Although many articles talk about how to make money from Google Maps, most of them don’t approach the subject from a local map owner’s perspective!
So, let’s be more specific:
As many people know, Google Local Guides is a large community and program created by Google to encourage locals to write reviews, share photos, answer questions, add or edit places, and check facts on Google Maps.
In case you want to skip the story about Google Local Guides, click this link to jump to the part where you learn how to make money with Google Maps
Last year, Google Maps reached a new milestone: 150 million Google Local Guides worldwide! All the Guides have contributed more than 70% of the reviews, photos and other types of user-generated content you see on Google Maps.
Local Guides added more than 8 million places to Google Maps in 2020. They also updated business attributes on more than 17 million places in Maps during the past year.
People estimate that Google Maps makes over $4 billion revenue a year!
But the fact is – Google Local Guides don’t get any direct revenue from Google.
NanoWhat’s done several video interviews with GLGs around the world, trying to understand their motivations for engaging with this program and their inner drive to keep up with the program’s activities and campaigns.
Most people talk about the hope that their maps, photos and reviews can help others and also support local business.
The second biggest motivation comes from enjoying a sense of accomplishment that comes along with being part of the GLG community and bragging rights earned from completing challenge campaigns. The third is accumulating all the locations they love around a city, and saving the places they yearn to visit on their next trip.
Including:
Local Food & Drinks: Restaurants are one of the top categories that GLGs like to add to maps, which is inseparable from their daily life. Discovering local delicacies, particularly street food, coffee is an ongoing hobby of GLGs.
Parks and Landscapes: During interviews with GLGs, it was found that whenever they found a beautiful landscape or discovered new trails while trekking outdoors, they would check their map to see if someone marked it. That’s why we can find so many hidden local hiking trails on Google Maps.
Local Hidden Gems: Many GLGs told us that they would save their favorite places for shopping, food, entertainment and transportation for the city where they live. These include hidden gems that many outsiders dream of and are keen to experience like local people.
Google Maps brings together 150 million GLG maps for everyone to search. Due to the sheer volume of places and maps, it’s hard accurately obtain maps and places vetted by real locals. Travellers and explorers are left to judge the authenticity of a location by the word-of-mouth from each location, and skim user reviews and star ratings. Such evaluation is also mixed with a certain amount of advertising and commercial driven agendas.
With the rapid development of the Internet and the gradual recovery of tourism, more and more people try to avoid crowded tourist spots, looking instead for local delicacies, hidden gems and experiences that follow the lifestyle real locals enjoy.
Similarly, we conducted video interviews with many travelers from all over the world, and when asked if they would like to buy a GLG’s Map to explore cities, they were unanimously enthusiastic:
Today, every Google Local Guide can easily monetize their Google Maps on NanoWhat
All the places you saved on your Google Maps can be easily combined into your own e-shop on NanoWhat. We feature unique maps in different cities and promote them to the travellers around the world, who are looking for hidden gems or local insider maps.
You can choose to share your Google map for free, or sell them to earn cash.
We take a service charge for each sale to run the platform and protect your sale, and you keep the rest.
Check out map e-shops from NanoWhat Locals
Setting up your e-shop is FREE and we have a team to help you get started.
Let us know if you have questions or check out our step-by-step guide.
Start selling your maps today by clicking here
NanoWhat treasures each Google Local Guide and the time they spend on their maps. Each of them represent a unique personality and different preferences for their perspective of the city.
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
Google Maps has become a quintessential part of our daily commutes. Many rely on it to navigate familiar and unfamiliar parts of our cities and towns and discover their local neighborhoods. Whether it is to know when a shop opens, find out if a restaurant serves vegan food, or find wheelchair-accessible businesses, we use Google Maps for uses beyond turn-by-turn navigation. And we have to thank the Google Local Guides program for all this additional information. But what is it, and how do you sign up for it? In this article, we tell you all you need to know about the Google Local Guides program, how it affects the quality of Google Maps, and how you can become a Google Local Guide.
Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority
Google Local Guides are people like you and me who use Google Maps frequently. The difference is these guides contribute information to the platform. These contributions include reviews, photos, answers to questions, fact-checks, and more. They even add and edit location information on Google Maps, often becoming the first source of information for locals.
Google Local Guides is thus best described as a global community of explorers that have been hugely influential in the success of Google Maps. They help millions discover new places by voluntarily sharing their knowledge of hyperlocal experiences, improving the experience for all of us.
Google essentially crowdsourced the data it used to build Google Maps, attracting more users, some of whom contribute back through the Google Local Guides program. Small contributions by individuals add up on global levels, to make Google Maps the product it now is.
Google’s Local Guide program works by gamifying the feedback process on Google Maps.
Whenever you visit a place, Google Maps will prompt you for feedback about that place. This feedback can include reviews, photos, and more. Most of these contributions earn you points, and the amount varies depending on the type of data provided.
Guides accumulate these points over time, increasing their Local Guide level. Past a particular stage, participants start reaping some benefits, such as exclusive badges and even special rewards, such as pins from Google, discount vouchers, and early access to new Google features.
Here’s how many points you earn with each contribution:
The numbers may appear tiny, but they add up over time, and the points don’t expire. However, points may be taken away if the content violates Google’s policies. They may also reduce if the business has permanently closed down and removed from Google Maps, removing your contributions in the process.
As you accumulate points, you reach higher levels for Local Guides:
Local Guides level 4 and above receive a badge corresponding to their level, which is displayed in Google Maps as a reward for their continued contributions.
If the Local Guide program sounds lovely to you, here’s how you can become a local guide:
The program is available in over 40 countries. Note that this program is for individuals and not businesses.
The Contribute page has a few starting points for you. It allows editing the map, adding a place, writing a review, or adding a photo. It will also display some prompts, like showing places you have recently visited and asking you to rate or review them. You can also answer simple yes and no questions.
If you want to take your Local Guides game to the next level, we suggest thoroughly exploring your local area, preferably on foot. Walk around your area and help populate details for local businesses, tourist attractions, utility services, public transit stops, and more. Shoot photos of name boards and business entrances, snap videos of roads, and get in the habit of penning down your honest opinions in Google Maps.
Remember, Local Guides is a community-driven experience, and people acting in bad faith will eventually be drowned out by honest reviews and suggestions from fellow contributors, so don’t try to be dishonest. Google does take action against Local Guides that violate its policies, so be truthful with your feedback.
No, Google Local Guide points cannot be redeemed in any way. There is no monetary value behind these points, either.
You cannot convert Google Maps points to money. No monetary value is attached to the points earned through the Local Guide program.
No. Google does not pay Local Guides, nor do they earn any money for their contributions. Google Local Guides is a volunteer-driven program.
Local Guides may receive early access to Google features and special rewards from partners from time to time. However, these benefits are relatively rare and reserved for the higher levels. They also vary across regions. Google does give Local Guides a special digital badge within Google Maps to honor their contributions.