Facebook launched a new mapping application promoting its Preferred Developer Consultants on its Platform Page, yesterday. Clicking on the Consultants tab yields an explanation of who Facebook’s Preferred Developer Consultants are and suggests that the user search to find a consultant.

The “Find a preferred consultant” app, developed by Gamaroff Digital (which is, as you’d expect, a Preferred Developer Consultant), allows a user to either type in a geographic location or keywords to find one of Facebook’s Preferred Developers with the aid of Google Maps. It seems as though the app automatically searches via your profile information when you land on the tab, which is helpful, considering that several searches we performed for “Texas” and “California” yielded Google Map results for Western Europe.

You then click on the Facebook icon in whatever region you’re looking for and a pop-up bubble with the name of a company appears, for example T3 (The Think Tank). By clicking the bubble to expand, a user will find a company description, address, experience listing and contact information.

Facebook added 36 companies to its Preferred Developer Consultants list earlier this year. The company created the list at the end of last year, starting with 14 developers, in an effort to help brands and organizations more easily find services to suit their needs.

Yesterday, when Facebook debuted the Consultants tab and app, the same idea applied: “To more easily assist “brands, celebrities and organizations…enhance their Facebook page or add engaging social features to their website.”

The app is a pretty convenient way for brands or businesses that take Facebook marketing seriously to expand or improve their presence on the platform. It opens the door to people who may not normally seek out one of the Preferred Developer Consultants by making them more accessible. Ultimately it benefits Facebook to encourage businesses to do more business on Facebook, especially if it means they’ll be advertising more, which may be one reason why Facebook created the app.