When I look to reviews on Google Maps, I want to find the small details that will tell me that the business or destination is a place I can spend my time and money.
I traveled to Augusta, Maine, the capital of the state, I had a need to spend time and money. What I came to realize was that some of the major communities in our interior are missing the information needed to make good decisions.
The decision that makes my life easier by deciding I can get a haircut close to where I am staying. The decision to get food at an organic grocer. These decisions are important.
The screen caps are from local businesses in Augusta that do not have interior photos of the amazing places they own. This includes an organic grocer, a hair salon, and an educational institute that gives free classes to people working in small business and helping their families. These are examples of the information missing that helps people make good decisions based on what is available.
Augusta can be a vibrant place, and one of it’s biggest external influences can be the people who tell tourists and travelers what resources the city has. It can be a place where people spend money, and where small business can flourish. That’s where your contributions come in. Find the little things that make a place great, and talk about them first. Showcase the strengths.
Practice that in your neighborhood, leverage those strengths because it rewards the hard work that people put into their business. People want to find a local place where the work is authentic and true, and your job as a Local Guide can help make that come true!
