It’s intriguing to say, but the most interesting thing I did (or I’m doing) as a Local Guide is also the most meaningful. Today I want to tell you about how I’m helping to improve the tourism in my town thanks to the Local Guides program.
But first, some background story…
If I say the word tourism, you may imagine a lot of kinds of places, whether a big city with an impressive skyline or a small village with calm landscapes, beautiful water bodies and great outdoor activities. Well, I live in one of those kinds of places -the second one to be specific-, a small touristic town called San Bernardino (or just San Ber), in the practically invisible South American country of Paraguay.
Now, practically invisible? Yes, tourism is a difficult matter here, we’re one of the least visited countries in the continent, but yes, again, I live in a town that relies on it to survive.
Here we are known as “the town of summer”. Almost all the families that live here own different businesses which revenues relies on tourism. But as a seasonal location, low season is a complex period of time for the economic activity that suffocates the businesses until they can hardly stand anymore. In that sense, the local government and other civil organizations have been trying -for a few years now- to promote the town as a 365-day destination making different types of campaigns and events, but with lack of effective involvement in modern means of communication. To join forces and be part of the progress, I’ve started a non-profit initiative called @VisitSanBerPY, to promote the town where it had the least presence: the social media.
The initiative purpose was mainly to make San Ber a fashionable town to attract public all year round. That’s accomplished by sharing great Instagram spots, top touristic attractions, outdoor activities, tips to visit the town and more. But quickly the influence area was enlarged to support new young entrepreneurships and make the local businesses to be known.
Here is where the Local Guides program came into the game. What a better platform to publicize places than Google Maps? That’s how I discovered the program. I was simply amazed with the results of this aspect of the initiative, the voice spread rapidly and many fellow citizens where calling me to help them to make their business appear in… Google Maps! (it was like a super WOW!). So, I met with each one and showed them how to use the application, add their businesses and become a Local Guide too. It was sensational. Pictures and reviews for them arrived quickly. The owners were so grateful because since then, they could know what the people like about them and what they could improve, an important key to attract new customers and bring development to the businesses.
I also started to make reviews of already existing places in the town and its surroundings, and more than once I got some words from the owners, like “Hey! I know you from your review, thank you so much!” or “Now we improved what you told us in your review last time, wanna check it?”. I found very gratifying feelings in these reactions because you realize that with a few words and finger moves, you are truly inspiring improvement and persistence.
Now I’m still a pretty committed guide. One of my most important activities in this is to care about maintaining the zone up to date, because every season there are also tens of temporary restaurants, street food locations, stores and other kinds of business that come and go in a blink and leave their “ghost” in Google Maps. That’s something that seriously confuses and annoys visitors. Imagine to find out the place you’ve chosen to dinner does not longer exist! But once more, the local guide shows up, and as we are a small town, it’s easy for me to check who’s still there and who’s not. In this way, we are constantly moving forward, changing, and the local-owned and temporary business are always competing fairly, without any “ghost location” polluting the map view.
I know I don’t make a hundred reviews a month, or add ten places a week, or check millions of facts a day, but I’m truthfully sure that all these contributions I make are very important for the people who use and trust the information that is in Google Maps. Local Guides contributions are like sand grains where every single grain, no matter how small, helps a beach to look more beautiful.
Here in San Ber, as you can see, the program has a visible positive impact. Nowadays, tourists and other local guides just don’t stop making reviews and uploading photos of attractions, restaurants and offered outdoor activities. They fall in love with every attraction recommendation and we already turned a few places trendy for photos! Now we are literally “in the map”, the town is firmly placed into the tourists eyes, and we are slowly but persistently achieving the so desired 365-day glare!
Sometimes I think is exaggerated, but sometimes I think it’s effectively true the fact I feel that through me and other guides, Google Maps and the Local Guides program are a small but essential part of the growth and wellness of an entire town’s tourism, helping everyone to say “I 
San Ber” too. That’s the most interesting thing I’m doing as a Local Guide, and incredibly also, what being a Local Guide means to me.
Thank you so much!