serpapi
[Google Search API] Improve Documentation of `ludocid`, `lsig` and `place_id`
A user reached out for clarification about the lsig parameter. However, they were ultimately looking to obtain the Google CID, and were unaware that the place_id is actually the CID.
We currently return the Google CID for businesses in local results with the place_id key. This can be confusing for customers as it is actually the Google CID. To add to the confusion, our documentation of the ludocid parameter describes this ID as both CID and "Google Place ID".
Google only seems to use "Place ID" to refer to the ID used for Google Maps entities. CID and Place ID are never treated by Google as interchangeable.
It's also confusing that we use place_id in the context of our Google Maps API, and it refers to a completely different ID than the place_id, ludocid, or CID returned in our Google Search API local_results.
While it might not make sense to change the name of the place_id key in Google Search API responses, we can make the distinction of each of these fields and parameters clearer in the documentation to avoid confusion.
The way these fields are listed in our Google Local Pack API documentation could also use clarification, as it implies either that the place_id is a compendium of both the lsig and the ludocid, or that the three are interchangeable:
Public links: Documentation 1 | Documentation 2 | Google Place ID | Google CID Documentation
Internal links: Intercom
