If you do it properly, Google maps marketing has the potential to drive local traffic towards your business very effectively.
It can avoid a large part of the general competition for search engine results by narrowing the focus of your efforts, and can make your business more visible to customers who are likely to buy locally.
As with other areas of SEO, however, there are mistakes that you need to watch out for if you want to make the most of the opportunities available to you through the site.
Those mistakes include:

1. Spamming.
   Because the site specifically asks for relevant keywords to allow it to categorise your business, some people get carried away.
   They think that more must be better, and use keywords in a way that they would simply never approach them in other areas of their SEO.
   Remember that Google punishes spamming with lower positions or even removal from its listings, and use your keywords more sensibly.
   
2. Claiming too big an area.
   If you have more than one location, or serve more than one area, the site allows you to state what areas your business does cover.
   As with keywords, it is vital that you do not get carried away.
   Yes, a larger area potentially exposes you to more customers, but can you do a good job at that distance? If you can't back up your claims, you'll end up with poor customer reviews as a result.
   
3. Not thinking about your keywords.
   Spam isn't the only thing you need to watch out for with your keywords.
   You also need to give them the proper level of attention.
   Far too many people put in irrelevant or poorly thought through words that don't serve to build relevance.
   
4. Not getting reviews.
   What you put on the site isn't the only thing that matters.
   Customer reviews serve to boost your ranking where they are good, so be sure to get satisfied clients to review your business.
   Make sure you pick the right clients, though, because poor reviews can do more harm than good.
   
5. Not using directories.
   If the search engine sees that you are present in many local directories, then it will see your result as more relevant to a search for that type of business.
   If you forget to add yourself to those directories, it will boost your competitors instead.
   
6. Failing to fill in the whole form.
   You have the opportunity to provide a lot of information in Google Places.
   Make sure that you make the most of every opportunity, or you are wasting a chance to promote your business.
   

Avoid these mistakes, and you should be on the way to much better Google maps marketing.
Used well, it can bring significant boosts to your business, and represents a relatively easy way of getting high profile search rankings when compared to other options.
It is certainly something that any local business should consider if it wants to focus its online efforts effectively and attract more traffic.