When I first found out about the program, It was totally by accident. It felt like finding a secret passage to another realm.
Before telling how I felt, let me say how I found it.
I was checking in information of a specific store and there wasn’t any.
I got a little bit frustrated. That information could save me a lot of time and could mean the first (and the last) place I would search if I had the information I needed.
That frustration suddenly became a question:" What if I could provide information and reviews of places I go, products I buy, services I use and be like an example, people would do the same?"
I did not have the answer for that question so I decided to go forward in pursuit for the answer.
That was when I saw in Google Local Guide program a partner to help me find that answer.
Remember the realm I was mentioning? Well that is Google Local Guide program: The Realm of Reviews. A Kingdom where you find people willing to instruct, help, guide you through this huge world of products and services.
This program means a lot of things to me and bellow are some examples:
+ Contribution: Who doesn’t want to live in better world? Who doesn’t want to pay a fair price for a fair product? For that to happen, every person can have a share of responsibility to do that and we all win. Posting a picture of a certain dish and naming it is a wonderful way to share and to attract costumers to a local restaurant. Also, saying how hard it is to find a place to park your car near that amazing bakery is also a way to contribute and warn others that it is not a good idea going by car. Contributing with one another would be a path among many to achieve that.
+ Decision-making: We live in a world where reviews, opinions, photos, links, divulging, and all of these mixed together are working like a compass to help anyone to choose products and services. The power of review can make a costumer buy the product A or the product B. It can make a costumer choose the restaurant near his office or at the mall. That will certain improve decision-making skills based on others reviews.
+Teamwork: We don’t have money nor time to consume all items, nor to eat in all restaurants, nor even be everywhere at the same time. That is why I share my opinion and make a review in one restaurant among hundreds of them, while other people share their opinion about other restaurants and we all, doing this teamwork as a great reviewers’ family, help each other. This a very well organized web of information accessed easily when needed.
+ Sense of Responsibility: Is not giving only your opinion. It is actually putting ourselves in anyone shoes to compliment/complain about a product or service. That could help others having a wonderful experience or could help other to avoid a terrible experience. Wouldn’t you like to know before-handed that that fantastic museum charges US$ 20.00/hour for you to park your car in their expensive parking-lot? Knowing that would make you go by bus and help you save money or can help that person to decide to call a taxi helping to prevent a huge traffic jam. The sense of responsibility to warn the unwarned, to instruct the uninstructed and to guide the unguided is what moves us toward the protection and maintenance of our society.
In short, this program helped saving time and money and having more pleasant experiences, and as many others has done for me, I intend to retribute the favor doing the same for them.