For many manufacturers, the "where to buy" page is the most important page after the home page – and often the most neglected one. An outdated PDF list or a map with dealers who left years ago sends customers to the wrong place, and your dealers notice too.
What a good dealer locator does
- Search by city, postcode or "near me" – nobody scrolls through hundreds of entries.
- Filters by dealer type – retailer, service partner, showroom, premium partner.
- One tap to act – directions, call, or the dealer's own website.
- Current data – partners who left are hidden, new ones appear the same day.
Prepare your dealer data
Most manufacturers already have their dealers in an ERP, CRM or a spreadsheet from the sales team. For each dealer you need:
| Field | Required? | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Name | yes | The name customers know |
| Street, postcode, city, country | yes | Needed to place the dealer on the map |
| Phone, e-mail, website | recommended | The dealer's website is often the most-clicked link |
| Category | recommended | Retailer, service partner, premium partner … |
| Opening hours | optional | Useful for dealers with a shop |
| Custom fields | optional | E.g. product lines carried or "demo unit available" |
Export the list as CSV. In My Store Locator you map the columns during the import, and missing coordinates are filled in from the address. CSV import is included from the Starter plan; on Free you add dealers one by one. Our guide plot addresses from Excel on a map covers data clean-up in detail.
Note: agree with your dealers which contact details will be public. Business details are usually fine; private mobile numbers do not belong on the map.
Choose filters your customers understand
Three to five categories are almost always enough:
- By service: sales, advice, service/repair
- By partner level: partner, premium partner
- By product range, if not every dealer carries everything – best handled with a custom field used as a filter
Statuses such as "temporarily closed" or "coming soon" help when your network changes often. You can also hide such entries from the map without deleting them.
Layout and branding
A layout with search, list and map side by side works well for most dealer locators: visitors immediately see the nearest dealers and their distance. On phones, a map with a pull-up list feels more natural. In My Store Locator you can switch templates at any time without touching the embed code, so you can simply try what works best. Match colours, font and marker colour to your brand – a locator that looks out of place feels less trustworthy.
Embed it on your website
The locator goes on your page with one snippet – an iframe or a JavaScript widget. It works with WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Webflow, TYPO3 and any site where you can paste HTML. See integrations for step-by-step guides. Turn on consent mode if you want the map to load only after a click.
Keep it up to date
Decide who adds new dealers and hides the ones that leave (usually sales operations), how often you sync with your CRM (for example, a monthly CSV import, from Starter), and how dealers report changes (a single e-mail address is often enough).
What your dealer locator tells you
A dealer locator also measures interest. The basic statistics on the Free plan show how often the map is viewed and searched. From Pro, insights also show which places people look for and which dealers get calls, clicks and direction requests. My Store Locator stores all of these as daily counters, without cookies or IP addresses. In the Business plan, "demand without location" also shows where people search but find no dealer nearby – a useful lead list for recruiting new partners.
Try it with your own locations.
Create an account, import your locations, embed the map. The Free plan stays free - and you can test Pro for 14 days.
Set up your dealer locator for free – the Free plan covers up to 25 locations; larger networks fit Starter (100) or Pro (1,000).
FAQ
How many dealers can I add?
Up to 25 on the Free plan, 100 on Starter and 1,000 on Pro. Larger networks run on the Business plan (on request). See pricing for current prices.
Do I need a Google Maps API key?
No. Maps and address search are included. The directions link opens Google Maps, which needs no key.
Can dealers maintain their own entries?
With roles and permissions in the Business plan you can limit people to their own locations. In smaller plans your team maintains the data centrally.
Does it work across countries?
Yes. Addresses from all countries are supported, visitors can filter by country, and the map is available in English or German – from Pro it can also switch automatically to the visitor's language.