A month ago I shared my address with a potential customer. The customer entered my address into his Car's navigation system and left his home. I later got a call from him and he stated he was in a Church parking lot seven miles away. I didn't think much of it, but today I looked at my location on the forum profile map and it placed me at the same Church location. Looks like Google map glitch.
It happens. I don't give my address out anymore when people are coming to buy from me. GPS will almost always take people to the wrong house. I know the people who live where the gps goes. They never complained, but I felt bad that random people were always going down their road. Now I give detailed instructions describing my mailbox and the bus stop that's at the end of my driveway for my kids. Works much better.
I use and contribute to openstreetmap...
OpenStreetMap (https://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=5/38.007/-95.844)
It's objectively worse than google for navigation(especially with regards to addresses), but it works well enough, and it's none of google's business where I'm traveling. I have maps on my phone, so as long as I have an open(ish) sky, I can navigate without data access.
It's not terribly hard to contribute, and there's easy tasks that can be done by everyone on android using street-complete. Might be a fun hobby for some, and you'd be making the world a little bit better, and putting power back in the hands of people, rather than corporations. It's also satisfying using tools you helped build :^)
Oh, and lat/long is probably more reliable for getting someone to you, but less memorable.
I always have to tell folks to ignore the GPS and pay attention to my directions as the GPS will put you on a bridge over a creek with nothing around and say "You have arrived" - some must think I am a troll and live under said bridge. :D Of course if you are there you have to go about 1/2 mile before you can turn around, more if you have a trailer. Some listen, some call from the bridge. ::)
There were signs at the beginning of a major road construction project warning drivers not to rely on their GPS, keep their eyes on the road and follow directions. My step son uses his to cross the street, I don't think he knows how to read a map. They had been to our home previously so should have been able to find it again but the GPS led them to a washed out bridge. He phoned and asked what to do. I told him to turn around, go back to the highway and turn left. He did so then had to stop and reprogram the DanG GPS so he could find the main intersection. ::) Sad really but maybe I'm out of touch with the modern world.
There are over 133 million residential addresses in the US. Canada Post delivers to more than 16 million. I'm guessing that a couple of those are located incorrectly. Mine used to direct people to the community mailboxes ΒΌ mile down the road.
If you do want people to find your address, you can search for it on Google Maps, and report a problem.
In Google Maps, click on the 3 bar menu, upper left. Send Feedback. Edit the Map.
Of course there are other services that provide address locations to GPS services, so some people will still be lost. Car navigation systems often require a paid update, so are often out of date.
And Hooray for Open Street Map!
The .gov lists other organizations to report an incorrect GPS address:
How to Report a Mapping Problem Affecting GPS Devices, Apps, and Maps (https://www.gps.gov/support/user/mapfix/devices-and-maps/)
My cabin property address is about 2 miles further down a bushwack trail - not even a deer could navigate! Was an old road back during the gold rush.
I responded to a free CL ad a while back and my Garmin took me to what looked like a power-line right-away gate (locked). I called the listing and he gave me better instructions. Last week or so, I responded to another and realized it was on the same street when I came to that gate again...
My GPS will stop at the exact entrance to some customer's addresses whereas it will not find my Home nor the Cabin. I am careful to ask customers whether GPS will find them and they generally know.
I've had better luck with Google maps on my phone than vehicle navigation systems. I've had vehicle systems get out of date and not show new roads. I'm obviously on a new 4 lane highway but the thing is telling me I'm off the road and to go to the designated route.
Once using motorcycle GPS going to my wife's cousin's ciderworks near the Blue Ridge Parkway, the GPS sent us on a side road that turned into a single lane road, then a gravel road, then there was banjo music. We topped a hill and there was a stop light but no intersection. It was a red/yellow/green stop light. We felt a little foolish sitting at a stop light in the middle of no where but we stopped and waited for green. It finally changed and we saw that there was a culvert replacement going on. The GPS got us there but it wasn't an ideal route for a bagger with two riders aboard.
We found a different way home....
MM didnt you follow your gps to the chily supper at Youkon' place?
Yup and it took me down a bad dead end road and I had a tough time turning around. :o :-\