2022
Nigeria is truly a special place. Actually, this is where I have spent the most part of my life so I actually have no solid comparisons.
I love travelling and I also love tech amongst many other things. This love has allowed me scour hundreds of travel sites, blogs and travel-related social networks. This love has also made me an active user of a number of these platforms even if all I do is feed my eyes with the photos and read experiences of other people. I have also shared the few experiences I have had.
Before becoming a regular on Google Maps, I was on Tripadvisor. I took it so serious that I was at one point amongst the top 20 contributors in Abuja despite the fact I was living in Kaduna.
I truly enjoy contributing to travel platforms. As one who intends to visit a lot of locations, some of which I may not have any friends residing in, I find the contributions of people really helpful and I also look forward to helping people via my contributions. That’s one particular reason I like detailed reviews.
Another reason I’ve chosen (not like I’ve got a choice) Google Maps is because it is really accessible as it comes preinstalled. I like the idea of being able to find relevant information about a city just off the maps and be able to move to around without necessarily revealing that you’re new in town.
For those who may not know, Google local guide is a community driven program where you help people and Google by adding, modifying and reviewing places you visit or have been to. If you use an Android phone or have a gmail account, you most likely are a part of the program.
Well, I moved from TripAdvisor to Google Maps and have regularly contributed to the platform. However, this is not without challenges which is what I want share. I don’t know about other countries but as a Nigerian, here are some of the challenges of being a Google Local Guide in no particular order. Some may seem more like personal issues though. Lol.
Network/Service Challenges
Any term you choose above is right. One thing I have found quite discouraging when trying to make contributions to Google Maps is network connection. Though there has been an overall improvement in internet service, there are still a lot of places where you’re unable to get decent reception. For me, this is discouraging because I want to add information real quick and get it over with.
I know some people may suggest that you take note of the coordinates and update once you have internet access but for me, a lot of these contributions are not take-home assignments. I just want to do it there and then. Maybe I’ll change my mind but currently, once there is no network reception in a particular location, I don’t update it.
Culture
I think this is a big part. In Nigeria, we generally have trust issues so when we see people with their phones or standing all bunched up, the first thought is that of mischief plotters. This perception however is not baseless though considering the security situation.
During my first mapping exercise with some friends, we had to take permission from almost everyone even before we could take photos of surrounding environment. This really slowed down the process because a lot of people barely knew about Google Maps and were suspicious we would take photos and use for jazz/black magic/juju. At other times, some persons asked that we pay them before taking photos.
Despite the fact that we were unable to cover as much grounds as we wanted, we were glad we informed a lot more people about Google Maps. At least, the next set of local guides would have it a bit easier.
Addressing
I cannot tell you how much I dislike this part of the mapping exercise. In Nigeria where streets barely have names, are identified by various trees or where some have two names, one for the left side and the other for the right, it can be really tough inputting the address especially if you are in an unfamiliar area.
Once, you’ve marked the location where you want to “map” you have to input an address. This should be simple but having a lot of contradicting information just makes the process unnecessarily cumbersome.
When I joined the Local Guides program, one of the first things I had to do was rename the street where I lived and the surrounding streets because someone had assumed they were a different name. These wrong addressing problem is one of the reasons Google Maps sends you to wrong locations.
The new plus codes seems like they are a bit helpful however, I’ve barely used them so can’t really tell.
Mapping Itself
I don’t know if I’m the only one who has experienced this but sometimes, you find yourself in a location where there is almost no data. It’s just bare land. Even the road which was taken to the location is not visible.
The first time I experienced this, I thought there was something off with my GPS but after subsequent experiences, I realised it was a norm. Well, whenever I’ve found myself in those situations, I just add and hope that more people around input more information.
Local Guides Connect
This challenge may be a bit personal. Until recently, I truly hated the Local Guides Connect site. I had never found a site as confusing and difficult to navigate as the Local Guides Platform. When I joined, I was totally confused as to how to go about it. I really wanted to share and comment on various topics but it was just so confusing I ended up avoiding it entirely.
Well, as with many Google apps a redesign was done recently and the Local Guides Connect is a lot better than before but still looks weird. Try leaving a reply on discussions or adding some event and see how weird it is. I think that should be worked on. I had to share this on Medium first because it was easier for me than the Local Guides Connect.
Asides these, adding helpful information to the map is fun for me and is something I still intend to keep doing.
