Michael Schnuerle of Metro Mapper

Today I’m continuing my series of conversations with web startup founders in Louisville. Introducing people, making connections and getting the word out on what’s going on with startups in Louisville are all serious goals for us and I think these introductory conversations are a good step in the right direction for advancing those goals. So today meet Michael Schnuerle.

Michael is founder and CEO of Metro Mapper, a Louisville based startup, currently in beta, that uses the power of the Google Maps API to create interactive maps for topics such as crime, sex offender data, health department evaluation scores for restaurants and traffic cameras.

Michael was kind enough to answer a few questions about how Metro Mapper came to be and his plans for the startup’s future.

How did Metro Mapper come about? Did you start it by yourself just as something cool to do or has it been a business idea from the get go?
Metro Mapper started with the idea of mapping Louisville’s crime online. In the beginning of 2005 I just discovered AJAX and the new Google Maps API. The first application that came to mind was a crime map, based on some conversations I was having with people about the safety of Louisville’s neighborhoods. People were saying things like “the Highlands is a bad place to raise children,” or “Old Louisville is so dangerous,” or “I don’t like being downtown at night.” I thought that even though the aggregated zip code crime data supported these statements, I had a hunch that a lot of the reported crime was happening at locations and times in the zip code that didn’t necessarily apply to residents. The only way I knew to test this theory was to get the data and put it on a searchable map. So my work on the crime map began. A year later, the site went live with this crime map and 4 others. I’ll leave it up to users of Metro Mapper to determine which places in the city are worse than others (hint: there’s lots of crazy stuff going on all over the county).

I wanted to see what was possible with the technology, and what sort of reaction and traction I could get from Metro Mapper before decide its business feasibility. Initially Metro Mapper was going to be a non-profit organization, but it turns out the paperwork for that was a lot more than becoming an LLC. I consider Metro Mapper to be an online news organization, with the goal of reporting non-biased information as a free service to the public. Releasing this info from the confines of old, secure government databases and presenting it in this visual, interactive way really helps citizens get to know their neighborhoods and what’s going on right around them. I think it’s great for the city and state.

As things progressed over the next 2 years, I realized there was a lot of untapped potential using online maps and large amounts of geographic data, so plans started evolving to monetize parts of the service. The core website service will always be free, and now we have tools to let anyone who has an account embed a customized, searchable map into their website or blog. This is also free, unless you have a high-traffic site, in which case you pay monthly for the service. We also get revenue from online advertisements, and courting local sponsors for the maps, some of which connect with services from other local businesses.

You mentioned to me earlier that you want to grow Metro Mapper beyond the Louisville area do you have any concrete growth plans?
I do have very concrete growth plans that are in the process of implementation. Right now there are about ten different maps, with coverage ranging from Louisville, to the entire state of Kentucky, and even all of Indiana. Our toolsets allow us to add more data and locations very quickly, so we are looking expanding across the state to start generating some initial revenue. Then we are looking at restructuring the entire service so that it 1) is national in scope, 2) has social aspects like profiles, map rankings, comments, flagging, etc, 3) accepts user contributions, 4) is simplified for casual users, and 5) provides many more ways to distribute information and sell services. As with many startups, the difficulty is prioritizing sales and cash flow with long term feature growth.

Are you currently bootstrapping Metro Mapper? How many people are involved? If you are bootstrapping currently are you looking for funding?
As the sole owner, I believe in the possibility for growth enough to make Metro Mapper my full time focus and fund it on my own for now. There are about seven other local people who are involved and help out in some capacity: lawyers, programmers, sales, business advisors, and people who’d like to be on a board eventually. I’m very interested in the idea of building a great team and expanding the company, and funding Metro Mapper’s growth, as that would allow the service to come to market much faster, and start generating revenue sooner. I think Louisville is a great place to do this at the moment, and I’ve met a lot of very talented internet-based entrepreneurs, and I see lots of momentum in this area for the first time.

In a previous conversation you mentioned that you wanted to better/differently monetize Metro Mapper in a way that will allow it to still be free for users. Does this mean an advertising based business model, licensing or something altogether different?
All of the site’s basic services will remain free: using the maps, bookmarking favorite searches, and embedding the maps in your low-traffic site/blog. I see advanced users and companies willing to pay for some special services, like embedding maps in high-traffic sites, statistical reports on the data, loading their own data with our tools, or a paid account to get special searching, map features, and mobile and email alerts. There would also be revenue continuing to come in from site advertising, and map sponsorship. Additionally, placing geographically targeted ads right on the maps is a great feature, and I’m doing some of that now.

Do you think creating a web startup in Louisville as opposed to the Valley or someplace else is a hindrance to you or do you think the strong entrepreneurial community here is a benefit?
When I first began, I thought it was going to be a hindrance. Having lived and worked in San Francisco, Paris, and Edinburgh, I was always frustrated with Louisville lagging 1-3 years behind larger cities in terms of adopting internet technology and seeing its value. But over the last few months I have come to realize that things are changing here, and there is a strong internet entrepreneurial community growing and taking root. Like Shawn Morton said in his Forge interview, I think having a successful company in Louisville can set you apart from others. But having said that, I think that it’s very important who you can get the attention of and form relationships with, whether that is local or elsewhere.

As a new startup in Louisville what would you like to see more of in the startup community (more networking events, more opportunities for collaboration, more advice, etc?)
Forge Louisville looks like a step in the right direction. I’d like to see more networking events, sure, but I’d also like to participate in some more serious smaller group discussions with people in the community about getting things accomplished: getting feedback on ideas, brainstorming technology solutions and business opportunities, forming relationships with others, and assisting with our ventures. This could be a more formal outcropping of the social networking events and gatherings. I think there are lots of talented people in the area that really want to stay here, but tend to move away to larger cities because of specific opportunities there. The synergy from these friendly events and honest collaborations could go a long way in keeping talent in Louisville and attracting talent back.