On December 23rd, 2018, I conducted the First Chhattisgarh’s Local Guides Meet-up in Raipur in which 10 Local Guides participated. It was supposed to be a 1.5 hour program that stretched to 2.5 hours because of the amazing contribution and enthusiasm of the Local Guides. Sharing my experiences at Connect Live 2018, we decided to keep the first meet-up as an introductory one and I’m glad to report that all the participants were a nebula of zeal, tonnes of experiences and knowledge.
The event was conducted on the beautiful place of Raipur, the Telibandha Lake that symbolizes the culture and creativity of Chhattisgarh. Being a Sunday the area was much crowded.
It was great as many people stopped and listened to our talks by the water front and seemed excited about it.
We talked about a number of topics such as Spam reporting, quality of images, how to make application video, the importance of quality over quantity, the challenges Maps is facing and solving, the problems they have encountered while clicking pictures at public places, future technologies for Maps, how Recoh Theta works, my experience in Mountain View, Tips for travelling to USA, Visa procurement and perks of being a Local Guide.
I briefed about the importance of having a profile in Local Guides Connect Live profile. Few new faces were just starting out and wanted to know how to become a Local Guide. We are now connected in a Whatsapp group of about 21 Chhattisgarh Local Guides that is being operated since last 2 years.
Overall, the meet-up turned out to be a huge success. The participants are contributing to the society every day and I look forward to their achievements. The event ended on a note that our contributions matter. Small or big, it does matter that we share our experiences. We don’t get money out of it but the contribution can help people in unexpected ways.
The participants shared their involvements with Google Maps and what challenges they have faced. They gave valuable suggestions for conducting the meet-up at a bigger level and providing assistance for it. We discussed that the awareness for Local Guides is yet to happen in cities like Raipur and villages. People are yet to understand that being on Maps can help their businesses grow more and it will be beneficial for the consumers as they will be helped in decision making process. We answered to the queries of people passing by, informing them about Local Guides. A Local Guide suggested on the improvements of Maps in local languages which can help people become comfortable with Maps.
The event consisted of Local Guides who have been contributing since last 4 years and also the beginners who wanted to know how to get started. The right combination of participants resulted in a successful and profound meet-up.
At last, we took 360 degree pictures with the Mor Raipur (My Raipur) sign and concluded the meet-up.
I am grateful to the fellow Local Guides who could join the event. I had a fantastic time with them.
Overall, the meet-up was more productive and energetic than I had expected. I cannot wait to meet these participants again in future meet-ups and get encouraged by them. The environment of contributing to the Maps has taken off since last few months and I believe that more newcomers will join the club in Central India.
In the end, the nature blessed us with a picturesque view and we signed off from the meet-up to sign in to Maps for contributing more.
(Link to the full Album: Chhattisgarh Meet-up Album Dec 2018 )
