Oman is supposed to have started Street View with several trucks equipped with cameras to capture the street view imagery back around the end of February 2024. As several local newspapers had reported (https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1150345/oman/governorates/google-launches-street-view-mapping-project-in-oman)
This is exciting news, because we have been struggling with Google/Still struggling as they keep insisting on street addresses, which in reality do not exist in many places in the country.
Oman is a fantastic place that everyone must have on their bucket list, and it must be at the top of the list, because chances are that once a person visits, they will want to come again.
Everything in Oman is to love… the people, the culture and customs, the food, nature, and a plethora of tourist attractions. Many people from around the world come to work and they would rather take lesser pay just to stay here and bring up their family here. Some even look for ways to stay permanently. The country recognizes this and offers multiple types of visas for people to accomplish this.
Until now, much of Oman away from the main cities and main roads, does not have proper or visible street names and signs. We rely on landmarks and locals to tell us how to find some places., also WhatsApp location… The government is working to fix that at a very fast pace. But for us as a company trying to help other companies here, it can get quite frustrating. Because I know I can accomplish the same task back in the U.S., much faster and more easily.
Just this evening a gentleman called me to enquire if my company was one of the companies that would be doing the capturing of the street view imagery. His company is responsible to “start” working on proper street names in 2025!
From 2017 when I moved to Oman from the US, I have talked to several people (different levels) that work and are supposed to help with Google My Business / Business Profiles, they too keep working by the book! If you do not have a street address, you do not exist… they don’t say that, but the hoops they make you go through are insane.
So it is exciting news because finally in a few years we can work with Google in the way they want and we both see the same street with proper name (even though there’s still no delivery of Google verification cards or any mail to physical address). Well, the truth is that it’s being done, but not following Google standards… you can actually order anything from abroad, it enters the country, goes through customs, then the delivery company sends a WhatsApp message and asks you for WhatsApp location, the item gets to your doorstep… as a matter of fact, your doorstep can change on the same day between 3 or 4 delivery guys… for each you give them the location of where you wiil be at the time they intend to deliver! So with Google insisting on street address, it’s like going backwards a few steps to reach customers. Especially when there are no proper street addresses. This trend has increased tremendously in the last 8 or 9 months.
Again it is exciting because now we can start receiving verification cards at our customers’ Google profile locations (in a few years), and we can get businesses recognized much faster by Google.
More exciting is the fact that Virtual Tours opportunities will increase, and my bottom line will increase as well. Well, the bottom line of all those doing virtual tours will increase.
If you are in Oman, let’s get connected and map out strategies on how we can help local businesses.
Pardon my writing skills
Thanks
Sam Al-Busaidy
