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Rural addresses are confusing to outsiders, but a new tool aims to change that with just 3 words

By Becky McCray

Mailbox on a country road with a rural route address

When your mailing address means nothing to outsiders, you need a different way to give directions. A new 3 word tool could work. Photo by Becky McCray.

 

You know how we give directions in small towns, right? We point you to houses by who used to live there, “the Allen place,” or direct you to turn where things used to be, “where that old barn burned down.” We do this in town and out in the country. This drives newcomers and visitors bananas. A new online tool has a potential solution, and it might include the word “bananas.”

We give directions like this because we sorta think everyone knows where everything is (and used to be.) Maybe the addresses aren’t very logical or helpful, or maybe you don’t even have addresses.

This turns into a serious issue when you’re trying to get packages delivered, trying to help customers find you, or trying to put together a driving tour for tourists. These are all important to rural businesses.

GPS Almost Works

We’ve been trying to solve all this with GPS coordinates, but those are not exactly people-friendly. Ever try to tell someone a string of GPS numbers for an exact location, while fighting poor reception on your phone? Or enter a location’s pair of 8 digit numbers into your car’s built-in navigation? This is no fun.

3 Word Addresses

Enter the 3 word address. A company called What 3 Words has assigned a precise name to every location on earth, within a few feet or meters.

They divided the globe into a series of 3m x 3m (or 3 yards x 3 yards) squares and assigned a unique set of 3 words to each grid.

“Now everyone and everywhere has a reliable address,” they promise.

Go to What3Words.com and put in your address. They’ll give you a 3 word combination. Want to send people to the back gate? Point to it on the map, and you’ll get a different set of 3 words.

  • Here’s the 3 word address for our liquor store’s back door for deliveries (living.race.kook)
  • Here’s the location of one of the hard-to-find murals in Alva, at the BNSF maintenance shed (contribution.makeup.blogs)

Are you starting to think of some uses? Car companies are already building this into their navigation systems. Delivery companies are using it. Emergency services are using it.

A 3 word address could solve these common rural addressing challenges:

  • Your street address may not reflect where your house is
  • Your postal address may not reflect what town you’re actually in or nearest to
  • Your address might show up in online maps in the wrong location (Here’s what to do if Google Maps has your business in the wrong place on their map)
  • Your address might not show up in the databases that power online maps for delivery services (mine doesn’t)
  • The street address may get people to your front gate, but not all the way up the road to your place
  • You might need to send people to a specific part of your property, like a back entrance or a loading dock
  • City people may be more likely to use apps like Waze that may not have full info on your small town (Here’s how to update your town’s map in Waze)
  • Your local officials may have updated all the addresses, but online sources are lagging behind
  • Interesting features along a trail may not have addresses
  • You might need emergency medical help on a remote part of your property, and cell signal location may not help because you may have to send someone to where they can get signal before they can call for help
  • In a natural disaster, street signs and landmarks may be gone

How could you use 3 word addresses to simplify your town for people?

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About Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.
  • Downtown is your town’s core: How to make your case - February 22, 2021
  • Zoom Towns: attracting and supporting remote workers in rural small towns - December 10, 2020
  • In an economic crisis, spend your brainpower before your dollars - November 25, 2020
  • Video: How to fill empty car dealership buildings for the holidays - November 6, 2020
  • How has 2020 changed the challenges rural small towns face? Tell us here - October 20, 2020
  • The Idea Friendly Method to surviving a business crisis - October 6, 2020
  • Join me for the Rural Renewal Symposium online Oct 13 - September 26, 2020
  • Cheap placemaking idea: instant murals - September 11, 2020
  • Refilling the rural business pipeline - July 7, 2020
  • Huge vacant buildings: grants to renovate? - June 9, 2020

December 4, 2017 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, rural, tools, trends

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  1. News And Picks From The World of Tech & AI For December 4, 2017 | A Touch of Business.com says:
    December 4, 2017 at 6:55 pm

    […] We point you to houses by who used to live there, “the Allen place,” or direct you to turn where things used to be, “where that old barn burned down.” We do this in…More at http://smallbizsurvival.com […]

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