I work at MapQuest, so I have had a front row seat for the strangest two weeks in the company’s 30-year history. Figured this group would appreciate the story, because there are real lessons in it for any business.
Quick background. Most people think MapQuest died around 2008. It didn’t. We quietly run a profitable business with three segments:
- MapQuest Consumer, which regularly sees 40M+ visits monthly and makes money selling ads and sponsorships.
- MapQuest Platform, which earns recurring revenue by licensing APIs similar to Mapbox and Google Maps.
- RoadWarrior, which is a truck-safe routing app used by over 60k professional drivers. Until two weeks ago the MapQuest mobile app was ranked somewhere around No. 128 in the App Store.
Then on August 27, an executive order renamed Lake Ontario to “Lake America” as part of the trade tensions with Canada. Google Maps changed the name. Then Apple Maps changed the name. MapQuest immediately posted a screenshot of our map on X saying “We’re not changing it.”
That was it. No press release, no statement of values. Just one post (or, two).
Here is what happened next:
- The app went from No. 128 to No. 3 in four days, then hit No. 1 overall on the US App Store, ahead of every app in the country including ChatGPT, which was the previous app store king. We also hit #1 in the navigation category dethroning Google Maps for about a week.
- We clearly struck a chord with the general public as we have seen 3M downloads of our mobile app in 10 days.
- Two weeks into this story and the app is still #2 in the navigation category behind only Google Maps, which shows the stickiness of navigation apps. It also shows how dominant Google’s position really is.
- Daily usage has spiked and continues to be many multiples higher than our baseline. Users are providing plenty of feedback and we are responding quickly. For example, transit routing is being added as I type.
- The story was picked up by media outlets far and wide including TechCrunch, Fox Business, The NYTimes, and many more. Our GM, Doug Berger, even wound up on CNN for a live interview with Erin Burnett. Was not on our bingo card for 2026!
The team kept the ball rolling. They shipped a tool that lets anyone rename the lake whatever they want and share the screenshot. You can find it here: gulfof.mapquest.com/lakeontario. The internet did what the internet does. A few days later we announced Android Auto support to keep new users around (CarPlay was already live).
Some takeaways:
Conviction is free. MapQuest didn’t outspend anyone. We made a decision the big guys wouldn’t make and said it plainly. The earned media from that one post would have cost millions to buy.
Speed matters more than polish. The executive order dropped on a Wednesday. The response was up almost immediately (because we learned from our experience last time this happened with the Gulf of Mexico), and the rename tool shipped while the story was still hot. These windows last days, not weeks or quarters so moving quickly matters.
Old brands have dormant goodwill. Half the reaction online was people delighted that MapQuest still exists. Thirty years of “remember printing out directions?” nostalgia turned out to be an asset waiting for a reason to activate.
Convert the spike or lose it. Attention fades fast. Adding Android Auto and new features within days was the difference between a viral moment and actual staying power for our mobile app.
Know your risk math. The standard advice is stay out of politics, and it’s usually right. But the calculus is different depending on where your company sits in the ecosystem. Compared to Google, we had nothing to lose.
Hire a good socials person. A few months ago, we hired someone to run our socials. That person got more than they bargained for! They have been working around the clock to keep the conversation fresh on all the channels. This single hire has paid off in spades. And perhaps keep a PR person on retainer in case your GM ends up on CNN.
The first 10 years of MapQuest were a rocket ship, with acquisitions by AOL and then Verizon. Honestly, the next 20, not so much. Now, as we wrap up year 30, all three lines of business are growing, and for the first time in two decades the narrative is moving our way. We plan to keep it that way.
PS: If you want a good laugh, a comedian recently did a segment explaining MapQuest to young people.
Check it out here.