1. Introduction

This document explains how to determine the validity of Point of Interest (POI) listings and the accuracy of POI Listing Information by conducting online research through primary resources.

1.1. POIs

The term POI refers very generally to any active entity in the real world that a user would want to locate on a map and navigate to. POIs do not include businesses without a fixed location or residential addresses that a user would not be expected to visit.

Examples of POIs include, but are not limited to:

1.2. POIs Within POIs

Single or multiple rooftop POIs may also contain individual POIs within them: POIs Within POIs. This occurs when there is a parent-child relationship between two POIs and one of the POIs (Child POI) is physically located within the other (Parent POI), such as an individual shop (Child POI) within a mall (Parent POI).

This table matches types of Parent POIs with the Child POIs that they frequently contain:

1.3. POI Listing Information

Each POI is associated with additional information that would help a user locate and/or contact a POI. This information is called the POI’s Listing Information and is what a user sees on a POI’s information card, when interacting with the POI on the map. For each valid POI, the accuracy of the Listing Information must be verified. POI Listing Information includes:

• Name
• Address
• Phone number
• Official URL/website
• Category
• Pin location (latitude and longitude)
• Hours (hours may be displayed in either 12-hour or 24-hour clock formats)

1.4. Evaluation Questions

This POI Evaluation asks three types of questions:

1. POI Validity – Does the POI represent an actual entity?: This question considers whether or not a POI candidate is active and should be included in a database of POIs.
2. Data Accuracy – Is the POI information correct?: These questions determine the accuracy of each component of the POI listing information (name, URL, address, phone number, hours, category, and pin location).

• Note: If a POI does not meet the criteria to be considered a valid POI, then the POI Listing information does not need to be verified.

• Comments – Are there any issues with the POI?: Comments are required whenever conflicting information for a listing is found. Comments should include the websites used for research and any information useful for future reviewers.

1.5. Research Expectation

Always perform online research to verify the POI validity and listing information (see Sec. 2. Research).

• Use official web pages
• Use other official resources, includingsocial media pages, street imagery, postal authorities
• When official resources are not available, use other reliable resources, including newspaper sites or crowdsourced user review sites.
• Use a search engine to locate official resources.
• Use local knowledge, when relevant, to understand POI details.

1.5.1. Country Specific Guidelines

Supplemental Country Specific Guidelines are provided on the Guidelines tab of each task page. Be sure to review Country Specific Guidelines for the locale that you are rating, as these may take precedence over some of the policies outlined in this POI Evaluation Guidelines document.

Country Specific Guidelines may include, but are not limited to, the following: • Locale-specific research resources, and how to use them

• Component-specific rating policies. For example:
• Name – including how to rate POI names with special characters
• Address – including required components and expected formatting
• Additional notes – including category-specific rating policies

1.6. Rating Interface

Your ratings and comments will be collected in a rating interface, similar to the one pictured below; however, the set of individual questions that you are asked may vary in number and order. This set of guidelines will cover all POI Evaluation questions.

The Rating Interface is divided into three sections. In the left column of the interface, you will find the Map View. In the upper right section, you will find the POI Listing Information section. In the lower right section, you will record your ratings and comments in the Rating Questions section.

1.6.1. Map View

The Map View is located in the left column of the Rating Tool.

A pin indicates a POI’s location, based on the coordinates provided in the POI Listing Information. The head of the pin is only an indicator. The tip marks the actual location.

Note: The pins you see in the examples in these guidelines may look different from the the pin shown in this chart and the ones in the tool.

A Map Layer Selector, located at the top left corner of the Map View, allows you to select between Standard, Hybrid and Satellite map layers.

The Map View will default to Standard View for each task.

                                                  Standard                                               Hybrid                                                 Satellite

In addition to the Map Selector, the Map View has several more tools that will help you to find coordinates at a selected location on the map, measure the distance between two points, zoom in and out of the map, and measure the relative distances of elements on the Map.

Tool Icon	Name and Description
	Select the Pin Drop Tool and then click on the map to drop a pin. Once the pin has been placed, a flag will open that lists the pin’s Address and Coordinates (latitude and longitude). Select ‘Delete Pin’ from the pin flag to toggle it off.
	Select the Measure Tool and then click on two points on the Map. Once two points have been selected, a dashed line will be drawn between those points and the measurement, determined in meters, will appear next to the Measure Tool icon. Select the Measure Tool again to toggle it off.

	The Compass will help to orient you with respect to the four cardinal directions. The map defaults to North. Click the compass icon and move around to rotate the map.
	A Zoom Controller allows zooming in and out of the Map View. You can change the zoom level by clicking the + (zoom in) or – (zoom out) buttons.
	A Map Scale allows you to determine relative distances between points on the map. The scale will automatically adjust, based on the map zoom level. Lat/Long Coordinates will default to the POI Pin location. However, these coordinates are dynamic and will change, depending on the map view. By scrolling and zooming to different locations of the map, you can determine and record precise locations.

1.1.1. POI Listing Information

The POI Listing Information includes specific information about a POI that can be used to identify the validity of a POI and locate that POI on the map and in the real world. POI data includes the following information which will need to be verified:

• Name – Every name that a specific business location uses to refer to itself. These names can be listed in a variety of ways in different sections of the entity’s official website or official social media website(s)
• Address – Every POI listing should have an address associated with it, so that users can navigate to the POI. Address information will vary among POI types and address conventions may vary by locale
• Phone – Whenever available, POI listings should include the business’s phone number, as it is listed on available online official resources
• URL – Whenever available, POI listings should include the business’s official URL – A web page owned and maintained by the business/government/POI is considered the official URL
• Category – The category shown in the rating interface is a raw category, meaning that this is the format of the category name that is stored in the database and is not what users see. Categories are based on a taxonomy of POI types. The listed category should represent the best fit from all of the available categories.
• Hours – POI Hours are organized to correspond to the days of the week and may be listed using either the 12- or 24-hour clock. Both formats are acceptable.

For example: 5pm and 17:00 are both acceptable ways to represent 5pm

1.1.2. Rating Questions

Your ratings and comments will be collected in the rating interface pictured below. You will answer one toplevel question about POI validity, then rate additional results using the provided drop-down menus.

• If POI Validity is rated, Yes, additional POI data, geolocation, and/or hours questions will appear, each with their own drop-down menus.
• However, if POI Validity is rated, Yes – Temporary Closure, you will not rate the POI’s Hours.

1.1.2.1. Dynamic Rating Options

Rating options for some questions are displayed dynamically, based on the availability of data displayed in the rating tool. This means that:

• When the POI Information is displayed in the rating tool, the possible ratings will be Correct, Incorrect and Can’t Verify.  Some rating questions may also include, Partially Correct or Wrong.
• When the POI Information is not displayed in the tool, the possible ratings will be Missing, OK Without and Can’t Verify.

Rating Question	Rating Options – Data is Available	Rating Options – Data is Not Available
Phone
	Correct Incorrect Can’t Verify	OK Without Missing Can’t Verify
URL
	Correct Partially Correct Incorrect Can’t Verify	OK Without Missing Can’t Verify
Hours
	Correct Incorrect Can’t Verify	OK Without Missing Can’t Verify

1.1.2.2. Additional Rating Questions

Depending on your ratings, you may also be asked to supply additional ratings and information.

If the listed name is rated Partially Correct or Incorrect, a text box will appear for you to enter the official POI Name.
If Address Accuracy is rated Incorrect, a checkbox list of address components will appear. Select each component that is incorrectly listed in the data. However, if Address Accuracy is rated either Correct – formatting issues or Incorrect, a text box will appear for you to enter the correct POI Address.
If the listed Phone Number is rated Incorrect or Missing, a text box will appear for you to enter the correct POI Phone Number.
If the listed URL is rated Incorrect or Missing, a text box will appear for you to enter the POI’s Official URL.
If you provided a URL Correction (above), you will also indicate the type of website that was provided. You will choose from the following options: Official Website Official Social

If the listed Category is rated Approximate (either because it is too general or too specific), Incorrect, or Missing, a dropdown menu will appear for you to enter the correct Category. The drop-down menu includes all active POI categories.
If the displayed Pin is rated Approximate, Next Door, or Wrong, a text box will appear for you to enter the POI’s location coordinates (latitude/longitude).
If the listed Hours are rated Incorrect or Missing, text boxes will appear for you to enter the correct operating hours for each day of the week.
In addition to providing the correct operating hours for each day of the week, you will also provide the URL for the webpage that was used as evidence of the POI’s hours.

If you provided a URL as Hours Evidence (above), you will also indicate the type of website that was provided. You will choose from the following options: Official Website Official Social
Finally, you will provide a screenshot of the webpage that was used as evidence for your Hours rating. The screenshot should include the POI’s official operating hours.

2. Research

POI Evaluation requires research to verify the POI’s name, category, address, phone number, hours, official website, and location (latitude and longitude, displayed as a pin on the map). Primary sources of information include the POI’s official website, officially maintained social media sites, and/or other authoritative primary resources (street imagery, local newspapers or magazines, or local postal service). If more information is shown in the listing than what is shown on the official website, the additional information must be verified through primary sources.

2.1. POI Research Resources

Multiple online resources can be used to validate POI listing information. This section focuses on how to utilize these resources and to identify websites that are officially owned or managed by the POI.

2.1.1. Search Engines

Perform a web search of the POI by name and locality (town/city/village) to see if an official resource can be found to help determine if the POI should be considered valid or not, as well as to verify the listing information.

2.1.2. Official Websites

If a POI has an official website, and its official website is actively maintained, its website should be used as a resource to research the POI validity and listing information. A web page owned and maintained by the POI usually has a distinct address, corporate design, and logo, and will typically be customized with information regarding the POI, such as contact information, history or general background about the POI, as well as the services or products that the POI offers.

2.1.3. Official Resources

Official resources are used to confirm any POI details that are not available on an official web page. Such resources may include:

• Social media sites claimed by the business/POI and updated within the last 6 months
• Street imagery (using the most recent available online imagery showing streets and buildings)
• Postal authorities (for postal codes and locality names)
• Official government maps (land registry/cadaster, GIS maps)
• Government business registries

Official Social Media Pages

If a POI lacks an official website, officially managed social media pages can be used to validate information.

POI-Operated Social Media Pages	What to Watch For
Official pages will have updates and pictures posted by the business. Unofficial pages will only have updates and pictures added by members of the social media website. Note: Blogs, news posts, photos, or events posted within the past 6 months are key features in determining if a page is actively maintained.
Official pages will be verified or claimed by their owners. Look for badges that confirm that a POI has been claimed by the owner.
Official pages will often have a custom URL extension. Custom URL extensions will often be the POI’s name, or some official version of it.Custom URL extensions will not have randomized strings of unrelated numbers or letters.Custom URL extensions will not be unrecognizable or confusing.	Custom URL Extension: https://www.facebook.com/LaTaqSF Non-Customized URL Extension: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Equine-Calculator/ 857469375913?ref=ts
Official pages will not have a “Claim this Page” or “Is this your business?” link.

Social media pages must have an indication that they are operated and actively maintained by the POI and have posts or updates within the past 6 months.

Note: You should not be logged into your social media accounts when working on this task. If a social media page requires a login, you may use any information that is visible without logging in, otherwise the official social media page should not be used.

2.1.4. Reliable Resources

If no official resources can be found, rate according to consensus from multiple reliable sources. Reliable resources include:

• Articles in primary publications (newspapers or similar publications that do their own reporting)
• Crowdsourced user review sites

Some resources, like data aggregators, spammy/unofficial directory sources, etc., are unreliable, and consensus between unreliable resources should be disregarded.

2.1.5. Research Comments

Comments are required anytime there is information found that contradicts the POI listing:

• Include online resources: If the listing information is verified online, copy and paste the URL(s) of the sites used in the comment box.
• Do not use URL shorteners when inserting links into your comments.
• Verification and research process: Please leave a short comment on the verification process for the listing. If the verification process was not possible, explain why.

2.2. Online Research Exceptions

Some categories of POI may require research using sources that are not the official company website or official company social media pages:

1. EV Chargers: To verify listing information, use PlugShare or Alternative Fuels Data Center (United States-specific) as online resources as well as street imagery.
2. Bike Share POIs: Use at least three different street imagery resources. If three different resources are not available in the market that the POI is located within, use the available resources to determine accuracy of listing information.
3. Bus stops: Bus and transit stops may not be obvious, based on name of the POI alone. Often bus and transit stops may be named after a road, intersection or nearby place name. When a POI name is ambiguous, always check the category, which may reveal the type of POI.

Example: The POI ‘2138 Shopiere Rd’ looks like a street address instead of a POI. However, reviewing the POI category reveals that this is the name of a bus stop.

• In-store kiosks: These POIs are typically within another POI and should be treated as such. Confirm listing information through the official website of the kiosk or of the larger POI hosting the kiosk. These larger POIs can be grocery stores, gas stations, retail stores, etc.

3. POI Validity

The first step of the evaluation process is to determine whether or not the POI listing is valid.

In order to be considered a valid POI, the candidate must represent an entity in the real world that a user would want to locate on a map and that is currently active.

Reasons that a POI may be considered not valid include, but are not limited to:

• POIs that have closed
• POIs that have moved location or changed their names are considered to be permanently closed
• Businesses that operate out of a residence and/or are registered to a residential address
• Seasonal or Mobile POIs that are not associated with a specific location
• Other entities that are not considered to be POIs (e.g. single-unit residences, including short-term and peer-to-peer vacation rentals, as well as amenities, non-public offices, businesses without a physical location, etc.)

POI validity ratings are heavily dependent on research and each POI listing should be rated individually; POIs of the same type or category may have different validity ratings based on the outcome of research. For example, it can be difficult to determine the validity of certain types of POIs, such as a street. This is because a street can be considered a POI, if it is an area that a user would want to find on a map. For instance, the area around the street may contain popular sightseeing points, shops, restaurants, and other POIs, or the street may have historical significance that a user may be interested in. Examples of streets that are considered to be valid POIs include Rodeo Drive, a street in the Beverly Hills shopping district, and

Bahnhofstrasse, a street in downtown Zurich. Your determination in cases such will depend on research and local knowledge.

POI validity ratings depend on research and resources available for the POI, as well as local knowledge of the POI’s region.

3.1. POI Validity Rating Options

3.1.1. Research Exceptions

Some categories of POI may require research using sources that are not the official company website or official company social media pages. Below are some notable exceptions and how to research and rate them.

• Housing/Apartment Complexes – If a housing or apartment complex is distinctly named, has visible signage in recent street imagery, and an official website, rate Yes.
• Bus Stops – If an official website or recent street imagery confirms the location of a bus stop, rate Yes.
• Doctors within Hospitals – Official hospital websites may be used as an official source for doctors that are located at, and work within, a hospital. If a doctor can be found within the official site for the hospital, rate Yes.
• POIs within Malls – If a POI within a mall does not have an official website or claimed social media page, then the official online mall directory may be used as an official source. If the mall directory is the only official resource available and the POI can be found mall’s official online directory, rate Yes.
• Schools – If a school has an official website or can be located within recent street imagery, rate Yes.
• Landmarks – If a landmark, including natural features, has an official website or can be located within recent street imagery, rate Yes.

3.2. Permanent Closures

Often, it will be difficult to confirm that a POI has permanently closed, due to insufficient or inconsistent information from online sources. The following research steps will help you to determine the best rating to assign to a POI that may be permanently closed:

3.2.1. Research Steps

Step 1 – Official Sources

Begin by looking at official sources (official website or social media page) to see if the POI is listed as closed.

• If official sources confirm that the POI has closed, relocated, renamed or replaced by another POI, then rate No – closed.
• If there is no indication from available official sources that the POI is closed, then rate Yes.

Note:

Exercise discretion when official sources seem outdated or poorly maintained.

Step 2 – Reliable Sources

If official sources are not available, then expand your research by looking at reliable sources (including unofficial social media pages, crowdsourced user review sites, government business registries and local newspapers). Review these sources for any indication that the POI has closed (for example, a business registry shows the POI is closed, unofficial social media indicates POI status is ‘Closed’, or one recent review states that POI is closed).

Note:

Exercise discretion when using unofficial social media and crowdsourced user review sites. These sources may not always provide accurate or updated information.

Step 3 – User Reviews

If reliable sources indicate that the POI has closed, you should confirm this by looking for recent user reviews (within the last six months) on unofficial social media pages or crowdsourced user review websites that indicate that the POI is open.

• If a larger number of recent reviews (within the last six months) indicate that the POI is open, than the number of sources that indicate that it is closed, rate Can’t Verify.
• However, if more recent reviews (within the last six months) state that the POI is closed, than indicate that it is open, then rate No – closed.

If official sources are not available and reliable sources do not indicate that the POI has closed, look for at least one recent user review from social media sites or crowdsourced user review websites that indicate that the POI is open.

• If there are no other indications that the POI has closed, and a recent user review from a reliable source indicates that the POI is active, then rate Yes.

Note:

Crowdsource review pages may have banners that indicate closure – these are not allowed. Only written reviews from users should be used as a source.

Step 4 – Recent Street or Online Imagery

If you are unable to locate official online sources, reliable sources, or recent user reviews, expand your research to also include recent (within one year) street imagery or online imagery from crowdsourced review pages.

• If you are able to locate the POI at the correct location in recent street or online imagery, then rate Yes.
• If you are able to locate recent street or online imagery, but the POI is not located in the expected location, rate No – closed.
• If you are able to locate recent street or online imagery, but your view of the POI is obstructed (e.g. by foliage, traffic, etc.), rate Can’t Verify.
• If you are not able to locate recent street or online imagery, rate Can’t Verify.

If you are unable to locate any online resources that indicate whether the POI is open or closed, rate Can’t Verify.

3.2.2. Permanent Closure Research Workflow Diagram

The following research workflow diagram will help you to determine the correct rating to assign to POIs that may be closed.

3.2.3. Indirect Evidence

Occasionally, there may not be direct evidence that a POI is closed or open, but there are signs suggesting that it is most likely closed.

Chain POIs

• If the POI is a branch or a chain business, see if the branch location is listed on the official url for the parent chain. If it is not, then you may be able to determine that the POI has closed and rate, No – closed. Social Media
• If there are no user reviews for the business within the past 6 months, even though there were multiple reviews before that, you may be able to infer that the POI has closed and you should rate No – closed. Street Imagery
• If the POI exists in old street imagery, but does not exist in recent street imagery, you may infer that a previous POI has closed or relocated. In either event, you should rate No – closed.

3.2.4. Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs)

Sometimes a Search Engine Results Page (SERPs) may return an automated response that indicates a POI has closed. SERPs are pages that list results from a web search engine in response to a query. However, you should not rely on automated responses from SERPs to confirm that a POI is closed.

If it is not possible, based on available evidence, to determine if a POI is open or closed, the POI Validity should be rated Can’t Verify.

3.3. Temporary Closures

Temporary closures occur when a POI in a permanent location experiences a one-time closure due to construction, remodeling, natural disaster, disease, or other reasons. To verify a temporary closure, review official resources for changes to the POI’s hours as well as any statements, announcements, or postings by the POI that confirm the temporary closure, including any notification pages added to the POI’s official website.

Your rating should always be based on the status of the POI as it is listed on official sources on the date that you rate the POI.

3.3.1. Exceptions to Temporary Closures

Coming Soon POIs

POI’s that list a future opening date on official sources are considered temporarily closed until the POI’s announced opening date.

Schools and Universities

Schools and universities regularly schedule breaks in their instructional calendars. These often occur between academic terms and at seasonal and public holidays. Breaks in the instructional calendar are not considered temporary closures. A school is only considered to be temporarily closed when an announcement of the temporary closure is posted on official sources.

Labor Disputes

POIs may occasionally close due to labor disputes, including labor strikes. Closures due to labor disputes or strikes are not considered temporary closures.

1.1. Seasonal POIs

Seasonal POIs are rated based on their status on the date that they are rated. In order to be considered closed, the seasonal POI must be rated during a regular, fixed period of closure. If a POI is open, except for specific days of the week, it is considered to be valid and open. Here are some rating rules to keep in mind when rating seasonal POIs.

• If a seasonal POI is open when rated, the validity rating should be, Yes.
• If a seasonal POI is closed when rated, the rating should be,  Yes – temporary closure.

1.2. POI Validity Rating Examples

2. Name

The name of a POI is expected to be correct and straightforward. Slight alterations to the name, which still allow the correct POI to be identified, will be rated Partially Correct.

2.1. Name Rating Options

2.1.1. Correct

A POI result name is Correct when it is used on the POI’s official website or other official resources. Even if the official website does not use the name, if it is used on other official sources, the name is Correct. Note that the name has to be used to directly refer to the particular POI. The corporate name by itself is not automatically the correct name.

POI Name

Every name that a specific business location uses to refer to itself is considered Correct. These names can be listed in a variety of ways in different sections of the entity’s official website or official social media website(s):

• Chain business locator page on the official website
• About/About Us section on an entity official website
• Claimed social media pages
• Signs and storefronts seen on official sites or social media pages Other reliable sources that can be used to research a POI’s name include:
• Signs and storefronts seen on recent street or online imagery or crowdsourced review pages
• Recent articles in primary publications (newspapers or similar publications that do their own reporting)
• Official restaurant menus  (user photos or scanned images from restaurants)

Any official brand, chain, or business name in the language of the POI’s region, or the official brand name commonly used in the market, even if it is not in the language of the test locale, is expected and are considered Correct.

Corporate Name

The corporate name (and sometimes brand or product name) is often used to refer to a particular POI, but might not be the most preferred name for a specific location. This depends on the particular company. It is always rated Correct when the corporate name is in letters on the storefront as part of their logo or branding. When the POI uses a logo only, the name has to align with the way the corporation refers to the POI. If the result name differs from those versions significantly, rate Partially Correct.

Location modifier or affiliation

Businesses can include the name of the locality or the larger complex or organization they belong to as additional information. These modifiers, even when not specifically used by the official resources, can be considered Correct. A name with missing modifier can also be considered Correct as long as the modifier isn’t crucial for understanding the particular POI. If a modifier is present, it must be spelled correctly. If it is misspelled, the name is Partially Correct.

Stylized logos and letters

A variation is still Correct when a business uses stylized logos and letters (like the backwards “R” in Toys ”R” Us) that are outside the regular set of letters.

2.1.2. Partially Correct

A Partially Correct name differs from the official versions but can still be recognized by the user. Partially Correct names can include minor and moderate misspellings, service level mismatches, and missing or unnecessary name parts, including holding names/corporate structures. When the business name on the storefront does not include the corporate status (Ltd., Inc., etc.) seen in the result, rate Partially Correct.

2.1.2.1.  Minor and Moderate Misspellings

Rate Partially Correct for any issues that don’t prevent the user from identifying the POI:

• Name contains repeated, redundant, or missing information or parts
• Incorrect or missing punctuation or special characters
• Unexpected use of lower/upper case and ALL CAPS letters
• Acronyms are often expected in ALL CAPS: YMCA, TGIF
• Minor and moderate misspellings that don’t influence the user’s understanding • See your Country-Specific guidelines for more information on misspellings.
• Mix of expected languages in the result title. Expected languages are the languages of the test locale or region

POI Listing Name	Official POI Name	Explanation and Rating
Macys	Macy’s	Name	Partially Correct
		The result is missing the “ ‘ ”.
HM	H&M	Name	Partially Correct
		Missing the “&” in H&M is a misspelling but the name is still recognizable.
uhaul uhaul	U-Haul	Name	Partially Correct
		The result name is duplicated and in all lowercase letters with no “-”.
Seven Eleven	7-Eleven	Name	Partially Correct
		The name is in an unexpected form not used by the business itself.
GAMESTOP	GameStop	Name	Partially Correct
		The name written in ALL CAPS is not expected for this business and demoted.
Mosjaw	Moosejaw	Name	Partially Correct
		The result name has two misspellings but is still identifiable.
Ecofuture Buildng Co	Ecofutures Building Inc	Name	Partially Correct
		The result name includes two misspellings and the incorrect business structure (Co. vs. Inc.).
Napoli Coffeehouse & Pastries	Napoli Coffee	Name	Partially Correct
		The result name has additional parts not used by the business. Because the additional parts are in line with the business and don’t make the result ambiguous it is rated Partially Correct.

POI Listing Name	Official POI Name	Explanation and Rating
GAP Superstore	GAP	Name	Partially Correct
		The additional “superstore” is not used officially, but also does not change the user’s ability to identify the well formatted and correct corporate name and is therefore rated Partially Correct.
BerkeleyLaw Univerzitní of California	BerkeleyLaw University of California	Name	Partially Correct
		This result name includes a mix of English and Czech. This POI is located in the United States and the expected language is English. The POI name should be rated Partially Correct due to the presence of unexpected language.
Aqua Spa 夢幻⽔⽔ 都	Aqua Spa – Ocean City	Name	Partially Correct
		This result name includes a mix of English and Chinese. This POI is located in the United States and the expected language is English. The POI name should be rated Partially Correct due to the presence of unexpected language.
att	AT&T	Name	Partially Correct
		URLs can give an indication of an businesses’s official name, but because a URL lacks formatting choices, it should generally not be used to confirm the official business name. Similar restrictions exist for certain social media such as Twitter. The company’s name is confirmed by the URL (att.com), but the name stated in the URL, “att”, is clearly poorly formatted, but still recognizable.
University of California	University of California Irvine	Name	Partially Correct
		Irvine is more than a location modifier for this university. The city name differentiates the Irvine location from other universities in the University of California network.
Nike	NIKELAB 21M NYC	Name	Partially Correct
		Even though the Nike symbol appears on this store’s official website, the preferred store name for this specific location is not the general brand name but the NIKELAB name seen on the store sign and website.

Article “The” is missing or added

• Missing: The use of definite articles depends on the individual result. When a company using “the” is often referred to without it, the name is Correct both with and without the article.
• Added: A business/POI that does not officially include a definite article in its name but has one included in the result should be rated Partially Correct.

2.1.2.2. Service-Level Mismatch

Chain POIs often indicate the level of service provided at that location in their name. If the result name does not reflect the correct type, it is considered a service-level mismatch and is rated Partially Correct.

2.1.2.3.  Holding Name and Corporate Structure

Holding names or corporate structures are not considered correct if not explicitly used by the individual stores. Holding names or names that include reference to the POI’s corporate structure are rated Partially Correct or Incorrect depending on how recognizable the name is in context with the particular business.

2.1.3. Incorrect

An incorrect result name is not recognizable with certainty because of either severe misspelling or unnecessary/missing parts in the name.

Rate names Incorrect for issues including:

• Severe misspellings that prevent the user from identifying the POI with certainty because of:
• Change in meaning
• Misspelling that results in an entirely different word or gibberish
• Holding names that are completely different than the recognized name
• Unnecessary or missing parts in the name that prevent the user from recognizing the business.
• Slang and inappropriate language
• Using the previous name of the same entity that is not a variation of the current name and therefore cannot be identified
• Unexpected script
• Expected scripts are the script of the test locale and the result region

2.2. Transit, EV Charger, and Parking POI Names

2.2.1. Transit POIs

There are often discrepancies among the following resources:

1. the name that appears on official maps
2. the name that appears on the official website
3. the name used by the electronic signage on the bus
4. the name written at the bus stop
5. the name used for voice announcements

If the transit POI listing name matches any one of the previous resources, the name is considered Correct. In addition, some transit POIs are named after intersections. Allow for some leniency with the order of the street names for transit POIs named after intersections. This means that “5th & Market” = “Market & 5th”, and both names are Correct.

Suffixes such as “stop” and “station” are also optional for the transit POI name. A transit stop is a small transit location typically designated by a bench or covered bench area, a posted sign, or street markings. Transit stations, on the other hand, are typically larger stops that have a major structure associated with them, which include, but are not limited to, platforms, ticketing offices, enclosed waiting/seating areas, or terminal buildings/structures encompassing the transit area. The term “station” is primarily used to refer to transit locations that are larger and typically include a terminal connecting multiple routes. All stations are stops, but not all stops are stations.

If there are multiple transit systems operating out of the same station, any of the systems can be included in the name to be Correct. If transit stations are close to each other, but users have to walk outside to get from one building to another, consider the results for the two stations as two separate POIs.

POI Listing Name	Official POI Name	Rating and Explanation
Millbrae Amtrak	Millbrae Station	Name	Incorrect
		“Millbrae Amtrak” has an incorrect Amtrak transit indication. Only BART and Caltrain operate from Millbrae station.

1.1.1.  Parking Lot Names

Parking lots may or may not have names. Confirm this by considering the following:

• The generic names “Parking,” “Garage,” or “Lot” (or any other words that indicate parking can take place at the location) are considered Correct when no official webpage can be found or the official webpage does not specify a particular name.
• If the official website provides a name, rate the generic names “Parking,” “Garage,” or “Lot” (or any other words that indicate parking can take place at the location) as Partially Correct.
• If the parking lot is specialized (for instance, motorcycle-only parking), and the result’s name doesn’t reflect that specialization, the result should be rated Incorrect for name accuracy.

Accept the following combinations of names as Correct if no official name is given:

• (Business name/Plaza name/Shopping area name) + (parking/ garage/lot)
• Without the addition of parking/garage/lot, the name is Incorrect
• Parking/ Garage/Lot (or any other words that indicate parking can take place at the location)

POI Listing Name	Official POI Name	Rating and Explanation
Union Square Garage	Union Square Garage	Name	Correct
		The garage’s official website confirms its name.
Parking		Name	Partially Correct
		Research shows that the official name for this parking location is Union Square Garage.
Parking	Parking	Name	Correct
		When the result is a generic parking lot, that is not specifically associated with a particular POI, there is no need for a specific name. Because of this, we will accept the generic name “Parking” as Correct.
POI Listing Name	Official POI Name	Rating and Explanation
Safeway Parking	Parking (result is for the parking lot attached to a Safeway store in San Francisco)	Name	Correct
		This parking lot has no official website or name, but is associated with a Safeway store.
Parking		Name	Correct
		This parking lot has no official website or name.
Safeway		Name	Incorrect
		Without the words parking, garage, or lot, users will have no way to know they can park at this Safeway.
Parking	Long-term Parking (located at San Francisco International Airport)	Name	Correct
		This listing refers to a parking lot at San Francisco International Airport using the general name “parking”. Research reveals that there is more than one long-term parking lot at this airport and the parking lots do not have official names. Any association a parking lot has with a particular business, location, building, etc. can be reflected in the parking lot’s name, but it is not mandatory. This is considered acceptable, and is rated Correct.
Parking	Parking	Name	Correct
		When the result is a generic parking lot, that is not specifically associated with a particular POI, there is no need for a specific name. Because of this, we will accept the generic name “Parking” as Correct.

1.1.2.  EV Charger POIs

EV chargers are all associated with an EV charger company and are also typically located within a parking facility. The EV charger POI name can therefore either be:

• The name of the EV charger company OR
• The name of the parking facility hosting the EV charger

For example, if an EV charger was a ChargePoint charger that is located within the Main Street Garage, the name of the EV charger can either include “ChargePoint” or “Main Street Garage” in the listing name.

Similar to transit POIs, EV chargers can have optional EV charger descriptions appended to the end of the name, such as “EV Charger”, “Charging Point”, or “EV Charging Station” to name a few.

1.2. Name Correction

If the listed name is rated Partially Correct or Incorrect, a text box will appear for you to enter the correct POI Name.

Enter the official POI name in the text field provided. Use official sources to research the POI name and refer to the rules in the above sections. The POI Name Correction field should include the POI name as it should appear to receive a Correct rating.

Here are some rules to follow when determining the correct Official Name:

• If there are differences in the way that a POI name appears on an official website and social media accounts, use the name as it is shown on the official website
• Pay special attention to the language and script of brand and chain names. Any official brand, chain, or business name in the language of the suggestion’s region or the official brand name commonly used in the market, even if it is not in the language of the test locale, or result region, is acceptable. See your Country Specific guidelines for more information
• POI Names must use correct spacing
• POI Names must not be longer than 65 characters
• POI Names must not start with “http”
• Do not capitalize POI names (e.g. walmart, mcdonald’s, 7-eleven, etc.)
• Do not include references to corporate structure (e.g. Inc., LLC., LLP., etc.)
• Do not include unnecessary geographic locations, unless they are part of the official brand name (e.g. mcdonald’s – sunnyvale, best buy – downtown, etc.)
• Do not abbreviate POI names (For example, do not abbreviate the “university of north carolina” as “unc”)
• Do not use POI names as they appear on Search Results pages or on other non-official sources
• Do not add unnecessary punctuation (for example, do not add parentheses or periods)
• Do not add additional comments or research resources in this text field

1.3. Name Rating Examples

POI Listing Name	Official POI Name	Rating and Explanation
Market & 2nd Stop	2nd & Market Stop	Name	Correct
		Some transit stops are named after intersections. Leniency is allowed with the order of the street names for transit stops named after intersections.
2nd & Market	2nd & Market Stop	Name	Correct
		The words “stop” and “station” are optional suffixes for transit stop POI names, so the inclusion or exclusion of the words are okay.
Citibank – ATM	Citibank CVS ATM	Name	Correct
		This ATM is located within a CVS pharmacy. Although the Official POI Name also includes the optional location modifier, ‘CVS’, this modifier isn’t crucial for understanding this particular POI. The POI Listing Name is Correct because it is used by the POI on the official website and represents the same level of service as the official POI.
Citibank ATM	Citibank	Name	Partially Correct
		Name Correction	citibank
		The official name for this bank branch is Citibank; however, the POI Listing Name adds the word ‘ATM’. Since an ATM does not provide all of the same services of a full bank branch, this is considered a servicelevel mismatch and should be rated Partially Correct.
Citibank	Citibank CVS ATM	Name	Partially Correct
		Name Correction	citibank cvs atm
		The words ‘CVS’ and ‘ATM’ are missing from the POI Listing Name. ‘CVS’ is an optional location modifier and is not crucial for understanding this POI. However, since an ATM does not provide all of the same services of a full bank branch, the POI Listing Name should be rated Partially Correct due to a service-level mismatch.
NY Marriott Marquis	New York Marriott Marquis	Name	Partially Correct
		Name Correction	new york marriott marquis
		Recognizable abbreviations that replace phrases are only considered Partially Correct.
Empire State Bulding	Empire State Building	Name	Partially Correct
		Name Correction	empire state building
		The slight misspelling of “building” is okay because a user would still be able to recognize the intention of the word.

2. Address Accuracy

Every POI listing should have an address associated with it so that users can navigate to the POI. Address information will vary among POI types. For example, there are different address expectations for a national park than for a restaurant, because a national park does not always have a specific street number or street name associated with it as a restaurant would.

Address conventions may vary by locale. See your Country Specific guidelines for more information on address component requirements.

2.1. Address Rating Options

Rating Option	Explanation
Correct	The business address is complete, accurate, and the address formatting is as expected, based on locale standards.
Correct – formatting issues	The response address is complete and correct, but there are issues with the address formatting. For instance, the address might not be in the default address format of the country of the address, or it may contain unnecessary tokens, repetitions, incorrect labels, etc.
OK Without	The business does not have an official address.
Incorrect	The listed address has either incorrect or missing information. If the address is Incorrect, the address components will appear as a list of checkboxes. Check all components that are either incorrect or missing (see below).
	Other Languages/Scripts Issues: If parts of the address are in another script or language, check the boxes for the affected address components. Other Duplication Issues: Duplicate address components Name of POI reappears in the address details Additional Information: If more information is shown in the listing than what is shown on the official website, the additional information must be verified through other official resources.

Unattended POIs: Address details are not necessary for some POIs that are unattended, such as a transit stop, an EV charger, or a bike sharing rack. When an unattended POI does not have address details, it should be rated OK Without. However, if address details are listed for an unattended POI, the address details must be confirmed through official resources.

2.2. POIs Without an Official Address

While each locale has its own specific address format, most POIs have an address format that includes basic navigational information, such as a street number and street name, along with the locality, admin area, and postal code that the POI resides in. In this section, this address format will be referred to as the POI’s “official address”.

There are some types of POIs that may not have an official address. These may be located in non-conventional areas, such as underground or on the side of the road, or are large or notable enough that an official address is not necessary for users to navigate there. For example:

These lists are not exhaustive and will vary from locale to locale.

In order to verify whether or not a POI has an official address, and to see if the provided listing address is correct, conduct research on the POI by:

1. Looking for an address on its official website (if an official website exists)
2. Looking at other official online resources for the location

Be careful when researching POI addresses online. Search Engine Results Page (SERPs) may occasionally show an address for a POI as its own web result item. At first glance, the address shown may appear to be the official business address, but there is no way to verify how the search engine obtained this information. Do NOT use automated responses from a SERP to confirm address information. Always confirm information via the POI’s official website.

• Example: Mount Rushmore National Memorial – When researching this POI on a search engine, the returned result address is “13000 S Dakota 244, Keystone, SD 57751”. However, official resources, including the POIs official website, list only the locality, state, and country as the official address, “Pennington County, South Dakota, United States”.

Once it has been verified that a POI does not have an official address, there are a few possible outcomes:

2.3.  POIs within POIs

POIs within POIs occur when a Child POI is contained within, or controlled by, a Parent POI. Examples of POIs within POIs include, but are not limited to:

• Malls and the businesses/shops that they contain
• Hospitals and the departments they contain
• Universities and the smaller colleges, facilities, and buildings within them
• Train stations and the stores and restaurants they contain
• Department stores and the other small businesses they contain
• Note: Cosmetics counters within a department store are not considered to be separate POIs

POIs within POIs may occur as either single or multiple rooftop POIs and may have unique street addresses. For example, a store or restaurant within a shopping mall may have an official address that is different from the official address for the shopping mall. Research will be necessary to determine the official address for each POI. The official POI address should be rated Correct.

However, because the Parent POI contains or controls the Child POI in the same location, the name of the Parent POI may be used in place of a Street Address for the Child POI. For example, a store or restaurant that is contained within a shopping mall may use the name of the shopping mall as the street address (street number and name). All other address components should be present and accurate, including locality.

1.1. Address from Official Source

If the listed address is rated Correct – formatting issues or Incorrect, a text box will appear for you to enter the POI Address, as it appears on official sources.

If the address is Correct – formatting issues, you will see:	If the address is Incorrect, you will see:

The Address from Official Source field should include the POI address exactly as it appears on official sources. Cut and paste the POI address, without additional edits, corrections or formatting.

Here are some rules to follow when providing the official POI Address:

• If there are differences in the way that a POI address appears on an official website and social media accounts, use the address as it is displayed on the official website
• If there are differences in the way that a POI address is displayed on a single official source, you may select any version of the address from that official source, as long as it points to the physical location of the POI
• Do not abbreviate or edit POI addresses. Provide the address exactly as it appears on official resources. For example:
• If the official source includes “boulevard” in the street address, do not abbreviate this to “blvd”
• If the official source includes “blvd” in the street address, do not expand this to “boulevard”
• Do not use POI addresses as they appear on Search Results pages or on other non-official resources
• Do not add or remove punctuation (for example, do not add parentheses or periods). Provide the address exactly as it appears on official resources
• Do not add additional comments or research resources in this text field • POI Addresses must not start with “http”

1.2. Address Rating Examples

2. Phone

The phone number should be verified using official resources. These may include the business’s official website, official social media pages, and/or other official resources.

2.1. Phone Rating Options

Phone Rating Notes:

• Phone Number Formatting: While it is important that the phone number is correct, formatting is not a reason to demote the phone number rating to Incorrect.
• Multiple Phone Numbers: Some POIs may have multiple phone numbers. As long as one of the correct, official phone numbers is listed, rate the listed phone number as Correct.
• Unattended POIs: Phone numbers are not necessary for some POIs that are unattended, such as a transit stop, an EV charger, or a bike sharing rack. When an unattended POI does not require a phone number, it should be rated OK Without. However, if a phone number is listed for an unattended POI, the phone number must be confirmed through official resources.
• Management Offices: If there is a phone number for the office that manages parks, bridges, metro stations, monuments, etc., consider that number the official phone number and rate accordingly. If the listing is missing this type of phone number, mention in the comments that the phone number found is for the management office.
• Phone Number Missing: If there is no phone number in the listing look for an alternative number online, then rate Phone as Incorrect or Missing and copy and paste the phone number in the comment box.
• Fax Number: If the listed phone number is for the POI’s fax line, rate Incorrect.

2.2. Phone Numbers for POIs Within POIs

A POI located within another POI may have a different phone number than the POI that it is located within. In order for the listed phone number to be considered Correct, two conditions must be met:

1. Both POIs operate under the same branding and are located under the same rooftop. – AND –
2. Official resources confirm that both POIs have a direct parent-child or sibling relationship and the phone number for one POI will also lead to the other POI.
   1. For example, if a shopping mall had the phone number for the…:
   1. Generic corporate contact number – the phone number should be rated Correct because the corporation is the larger entity containing the shopping mall.
   1. Concierge/info desk that is for the mall and/or has the mall name, i.e. Westfield Concierge – the phone number should be rated Correct because the concierge provides information/services for the shopping mall and is not for a particular brand.
   1. Starbucks located within the mall – the phone number should be rated Incorrect because Starbucks is a different brand than the mall.

Here are some examples of phone number ratings for POIs within POIs:

2.3. Phone Number Correction

If the listed Phone Number is rated Incorrect orMissing, a text box will appear for you to enter the correct POI Phone Number.

Use official sources to research the phone number and enter the official POI phone number in the text field provided. The Phone Number Correction field should include the official POI phone number as it should appear in order to receive a Correct rating and formatted using international telephone formatting (e.164 format). E.164 is an international standard for telephone numbers and includes the following:

• Begins with ‘+’ symbol
• Country code (1-3 digits)
• Subscriber number (maximum of 12 digits)

For example, the public information phone number for Heathrow Airport is listed on the POI’s official site as:

• 0844 571 7410

However, using the international format for telephone numbers, the correct phone number should be entered as:

• +448445717410

The number now begins with the ‘+’ symbol, followed by the country code ’44’, and then the subscriber number ‘844 571 7410’. Note that all spaces have been removed, as well as the ‘0’ from ‘0844’, as this is only necessary for domestic calls made within the locale. Be sure to consult locale-specific conventions for entering phone numbers using the E.164 format.

Here are some examples of phone numbers as they are presented on official sources and how they should appear once translated into the international format.

Here are some additional rules to follow when determining the Phone Number correction:

• Enter only one phone number in this text field
• If a POI has multiple phone numbers, select the primary, public phone number
• Enter the phone number using E.164 international format for telephone numbers
• Do not include extra spaces or punctuation, including (, ), or –
• Do not add additional comments or research resources in this text field
• Do not include phone number extensions for specific persons within the POI

2.4. Phone Number Rating Examples

Actual Phone Number	Listed Phone Number	Rating	Notes
17857764897	+17857764841 (Walmart Pharmacy)	Phone	Correct
		The Walmart pharmacy department is under the Walmart branding, so a phone number for that department is considered Correct for a Walmart store listing.
+596596605707	+33596605707	Phone	Incorrect
		This phone number includes the country code ‘+33’ for a POI that is located in Martinique. However, research reveals that ‘+33’ is the country code for France and the correct country code for the POI is ‘+596’. Martinique is considered to be an overseas region of France, but they do not share the same country code. The Phone Correction should be entered as: +596596605707
1(612) 355-3857 (Target)	1 (612) 355-3858 (CVS pharmacy in Target)	Phone	Incorrect
		CVS is a separate brand from Target, so the phone number for the CVS should not be listed as the official phone number for the Target store. The Phone Correction should be entered as: +16123553857
1.408.248.4451 (Westfield Valley Fair Mall)	1.408.248.7095 (Sephora in Westfield Valley Fair Mall)	Phone	Incorrect
		Sephora is a separate brand from the mall it is within, and should not be the official phone number listed for the mall. The Phone Correction should be entered as: +14082484451
1.213.98001 (L.A. Opera)	1.213.97670 (Fax line for L.A. Opera)	Phone	Incorrect
		Users would not be able to reach a human representative of L.A. Opera using the fax line. The Phone Correction should be entered as: +12139728001

3. URL

This question determines if the official website, as it appears in the listing information, is accurate. An official website for the POI should be shown whenever possible. However, if an official website is not available, an official social media page may be shown instead.

3.1. URL Rating Options

URL Rating Notes

• Official Websites
• If a business has multiple locations and a location-specific page exists on the official website, then the location-specific page is Correct and the home page of the official website is Partially Correct.
• However, if location-specific websites are not available for a business with multiple locations, the business’s main page, or the page that contains the address(es) is Correct.
• Official Websites vs. Official Social Media Pages
• Official websites should be prioritized over social media pages.
• If the POI does not have an official website, then official social media pages, that have been updated within the past 6 months, may also be Correct.
• However, if a listed URL is the POI’s correct social media page, but an official website exists, then the social media page is Incorrect.
• Official Social Media Pages
• If a business has multiple locations, then the location-specific social media page is Correct if it exists and the official social media page for the business is Partially Correct.
• However, if location-specific social media pages are not available for a business with multiple locations, the business’s official social media page can be considered Correct.
• URLs for Unattended POIs
• URLs are not necessary for some POIs that are unattended, such as transit stops or bike sharing racks. When an unattended POI does not have a listed URL, it should be rated OK Without. However, if URLs are listed for an unattended POI, the URLs must be confirmed through official resources.

3.2. What counts as an official POI site?

A web page owned and maintained by the business/government/POI is considered the official webpage. It usually has a distinct address, corporate design, and logo. The address can often be found at the bottom of the page in the “contact us” section or for larger chain businesses or by using the store locator.

3.3. What does NOT count as a correct URL?

• Business Directory Sites (Yellow Pages, etc.)
• Third party sites that are not actively owned or updated by the POI
• Any other URLs that are not associated with the POI

To verify the accuracy of the URL, use the best search engine for the appropriate locale and research the business using the displayed listing information.

3.4. URL Correction

If the listed URL is rated Partially Correct, Incorrect orMissing, a text box will appear for you to enter the correct POI URL.

Enter the official URL in the text field provided. Use official sources to research the URL and refer to the rules above. The URL Correction field should include the official POI URL as it should appear to receive a Correct rating. Enter the Official URL using this format:

• https://www.example.com/index.html The URL must begin with either of the following:
• https://
• http://

Here are some rules to follow when determining the correct Official URL:

• Official Websites

◦   If the business has an official website and an official social media page, the official website should be provided as the official URL

 ◦ POIs with multiple locations may have a location-specific page or the business’s main page.

Whenever available, the location-specific URL should be considered the POI’s official URL

◦   If a POI has multiple official websites, any one of them can be considered the official URL

• Official Websites vs. Official Social Media Pages

◦         If a POI does not have an official website, but does have an official, claimed social media page, that social media page must have been updated within the past 6 months to be considered the official URL

◦ If the POI has no official website, but does have multiple officially claimed and recently updated social media pages, any of them can be considered the official URL • Official Social Media Pages

 ◦    POIs with multiple locations may have a location-specific page or the business’s main page.

Whenever available, the location-specific URL should be provided as the POI’s official URL

• Additional Notes

◦ Do not click on ads, sponsored search results, mapping results or mapping services. The URLs from these results often contain extraneous tracking information in their links. For example:

https://locations.tacobell.com/ca/exeter/1107-visalia-rd.html?source=campaign=listings&medium=referral&term=032519&content=website&y_source=1_NjE0NzA0NS00ODMtbG9jYXRpb24ud2Vic2l0ZQ==

◦ Do not use url shorteners. Always insert the entire source URL in this field. ◦ Do not add additional comments or research resources in this text field.

Some POIs may not have any official websites or social media pages. If an Incorrect URL is displayed in the POI listing and research shows that the business has no official webpages, the exact comment below must be entered into the URL Correction text box:

• NA

3.5. Website Type (URL)

If you provided a URL Correction, a dropdown menu will appear for you to indicate the type of webpage that was provided.

Select from one of the following options:

• Official Website
• Official Social

3.6. URL Rating Examples

POI	Listing URL	Rating and Explanation
McDonald’s 696 N Mathilda Ave, Sunnyvale, CA 94085	https:// careers.mcdonalds.com/ us	URL	Incorrect
		URL Correction	https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/ location/ca/sunnyvale/696-n-mathildaave/37235.html
		This is the careers sub-page on the official website. Since it is neither the correct location-specific page, or the main page on the official website, this page is Incorrect.
New York Marriott Marquis 1535 Broadway, New York, New York, 10036	https:// www.marriott.com/hotels/ travel/nycmq-new-yorkmarriott-marquis	URL	Correct
		Since this business has multiple locations and a location-specific page exists on the official website, the location-specific page is Correct.
	http://www.marriott.com/	URL	Partially Correct
		URL Correction	https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/ nycmq-new-york-marriott-marquis
		A location-specific page exists for this business, so the main page on the official website is Partially Correct.
Middlesbrough Rail Station Middlesbrough, UK	https:// www.nationalrail.co.uk/ stations destinations/ MBR.aspx	URL	Correct
		This is the location-specific website of the Middlesbrough Rail Station.
	https:// www.nationalrail.co.uk	URL	Partially Correct
		URL Correction	https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations destinations/MBR.aspx
		This is the official URL for the governing transportation body for this rail station.
Claymont Steak Shop 3526 Philadelphia Pike Claymont, DE 19703	https:// claymontsteakshop.com/ locations/	URL	Correct
		Though there are multiple locations, there are no locationspecific websites for the Claymont Steak Shop in Claymont, Delaware. The business’s main page or the page that contains the address(es) is Correct.
	https:// claymontsteakshop.com/	URL	Correct
		Though there are multiple locations, there are no locationspecific websites for the Claymont Steak Shop in Claymont, Delaware. The business’s main page or the page that contains the address(es) is Correct.

POI	Listing URL	Rating and Explanation
Toy Go Round 1361 Solano Avenue, Albany, CA 94706	No URL returned	URL	Missing
		URL Correction	https://www.facebook.com/ ToyGoRound/
		This POI does not have an official website, but it does have an official social media page that is updated regularly.
Weller Court Parking 135 Astronaut Ellison S Onizuka Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012		URL	OK Without
		If a parking lot is located on the property of another POI, such as a mall or apartment complex, but does not have its own official URL, then rate OK Without. It is not necessary to provide the URL for that POI (e.g. the mall or apartment complex). However, if the listing information does not include a URL for a paid parking lot, the URL should be rated as Missing.
19th Avenue & Lincoln Bus Stop San Francisco, CA 94122		URL	OK Without
		If there is no website listed for a transit stop, rate URL as ‘OK Without’ because transit stops are not expected to have websites.
ChargePoint EV Charger 1 Montgomery St., San Francisco, CA 94104	No URL returned	URL	Missing
		URL Correction	https://www.chargepoint.com
		URLs for EV chargers are mandatory because EV chargers typically require a subscription/account. In order to access or create an account, a user needs the correct URL.
Heritage Clothing 12 Hemington Ct, Derby, DE74 2PT, England	http://www.heritagecoaches.com	URL	Incorrect
		URL Correction	NA
		This POI does not have an official website or an official social media page. Since the URL displayed is unrelated to the listed POI, this should be rated Incorrect.

4. Category

Categories provide an easy and quick reference for users to identify the types of goods and/or services that a POI provides, as well as locate POIs that a user may be interested in locating on the map. This question asks if the listed category is accurate and if it is the best available category to represent the primary identity of the POI.

4.1. Category Rating Options

When evaluating the POI’s category, consider the following:

1. Is the listed category accurate?
2. Is this the best fit category available in the category list?

Once you have determined the accuracy and fit of the listed category, select one of the following rating options:

4.1.1. Research Expectation

Always perform online research to determine the POI category’s dominant identity prior to rating it’s accuracy and fit. Your research and ratings should be based on information from the following approved sources:

• Official sources, including official websites and/or official social media pages.
• Reliable resources, includinguser reviews on official sources or crowdsource user review sites.
• The Category Reference List, to determine category accuracy and fit.
• Local knowledge, when relevant, to determine the dominant identity of the POI.

4.1.2. Category Rating Rules

The following rules will help you to choose the correct ratings:

Rule	Description	Explanation and Examples
1	Prioritize Information from Official Sources	Review the official website and social media pages to understand and identify the main business identity/category. Example: If a restaurant advertises itself as serving both steaks and pizza, but primarily serves steak, then ‘dining ➡ restaurant ➡ steakhouse’ is the best fit category.
2	Look at User Reviews	If information from official sources is not available or reliable, conduct additional research using user reviews. Read reviews from social media and crowdsourced user review websites to inform your decision.
3	Conflicting sources	If the official website and social media pages have conflicting information, defer to the information provided on the official website. If the official website and user reviews have conflicting information, defer to the information provided on the official website.
4	If category is still unclear, look at POI Name	Some POIs may have multiple categories that equally describe the POI. If online sources do not help you to determine the best fit category, refer to the name of the POI. The first category keyword to appear in the business name should be selected as the best fit category. Example: If online resources for Orlando Pizza & Steakhouse equally describe the POI as serving pizza and steak, select the first keyword in the name of the POI as the best fit category. In this case, ‘dining ➡ restaurant ➡ pizza_restaurant’ would be the best fit category.
5	Always Review the Category Reference List	Always refer to the Category Reference List to identify the best fit category for the POI. Even when the listed category appears to be a good fit for the POI, check the Category Reference List to ensure that no better match exists.
		SERPs, maps services, and crowdsourced user review sites may assign categories to POIs, but these are not necessarily accurate. Categories assigned by other sources may not follow the rules listed above or correspond to the list of available categories for this evaluation.
6	Do not rely on categories assigned by other sources

4.1.3. Anatomy of the POI Category

POI Categories are displayed in the rating interface as strings of text. Each string contains one or more category levels, separated by ‘➡’ delimiters. The Listed Category appears in boldface text in the rating interface and Category Reference List. For example, this is the category string for the restaurant 5 Tacos & Beers in Albany, CA:

dining ➡ restaurant ➡ latin american cuisine ➡ mexican cuisine ➡ taco restaurant

The highest level in each string is the Top-Level Category, also denoted as L0. This is the most general category in the string. The lower the level, the more specific.

Each category string is part of a larger taxonomy tree that includes branches for many related categories.

There are multiple possible levels of categories, beginning with L1, the first category below the Top-Level Category. Depending on the POI, the Listed Category may be located at any level in the taxonomy. For example, while the taco restaurant above has a listed category at L4, the category string for Sukiyaki, a gyudon restaurant chain, has a category string that reaches L5.

dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ donburi restaurant ➡ gyudon restaurant

1.1.1. Category Reference List

The Category shown in the rating interface is a raw category, meaning that this is the format of the category name that is stored in the database and is not what users see. Before rating, use the Category Reference List to verify the localized category name and description. A link to the list is provided under the raw category in the rating interface.

The Category Reference List is a searchable list of all active POI categories. The list is organized alphabetically by top-level categories and includes raw names, short (localized) names, and descriptions for all categories. A link to the list is provided under the raw category in the rating interface.

The Category Reference List is divided into the following parts:

1. Localization Menu – Set the appropriate category localization in the drop down menu
2. Search Bar – Search for category by raw name in the search field
3. Raw Category Names – The raw category name as it appears in the database
4. Short Names – A formatted and localized category name that is displayed to users
5. Category Descriptions – Brief descriptions of each category, including notes and category examples

Localization

The default localization for the category list is set to en. Use the localization dropdown menu to select the correct locale for the POI, whenever available.

Search Bar

You can search the category list either by using the Search Bar, in the upper right corner of the list, or any of the three search boxes at the top of the Category, Name, and Description columns.

The Search Bar can be used to search by the raw category. Any text that you enter into this field will automatically populate the Category search field (highlighted in green; see screenshot).

You can also use the Category, Name, and Description search fields to search by keywords related to the POI’s primary identity (highlighted in blue; see screenshot).

Raw Category and Display Name

The category list shows two versions of each category name, while the rating interface will only show the raw, ‘➡’-delimited, Category string. The Name is what users will see when viewing the POI’s listing information. For example, the raw POI category ‘transportation ➡ airport ➡ international airport’ is displayed to users as ‘International Airport’.

In this case, the category name displayed in the rating interface and its ‘Name’ localization make sense and mean the same thing, but this may not always be the case. Always review the category description, to ensure that you understand the type of business that the category is intended to represent, before deciding on a final rating.

Truncated Strings

The default column width may truncate longer category strings. Truncated strings are indicated by ellipses, ‘…’

Always review the full category string for the listed POI, including potential better fit categories. To adjust the column widths, hover your cursor above the space between the columns until the Column Edit Icon appears. Then click on the icon and drag until the full category strings are visible.

Category Descriptions

Each category includes a description of the category and may include additional notes, descriptions, and examples. Always refer to the description to confirm that the listed category represents an accurate description of the POI as there may be slight differences between the localized name and category description. If available, examples are provided in the descriptions as a general reference and are not exhaustive lists.

The Category Reference List is a lengthy resource and may take some time to load.

We recommend that you open the Category Reference List in a separate browser tab and keep it open while you are working on POI Evaluation tasks.

1.2. Category Accuracy and Fit

Your ratings will be based on the category description for the listed category assigned to each POI. When the category contains only a top-level category, the accuracy and fit of this category will be rated.

The listed category should provide the ‘best fit’ for the POI from all possible categories. Fit is determined in terms of accuracy and scope. In other words, the best fit category must correctly describe the POI, as well as represent the dominant identity of the POI.

Each POI may only have a single best fit category that represents its dominant identity.  For example, imagine a restaurant that advertises itself as serving both Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine, but its menu indicates that the restaurant is primarily known for serving Chinese cuisine. In this case, “Chinese” is the best fit category for the POI since that accurately describes the dominant aspect of the POI.

Online Research

Conduct online research to determine the dominant identity of the POI and to identify the main business/ category. Begin by locating the POI’s official website and social media pages, if available. Examine these official sources for signals that may indicate the POI’s primary business identity, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Product and/or Service Descriptions
• Look for an ‘About Us’ subpage or general descriptions on the website’s main pages
• Look for menus, product pages, reservation/booking details, etc.
• However, if the official website and social media pages have conflicting information, refer to the information provided on the official website.

If it is not clear what the POI’s primary identity is from official sources, or if official sources are not available, conduct additional research on social media and crowdsourced user review sites.

• User Reviews or Comments
• Look for descriptions of the POI submitted by users in their comments and/or reviews of the POI
• However, if the official website and user reviews have conflicting information, refer to the information provided on the official website.

If, after reviewing the above sources, it is still not clear what the appropriate category should be, refer to the business name.

• Name of the POI
• Some POIs may have multiple categories that equally describe the POI. However, the POI’s name may include keyword or other strong indication of the business category. The first category keyword to appear in the business name should be selected as the best fit category.

Searching the Category Reference List

When determining if a listed category is too general or too specific, begin searching the Category Reference List by one of the top-levels in the category string, to see a list of related categories that are available. Use a variety of keywords from the category string, as well as from individual POIs to explore the category list.

• Example: If the listed category for a clothing retailer is ‘shopping ➡ store ➡ fashion accessory store’, searching the category list for ‘accessories’ will return the following results. Except for the Men’s Accessories Store, the results on this list are not likely to be relevant to a clothing retailer.

However, searching by higher level category keywords in the category string, such as ‘shopping’, ‘store’ or ‘fashion’, does return a broader view of related categories. Additional searching for ‘store’ in the Category field and ‘clothing’ in the Name field provides much more relevant results for a clothing retailer.

Better fit categories can exist outside of the top-level category that is assigned. Do not limit your search for “Better Fit” categories to the existing top-level category.

• Example: If the listed POI is the headquarters of a fast food restaurant franchise, then ’dining ➡ restaurant ➡ fast food restaurant’ would not be an accurate representation or fit for the POI.

While the headquarters may be for a fast food restaurant chain, it would not be accurate to describe this as a fast food restaurant. Searching the Category Reference List by the keyword, ‘headquarters’ reveals a better fit category, ‘commercial sector ➡ real estate ➡ corporate campus ➡ corporate headquarters‘, which exists under a different top level category, ‘commercial sector’.

1.3. Category Correction

If the listed Category is rated Approximate – too general, Approximate – too specific , Incorrect,orMissing, a drop-down menu will appear for you to enter the correct Category. The drop-down menu includes all active POI categories.

Use the searchable Category Reference List to better understand the available categories and select the category that would be the best fit for the listed POI. Always review the category description before providing a final category correction.

1.4. Category Rating Examples

POI	Ratings and Explanation
Shizen 370 14th St San Francisco, CA 94103	Note: Shizen is a vegan sushi restaurant. Shizen has both an official website and an official social media page. The menu is also available on other online resources.
	Category	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine
	Rating	Approximate – too general
	Category Correction	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ sushi restaurant
	This category accurately captures what this business does but there are other categories that narrow down exactly what kind of Japanese restaurant this is.
	Category	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ ramen restaurant
	Rating	Approximate – too specific
	Category Correction	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ sushi restaurant
	Shizen offers several menu options for ramen, but this portion of their menu is relatively small compared to others. As it is something they do, and someone might want to visit Shizen for, it is not considered incorrect, but it also doesn’t best capture the essence of what kind of POI Shizen is.
	Category	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ sushi restaurant
	Rating	Correct
	This restaurant serves vegan sushi and izakaya. Under the About Us page on the official website, the restaurant specifically describes itself as sushi restaurant, so this is the best fit category.
	Category	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ izakaya
	Rating	Approximate – too specific
	Category Correction	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ sushi restaurant
	Researching the term ‘izakaya’ shows that it is a term for a Japanese tavern/informal gastropub. Reviewing the restaurant’s menus and photos shows that sushi is the dominant category for this POI and that izakaya is too specific.
	Category	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ donburi restaurant ➡ gyudon restaurant
	Rating	Incorrect
	Category Correction	dining ➡ restaurant ➡ asian cuisine ➡ japanese cuisine ➡ sushi restaurant
	This is an all-vegan restaurant and the restaurant does not serve gyudon beef bowls, so this is a bad category for the POI.

POI	Ratings and Explanation
Old Navy Westfield Valley Fair 3049 Stevens Creek Blvd San Jose, CA 95050	Note: Old Navy is a retailer that sells men’s, women’s and children’s clothing. The previous example demonstrated a case where more than one category accurately captured the essence of what the POI does. In this case, there are some “equally good” categories that would be misleading.
	Category	shopping ➡ store ➡ clothing store ➡ womens clothing store
	Rating	Approximate – too specific
	Category Correction	shopping ➡ store ➡ clothing store
	This category is potentially misleading. While a large portion of Old Navy is dedicated to selling women’s clothing, categorizing it as a women’s clothing store carries the wrong implication and could confuse users. Unless no better category exists, this category should be indicated as being too specific.
	Category	shopping ➡ store ➡ clothing store ➡ mens clothing store
	Rating	Approximate – too specific
	Category Correction	shopping ➡ store ➡ clothing store
	Much like the example above, this is misleading and too specific for the POI.
	Category	shopping ➡ store ➡ clothing store
	Rating	Correct
	This category describes a business that sells clothing and/or fashion items and is the best category available to describe the POI, so it is considered Correct.
	Category	shopping
	Rating	Approximate – too general
	Category Correction	shopping ➡ store ➡ clothing store
	The top-level category ‘shopping’ is very broad. Because the POI can be described more specifically with a category on the list, this category is considered too general.
Mechanics Bank 279 The Alameda Kensington, CA 94707	Category	consumer sector ➡ financial service ➡ banking service ➡ bank
	Rating	Correct
	This category accurately describes the listed POI as a banking financial institution.
Patelco 2033 Kala Bagai Wy Berkeley, CA 94704	Category	consumer sector ➡ financial service ➡ banking service ➡ credit union
	Rating	Correct
	Research reveals that this POI is one location of a chain credit union, so the listed category is the best fit category.

POI	Ratings and Explanation
St. Patrick’s Cathedral 5th Ave, New York, NY 10022	Note: St.. Patrick’s Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in New York City. St. Patrick’s Cathedral has both an official website and official social media pages.
	Category	association or organization ➡ religious organization ➡ church
	Rating	Correct
	By carefully reviewing the available categories, research reveals that there is not a specific category for Catholic churches or cathedrals. However, a cathedral is also a church, so this is the closest and most accurate available category for this POI.
	Category	association or organization ➡ religious organization ➡ church ➡ kingdom hall of jehovahs witnesses
	Rating	Incorrect
	Category Correction	association or organization ➡ religious organization ➡ church
	Research reveals that Kingdom Halls are a Jehovah’s Witness place of worship. Since St. Patrick’s Cathedral is not a Jehovah’s Witness religious organization, this category is incorrect.
	Category	shopping ➡ store ➡ bookstore ➡ religious goods store
	Rating	Incorrect
	Category Correction	association or organization ➡ religious organization ➡ church
	This category refers to shops that sell religious items and gifts. St. Patrick’s Cathedral may contain a gift store, but is primarily not a shopping POI.
Sutan Ahmed Mosque Sultanahmet Mah At Meydani Cad No 7, Istanbul 34122, Turk ey	Note: The Sutan Ahmed Mosque, also called the Blue Mosque, is a Muslim mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. The Sutan Ahmed Mosque has an official website.
	Category	association or organization ➡ religious organization ➡ place of worship
	Rating	Approximate – too general
	Category Correction	association or organization ➡ religious organization ➡ mosque
	The Places of Worship category should only be used for religious organization POIs that do not have a specific category associated with them, such as a chapel that is used by multiple faiths for a variety of observances. Research reveals that this POI has a specific category available, so this category is too general for this POI.
	Category	association or organization ➡ religious organization ➡ mosque
	Rating	Correct
	By carefully reviewing the available categories, research reveals that there is not a more specific
	category available for a Muslim mosque. This is the best category for this POI.

POI	Ratings and Explanation
ChargePoint	Category	transportation ➡ ev charging station
	Rating	Correct
	All EV chargers are categorized as ‘transportation ➡ ev charging station‘.
Citi Bike	Category	travel and leisure ➡ sports equipment rental ➡ bicycle rental
	Rating	Incorrect
	Category Correction	travel and leisure ➡ sports equipment rental ➡ bicycle sharing service
	Citi Bike is a bike sharing POI, which is a service where bikes are available at unattended docks or stations for users or subscribers of the service. Users can then drop the bikes off at any station of the same service. Bike sharing POIs are typically a short-term, self-service rental station, whereas a bike rental implies a long-term rental at an attended station where bikes are usually returned at the same station. Bike sharing services should therefore be categorized under ‘travel and leisure ➡ sports equipment rental ➡ bicycle sharing service’ and not ‘travel and leisure ➡ sports equipment rental ➡ bicycle rental’ because bike rentals and bike sharing POIs are different services.

1. Pin Accuracy

The following sections explain how to evaluate POI pin placement based on the feature presented and describe issues to consider when evaluating the pin.

1.1. Pin Rating Options

For each POI, you will find a pin on the map. Rate the accuracy of each pin’s placement using this general scale:

1.2. Key Concepts for Rating Pins

The location of the pin should accurately reflect the POI result. Pin ratings should be evaluated individually and not be influenced by address or other data. A pin can be correct when other rating components are rated Wrong.

The following sections will explain how to evaluate pin placement based on the POI.

1.2.1. Pin Resources

Rate pin placement according to consensus from multiple reliable online resources. These resources should include both aerial and street-level views whenever possible.  Reliable resources include:

• Reliable online map resources, including standard and hybrid views
• Hybrid views may provide additional points of reference including the locations of streets
• Street imagery
• Accurate street-level imagery can also be found on claimed social media sites, crowdsourced user review sites, and articles in primary publications (newspapers or similar publications that do their own reporting)
• Official venue maps and directories, which can contain information not available in street imagery
• Government business and property registries
• Official government maps (land registry/cadaster, GIS maps)

Note: After consulting these research resources, always verify pin placement using the layers provided in the Rating Tool. This means that even if you have gathered coordinates elsewhere, you must rate pin placement based on what you can actually see in the Rating Tool layers.

Leave comments including coordinates and links to resources if the pin rating was difficult to determine or if you could not verify the pin’s placement.

1.2.2. Satellite Imagery vs Standard Map

When there is a difference between where the pin drops in satellite imagery and the standard map, always use the map layer in the Rating Tool that is more generous towards the pin. For example, if the pin drops on the rooftop in satellite imagery, but in the parking lot in standard map, rate using satellite imagery because a pin on a rooftop is rated higher than a pin placed in a parking lot. Even if there is a major shift between satellite imagery and the standard map in a larger area, such as a complete city or region, rate according to the most generous layer.

When deciding between the generosity of the standard and satellite views for pin rating, use only the standard/satellite views provided in the Rating Tool.

In cases where the standard map is more generous toward towards the pin but does not show any building contours, use satellite imagery as a reference to locate buildings on the standard map to allow for rooftop ratings. If satellite imagery is unavailable, use your best judgment to determine the correct location of the pin.

In the screenshot below, the standard map does not provide any contours, so it is hard to determine where each building is. Satellite imagery should be used instead.

Standard View	Satellite View

1.2.3. Boundaries of the Feature

To rate a pin for a POI, you must first understand where the POI parcel begins and ends. Some POIs have rooftops (businesses, malls, etc.) and sit on a parcel of land that belongs to or is associated with them. Other POIs do not not have rooftops (mountains, parks, waterfalls), but there is still a boundary where they begin and where they end.

A boundary is a real or imaginary line that separates one POI, or the parcel it sits on, from another POI. The boundaries always include half of the road, when a road is present, as described in the Half ’n’ Half Rule (below).

Some examples of boundaries include, but are not limited to:

• Fences
• Walls
• Garden plants and bushes
• Bodies of water (lakes, rivers, oceans)
• Other dividers

In case there is no divider: imagine and draw a 90-degree line to the road, or use the Half ’n’ Half Rule, defined in the next section.

Type of Example	Screenshot	Explanation
Single Rooftop		The property boundary is defined by half of the road on one side and physical dividers like brick, concrete, and wooden fences on the others.
	1556 Tobias Dr San Jose, CA  95118
Shopping Center	NewPark Mall 2086 NewPark Mall Newark, CA 94560	The property boundary  is defined by the roads surrounding the shared parking lot.

1.2.3.1. Half ‘n’ Half and Tennis Rules

In dense areas it may be difficult to find boundaries between parcels. In these cases, divide the space between

the street or next building in half to create a boundary. Use the “Half ‘n Half” rule to determine the Approximate and Next Door pin locations.

Screenshot	Explanation
Scenario: Half ’n’ Half to Street	Extend the feature boundaries to the middle of the road(s). The example shows how Will Rogers Dr. and Saratoga Ave. are divided in half to define the outer limits. A pin dropped on the POI rooftop (green) should be rated Perfect. The area determined by the Half ’n’ Half Rule (yellow) should be rated Approximate.
Screenshot	Explanation
Scenario: Half ’n’ Half to Next Building	The space between two buildings can be divided into two parts to create a boundary for an Approximate pin placement. A pin dropped on the POI rooftop (green) should be rated Perfect. The area determined by the Half ’n’ Half Rule (yellow) should be rated Approximate.

Use natural boundaries as much as possible to draw the line between a Perfect, Approximate, Next Door and Wrong pin location

To address close calls, apply the Tennis Rule:

• If the tip of the pin is still touching the line, the pin is considered inside the boundary.
• If the tip of the pin touches the outside, it is outside of the boundary.

1.2.3.2. Boundaries in Shared Spaces

When a feature shares a parcel or parking lot with other entities and the same space is used to access many entities, it can be difficult to determine a feature’s boundaries. In cases like this:

• Use the guidance provided in Boundaries of the Feature
• If the shared parcel contains through roads, apply the Half ’n’ Half Rule to them:
• Through-roads are part of the public road network that can be used to go to places other than the specific parcel
• The Half ’n’ Half Rule may also be applied to the parcel’s internal access roads if they meet all three of these conditions:
• They must continue all the way through the parcel and
• They must have an exit and entrance to public roads at both ends and
• They must be continuously and clearly separated from the shared parking areas by curbs, barriers, road markings, do not cross lines, or similar features
• Note: If all three of the conditions above do not apply, then an internal access road cannot be considered a boundary.

Result	Boundaries	Explanation
Stanford Shopping Center		The Stanford Shopping Center is a campus containing multiple POIs, so the entire parcel is Perfect. This includes all buildings, parking lots, and parking structures in both the north and south sections of the mall on either of side Arboretum Rd, the public road that cuts through the parcel.
Nordstrom @ Stanford Shopping Center		The Nordstrom department store is located in the south section of the shopping center’s parcel. Only the south part of the mall up to 1/2 of Arboretum Road is rated Approximate (shown in yellow). This is because Arboretum Road is a public road that can be used to access places outside the parcel. The north part is rated Wrong (shown in red) since the public road acts as  boundary to Nordstrom’s approximate area.
Pho 2 Love 6593 W Colfax Ave, Lakewood, CO 80214		Pho 2 Love is a Vietnamese restaurant in a strip mall with shared parking that has no public or internal access roads passing through it. The entire shared parcel is rated Approximate (yellow area) and only the section of the rooftop over the restaurant is rated Perfect (green area) as the exact location of the business can be confirmed with street imagery or other strong evidence.

1.2.4. Next Door

A pin should be considered Next Door if it drops on the property immediately next to the intended property. To be considered Next Door, a Pin must be:

• on the same street as the intended property
• The Next Door property must have the same street name as the POI
• on the same side of the street as the intended property
• the first property to any side of the intended property
• on the same block as the intended property

“Immediate property” refers to the boundaries of the property as a whole, even if there is no rooftop. Determine the boundaries as explained in Boundaries of the Feature.

Note:  The Half ’n Half rule also applies to Next Door properties.

No Next Door for Shared Spaces

A feature cannot be Next Door to another feature within the same property boundaries. This means that two buildings in the same shared parking lot or parcel can never be rated as Next Door to one another.

There will also be no Next Door ratings made outside the parcel or shared space. Any pin falling outside of the Approximate area will be marked Wrong.

1.2.5. Wrong

All pins that fall outside of the property boundaries of the POI and its neighboring properties are considered to be Wrong. However, there are two notable additions to this rule:

Exceptions	Screenshot	Explanation
Falls on 0,0		If the pin falls on latitude 0, longitude 0, a position in the Atlantic Ocean located off the East coast of Africa, it should be rated, Wrong.
Missing		Similarly, if the pin is completely missing, a map centered on the intersection of De Anza Blvd. and Stevens Creek Blvd. will be shown. In these cases, the pin is missing and should be rated Wrong.

If the pin is rated Wrong because the pin is either missing or falls on 0,0, provide the coordinates (latitude, longitude) for the correct pin location on the map in your comments.

1.2.6. Pin-Drop Tool – How to find POI Coordinates

To find missing POI coordinates, use the Pin-Drop Tool, which is located in the top right corner of the Map field in the Rating Interface.

Screenshot	Steps
	To use the Pin-Drop Tool: Click on the Pin Icon Select a point on the map that represents the true location of the POI A Pin will be dropped on that spot with an information card that includes the Pin’s Address and Coordinates (Latitude and Longitude)

1.2.7. Can’t Verify (Smallest Identified Area)

Screenshot and Result	Explanation
Beauty Garden 20 Bukit Batok Street 32, Singapore 659400	There is satellite imagery for this area, but clouds cover the exact location of the POI. Using evidence from other reliable resources, a perimeter for where the pin should be dropped can be established (teal area). Can’t Verify -> All pins dropped within the teal area Wrong -> All pins dropped outside the teal area

In cases where a rooftop cannot be identified, Perfect cannot be given. In these cases, Can’t Verify can be used if the pin is within the smallest area that can be identified as a potentially correct location. A pin outside of this area should be considered Wrong.

1.2.7.1. Leaning Buildings

Normal Building	Leaning Building
Sometimes buildings seem to be leaning in satellite view. They do not appear to be standing straight and their rooftops are not aligned with their bases.

When a building or buildings appear to be leaning in satellite view, the satellite photos do not always give accurate information about a building’s shape or location. This is why even when a pin appears to land on a leaning building, you cannot rely on satellite photos alone to rate pin placement.

Research the leaning building’s true location using consensus from multiple reliable resources, including:

• Standard views
• Hybrid views, which may provide additional points of reference, including the locations of streets the buildings lean over
• Street imagery
• Reliable online map resources

Always rate the pin based on the building’s actual location as confirmed by reliable resources, not on the appearance of leaning caused by satellite photography.

If it is not possible to reach a consensus among reliable sources, or no reliable sources are available, and the pin is not objectively wrong, rate Can’t Verify and leave a comment.

Target Location	Screenshot	Pin Rating
Langham  Place Office Tower		Research shows that the pin lands across the street from the building’s actual location (green area), making it Wrong.
Langham  Place Office Tower		Research shows that the pin lands off the building’s rooftop (green area), but on its property, making it Approximate.
Jollibee, 16 Argyle Street, Mong Kok, Kowloon, Hong Kong		Although this pin appears to land on Langham Place Office Tower in the satellite photo, research shows that the pin actually lands across the street from the Tower on the rooftop of the Jollibee at 16 Argyle Street (green area), making it Perfect. Note that while Jollibee cannot be seen in satellite view, its location can be confirmed by reliable resources.

1.3. Single Rooftop POIs

Most POIs will be housed under one rooftop and ratings will follow the general rating scale (see Sec. 9.1  Pin Rating Options). Unless otherwise stated, use the following rating scale as key for each of the examples below:

Best Available Evidence

Pin rating for most POIs found under a rooftop is based on the best available evidence for that POI’s location. That is, the more evidence that can be found to verify a POI’s location, the more precise the pin’s location must be in order to be rated Perfect. (This is true whether or not the POI’s address includes a unit number because the goal is to find the location of the POI.)

If street imagery or other strong evidence can be found to confirm to a POI’s specific location under a shared rooftop, only that location will be considered Perfect.

If a shared rooftop can be identified but there’s no strong evidence to confirm the POI’s specific location under it, the entire rooftop will be considered Perfect.

If several rooftops share an address and there’s no strong evidence to confirm which rooftop the POI is under, all rooftops that share the POI’s address will be considered Can’t Verify.

Note: This general pin rating rule does not apply to Transit POIs, which have their own pin rating rules.

Example Type	POI and Screenshot	Explanation
Individual building	Jack in the Box 13561 Whittier Blvd, Whittier, CA	The POI is located within a single building on its own property, therefore the rules for the general rating scale apply: Perfect (green area) ➡ The pin is on the rooftop of the POI Approximate (yellow area) ➡ The pin is within the boundaries of the POI, excluding the Perfect rooftop Next Door (purple area) ➡ The pin is on the rooftop or within boundaries of the neighboring property Wrong (red areas and everything else) ➡ The pin falls outside of the property boundaries and the Next Door property. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7. Can’t Verify
Multiple street numbers under one rooftop	Note: Available resources can impact the ability to rate a pin when it is dropped on a building with multiple street numbers. Where should the pin fall in these cases? The answer depends strongly on the available resources:
	With Street Imagery:	With street imagery, or other strong resources, different entrances for the building numbers 422, 452, 466, and 486 can be identified. Apply the general rules to rate pins and be very specific in the rating. Once the rooftop area where the pin should be dropped is determined, draw imaginary lines to create a boundary for that area.

	Without Street Imagery:	Without street imagery or strong evidence, it may still be possible to determine that the address range is 422 to 486, yet not possible to determine where the physical boundaries for the numbers are. In those cases, a pin falling anywhere on the correct rooftop will be rated as Perfect even if the precise location on the rooftop cannot be determined. The surrounding area, defined by the Half ’n’ Half Rule , will be considered Approximate. The closest adjacent buildings on the same street are not on the same block, so no rooftops qualify as Next Door.
Connected rooftop with multiple street numbers and shared parking lot	Supercuts 1054 E El Camino Real Sunnyvale, CA 94087 With Street Imagery:	The result is a POI under a single rooftop with multiple street numbers. This result shares a parking lot with other features. Note: If there are any other buildings within the shared parking lot that are not connected to the Perfect location, they will also be rated Approximate. This guidance also applies to residential buildings with shared rooftops, like townhouses. With street imagery or other strong evidence, the exact location of the business (or address) can be confirmed. Draw imaginary lines on that part of the shared rooftop to create the area for Perfect. The rest of the connected rooftop and the shared parking lot are rated Approximate. Remember: Make no Next Door ratings outside the parcel or shared space. Any pin falling outside of the Approximate area in a shared space will be rated Wrong.

	Without Street Imagery:	Without street imagery or other strong evidence, only the location of the entire rooftop under which the business (or address) is located can be determined. The business’ exact location under the rooftop cannot be determined. In this situation, the whole rooftop becomes Perfect. The shared parking lot will be Approximate.
Multiple street numbers under one patchwork rooftop	Takara Japanese Cuisine 133 Southwood Ctr, South San Francisco, CA	Some multi-street numbers appear with different rooftops or fronts, as in this example. Consider them as separate rooftops and apply general rating rules. Always try to confirm the correct location with research. Perfect -> The pin is on the rooftop (green area) Approximate -> The pin is within the boundaries of the feature (yellow area) Next Door -> The pin is on the immediate property next to the intended feature (purple area) Wrong -> The pin falls outside of the property boundaries or Next Door property (everything else) Can’t Verify -> See Can’t Verify

One building with a single street number and multiple businesses in a shared parking lot	Circle K 925 Wonderland Rd South London, Ontario, Canada N6K 2V8 With Street Imagery:	With street imagery or other strong evidence, the exact location of the business (or address) can be confirmed. Draw imaginary lines on that part of the shared rooftop to create the area for Perfect. The rest of the connected rooftop and the shared parking lot are rated Approximate.
	Without Street Imagery	Without street imagery or other strong evidence, only the location of the entire rooftop under which the business (or address) is located can be determined. The business’ exact location under the rooftop cannot be determined. In this situation, the whole rooftop becomes Perfect. The shared parking lot will be Approximate.

One building with a single street number and multiple unit numbers in a shared parking lot	Subway 1923 59th Ave #155 Greeley, CO 80634 With Street Imagery:	The result is a POI under a rooftop that has a single street number, multiple unit numbers, and shares a parking lot with other features. With street imagery or other strong evidence, the exact location of the business (or address) can be confirmed. Draw imaginary lines on that part of the shared rooftop to create the area for Perfect. The rest of the connected rooftop and the shared parking lot are rated Approximate.
	Without Street Imagery:	Without street imagery or other strong evidence, only the location of the entire rooftop under which the business (or address) is located can be determined. The business’ exact location under the rooftop cannot be determined. In this situation, the whole rooftop becomes Perfect. The shared parking lot will be Approximate.

One building with single street number and multiple businesses under the rooftop	KFC Calle Mayor, 1, Madrid Spain With Street Imagery:	The result is a POI under a single rooftop that has a one street number and contains multiple business. A Kentucky Fried Chicken, BBVA Bank, Luckia, and souvenir store can all be found at this address. With street imagery or other strong evidence, the exact location of the POI under the shared rooftop can be confirmed. Draw imaginary lines on that part of the shared rooftop to create the area for Perfect. The rest of the connected rooftop and parcel are rated Approximate.
	Without Street Imagery:	Without street imagery or other strong evidence, only the location of the entire rooftop under which the POI is located can be determined. The POI’s exact location under the rooftop cannot be determined. In this situation, the whole rooftop becomes Perfect. The parcel will be Approximate.

Multiple buildings with same street number and multiple unit numbers	Samurai Sam’s 4801 Washington St, Suite 5 Phoenix, AZ 85034 With evidence for unit location:	The result is a POI under a rooftop that’s one of  several rooftops sharing a single street number and containing multiple unit numbers. All the buildings share a parking lot. (The small rectangles on the bottom right are solar parking covers, not buildings.) With street imagery or other strong evidence for the location of the rooftop and the unit under it, the exact location of the POI can be confirmed. Draw imaginary lines on that part of the shared rooftop to create the area for Perfect. The rest of the connected rooftop and the shared parking lot are rated Approximate. Note: If there are any other buildings within the shared parking lot that are not connected to the Perfect location, they will also be rated Approximate.
	With evidence for rooftop location:	When there is street imagery or other strong evidence for the location of the specific rooftop but no evidence for the location of the unit under it, only the location of the entire rooftop can be determined. In cases like this, the entire rooftop will be Perfect. The shared parking lot will be Approximate. Note: If there are any other buildings within the shared parking lot that are not connected to the Perfect location, they will also be rated Approximate.
	Without evidence for  rooftop or unit locations, but with evidence for parcel	When there is no strong evidence for the location of the of the rooftop or the unit under it, but there is evidence for the location of the parcel, all rooftops within the parcel will be rated Can’t Verify and the parcel will be rated Approximate.

High density urban area		Next Door is considered to be to the left or right of the intended feature.
	Office 57 Neal Street, London, England	The boundaries of the Next Door properties contain half of the street. The Next Door area does not include the building behind 57 Neal Street, because that building is on a different street. Perfect -> The pin is on the rooftop (green area) Approximate -> The pin is within the boundaries of the feature (yellow area) Next Door -> The pin is on the immediate property next to the intended feature (purple area) Wrong -> The pin falls outside of the property boundaries or Next Door property (everything else) Can’t Verify -> See Can’t Verify
Corner building	Pearl Bakery 102 NW 9th Ave, Portland, OR	Here there is only one property that qualifies as Next Door. The property marked in red is on another street (NW Park Avenue) and does not meet the criteria for Next Door. Perfect -> The pin is on the rooftop (green area) Approximate -> The pin is within the boundaries of the feature (yellow area) Next Door -> The pin is on the immediate property next to the intended feature (purple area) Wrong -> The pin falls outside of the property boundaries or Next Door property (everything else) Can’t Verify -> See Can’t Verify

Pin on the same block	Starbucks 1889 Union St, San Francisco, CA	This property has only one Next Door property because the property to the left is not on the same block as the intended property.
Rural Area	Opus One Winery 7900 Saint Helena Hwy, Napa, CA	In rural areas, the Next Door property boundaries will be larger than the boundaries in urban areas. This is expected.

1.1. Multiple Rooftop POIs

Some POIs consist of multiple buildings associated with/owned by a single POI. To rate the pins for these correctly, you must research and understand the structures within the boundaries of the property (or parcel of land) to the POI.

Two kinds of ratings are possible for multiple rooftop POIs:

1. Single Entity with Multiple-Rooftops (Multiple-Rooftop Rating): When a POI consists of more than one building and there are multiple rooftops on the property. In cases like this, rooftops will be rated Perfect. The parcel of land inside the boundaries of the POI will be rated Approximate – including any pin that is not located on the POI rooftop but is within the POI parcel.  Properties next door to the intended one will be rated Next Door.
2. Multiple Entities with Multiple Rooftops (Campus rating): When a multi-rooftop POI is a higher education institution like a university or a medical, retail, or other type of business complex, most often containing other public-facing POIs. In cases like this, the entire parcel or property inside the boundaries of the POI, including all rooftops, will be rated Perfect. There will be no Approximate or Next Door ratings.

1.1.1. Multiple-Rooftop Rating

Single entities with multiple rooftops are single businesses or POIs that operate out of more than one building. This category includes, but is not limited to, entities like factories, gas stations, apartment complexes, company headquarters, lumberyards, and breweries.

Every rooftop will be rated Perfect. The parcel of land inside the boundaries of the POI will be rated Approximate. Properties next door to the intended POI property will be rated Next Door.

In cases where the property also contains support or auxiliary buildings, including, but not limited to, guardhouses, dumpsters, storage sheds, donation bins, utility buildings, and toilets, these buildings should be considered part of the Approximate area.

	Satellite Views and Explanation
Figure 1: Satellite view of a gas station	Figure 2: Annotated satellite view of gas station	POI Type	Gas station with multiple rooftops
		This business is a gas station with a canopy over the gas pumps. All structures are on the same property and belong to the same business. Perfect (green area in Figure 2) -> If the pin falls on any rooftop. Approximate (yellow area in Figure 2) -> If the pin falls within the property boundaries. Next Door (purple area in Figure 2) -> If the pin falls on the immediate property next to the intended one.
Figure 1: Satellite view of multirooftop POI	Figure 2: Annotated satellite view of multi-rooftop POI	POI Type	Business with multiple rooftops
		This business consists of three buildings. Perfect (green area in Figure 2) -> If the pin falls on any of the buildings Approximate (yellow area in Figure 2) -> If the pin falls within the property boundaries. Next Door (purple area in Figure 2 ) -> If the pin falls on the immediate property next to the intended one.

Satellite Views and Explanations
	POI Type	Factory with multiple rooftops
	This is a large factory consisting of several buildings. Perfect (green area in Figure 2) -> If the pin falls on any of the buildings. Approximate (yellow area in Figure 2) -> If the pin falls within
Figure 1: Satellite view of multiple-rooftop POI        Figure 2: Annotated satellite view of multiple-rooftop POI	the property boundaries. This particular POI has no Next Door area.
Annotated satellite view shows restaurant and shed (arrow points to street imagery of shed).	POI Type	Restaurant with storage shed
	This restaurant has a detached storage shed on its property. Perfect (green area in top image) -> If the pin falls on the main restaurant building. Approximate (yellow area in top image) -> If the pin falls within the property boundaries, including the small support shed behind the restaurant. Next Door (purple areas in top image) -> If the pin drops on either of the immediate properties next to the intended one.

1.1.2. Campus Rating

Some POIs will encompass entire POI complexes, meaning that there are multiple buildings associated with/owned by the POI. These POIs include (but are not limited to) institutional complexes like universities and hospitals, and airports. Other POI types that can be rated as campuses include shopping and strip malls with multiple rooftops, amusement parks, resorts, and zoos.

In cases like this, the entire parcel or property inside the boundaries of the POI, including all rooftops, will be rated Perfect. There will be no Approximate or Next Door ratings.

The property of a campus complex includes the buildings themselves, any shared parking lots, and the boundaries of the POI as defined by the Half ‘n’ Half Rule.

Many, though not all, campuses can be identified by the presence of POIs within the POI. That is, individual stores within multiple-rooftop malls, departments within hospitals, libraries and colleges within universities, spas and restaurants within multiple-rooftop resorts, terminals within airports, and so on.

Some of these types of POIs may have polygons outlining the boundaries of the POI on the map. These polygons may not always be present or perfect, so rate against the true boundaries of the campus or complex as determined by research. A few examples of campuses are below, including two that are missing their polygons.

1.1.2.1. Single-Complex Campus

Entities made up of a single cluster of buildings are the easiest to identify. On the map, these entities can be represented by a single, continuous polygon. Remember, the polygons on the map may not always be perfect or present, so rate against the true boundaries of the campus or complex as determined through research.

The property of a complex includes the buildings themselves, any shared parking lot and half n half as described in the guidelines.

Parking facilities may be included in the polygon if they are owned by the POI and contiguous to the campus (contiguous means that they are not separated from the campus by a street).

Tip: Start by looking at the pin’s location, then determine if the property surrounding the pin belongs to the POI you are looking at.

Standard Views and Explanation
POI	Stanford University	POI Type	University
Fig. 1: Standard view of Stanford University		Fig. 2: Annotated standard view of Stanford University campus
The standard map shows that Stanford University has its own polygon for the campus, which outlines the boundaries of the campus. Any pin landing within the polygon is considered Perfect and anything outside of the polygon is Wrong. Remember that there are no Approximate or Next Door rating for campus and business complexes.

Standard Views and Explanation
POI	El Camino Real Hospital	POI Type	Hospital
Fig. 1: Standard view of El Camino Hospital campus		Fig. 2: Annotated standard view of El Camino Hospital campus
The Perfect pin falls within the hospital boundaries (green area in Fig. 2). Anything outside of these boundaries is rated, Wrong.
POI	Disneyland	POI Type	Theme Park
Fig. 1: Standard view of Disneyland Park		Fig. 2: Annotated satellite view
There is no polygon available for this POI, so an imaginary polygon outline must be created according to the actual boundaries of the POI. To determine where the valid pin area is, look at the location of the attractions within the amusement park and visualize the boundary of the park to determine the POI’s polygon. The green area highlighted in a satellite view of the POI (Fig. 2) represents the valid area for the pin to land in. A pin landing anywhere outside of this green area would be a Wrong pin. Note: Parking lots separated by a road should not be included in the polygon because they are not immediately next to the POI. Utility buildings located outside of the public park premises are not included in the polygon.

1.1.1.1. Dispersed Campus

Sometimes a campus will not have a single, continuous location that a polygon can be drawn over, but may be spread across a large area. Sometimes, the pin will fall on this type of campus and there may not be a polygon for the campus. If this occurs, research to determine where the polygon should be. Pins that fall on campusassociated, non-parking facilities are valid pins. Apply the single rooftop rules to any standalone, non-parking facility, campus building.

If two or more campus buildings are next to each other, apply the single complex campus logic.

Standard Views and Explanation
POI	Virginia Commonwealth University	POI Type	University
Fig. 1: Annotated standard view		Fig. 2: Zoomed in view of pin location
Perfect -> If the pin falls the green polygon minus campus-associated parking facilities and non-campus-associated buildings. Wrong -> If the pin falls on a standalone, campus-associated parking facility, or on a non campus-associated building. Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a campus that is spread out around the city (campus properties are highlighted in green). A pin falling on the rooftop of the Virginia Commonwealth University – School of Medicine building is a valid pin for this POI, but a pin falling on a VCU parking lot would not be a valid pin for the same POI.
POI	Boston University	POI Type	University
Fig. 1: Annotated standard view		Fig. 2: Zoomed in view of pin location
The Boston University campus is also spread across the city, represented by the highlighted green areas (Fig. 1). The pin falls on the rooftop of the buildings that contains the  Physics and and Chemistry Departments. The building is a standalone, non-parking facility building that is associated with the campus, so the pin in this case is Perfect.

1.2.POIs Within POIs

POIs within POIs usually occur when a Child POI is physically contained within, and controlled by, a Parent POI. POIs within POIs may occur within either single or multiple rooftop POIs. Examples of POIs within POIs include, but are not limited to:

• Malls and the businesses/shops that they contain
• Hospitals and the departments they contain
• Universities and the smaller colleges, facilities, and buildings within them
• Train stations and the stores and restaurants they contain
• Department stores and the other small businesses they contain
• Note: Cosmetics counters within a department store are not considered to be separate POIs

Pin ratings for POIs Within POIs will be based on the actual location of the POI, and determined by research. Research should be conducted by first identifying available resources, which may include, but are not limited to:

• standard, satellite, and street imagery (when available)
• official websites and/or official social media sites
• official maps and directories of the Parent POI.
• Note: Many Parent POIs, such as malls or airports, will have their own maps and shop directories, usually on their official website. Refer to the Parent POI’s directory whenever necessary to determine the precise location of a POI.

Use the following rating scale to evaluate the pin for POIs Within POIs:

Any parking facilities or other buildings associated with the Parent POI, such as banks or restaurants within a shared parking lot, are considered to be Approximate. The Half ’n’ Half Rule is then applied to the surrounding streets to determine the boundaries for Approximate ratings.

If a Parent POI has multiple rooftops, then the pin for the POI should land on the correct rooftop associated with the Child POI. For example, if a shopping mall has multiple rooftops, the Perfect pin for a specific shop within the mall should fall on the rooftop for the building that the POI is contained within. Other buildings, parking lots, and property within the Parent POI would be rated Approximate.

To verify the correct rooftop for a POI within another POI, it may be necessary to conduct research by examining the directory or map for the Parent POI.

1.2.1. Ratings Based on Available Evidence

Because a POI may be physically located within one a Parent POI, such as a mall, airport, or department store, it may not be possible to determine the location of the POI based on street and satellite imagery alone. For this reason, POI Within POI ratings will be heavily dependent on research. This section explains how to determine pin ratings when either you have sufficient evidence to determine a Child POI’s exact location within a Parent POI or you do not have sufficient evidence to determine that location.

With evidence

When there is sufficient evidence to to determine the precise location of the POI, then the section of rooftop over the POI should be rated Perfect. Once you have determined the rooftop where the POI is located, draw imaginary lines to demarcate the area over the POI. A pin dropped within that area will be rated Perfect. A pin dropped within the property boundaries of the parent POI will be rated Approximate, including the portions of the Parent POI’s rooftop that are not Perfect, other associated buildings, and shared parking lots within the Parent POI’s property.

Without evidence

If sufficient evidence is not available to determine the POI’s precise location, then the whole rooftop that contains that Child POI becomes Perfect. Other buildings associated with the Parent POI as well as shared parking lots within the boundaries of the Parent POI’s property, will be rated Approximate.

Satellite Views	Rating and Explanation
Child POI: Macy’s Parent POI: The Village, Corte Madera, CA Parent POI Directory: www.villageatcortemadera.com	Pin	Perfect
	Evidence	with evidence
	POI Type	Multiple Rooftop Shopping Mall
	In this example, Macy’s is located within a shopping center with multiple rooftops. Research, using street imagery and the shopping center’s map, reveals that the pin is located on the correct rooftop (green area) and should be rated Perfect. The other buildings, parking lots and property within the boundaries of the Parent POI (yellow areas) should be rated Approximate. If the pin falls outside of the Parent POI’s boundaries, then the pin should be rated Wrong.
Child POI: Target Parent POI: The Hub Shopping Center Parent POI Directory: www.thefremonthub.com	Pin	Perfect
	Evidence	with evidence
	POI Type	Multiple Rooftop Shopping Mall
	This Target store is located within a shopping center with multiple rooftops. Research, using street imagery and the shopping center’s map, reveals that the pin is located on the correct rooftop (green area) and should be rated Perfect. The other buildings, parking lots and property within the boundaries of the Parent POI (yellow area) should be rated Approximate. If the pin falls outside of the Parent POI’s boundaries, then the pin should be rated Wrong. Three POIs that do not have a parent-child relationship with The Hub Shopping Center share this city block (red areas): The Williams Historical Park, 76 gas station, and a Valero gas station. For example, the park is owned and operated by the City of Fremont, California, so we would not consider it to be a Child POI to the shopping center.

1.2.2. POI Within POI Pin Rating Examples

Satellite Image	Rating and Explanation
Child POI: Uniqlo Parent POI: Stoneridge Shopping Center Parent POI Directory: www.simon.com	Pin	Perfect
	Evidence	with evidence
	POI Type	Multiple Rooftop Shopping Mall
	Uniqlo is located within a mall that has a large rooftop. Research, using satellite imagery and the mall’s directory, reveals that the pin is located on the area of the mall’s rooftop over the Child POI (green area) and should be rated Perfect. The other buildings, parking lots and property within the boundaries of the Parent POI (yellow area) should be rated Approximate. If the pin falls outside of the Parent POI’s boundaries, then the pin should be rated Wrong.
Child POI: Ackermans Parent POI: Northgate Shopping Center Parent POI Directory: www.northgate.co.za	Pin	Approximate
	Evidence	with evidence
	POI Type	Multiple Rooftop Shopping Mall
	Ackermans is located within a large, single rooftop mall. Research, using satellite imagery and the mall’s directory, reveals the area of the mall’s rooftop that is over the Child POI (green area). If the pin is dropped in this area, then it should be rated Perfect. The pin, however, has been dropped over a section of the Parent POI’s rooftop that is not located over the Child POI, so it should be rated Approximate. Other buildings, parking lots and property within the boundaries of the Parent POI (yellow area) should also be rated Approximate. If the pin falls outside of the Parent POI’s boundaries, then the pin should be rated Wrong.
Satellite Views	Rating and Explanation
Child POI: Hudson News Parent POI: Halifax Stanfield International Airport Parent POI Directory: halifaxstanfield.ca	Pin	Perfect
	Evidence	Insufficient evidence
	POI Type	Multiple Rooftop Airport
	Hudson News is located within the terminal building at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport. Research, using the airport’s directory, reveals that there is more than one Hudson News location within this terminal building. The directory also does not specific the specific spaces occupied be each of the POIs that are house by the terminal building. The available evidence is not sufficient to indicate the precise location of Hudson News within the Parent POI, so the entire rooftop of the terminal will be rated Perfect (green area). The other buildings/terminals, parking lots and property within the boundaries of the Parent POI (yellow areas) should be rated Approximate. If the pin falls outside of the Parent POI’s boundaries, then the pin should be rated Wrong.

If a Child POI spans multiple floors within a Parent POI building and the area on each floor of the POI differs, imagine that the Perfect area stretches to the combined outer boundaries of each floor. For example, if a POI occupies two floors in a building and the first floor is much larger than the second floor, use the larger, first floor to determine the boundaries for a Perfect pin rating.

As long as the pin falls over the area occupied by any part of the Child POI, as determined by research, the pin should be rated Perfect.

1.3. POIs Without Rooftops

There are several different types of POIs that may not have rooftops, such as natural features (lakes, forests, mountains, etc.), bus stops, and parking facilities. The following sections explain how to rate pins for POIs without a rooftop.

1.3.1. Natural Features

Natural features include but are not limited to:

A natural feature may also have other natural features within or surrounding it. These could include, but are not limited to, lakes within parks, the shore of a lake, an island in a river, and a forest surrounding a mountain.

Similar natural features, even if not listed above, should be rated using these guidelines.

Rating	Explanation
Perfect	If the natural feature has a defining feature (water for a river/ocean, cliffs/peak of a mountain, the sand for a beach), the pin should fall on that feature OR if the natural feature is defined by an arbitrary area (parks, national forests), pin should fall in their polygon or where it would be if we had that information.
Approximate	The pin falls outside of the defining features of a natural feature but still on it (slope of a mountain rather than the peak) or on an associated feature (the shore of a river or lake). Not all natural features will have an Approximate. If the natural feature exists within an urban or suburban area, you may apply the Half ’n’ Half Rule.
Next Door	N/A – Natural features do not have Next Door ratings.
Wrong	The pin falls in an area that does not meet the criteria for Perfect or Approximate.
Can’t Verify	See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify

Example Type	POI and Screenshot	Explanation
Body of water	Lake Merritt, Oakland, Ca Fig. 1: Standard view of Lake Merritt Fig. 2: Annotated standard view of Lake Merritt	Perfect (green area) ➡ Anywhere on the defining feature of the lake. In this case, the defining feature would be the water. Approximate (yellow area) ➡%The shore of the lake and the park surrounding the lake (associated feature). Wrong (everything else) ➡ Anywhere past the shore of the lake.

Example Type	POI and Screenshot	Explanation
Land feature	Mount Rainier Fig. 1: Standard view of Mount Rainier Fig. 2: Satellite view of Mount Rainier Fig. 3: Annotated 3D view of Mount Rainier	Land features similar to mountains, mountain ranges, or volcanoes, should use the following guidelines. Perfect (area above green line in Fig. 3) ➡ Anywhere on the defining feature of the mountain (peak or ridge, depending on the mountain). Approximate (area between green and yellow lines in Fig. 3) ➡ Anywhere on the slope of the mountain. Wrong (area below yellow line in Fig. 3) ➡ Valley of the mountain, anywhere further out than the obvious slope. Tip: If available, try using a 3D view of the mountain to determine where its peak or ridge is. We’ll want to use common sense to determine the pin rating for these types of land features. For example, a peak of a mountain can span a large area and may have a more gradual slope area, so we want to make sure that we’re not being too strict or too generous when rating the pin.

1.3.2. POIs with Waiting/Access Areas

POIs that have waiting or access areas typically have non-conventional locations, such as on the side of the street or within a plaza area. Bus stops, train stop platforms, ATMs, mailboxes, and bike share racks are just some examples of these types of POIs.

Bus stops are generally on the side of the street and have an area where users can wait to board the bus. Pins should therefore be placed in the area where a user would wait or can be placed within 50 meters of the waiting area and within the Half ’n’ Half Rule to be valid. Other POIs that are typically located on the side of the street, such as bike share racks, will be rated similarly.

If the POI has multiple rooftops/platforms for waiting areas, apply the Multiple Rooftop POI rule (see Sec.

10.4 Multiple Rooftop POIs) when determining the valid area for the pin to land on.

The following rating scale and guidelines will be used to rate POIs with waiting/access areas:

1.4. Parking Lots and Parking Structures

Shared parking lots are considered Approximate even though they do not belong entirely to the feature. In the example of Sourdough & Co in El Dorado Hills (green building), the approximate area (yellow) extends up to the public road to the north, Town Center Blvd.

In cases where the parking structure can be verified in satellite imagery (by either parked cars or parking lot striping), consider the whole structure a parking lot. The assumption is that there will be no businesses within the structure other than parking-related businesses.

Always consider parking lots and parking structures as belonging to the feature, as such there’s no need to split them by applying the Half ’n’ Half Rule.

1.1.1. EV Chargers

Some POIs are located within a parking facility, such as an open-air parking lot or a parking structure. The pins for these POIs can be placed anywhere within the parking facility, as long as the pin is within the parking facility. The rating scale for these POIs follows:

EV Charger in a Parking Lot:

A Tesla Supercharger demonstrates how to rate the pin when the POI is located in an open-air parking lot. In these cases, the pin falling in any area of the parking lot hosting the POI is Perfect. The building associated with the parking lot is considered part of the Approximate pin area up to the Half ’n’ Half Rule for the POI. Any properties next to the parking lot that do not share the parking lot are considered Next Door. Satellite imagery shows that there is a hedge/tree- lined boundary that splits the parking lot and the Next Door building.

EV Charger in a Parking Structure:

This example looks at an EV charger in a parking structure. EV chargers located within parking structures are rated the same way individual parking structures and buildings are rated. The image to the right highlights the rating areas for a ChargePoint EV charger located within a parking structure. The parking structure is a single-rooftop POI, so the pin should be rated according to the single rooftop POI rules.

1.2. Transit POIs

Transit POIs include, but are not limited to, POIs that are transit stops, stations, tollbooths, and terminals. A transit stop is a small, transit location typically designated by a bench or covered bench area, a posted sign, or street markings. Transit stations, on the other hand, are typically larger stops that have a major structure associated with it, which include, but are not limited to, platforms, ticketing offices, enclosed waiting/seating areas, or terminal buildings/structures encompassing the transit area. The term “station” is primarily used to refer to transit locations that are larger and typically a terminal housing multiple routes. All stations are stops, but not all stops are stations.

If a transit POI does not meet the criteria to be rated under the Single Rooftop or Campus/Complex guidelines, please use the following criteria to rate:

1.2.1. Bus, Tram and Streetcar Stops

Bus, tram and streetcar stops are often, but not always, on the side of the street and have one spot where users

POI	Screenshot	Rating Explanation
Noriega St and 46th Ave bus stop	Fig.1: Standard view of bus stop Fig.2: Annotated satellite view of bus stop	Perfect (green area in Fig. 2) ➡ Where a user would wait for the bus. Approximate (yellow area in Fig. 2) ➡ 50 m away from where a user would wait for the bus but no farther out than the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows and not on a building rooftop. Wrong (everything else in Fig. 2) ➡ Farther than 50 meters, or beyond half a city block, from where user waits for the bus, or farther out than the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows, on a rooftop, or on private property where a person would not wait for transit. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify Special Note: A satellite view shows that this pin might actually fall in the street for this bus stop. Remember, favor the map view that gives a more generous rating for the pin these cases. In this case, the standard map view is used to rate the pin.

can wait to board the bus. Perfect pins should be placed on the spot where a user would wait while Approximate pins can be placed within 50m of the waiting spot and within the Half ’n’ Half Rule.

1.2.2. Transit POI with Multiple Rooftops/Platforms

If the POI has multiple rooftops/platforms, apply similar ideas from the campus/complex pin guidelines when determining the valid area for the pin to land on.

For campuses/complexes, a polygon was created using the boundaries of the campus. Use the same concept with transit POIs and create a polygon for the transit POI using the POI’s multiple rooftop/platforms.

POI	Screenshot	Explanation
San Jose Diridon Station	Fig. 1: Standard view of San Jose Diridon Station Fig. 2: Annotated satellite view of San Jose Diridon Station	This is the San Jose Diridon train station, so rate the pin according to the train station platforms and rooftops. Perfect ➡ Polygon of the station or rooftop/ platform of the station or area between rooftops/platforms of the station (green color). Approximate ➡ Within 50 meters of where you would wait for transit or within transit station parking lots and surrounding property up to where the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows (yellow color). Wrong ➡ Anywhere outside of transit station boundaries. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify Remember, if there is a polygon available in standard view for the POI, rate against the polygon.

POI	Screenshot	Explanation
Sunnyvale Station	Fig. 1: Standard view of Sunnyvale Station Fig. 2: Annotated satellite view of Sunnyvale Station	Some transit stops only have a platform where a user can wait for the transit. Perfect (green area in Fig. 2) ➡ Where a user would wait for transit or the area between where a user would wait for transit. Approximate (yellow area in Fig. 2) ➡ Within 50 meters of where you would wait for transit or within transit stop parking lots and surrounding property up to where the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows. Wrong (everything else in Fig. 2) ➡ Farther than 50 meters from where user waits for transit or farther out than the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify

POI	Screenshot	Explanation
Solana Beach Amtrak Station	Fig. 1: Standard view of Solana Beach station Fig. 2: Annotated satellite view of Solana Beach station	Some stations have both a building rooftop and an open platform waiting area. Both of these areas are considered valid places for pins to fall on. Perfect (green area in Fig. 2) ➡ Pin falls on the platform(s) where the user would wait or the area between the platforms or the rooftop. Approximate (yellow area in Fig. 2) ➡ Pin falls within 50 meters of where you would wait for transit or within transit stop parking lots and surrounding property up to where the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows. Wrong (everything else in Fig. 2) ➡ Farther than 50 meters from where user waits for transit or farther out than the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify

1.2.3. Transit POIs with a Single Rooftop

If the POI has a single rooftop, apply the single rooftop guidelines.

POI	Screenshot	Explanation
Grand Central Terminal	Fig. 1: Standard view of Grand Central Terminal station Fig. 2: Annotated satellite view of Grand Central Terminal station	Perfect ➡ Rooftop of transit station or stop Approximate ➡ Transit POI parking lots and surrounding property up to where the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows Wrong ➡ Farther out than the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows from POI property Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify

1.2.4. Underground Transit Stations

Some transit stations are underground. For stops that do not have polygons available on the tool map, use similar rules to the satellite campus and draw a polygon using the entrances to the underground station as polygon coordinates. A pin dropped within 50 meters of this polygon should be rated Approximate.

If a pin is placed on a building within the polygon, the building must contain an entrance to the transit stop for the pin to be valid.

Some entrances can be seen via satellite view of the station, while other entrances can only be found by doing more research, including using street imagery of the station area to find entrances or using a station map from the transit provider that shows entrances to the station.

1.2.4.1. How to Establish an Entrance Polygon

1. Find at least three entrances to the underground transit station, if possible.
   1. Use street imagery or an official source to determine where the transit station entrances are located.
   1. Tip: A good place to start looking for transit entrances is near the pin’s location. This will make it easier to determine whether or not the pin falls within the polygon.
2. Connect the entrance points to create an enclosed polygon, where each entrance is a point of the polygon.
3. Determine whether or not our pin falls within 50 meters of the polygon or within the property covered by the Half ’n’ Half Rule.

If the underground transit station only has two entrances, we’ll use the following steps to create an entrance polygon. Transit station in the example is “16th St & Mission BART Station”.

POI	Steps	Satellite Views
16th St & Mission BART Station	1. Imagine property boundaries around the underground transit station entrances using the Half ’n’ Half Rule. Note: Entrances are designated by stars and property boundary polygons are designated by the letters A and B.
	2. Connect the closest points of the two boundaries from step 1 to create an entrance polygon. Note: In this case, we have taken points 1 and 2 from polygon A and connected them with points 3 and polygon B, respectively. Exclude building rooftops that do not contain an entrance to the underground station from the entrance polygon.
	3. Determine whether or not the pin falls within 50 meters of the polygon. Note: For underground transit POIs that only have one entrance, create the same polygon around the entrance as the Perfect pin rating area, then measure 50 meters from that polygon for the Approximate pin rating area.

1.2.4.2.                Examples

POI	Screenshot	Explanation
Jingu Marutamachi Station (神宮丸太町駅)	Fig. 1: Standard view of Jingu Marutamachi Station (神宮丸太町駅) Fig. 2: Annotated standard view of Jingu Marutamachi Station (神宮丸太町駅)	If the underground POI already has a polygon available, rate the pin against the polygon. In this case, there is a blue-colored polygon on the map for the POI. Perfect (green area in Fig. 2) ➡ Polygon of transit station. Approximate (yellow area in Fig. 2) ➡ Pin lands within 50 meters from the polygon or on transit station parking lots and surrounding property up to where the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows. In this case, the station does not have a station parking lot, so only look at the surrounding property within 50 meters of the polygon. Wrong (everything else in Fig. 2) ➡ Farther out than the Half ’n’ Half Rule allows from station property. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify

16th St and Mission St BART Station

Fig. 1: Standard view of 16th St Mission BART station Fig. 2: Satellite view of 16th St Mission BART Station showing station entrances Fig. 3: Annotated satellite view of 16th St Mission BART. Stars represent the entrances.

Perfect ➡ Pin falls within the entrance polygon and not on a building rooftop (unless there is an entrance within the building). Approximate ➡ Pin falls within 50 meters of the entrance polygon or within the property that Half ’n’ Half Rule covers. Wrong ➡ Pin falls more than 50 meters outside of the entrance polygon or outside the Half ’n’ Half Rule area. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify In this case, there are only two entrances to the transit station (Fig. 2). We’ll use the Half ’n’ Half Rule to determine the points for our entrance polygon (Fig. 3). Our pin falls within the entrance polygon created, so it is a Perfect pin

Tuileries Station

Fig. 1: Standard view of Tuileries Station Fig. 2: Annotated satellite view of Tuileries Station. Stars represent the entrances.

Perfect ➡ Pin falls within the entrance polygon and not on a building rooftop (unless there is an entrance within the building). Approximate ➡ Pin falls within 50 meters of the entrance polygon or within the property that Half ’n’ Half Rule covers. Wrong ➡ Pin falls more than 50 meters outside of the entrance polygon or outside the Half ’n’ Half Rule area. Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify In this example, the pin falls within the Half ’n’ Half Rule area for the entrance polygon, so it is an Approximate pin.

Jay Street- MetroTech

Fig. 1: Standard view of Jay St-MetroTech station Fig. 2: Annotated standard view of Jay St-MetroTech station with entrance polygon Fig. 3: Satellite view of Jay St-MetroTech station

Perfect ➡ Pin falls within entrance polygon and not on a building rooftop (unless there is an entrance within the building) Approximate ➡ Pin falls within 50 meters of the entrance polygon Wrong ➡ Pin falls more than 50 meters outside of the entrance polygon Can’t Verify ➡ See Sec. 10.2.7  Can’t Verify With underground transit stations that have multiple entrances, you’ll need to use street imagery or an online resource to find the transit entrances then draw a polygon using the entrances as points of the polygon. Here, we were able to find 5 entrances represented by the yellow stars that were near our pin (Fig. 2). These entrances were found via street imagery, since satellite view does not clearly show entrances to this transit station as it does for other stops (Fig. 3). There is also a transit station map available from the official transit website that shows the entrances to this station. In this example, our pin is placed within the entrance polygon for this station, so we rate it as Perfect.

1.3. Pin Corrections

If the pin is rated Approximate, Next Door, or Wrong, you must provide the latitude/longitude coordinates for the correct pin location. Here are some rules to follow when providing Pin Corrections:

1. When the POI is a single building/rooftop, the latitude/longitude coordinates should be located at the point nearest the center of the POI’s rooftop.

Standard Map	Satellite View

• When the POI has multiple buildings/rooftops (for example a plaza, shopping center, airport, campus, or other small area with multiple buildings), the latitude/longitude coordinates should be located at the point nearest the center of the POI’s parcel. For irregularly shaped, multiple rooftop POIs, use your best judgment to determine the approximate center of the parcel.

Standard Map	Satellite View

• For AOIs (e.g. local or national parks, beaches, etc.), the latitude/longitude coordinates should be located as close to the center of the feature as possible. For irregularly shaped AOIs, use your best judgment to determine the approximate center of the feature.

Standard Map	Satellite View

1.1.1. How to Collect Pin Correction Coordinates

Use the ‘Pin Drop’ tool to place a pin on the Map in the rating tool and collect the POI’s latitude/longitude coordinates.

1. Click the pin icon in the top, right corner of the map.

• Then, click on the map in the location where the pin would need to be to receive a Perfect rating. A place card will appear that include the pin’s lat/lng coordinates.

• Copy the pin’s lat/lng coordinates from the pin’s placecard and paste them into the provided text field.

If you need to change the pin’s location, click Delete Pin and start again.

If the pin does not align correctly to the location on the map where you click, try changing your browser.

Latitude and Longitude

• The latitude/longitude coordinates that you enter in the text fields must contain six digits after the decimal point (e.g. 58.301124 is acceptable, but 58.3011 is not acceptable).
• Do not change the formatting of the coordinates that are displayed on the placecard, including adding or editing punctuation, or adding spaces in the coordinates
• Do not collect POI coordinates from sources outside of the rating tool, including the POI’s official website, online search results, or online mapping services.

2. Hours

The following sections explain how to evaluate POI hours. If the POI validity rating for a POI is Yes – Temporary Closure, you will not be required to rate the POI’s hours.

Note: Examples in this chapter may present outdated information, due to the constantly changing nature of business hours.

Please treat any listed “Actual Hours” as the correct set of business hours, even if they are no longer accurate at the time of reading.

2.1. Hours Rating Options

Dynamic Rating Options

POI hours may not be available for all POIs. This will be indicated by the statement, ‘Data not available’, in the hours field. When hours data is not available, the rating options will be determined dynamically.

2.1.1. Research Expectations

Use the following rules when conducting research on a POI’s hours:

• POI hours should only be verified using official sources:
• Official sources for hours evaluation are limited to either the business’s official website or official social media page.
• Do not use information from unofficial social media pages, claimed or unclaimed crowdsourced user review sites, online street imagery, or SERPs. These are not considered to be reliable resources for verifying POI hours.
• Do not use information from online maps services, or other third-party sites, even if directed to do so by the POI’s official sources.

2.1.1.1.  Confirming Hours on Social Media Pages

When conducting research on POI Hours, always ensure that you locate the hours for the full week. Some sources may provide only the current day as a default display – this limited information should not be assumed to represent the full workweek schedule.

If the full workweek schedule is not available on the home page of an official website or social media page, navigate to the ‘contact’ or ‘about’ subpages. More information may be available on those subpages. Also, look for any dropdown or pop-up windows that may include additional hours information. For example:

Default ‘Home’ View	Default ‘About’ View	Hours Selected
The full workweek schedule for this POI is not displayed on the official social media’s top page. The displayed information only provides information on the current day.	After navigating to the ‘About’ subpage, the hours still only display that hours status for the current workday.	However, after toggling on the hours on the ‘About’ sub-page, the full workweek schedule for this POI can be displayed. This information should be used to evaluate the POI’s listed hours.

2.1.1.2. Conflicting Research Resources

If the listed hours on an official website disagree with the listed hours on an official social media site, base your rating on the information that is posted on the POI’s official website.

If a POI has a single set of open hours, but the official website includes contradictory sets of hours, rate Can’t Verify.

2.1.1.3. Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) and User Review Sites

Sometimes a Search Engine Results Page (SERPs) or a crowdsourced user review site may return POI hours. However, you should not use automated responses from these sources to confirm POI hours. Only official websites or official social media sites should be used to confirm a POI’s hours.

If it is not possible, based on available evidence from official sources, to verify a business’s hours, then the POI Hours should be rated Can’t Verify.

2.1.1.4.  Online Maps Services

Online maps services may return POI hours. However, you should not use maps services to confirm POI hours. Only official websites or official social media sites should be used to confirm a POI’s hours, even if the POI’s official sources embed or link to an online maps service with hours information.

If it is not possible, based on available evidence from official sources, to verify a business’s hours, then the POI Hours should be rated Can’t Verify.

2.1.2. General Hours Rating Rules

Keep the following rules in mind when evaluating POI Hours:

Open Hours on Different Days of the Week

Some POIs may have different open hours depending on the day of the week. For open hours to be rated Correct, all days and times must be complete and accurate. If any of these details do not match the open hours listed on official online sources, the hours are Incorrect.

Weekly Closures

Some POIs may be closed on the same day each week. Days that are regularly closed are not expected to appear as part of the POI’s hours. For example, if a restaurant is closed each Monday, the hours are not required to include a label or hours for Monday. As long as the hours of all other days of the week are accurate, the hours should be rated Correct.

Unattended POIs

Hours are not necessary for some POIs that are unattended, such as a transit stop, an EV charger, or a bike sharing rack. When an unattended POI does not have open hours, it should be rated OK Without. However, if open hours are listed for an unattended POI, the hours must be confirmed through official sources.

Formatting

While it is important that the open hours are accurate, formatting is not a reason to demote hours. Acceptable formatting may include:

• 12- o 4-hour    clock
• For example, 5pm and 17:00 are both acceptable ways to represent 5pm
• A one minute difference between the listing information and official POI hours is acceptable
• For example, if the POI has an official opening time of 2:59pm, then a closing time of 15:00 in the listing information is acceptable
• Similarly, if a POI has an official closing time of 6:29pm, then a closing time of 18:30 in the listing information is acceptable
• POIs open 24 hours may be represented differently in the listing information
• 00:00-00:00, 00:00 – 24:00, and 0:00 – 23:59 are each acceptable
• However, 0:00 – 23:58 is not an acceptable variation because at least one minute (23:59) is missing from the 24 hour day
• POIs that list “midnight” as an opening or closing time may be represented differently in the listing information
• 00:00, 24:00, and 23:59 are each acceptable variants of ‘midnight’
• Days of the week presented as a range vs. individually
• Days of the week presented out of order

2.1.3. Research Workflow

Use this research workflow to help you to determine what information to base your ratings on.

2.2. Hours for POIs Within POIs

A POI that is located within another POI may have different hours than the POI that it is located within. In order for the listed POI hours to be considered Correct, the POI hours must exactly match the open days and hours for the listed POI.

2.3. POIs with Seasonal Hours

Some POIs may have more than one set of hours listed on their official website due to seasonal open hours. This may occur when a POI is open during specific seasons, such as water parks, ski resorts, holiday decoration stores and haunted houses, among others. Seasonal hours may also occur when a POI changes its hours during different months of the year.

If a POI has more than one set of hours on their official website, due to seasonal hour changes, you should base your rating on the date that you are rating.

For example, if a museum is open 9AM-5PM from November to May and 10AM-6PM from June to Oer and you are rating the POI in March, then:

• the POI hours 9AM-5PM will be Correct.
• the POI hours 10AM-6PM will be Incorrect.

Whenever you rate a POI with seasonal hours, add a note in the comment field to indicate that the POI has seasonal hours.

2.4. POIs with Additional Service Hours

Some POIs may also have more than one set of hours indicated on their official web site due to the specific services that they provide. This may occur when a POI has separate lobbies, dining areas, drive-thrus, or other spaces that are open during different hours and provide a range of similar or additional services.

If a POI has more than one set of hours indicated on their official website, but they do not offer the same overlapping services in each of these spaces, you should base your ratings on the regular business hours for the POI. For example: • Post offices that have public lobbies which are open longer than the post office counter. Only the regular business hours are considered to be Correct.

• Banks that have ATMs, or ATM lobbies, which are open longer than the bank counters. Only the regular business hours are considered to be Correct.

2.4.1. Restaurants

Restaurants will often have separate hours for dining room areas and/or take-away services.

Additionally, fast food restaurants will often provide specific hours for drive-thru services.

The hours are Correct as long as they match any of the following sets of service hours.

• Dining room or regular business hours are Correct
• Drive-thru hours are Correct
• Take-away service hours are Correct
• Curbside pick-up hours are Correct

Do not rate hours accuracy based on delivery service hours.

• If a restaurant’s official sources only provide delivery service hours, then rate Can’t Verify
• If the listed hours match delivery hours, but other supported service hours (dining room, drive-thru, take-awr curbside pick-up) are available on official sources, rate hours accuracy according to supported service hours.

2.4.2. Pharmacies

Pharmacy POIs will often have separate hours for the Pharmacy’s main hours and/or the pharmacy counter hours. The hours are Correct as long as they match one of the following sets of hours.

• Main Pharmacy Store hours are Correct
• Pharmacy Counter hours are Correct

Do not rate pharmacy hours based on other types of service hours. For example:

• Photography Services hours are Incorrect
• Pickup hours are Incorrect
• Money Services hours are Incorrect
• Passport Services hoursare Incorrect

1.1. Temporary Changes to Hours and Services

POIs may experience temporary changes in hours due to construction, remodeling, natural disaster, disease, or other reasons. Temporary changes to operating hours may also include a reduction or change in services.

When a POI has temporarily changed its operating hours, your ratings should reflect the hours as they are posted on official sources on the date that you rate the POI. The examples in this section were sampled from POIs that had temporary changes to their operating hours or services on April 10, 2020, due to impacts by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Temporary Change in Hours

If a POI has more than one set of hours indicated on their official website, rate according to the set of hours that are in effect on the date that you rate the POI. For example:

• If a POI has updated their hours temporarily, then the temporary business hours are considered to be Correct.
• If a POI lists both their regular and temporary business hours, only the temporary business hours are considered to be Correct.

Temporary Change in Services

If a POI changes the type or number of services that are available, rate according to the set of service hours that are in effect on the date that you rate the POI. For example:

• If a POI has closed a public lobby, counter, or dining room, then the temporary service hours are Correct.
• If the POI now offers multiple services with different hours, then any of the new service hours are Correct.

POI and Actual Hours	Listed Hours	Rating and Explanation
Fogo de Chão 1337 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107 Take-Away Hours: Sun-Sat 11AM – 7PM	SUNDAY (11:00-19:00) MONDAY (11:00-19:00) TUESDAY (11:00-19:00)  (11:00-19:00) THURSDAY (11:00-19:00) FRIDAY (11:00-19:00) SATURDAY (11:00-19:00)	Hours	Correct
		Fogo de Chão is a Brazilian steakhouse and butcher shop. On April 10, 2020, they were not seating patrons in their restaurant, but were operating with reduced hours for takeaway service only. Since the take-away hours represent their temporary operating hours, they should be rated Correct.

Restaurants

Remember that when rating restaurant POIs, the hours are Correct as long as they match any of the following supported sets of service hours. This also applies to temporary changes in hours and services.

• Dining room or regular business hours are Correct
• Drive-thru hours are Correct
• Take-away service hours are Correct
• Curbside pick-up hours are Correct

Do not rate hours accuracy based on delivery service hours.

• If a restaurant’s official sources only provide delivery service hours, then rate Can’t Verify
• If the listed hours match delivery hours, but other supported service hours (dining room, drive-thru, take-awr curbside pick-up) are available on official sources, rate hours

accuracy according to supported service hours.

1.2. POIs Without Expected Hours

Some POIs are not expected to have hours associated with them. These may include, but are not limited to:

• POIs that are Always Open, including:
• Hotels
• Gas Stations
• Parks and Natural Features
• POIs Without Fixed Hours, including:
• POIs Open by Appointment
• Schools and Universities
• POIs that are Based on Daylight

1.2.1. POIs that are Always Open

If a POI is always open and the listed hours indicate that the POI is open 24 hours each day, then the open hours are Correct.

However, if a POI is expected to be always open and there are no listed hours, then the rating should be OK

Without.

POI and Actual Hours	Listed Hours	Rating and Explanation
Hanks Supermarket 2634 St Claude Ave New Orleans, LA Open Hours: Always open	SUNDAY (00:00-00:00) MONDAY (00:00-00:00) TUESDAY (00:00-00:00)  (00:00-00:00) THURSDAY (00:00-00:00) FRIDAY (00:00-00:00) SATURDAY (00:00-00:00)	Hours	Correct
		The POI’s official social media page indicates that Hanks Supermarket is always open. Since the listed hours match the POI’s actual hours, the hours are Correct.
	(none)	Hours	OK Without
		The POI’s official social media page indicates that Hanks Supermarket is always open.  Since the POI is always expected to be open and there are no listed hours, the hours are OK Without.
Dunkin Donuts 510 Southampton Boston, MA 02127 Open Hours: Sun – Sat 12am-12am	SUNDAY (00:00-00:00) MONDAY (00:00-00:00) TUESDAY (00:00-00:00)  (00:00-00:00) THURSDAY (00:00-00:00) FRIDAY (00:00-00:00) SATURDAY (00:00-00:00)	Hours	Correct
		The POI’s official website indicates that this location is open 24 hours a day. Since the listed hours match the POI’s actual hours, the hours are Correct.
	(none)	Hours	OK Without
		According to the POI’s official website, this location is open 24 hours a day. Since the POI is always expected to be open and there are no listed hours, the hours are OK Without.

1.2.1.1. Hotels

Hotels are often open 24 hours each day. Here are some rules to follow when rating hours for hotels:

• If a hotel is always open and the POI hours are listed as 24 hours each day, then the hours are Correct.
• If a hotel is expected to always be open and there are no listed hours, then the rating is OK Without.
• If a hotel has fixed lobby hours, but there are no listed hours, then the hours are Missing.
• If official sources do not have fixed hours and the listed hours reflect specific open hours, rate Can’t Verify.
• If a hotel has specific lobby open hours, according to the POIs official website, then rate the listed hours according to the general rating guidance in the sections above.

Do not rate hotel hours based on a hotel’s reception desk hours or other service hours, these are not considered to be equivalent to hotel lobby hours.

1.2.1.2. Gas Stations

Gas stations are expected to be open 24 hours each day, unless fixed open hours are listed on official sources. Refer to the following rules when rating gas station hours:

• If a gas station is always open and the POI hours are listed as 24 hours each day, the hours are Correct.
• If a gas station is expected to be always open and there are no listed hours, then the rating should be OK Without.
• If a gas station has fixed open hours, but there are no listed hours, then the POI hours are  Missing.
• If official sources do not have fixed hours and the listed hours reflect specific open hours, rate Can’t Verify.

1.2.1.3. Parks and Natural Features

If a park or natural feature is always open and the listed hours indicate that the park is open 24 hours each day, then the hours are Correct.

However, if a park or natural feature is expected to always be open and there are no listed hours provided by the POI on their official website, then the rating should be OK Without.

If a park or natural feature has specific open hours, according to the POIs official website, then rate the listed hours according to the general rating guidance above.

1.2.2. POIs without Fixed Hours

Some POIs are not expected to have fixed hours. This may occur when a POI is open by appointment, or hours are communicated through channels other than online resources. The following sections explain how to rate POIs that do not have fixed hours schedules.

1.2.2.1. POIs Open by Appointment

If a POI does not have specific open hours associated with it, such as POIs that are open by appointment-only, then listed POI hours are not expected. If there are no listed hours for a POI without fixed hours, the listed hours should be rated OK Without.

If the listed hours are the POI’s appointment-only schedule, the hours should be rated Incorrect.

However, if a POI’s open hours include both normal business hours and appointments, then the POI’s normal business hours should be rated Correct.

1.2.2.2. Schools and Universities

Schools and universities often maintain administrative as well as educational and event calendars. These are often communicated to students, parents, and staff directly, so regular operating hours are not expected. If a school or university does not publish hours on their official website, then the rating should be OK Without.

However, if a school or university has specific open hours, according to the POIs official website, then rate the listed hours according to the general rating guidance in the sections above. This may include hours for administrative offices or academic departments, which post specific open hours on their official websites.

1.2.3. POIs that are Based on Daylight

POIs that are based on daylight (e.g ‘from dusk’, ‘until sunset’, ‘from dawn’, etc.) should not have hours associated with them. For example, parks, beaches or trails that close at sunset. Rate OK Without, if no hours are listed.

However, daylight hours are not fixed and will fluctuate throughout the year. So, if a specific hour replaces a POI hour that is based on daylight (for example, sunset is listed as 5pm), then these should be rated Incorrect.

1.3. Hours Corrections

If the listed Hours are rated Incorrect orMissing, text boxes will appear for you to enter the correct POI Hours for each day of the week. You should enter the correct POI Hours for each day of the week, even in cases where there may have been only one error in the listed POI Hours. For example, if you rate the POI Hours as incorrect

because the closing time for Sunday was incorrect, you will still be asked to provide the correct POI Hours for each day of the week.

Hours Corrections for POIs with Service Hours

• If a restaurant has supported service hours (dining room, drive-thru, take-awr curbside pick-up), use these as the basis for your hours rating and corrections
• Do not provide delivery hours as corrections for restaurant hours
• If a hotel has general lobby hours, use these as the basis for your hours rating and corrections
• Do not provide reception desk hours as corrections for hotel hours
• If a pharmacy has either main or pharmacy hours, use these as the basis for your rating and corrections
• Do not provide hours for other services associated with the pharmacy (e.g. photography counter)

Hours Corrections Formatting Rules

Use the following rules to correctly format POI Hours corrections for each day of the week.

• Must be in 24-Hour clock (hh:mm) format
• If the POI is open in multiple hour ranges on a single day, use ‘;’ to separate hour ranges
• Do not include ‘am’ or ‘pm’
• Do not add any spaces
• Do not add any comments, notes or research resources in these text fields

Exceptions to 24-Hour Clock Format

• If the POI is closed on a specific day of the week, enter ‘closed‘ in the text field for the respective day
• If the POI operates according to daylight hours, enter ‘sunrise‘ and/ or ‘sunset‘, accordingly.
• If the POI lists a closing time as either ‘until late‘ or ‘evening‘, enter ‘late‘ or ‘evening’, accordingly
• If the POI is open by appointment only, enter ‘appointment‘ in the text field for the respective day
• If the POI opens and/or closes due to scenarios not covered above, enter ‘other’, and provide an explanation in your comments. For example:
• If the POI closes once their stock has sold out, enter the opening time, followed by ‘other’ (e.g. 10:00-other)
• If the POI does not list hours on any official URL and requests that users ‘call for hours’, enter ‘other’ as a standalone term in the hours correction field
• Do not abbreviate any of the above terms (e.g. do not use ‘cl’ for ‘closed’, ‘appt’ for ‘appointment’, etc.)

Here are some examples of common hours use cases and how they should be entered into the Hours Correction fields.

1.4. POI Hours Evidence Collection

If the Hours were rated Correct, Incorrect, or Missing, you will be asked to provide the official source that you used to verify the POI’s hours. Please provide the webpage’s URL and a screenshot of the webpage at the time of your rating. Remember that only official resources, either a business’s official website or official social media page, should be used as evidence.

1.4.1. URL Evidence

A text box will appear for you to enter the URL of the webpage used to verify the listed business hours.

Use official sources to research the operating hours and refer to the formatting rules below. Enter the Official URL using this format:

• https://www.example.com/index.html The URL must begin with either of the following:
• https://
• http://

Do not use url shorteners. Always insert the entire evidence URL in this field.

1.4.2. Website Type (Hours)

Whenever a URL is provided as evidence for hours rating, you will next indicate the type of website that was used to verify the listed business hours.

A dropdown menu will appear with the following rating options:

• Official Website
• Official Social
  

1.4.3. Screenshot Evidence

Take a screenshot of the webpage that was used in your decision(s) for the Hours ratings.

• The screenshot should include:
• The POI’s hours. If multiple sets of hours are displayed, annotate the screenshot to indicate which set of hours was used as the basis for your Hours rating
• Information that indicates the identity of the POI (e.g. page header with POI’s name and/or logo, POI name and address, etc.)
• The screenshot must be taken from the same URL that you provided as URL Evidence
• Do not include personal information such as your browser user account, bookmarks, taskbar, etc.
• Most operating systems will allow users to choose between capturing the entire desktop, a specific window, or a custom portion of your screen. Either of the last two options should be sufficient. • The Screenshot Evidence field only accepts image file types, such as .jpg, .png
• Image must be saved and not copied on your clipboard.

1.4.3.1. How to Take a Screenshot