UPDATE: Whoa! You guys have been very busy mapping! I'm so excited about the response. Just a few friendly reminders:
1. Please check to see that the business you had in mind hasn't already been listed. Otherwise there will be duplicates and my faulty memory can't keep track of every listing.
2. Also, please put the address in type and be as detailed in your description as possible.
Thank you!
I'm sooooo excited!
I made a Celiac Chicks Google map ages ago, but I never shared it with you. Why? I didn't like the setup where only I could input information. I wanted an interactive map. Besides, one person couldn't possibly keep up with all of the places that continue to pop up that are serving gluten-free foods.
So, a few months ago I discovered MapMe. It is everything I ever wanted in a map! I created the Celiac Chicks Gluten-Free Map Of The World and now we all can post our favorite gluten-free places anywhere in the world!
And you can even upload photos and video! Oh, and download GPS for free!
SHARE
In order to share this tool I've had these html buttons made just for you! [see below] If you have a blog or website, you can copy the code below the button of your choice and just paste it into your software. I couldn't decide on just one graphic because I thought they all turned out too cute! (Thank you, Erin and Adam!) I think there is something for everyone. [Now you know why my eyes are red from trying to figure out all of this code. Cue for techies to laugh at me now.]
WIN PRIZES
To help make this more fun I have many yummy gluten-free treats that will be randomly given away by our generous sponsors to "hotspot" posters. Stay tuned for more details coming up. Just get started posting. Some prizes will be awarded to those that post the most places, while other prizes will be given out randomly to any participants regardless of how many "hotspots" they've created. (Hint: Can you say, "gluten-free ho-ho"?)
IDEAS?
Because many heads are better than just one, I'd love to hear about any ideas you may have for the map and/or contest. Please feel free to post them as comments here below.
DIRECTIONS:
Some people may find MapMe easy to navigate and "intuitive", others may not. Since I felt like there was a bit of a learning curve, I've listed a few directions that hopefully will make it easier for you to navigate.
1. Sign up in order to log in. This will be in the upper left hand corner.
2. After registering you will get a confirmation email. You must then click on the link in the email to confirm.
3. It's a little quirky, but the link in your email will take you to the home page of MapMe. Just search for "celiac chicks" to find our map again, or click here to go directly there. If you go directly there, you can now just log in from the map page.
4. Now you can click on "Suggest Locations" in the top left corner. It is fairly intuitive to use from here on.
5. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE include the actual address of a place in your details. Sure, people can zoom in and figure the location out, but it would be nice to have the exact location listed in the details.
6. LINKS: Feel free to include a link to the business website, but remember, the link will not be live if there is not an http:// in front of the www.whatever address.
7. HAVE FUN! Feel good about contributing to the community and giving a shout out for your favorite local gluten-free businesses.
8. BE PATIENT. It takes a little patience to navigate this software, so just relax, and think about the possibility of winning some gluten-free treats!
9. EXPLORE. There are some other fun features on MapMe, so be sure to play around with your profile and/or you can also leave comments if you'd like to leave a review about a specific place. You can also send messages to other users.
10. This is a MODERATED community map. I will be checking in a few times a day to see what new locations people have shared and then let them go live. If there isn't any funny business then I may make it unmoderated eventually. For now, I'm too scared to let anyone upload just anything. (Remember the message board?!) So, sorry, but you won't see your posting immediately on the public map. Feel free to send me a quick tweet to check out your "hotspot" and approve it.
11. BUSINESS OWNERS are welcome to put their own business on the map.
I'm sure there will be a few kinks along the way, but I hope we all can have some fun with this new tool!
THANK YOU!
<p><a href="http://www.mapme.com/map/Celiac_Chicks_Gluten-Free_Map_Of_The_World"> <img src="http://celiacchicks.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451a1c069e201156ffc3999970b-pi"></a>
<p><a href="http://www.mapme.com/map/Celiac_Chicks_Gluten-Free_Map_Of_The_World"> <img src="http://celiacchicks.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451a1c069e201156ffc399f970b-pi"></a>
<p><a href="http://www.mapme.com/map/Celiac_Chicks_Gluten-Free_Map_Of_The_World"> <img src="http://celiacchicks.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451a1c069e201156ffc398f970b-pi"></a>
<p><a href="http://www.mapme.com/map/Celiac_Chicks_Gluten-Free_Map_Of_The_World"> <img src="http://celiacchicks.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451a1c069e201156ffc3993970b-pi"></a>
</p><p><a href="http://www.mapme.com/map/Celiac_Chicks_Gluten-Free_Map_Of_The_World"> <img src="http://celiacchicks.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451a1c069e201156ffc3981970b-pi"></a></p>
