Rob Horgan
A COSTA del Sol marketing firm has overcome adversity to become a key innovator for Google.
Plush Global Media has become the first ‘Google Trusted Agency’ to use new technology for the international search engine’s Maps service.
In fact, over 3,000 businesses on the Costa del Sol have been added to Google’s Business Streetview by Plush Global Media in the last two years.
However, it has not always been plain sailing for the San Pedro-based company which was pushed to the brink of bankruptcy just a year ago because of a ‘top-secret’ deal with Google.
Working alongside British company NCTech, it was contracted to upload virtual photography tours of businesses in southern Spain to Google.
However, the terms of the contract prevented the company from saying anything about what they were doing.
This drew a ‘backlash’ from Google Trusted Photographers on the Costa del Sol who ‘set out to tarnish’ Plush Global Media’s reputation.
“Plush Global Media’s journey hasn’t exactly been easy,” said its director, Lee Collins. “Needless to say, Google was very impressed with our work.
“However, we faced a backlash and harassment from the current Google Trusted Photographers here on the Costa del Sol.”
He added: “Because we were contractually obligated to NCTech, we were unable to claim any sort of business relationship with NCTech or Google.
“As a result, our company name was defamed across the internet, photographers would harass us at business meetings and in the street and we were helpless to stop it.
“The damage control almost bankrupted us, but thankfully it has all paid off in the long run.”
As a consequence of the work done by Plush Global Media on the Costa del Sol, Google and NCTech have reached a multi-million euro deal.
Plush Global Media has also been rewarded by becoming the first company to use the new Google-approved iris360 camera.
