How to Calculate the ROI of Google Maps
Google Maps ROI is unusually measurable because Google counts the actions that become customers: direction requests, calls and booking clicks. Multiply your monthly direction requests by a realistic show-up rate, party size and spend per head to get the revenue Maps already drives; any percentage growth in those requests converts straight into a monthly uplift figure you can weigh against what the growth cost you.
Why Maps is the rare marketing channel you can actually measure
Most venue marketing asks you to take results on faith. Google Maps counts them for you: your profile dashboard reports how many people asked for directions, called, clicked your booking link or visited your website every month. A direction request is somebody who decided to come; that is about as close to a countable customer as marketing data gets.
The four numbers you need
- Monthly direction requests, straight from your Google Business Profile performance dashboard.
- A show-up rate. Not everyone who taps directions arrives. A conservative planning assumption is around 70 percent.
- Average party size. A direction request is usually a table, not a solo diner. Two is a safe default for most venues.
- Average spend per head, which you know from your POS better than any calculator.
The method, with a worked example
Say your profile gets 1,000 direction requests a month, and you assume 70 percent show up, in parties of two, spending $50 a head. That is 700 arrivals representing 1,400 covers and roughly $70,000 of monthly revenue that Google Maps is already steering to your door. Most owners have never seen that number for their own venue, and it is usually the biggest surprise in this exercise.
Now the ROI part. If profile work grows direction requests by 30 percent, that is roughly $21,000 of additional monthly revenue on the same assumptions. Weigh the uplift against what the work costs each month and the return calculation does itself. Two honest caveats: this is an estimate built on your assumptions, and it is conservative, because it ignores calls, booking clicks and the people who found you on Maps but walked in without tapping directions.
What growth is actually realistic?
Not a made-up number: across our published case studies, managed profiles grew direction clicks by 21 percent at an established Bali institution and 76 percent at an Australian beachfront venue over eleven months, with a new Bangkok opening near tripling from its starting base. Where you land depends on your starting point and your competition, which is exactly what a call is for.
Do the maths on your own numbers
Our ROI calculator runs this calculation for your venue in about a minute: your direction requests, your spend, your assumptions, your monthly uplift figure. If the number it shows you is worth chasing, the fundamentals that move it are in our ranking guide, and the doing of it is our day job.
Real client result
La Playa Beach & Eats · Australia
Direction clicks are the number that becomes revenue, and La Playa grew theirs 76 percent over eleven months of managed profile work, alongside a near tripling of impressions. Run those percentages through your own spend numbers and the business case writes itself.
Frequently asked questions
Are direction requests a reliable measure of customers?
They are a conservative one. Regulars stop needing directions and plenty of guests walk in without tapping anything, so direction requests understate what Maps drives. That makes them a safe basis for an ROI estimate rather than an inflated one.
What show-up rate should I assume?
Around 70 percent is a sensible planning figure for people who actively requested directions. If you want to be extra conservative, run the numbers at 50 percent as well and treat the two results as your range.
How quickly does profile work show up in direction requests?
Improvements typically become visible over one to three months, with the compounding effects continuing well beyond that. Our published case study results were measured over nine and eleven months.
Want this handled for you?
We manage Google reviews and profiles for 250+ hospitality venues. A 30-minute call is enough to see whether your venue is leaving covers on the table.
Book a free 30-minute callPrefer numbers first? Try the ROI calculator to see what a stronger Google Maps presence is worth for your venue.