14 DAY TRIAL // Google's local services are a big focus for the company, especially since they tie in with one of the most important things the company is working on, 'social.' Google hasn't had much luck with social websites or services so far, but one of the few places where it's getting some traction is with its local services and Hotpot is a good example of that.
It's only a few months old, but Google is constantly adding more features to it to, hopefully, make the service more engaging for users and their friends.
Hotpot is, in essence, a social recommendations service, it enables you to discover great places in your town or when traveling based on your tastes and what your friends like.
Of course, all of this relies on users actually getting involved and posting reviews or at least grading a location and noting the things that they liked or didn't like, stuff like "food," "atmosphere," "service" and so on.
One of the ways Hotpot is encouraging users to add more data is with the introduction of custom fields where they can enter whatever they want to rate. This is only available in the Android Google Maps app, but it's already proven a popular feature.
"When you rate and review a place on Google Places — via the desktop app, or on your Android phone or iPhone — you have the option to specify that you liked or disliked certain 'aspects' of it," Andy McEwan, Software Engineer at Google, wrote.
"Not too long ago, we launched a nifty feature for Google Maps for Android that lets you customize these aspects. So if you think a particular bar makes excellent cocktails, or a restaurant has a great in-house band, you can add it yourself and share it with the world," he explained.
So Google has now come up with a list of some of the most popular custom entries and they make for an interesting read. One of the very most popular is "Croissants," for example. "Free wifi" is another major touting point.
Here's what Hotpot users have liked or disliked the most: Croissants, Free Wifi, Pho, Authenticity, Pad Thai, Burritos, Beer Garden, Dumplings, Espresso, Roaches, Guacamole, Restroom, Fried Pickles, Gas Prices, Garlic Fries, Haggis Balls and Hot Belgian Waffles.
Google could actually do some interesting things with this data. The most obvious would be to start adding the most popular custom criteria for a certain place by default to all users.