Well, all of it started with me helping a friend, a very trusted one. That friend has helped me on many occasions. It helped me when I lost my way going to a new place, guided me through new cities, and is still helping me take better decisions. Decisions on small doubts like where to go for dinner tonight to pretty big ones like where to go on the next family vacation. The friend helps me find my destination with utmost ease. Wherever I maybe in the world, if I have that friend with me, I am confident that the friend will help me get home. All I need to say is “Hey Google, take me home”.
I am sure all of you have taken help from this friend. So, when this friend asked for my help to answer simple questions, I could not say no. That’s not what you will do to a friend, specially one who has been a great help. It was my time to help. And I did. I used to answer simple questions that popped up on my screens, then it moved to uploading pictures of places I have been to, and from there it went to writing reviews.
If Google maps asked for help, I did not bother to ask why, I just said why not. After some time I realized that I am not only helping my friend but a lot more people like me who needs a friend to take a decision or to travel to a new place or to explore a new experience. And all this by answering simple questions, or writing a review or uploading few pictures.
Once I realized it, it became an obsession. Now I go out of my way to click one extra pic, answer one more question, write one more review. It is not just helping my friend any more. It is helping whole local guides community. Everyone is a friend. I might not have met most of them but I trust them. I trust their reviews and take decisions based on that. Because that is friends do, don’t they? Always there for you, guiding you to right location, helping you make right choices and sharing honest experiences.
That’s what local guides are to me. A bunch of true friends.