all around to use it, using some kind of official university map might be useful.  Or, I wonder if there's a more direct way to contact them, because I've seen some universities that have features mapped in ways that I don't think most mappers have access to.

Anyway, that aside, you might want to enter the Review Edits Requests forum, create a thread that clearly states the location/state in its title, and post links to GMM edits to approve.  You'll get some help there.

[rjhintz]

You can also:

• refer to an official map on your University's site
  
• take photos, geo-locate them correctly, and post on Panoramio if it's something that can be resolved that way
  

--

Rich

[gzub]

I have gone both ways as to whether assigning expert reviewers to places such as colleges.  I definitely believe that you have the best understanding of features, but there is also the risk that the mapping guidelines would not be adhered to as one person from the college would be doing the edits and another one would be approving it.  If someone from your Admissions department asked that you make a feature have an importance on the map that was not consistent with the guidelines, an employee may feel pressured to make that happen.

I know as an RER certain mappers I will become accustomed to their knowledge and over time will give them more an more leeway.  Also are your edits all generated from one account with a name such as "Stetson_U_Mapper" so that the reviewers can identify all of the edits are coming from your account?  It may also help to state in each review that you are a official from the school.

Perhaps there could be a middle ground that could be added such as feature expert, who does not have any extra power necessarily, but does have an icon that shows up in the sub-area where they have are an official subject matter expert, this would enable RERs and Google Reviewers to give you extra latitude...  This could help where there are items which are hard to substantiate and the reviewer could give you the benefit of the doubt.

Geoff

[KaliJay]

They never added the R to my icon on the map. Oh well.

I'm one state too far away to help (Georgia) and too busy fighting my own mappers about all those minute details... :)

[djboge]

@KaliJay - I think you have to fill out that form to have your icon added to the map.

[ajay venkata]

hi jaxcofee,

then what about the non green icons in the map.