I’ve been a Google enthusiast for a long time. My journey began when I had the incredible opportunity to be trained in AdWords by Brad Geddes a decade ago. This experience completely changed my career path and my life. I transitioned from being a yellow pages representative to an internet marketing consultant – all thanks to Google!
During my exploration of all things Google, I came across their mission statement: “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.”
Initially, I was skeptical. “Really? ALL of the world’s information?” I thought it was quite an ambitious claim.
However, over the years, Google has largely succeeded in achieving this mission. The Google Street View project, in particular, stands out to me as a prime example of their commitment to this goal, even when immediate financial returns weren’t obvious.
When I first learned about the Google Local Guide program, my reaction was, “Google, you’re so clever! You’ve found a way to gather information from places your cars can’t reach – inside businesses. It’s absolutely brilliant.”
And here’s why I wanted to become a Google Local Guide. Firstly, as a regular Google user, I deeply value and utilize all the local information available. Choosing what to eat from a menu has become a thing of the past for me. Now, I simply look at Google Photos and make my decision based on the visuals. More than once, I’ve even shown my phone to a waiter and asked, “I’ll have that. What is it?” pointing to a photo I found on Google Maps.
Secondly, I believe that in the future, people will rely on this collective information to gain a more accurate understanding of our history. Imagine being able to look back at photos of the roller rink from the 80s where I experienced my first heartbreak, or the pizza place where my college friends and I practically lived. The thought that my photos could be viewed in ten, fifty, or even a hundred years from now makes me feel like a kind of Google historian, which is incredibly cool.
Then, when I discovered the possibility of visiting Mountain View after reaching level five as a Google Local Guide, my interest turned into a passion. I started taking photos everywhere I went. My family would get annoyed when I asked them to move out of the frame as soon as we entered a store. And every time we eat out, I insist on photographing their food before they can even touch it… They really dislike that!
Once I achieved level five, I became even more driven to contribute more photos, and better quality photos. I even started bringing my drone with me to capture aerial perspectives. I realized this was a unique contribution I could offer that most other Google Local Guides couldn’t.
Being a Google Local Guide and supporting Google’s mission has been a truly rewarding experience. It feels good to be part of something meaningful that will last for generations.
