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How to organize a successful meet-up

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Local Guides like you host meet-ups to explore an area, try new places, and, most importantly, make great friends! Meet-ups give you the opportunity to informally get together with like-minded people from your area and around the world who are passionate about sharing their discoveries on Google Maps.

 

These events can be as simple as checking the accessibility information of a new business or doing a virtual tour of your town. Anyone can join a meet-up and all Local Guides Level 3 and above can host their own. Note: Before you decide to organize an offline meet-up in your region, please consider the local health regulations and guidelines. The safety of our community is our priority.

 

Are you interested in hosting a meet-up? Here’s what you need to know before you do.

 

1. Plan

Caption: An illustration of three hands putting pins in a map.Caption: An illustration of three hands putting pins in a map.

Choose a date and an activity. You may want to choose something that will be free for all attendees in order to make the event as inclusive as possible.

 

Here are some ideas and inspiration for an offline meet-up:

 

  • Geo Walk — Discover a new part of town with your fellow Local Guides while taking pictures, updating business listings, and writing reviews as you go.
  • Photo Walk — Pick a scenic area of town and invite Local Guides to join you for a walk, taking photos along the way (and of course uploading them on Google Maps).
  • Food Crawl — Visit a couple of new, local restaurants or cafes and enjoy small dishes at each. Share your reviews and photos on Google Maps.
  • Map Editing — Invite Local Guides to get together and update local business listings by using the “Add a place” and “Suggest an edit” features.

 

If you’re hosting a virtual meet-up, below are some ideas for you:

 

  • Show and tell other Local Guides about your city — Use photos you’ve taken or take participants on a tour of Google Maps.
  • Share your knowledge --- Are you passionate about a specific contribution? You can talk about your experiences taking photos or adding accessibility information.
  • Share your passion — If you love cooking, why not host a meet-up where you prepare a meal and answer questions? This is a fun way to share about local cuisine and yourself! 
  • Inspire others to contribute from home — Do you have ideas for how you can keep helping others with your Google Maps contributions from home? Perhaps you can find others who also have tips or consider themselves experts to host a meet-up about that topic.

 

Choose a location, venue, or route if you’re meeting offline. You may need to book your venue(s) in advance, or check with the venue that it’s okay to bring a group on the date you’ve selected. Once you’ve picked your locations or route, create a list on Google Maps that you can share with attendees so they know where you’ll be going.

 

Name your meet-up. It’s helpful to be clear about the type of meet-up in your event name and the location. For example, “Mexico City Accessibility Walk” or “Virtual Knowledge Sharing Session.” Avoid using Google in your title so guests are aware that it’s not an official Google-sponsored event.

 

Choose a photo for your meet-up post. The photo should be relevant to the type of meet-up you’re having. For example, if you’re hosting a Food Crawl, share a great photo of a dish you captured at a restaurant in the area you’ll be exploring.

 

Only share photos you have taken yourself or received permission to use directly from the copyright owner. Do not download and post photos from Google Search, Google Maps, social media, stock photo websites, or elsewhere on the internet without receiving permission from the owner of that photo. Additionally, do not use the Local Guides logo, pin, or any other Google imagery in your meet-up materials.

 

Describe your meet-up. Tell others what they’ll do during your meet-up and why you’re excited to host it. Write original content. Do not copy and paste a description from other sources without properly crediting them. If you are sharing the words someone else has written, use quotation marks around the statement and link to the source where you found that information. For more info, check out our original content guidelines on Connect. Keep in mind that you should not include any personal information (like your phone number or email address) publicly in your meet-up posts.

 

2. Share

Caption: An illustration that shows a polaroid of people gathering at a table pinned on a board.Caption: An illustration that shows a polaroid of people gathering at a table pinned on a board.

Create your meet-up on the site of your choosing and submit it here on Connect. We recommend doing this at least two weeks before your meet-up date. If approved, it will be added to our upcoming meet-ups section where you can view and search activities.

 

Promote your meet-up

  • Share the link to your meet-up page with your network of friends and across other social media platforms.
  • Ask Local Guides who are planning to attend to help you spread the word.
  • Don’t forget to use #LocalGuides when sharing your meet-up.

3. Meet

Caption: An illustration of a person with a laptop in front of them, chatting with other people online via a video call.Caption: An illustration of a person with a laptop in front of them, chatting with other people online via a video call.

Be early. If you made a reservation at a venue, make sure everything is ready. If you’re hosting a virtual event, log in early to check your microphone, camera, and other technical details.

 

Introduce yourself to everyone as they join. Consider bringing name badges that Local Guides can fill out as they arrive. You can download name badge templates from here.

 

Facilitate introductions amongst attendees, especially for those who are attending a meet-up for the first time.

 

Use this presentation to teach attendees about the Local Guides program.

 

Do not use the Local Guides logo. The Local Guides logo is a Google brand identity and is reserved for official use only. Do not use the Local Guides logo, pin, or any other Google imagery in your meet-up materials. Instead, use these printable stickers and these free resources.

 

Take lots of pictures and post them on social media using #LocalGuides.

 

Create a Google Photos album and share it with attendees so they can add their photos and relive the experience.

 

Share your recap on the Meet-ups board. Check out this post for tips on how to write a great recap post.

 

We look forward to hearing about your meet-up soon!

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