At the end of 2010 I created a niche site from scratch for the security guard training industry in the U.S. In 73 days it got to the #1 spot in Google and it’s currently generating between $1,800 to $2,200 consistently each and every month. You can read more about how I publicly created this niche site (from niche selection to the domain name and monetization – for free) on the Niche Site Duel Hub.
In that particular industry there are different training requirements for each state – so it made sense to create a separate post for each one individually.
As a way to organize this content and provide a better user experience on the homepage, I thought it would be cool to have a clickable map of the United States – so I had one made for me.
I found a flash map that I liked on iStockPhoto.com. It cost about $8.
From there, I hired a flash-developer on Odesk.com for $10.00/hour to include the correct links for me and add some color. It took him 5 hours and 20 minutes to complete the job, for a total of $53.30
Finally, I gave the file to Mike, my VA, to embed on my niche site. You can see the final result on http://www.securityguardtraininghq.com right now if you wish.
That’s $61.30, which I consider a worthwhile investment.
I’m very happy with the final result and it’s something a lot of people have complimented me on – not just people from this blog who are familiar with the niche site, but actual users of the site as well, which is really nice.
Interestingly enough, one of the most common questions I get is “How can I make a map just like that one for my own site?”
At least 3 times a week, somebody asks me this question – and I even have a response setup in TextExpander (one of the several productivity tools I discuss in Productivity Hacks – How to Make Time by Shaving Time) to quickly reply with an answer, which basically outlines the process I just described above.
I must have shared this with at least 50 people by now, and although I have no way of telling whether or not all of them followed through, even if 25% of them did, that’s a lot of money that could have been saved if there was an easier way.
And if there was an easier way, maybe all of them would follow through and have a helpful map on their website.
So – I decided to develop a tool myself.
My New Web App
Four days ago, I only had an idea.
Today - Create a Clickable Map is already up and running!
You can watch the video below to see exactly what it looks like and how it works:
(Click here to watch How to Create a Clickable Map for FREE on YouTube)
This app, of course, isn’t for everyone – but for the few who are looking for a tool like this – it will be extremely helpful.
The experience of building this web app was amazing, especially after the WordPress plugin failures I had last year, and it only cost a couple hundred dollars and 3 hours of my time. The developer (who I found on Odesk) was awesome and I’ll definitely be working with him again soon for stuff related to my upcoming SPI related product actually, hehe. 
Since I know a lot of you are interested, here’s a link to the original job posting on Odesk and a copy of the mockup I drew up in photoshop below (using my pen and tablet tool!):
Although the hand-drawn U.S. map in the mockup is embarrassing, I think the general idea of how the apps works and the user-interface shows through, which is why communication with the programmer was extremely smooth and development was quick.
If you do use this app, since it creates a flash map for your site, I’d still recommend linking to each site below the map (like I did on securityguardtraininghq.com) so that the search engines can still read the links, and in case anyone has flash disabled in their browser too.
The Domain Name
The people who email me (or those of you reading this post) who may find this tool useful will at least know about it now – but I was hoping there was an untapped keyword that would allow me to reach more people through the search engines too.
If traffic becomes significant, I wouldn’t mind strategically placing some Adsense ads on the site and seeing what happens.
Unfortunately, there wasn’t very many keywords to choose from that weren’t either totally out of reach (because of map sites like MapQuest.com, Google Maps and other more robust map generators), or keywords that were “too long tail” and totally weak in terms of search volume and traffic.
I picked http://www.createaclickablemap.com because it encompassed both the keywords “create a map” and “clickable map” in it, which had ‘okay’ numbers – but more so because it’s easy to remember and it describes exactly what the site does. People can expect to find a tool to create a map when they arrive, and that’s exactly what they get.
I wasn’t really creating this tool for a niche site anyways, and because it’s only a one-page site with a flash enabled tool on it – I’ll probably need to add more content somewhere on the page to even start to see any significant traffic from search engines.
I created this tool primarily to help those who may be interested in creating their own US maps for their website so they can avoid having to pay extra money and waste time waiting for a developer to finish it up for them. I’ll be creating more niche sites in the future that will be utilizing this tool as well.
Just a fun little experiment that I enjoyed and wanted to share with you today. 
If you like the tool and want to help out, please visit Create a Clickable Map and LIKE the page! That’s all!
Cheers, and all the best!
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I know so guys in the transportation industry who could use this on there site. I even own a advertising company which we are trying to push up and down the east coast. This will be a great tool to ad to the site. Nice job and God Bless!
Interesting to see another story of how one sets up another way to make a little bit of money a month with practically no work. Do you keep track of all of your little ideas? I love seeing people’s ideas that they thought were going to be the next big thing.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Hello to every body, it?s my first pay a visit of this webpage; this weblog includes remarkable and truly excellent stuff designed for readers.
This is a great idea, but there are some people who don’t even have $50 to spend on a project. Let alone, projects I’ve put on Elance and ODesk similar to yours have ranged anywhere to $150 – $500. Can you do a post on how to make passive income from the ground up? Example, with NO money, experience, contacts, or anything?
Thanks.
Awesome work Pat. Gotta love when you can read a post and tons of ideas pop into your head. I can imagine several places already in my portfolio where this could enhance visitor experience..great work.
What excellent timing. I actually have a freelance software project where this might come in handy! Thanks again!
Hey Pat,
Thanks for the neat tool.
I have no specific use for it at the moment but I will keep it in mind!
PS. Yes, throw adsense on that puppy!
May as well generate some passive income.
Hey Pat,
When I first checked your security site back in December I was immediately attracted to that Map. I did google searches, checked youtube and even thought of hiring someone from Elance to make a similar one for my fledgling site. It eventually got put on the back burner while I worked on content. My point is that you really know how to give people what they need, and you do it for free so even broke college kids can have a go at it.
Cheers to you Pat Flynn, keep up the amazing work.
Thank you very much Pat for letting us to use the map for free!
I was just given a link to this page by someone who follows you, and I am so grateful. This tool is something I can really use for a couple of my sites. I appreciate your generosity in sharing what you’ve created.
Blessings,
Angie
Dear Pat,
That’s one killer app that you got made. I’m gonna use it on my site about jobs in the USA. I’ll be able to SEO as well as provide a nice visually appealing map that visitors to my site can use to go the state of their choice to search for jobs. Good Work!
This is awesome. Very cool of you to share with the community. I have two niche sites I think I could probably use this on (over the somewhat crummy looking tables I currently use). Thanks for sharing!
That Alexa rank is moving fast
United States 115,289
Hi Pat,
This is a great tool! I usually use my iPad to read your blog and visit your site. Have you investigated a way to create a non-flash version of this, yet? I do see that on your security guard site it is a static image with links below when viewed on my iPad.
But on the new web app it’s just blank.
I’d love a similar tool for an upcoming project, but I need for it to be mobile accessible.
I love it!
To bad I don’t have use for US map (living in Europe).
If you ever plan to update it maybe you could allow the user to select a map from a selection of countries/areas.
Hey Pat
Now thats is fantastic
Well done for giving back. That tool is very usefull
regards
Hi Pat,
nice concept, encouraged of your web application i did something similar but not as perfect as your’s at http://www.meine-landkarte.de.
I code it during the last weekend. It’s no flash, has just a few settings und currently you can only create a map of germany.
But hey i reached my goal to finish it within the weekend
Best Regards
Andreas
I can’t believe what a good guy you are!
It is refreshing to see someone profiting on the internet, yet being absolutely transparent about your affiliate links, and still making the internet a better place! You should have put a price tag on this Sir!
There are two things that I really enjoyed from this post…
1) You’ve proven that you can get something developed or tweaked at a minimal cost. There are times where I spend hours upon hours trying to find the right plug-in but instead I could spend a little money (because I value my time) and get EXACTLY what you want.
2) You’ve taken this experience, found a problem/opportunity, and created a solution which I definitely plan on using in an upcoming project.
Thanks for sharing this awesome product and not charging an arm and a leg!!!
Quick question about the map – Are there any plans on making an HTML5 or jQuery version?
Thank you for sharing! I love the simplicity of this idea. It really gives a newbie like myself a good feel for what to aim for. Thanks again.
This is neat and all, but I’ve purposely avoided using any graphics from iStock photos in any of my iPhone or web apps because their “standard license” doesn’t allow you to use their graphics for projects like this…
Your $8 graphic may be violating their standard licensing agreement by being used in a shareable web template.
You may want to check out the “Standard License Prohibitions” (section 4 .. http://www.istockphoto.com/license.php )… These are prohibited:
1. use the Content in design template applications intended for resale, whether on-line or not, including, without limitation, website templates, Flash templates, business card templates, electronic greeting card templates, and brochure design templates; (not sure if “resale” counts if you’re giving it away for free)
…
5. incorporate the Content in any product that results in a re-distribution or re-use of the Content (such as electronic greeting card web sites, web templates and the like) or is otherwise made available in a manner such that a person can extract or access or reproduce the Content as an electronic file;
…
11. install and use the Content in more than one location at a time or post a copy of the Content on a network server or web server for use by other users;
Anyone else shy away from iStockPhoto for the same reasons?
I’ve emailed them a couple times and the answer is always the same: I have to buy a license to legally use their graphics if they are a “substantial” part of my app or project. For any sort of template, web app, game, or iPhone app I always create my own or buy graphics that are intended for commercial use and distribution…
Let me know if I’m off base… cause I’d LOVE to use iStockPhoto graphics in some of my iPhone apps!
Tom, the map of the US that the app uses did not come from the flash map that was downloaded via iStockphoto.com. If you look at it, it looks and acts differently (see placement of Alaska and Hawaii, as well as the way the states hover over and enlarge).
A map of the US is going to look pretty close to the same across the board no matter what, but again I have already confirmed with my attorney and iStockphoto that this map generator does not violate any licenses.
There are gray areas, and I remember having a conversation with iStock about using photos and images in iPhone applications as well – and they gave me a number – something like 350,000, which was the number of times the app could be downloaded until it became somewhat of an issue.
Probably best, however, just in case, to answer create your own graphics.
Pat, I love this map and the fact that you offer it to us for free is both motivational and inspirational!
However, my experience with Odesk has not been very good.
Could you please offer a recommendation of the people that helped you with this job?
Trust is important and not having a clue as to who the people are who leave good feedback, can lead to mistrust of the whole system.
However, although I don’t know you personally, I’ve been reading long enough to know I can trust your ethics and integrity.
Thank you for your help!
This is terrific Pat – but like many others am in need of more than a U.S. map. What I most need is a world map that does exactly the same thing (you’ll see why if you pop over to http://www.packabook.com and see what the site is all about)…. I’d just like to add my voice to those crying out for it – and I’d happily pay for it! Perhaps you could charge people per map that they want….
Where are the U.S. territories such as Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, etc.? Please add them. I’d really like to use this tool, but without them, it’s incomplete.
Thank you for creating this. When I started my site I was looking for a map similar to this. I will be adding this shortly. Great job!
Thank you so much for creating such a product. It’s saving so much of my time, nerves and money to implement the map on my site.
/Users/Fetterolf/Desktop/JRF-3 2011.tiff
Really cool application Pat. Slick.
Jim.
Pat,
I just want to thank you for providing such a great app. I used this for my niche site after getting inspired by yours!
Hey Pat, the map tool rocks! I’m playing around with it for a post idea and thought I would pass along a suggestion that occurred to me.
You might want to consider offering a paid version of this bad boy as well. In the paid version, you could charge $50 bucks or so to get two things:
#1- the ability to save your map settings so you can come back later to adjust or revise things.
#2- the ability to hide the attribution link.
These two things might make it more appealing to professionals and I’d totally pay for those features. Anyway, thanks for a cool app!
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