I discovered the local guide program by accident when I was browsing through people’s review regarding restaurants.
Soon I realized I could have written my review too so I started reviewing food during my trip to foreign countries (that do not speak English) and they got popular quickly. The reason could be that it was one of the very first English reviews.
Sharing my passion about food is definitely an inspiration to stay on the local guide journey. Another reason, of course, thanks to the google map team trying to animate and making it interesting and fun for everyone.