The Google Local Guide Program and Its Major Benefits for Participants

Ever wondered who provided all the detailed reviews, photos and helpful information on Google Maps? Well, it’s just not Google employees.

In fact, the Local Guide program allows anyone to share reviews, photos, and suggest additions or corrections to information on Google Maps. Each of these actions helps you earn points and even receive rewards from Google.

Introduction to Local Guide Program

The Google Local Guide program is a global community of people who share their knowledge and experiences about their local places on Google Maps. Local Guides are passionate about helping others discover and explore the world by sharing reviews, photos, and other useful information about local businesses, attractions, and destinations.

What is the Local Guide Program?

The Local Guide program is free to join and offers various levels of participation and rewards, including points, badges, and early access to new features.

As Local Guide contribute more content and reach higher levels, they can earn perks like free Google Drive storage, discounts on Google hardware, and invitations to exclusive events and programs.

Moreover, by contributing to the Google Local Guide program, participants help others make informed decisions about where to go, what to do, and where to eat, shop, or stay in different cities and regions around the world.

This also helps businesses and attractions to get more visibility and reach online, as well as feedback and insights from their customers and visitors.

Points, Levels & Badges

To join this Program, earn points, and increase your level, let’s explore more in the section below.

Earning Points

The Local Guide program is run by Google and rewards users for contributing information and reviews about local businesses and places on Google Maps. 

The Local Guide is a program run by Google

Here are some ways to earn points in the Local Guide program:

• Write Reviews: You can earn points by writing reviews about local businesses and places on Google Maps. You’ll earn ten or twenty points for each review you write.
• Add Photos: You can earn points by adding photos to your reviews or by adding photos of local businesses and places directly to Google Maps. You’ll earn five points for each photo you add. You can also upload videos, and they will earn you seven points each.
• Answer Questions: Another way to earn points is by answering questions about local businesses and places on Google Maps. You’ll earn three points for each question you answer.
• Edit Information: You can also earn points by editing information about local businesses and places on Google Maps. For example, if you notice that a business has changed its hours, you can update the information on Google Maps. You’ll earn five points for each edit you make.
• Add New Places: You can earn more points by adding new places to Google Maps. To do this, you’ll need to provide information such as the name, address, and category of the new place. You’ll earn fifteen points for each new place you add.

The number of points you earn for each activity can vary depending on your level in the Local Guide program. As you earn more points, you’ll move up in levels and receive additional benefits.

Reaching higher Levels

As you earn points for your contributions, you can progress through the Local Guide program’s levels, from Level 1 all the way up to Level 10.

Here’s how the points system works:

• 1 point for adding a rating
• 5 points for adding photos
• 15 points for adding new places
• 1 point for fact checking information about a place, and 5 points for making edits

The levels are specifically divided as follows:

• Level 1 (0-4 points): Allows participation in special competitions in certain areas.
• Level 2 (5-49 points): Provides early access to new features and products from Google.
• Level 3 (50-199 points): Earns a Local Guides badge, which appears next to your name on Google Maps.
• Level 4 (200-499 points): Grants an additional 1TB of free storage on Google Drive.
• Level 5 to Level 10 (500+ points): Receives many other special benefits from Google.

The more you contribute, the higher your level will be

The number of points required to reach each level increases as you progress. For example, Level 2 requires 15 points, while Level 10 requires 100,000 points. As you advance through the levels, you may receive perks such as early access to new Google features, invitations to exclusive events, and custom badges for your profile.

Offered badges

In the past, Google used to offer a variety of perks for Local Guides who reached higher levels, such as early access to new Google features, invitations to exclusive events, and even free Google Drive storage.

However, in recent years, Google has phased out most of these perks and only offers badges as a reward for reaching higher levels in the Local Guides program now.

These badges appear on your Google Maps profile and can help you show off your expertise and experience as a Local Guide. There are different badges for each level, and you can also earn special badges for completing certain tasks, such as adding a certain number of reviews or photos.

The perks of being a Local Guide

There are several perks of being a Local Guide in the Google Local Guide program, which include:

• Recognition and badges: As you contribute to Google Maps by adding reviews, photos, and information about local places, you can earn badges that recognize your contributions and display them on your Google profile.
• Early access to new features: Google sometimes offers early access to new features on Google Maps and other products to Local Guides who have contributed a certain amount of content.
• Free Google Drive storage: As mentioned above, Local Guides who reach Level 4 or higher can receive 1000GB of free Google Drive storage for one year.
• Exclusive events and programs: Google may invite Local Guides to exclusive events, meetups, or training programs in their area or around the world.
• Discounted Google hardware: Local Guides who reach Level 6 or higher may be eligible for a 10% discount on select Google hardware products.
• Supporting your community: By contributing to the Local Guide program, you can share your knowledge and experiences with others, helping people discover and explore local businesses and attractions in your area.

Benefits of the Local Guide Program for Local SEO

Participating in the Local Guide Program can significantly enhance your Google Maps SEO strategy. When your website receives ratings and reviews on Google Maps, it helps Google to easily recognize and prioritize your site, thereby increasing its ranking and visibility on Google’s search engine.

3 steps to join the Google Local Guides Program

Step 1

Sign up: To join the Local Guide program, you need to sign up for the program using your Google account. You can do this by visiting the Local Guides website and clicking on the “Get started” button.

Alternatively, you can sign up through the Google Maps app on your mobile device.

Display Google Local Guide

Step 2

Start contributing: Once you’ve signed up, you can start contributing information and reviews about local businesses and places on Google Maps. This can include adding photos, writing reviews, and correcting or updating information about existing places.

Every contribution you make will earn you points, which can help you progress through the Local Guides levels.

Filing user’s information

Step 3

Track your progress: As you contribute to the program, you can track your progress and see how many points you’ve earned by visiting your Local Guides profile page.

Here, you can also see your current level, your recent activity, and the badges you’ve earned.

You can also connect with other Local Guides and join communities to discuss local topics and share information.

Checking your contribution

By following these three simple steps, you can join the Google Local Guides program and start contributing to your local community while earning rewards and recognition for your efforts.

Final Thoughts

The Google Local Guide program is a community-driven initiative that allows users to contribute to Google Maps by adding reviews, photos, and other useful information about local businesses and places. The program encourages users to contribute by offering rewards and recognition for their efforts, such as badges, free Google Drive storage, and exclusive access to events.

It has also helped to improve the accuracy and relevance of Google Maps by providing more detailed and up-to-date information about local businesses and places.

However, the Local Guide program has also faced criticism for incentivizing users to contribute in exchange for rewards, rather than out of a genuine desire to help others. There have also been concerns about the quality and accuracy of user-generated content, which may not always be reliable or unbiased.

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