Share the Love, Support Your Local Guide
Share the Love
Image | Tyler Nix, Unsplash
As I mentioned in my letter this month, one of the best ways to deal with the rollercoaster of emotions this pandemic has given us is to project love. There are many ways to do that, from small gestures to grand works. I have a suggestion for all of you that follow us here, consider supporting our guides.
The Guide Collective was founded in spring of 2020, almost a year ago, in the wake of the travel industry shutting down. Our small group of friends and colleagues were looking for a way to continue the work that we love and also to find creative ways to bring the world into the home of anyone who was interested to see it. We each pitched in $50 and set up our website. We’ve had no specific plan for making money—up to now that hasn’t been the focus. Our focus has been to innovate with creative travel content, and I think we’ve delivered in a big way. From articles to podcasts, virtual tours to travel interviews, and book clubs to online parties, we are always striving to connect with you.
What you may not realize is that our guides have done this as volunteers.
Nobody is paid to run this, and our contributors, editors, and managers do it all for free. Many of our guides receive little to no support from their governments, as unfortunately our profession is often left out of aid packages. We could put irritating ads up to generate some income, but I think we hate flashy ads as much as you do.
We’ve created a Virtual Tip Jar page with the PayPal information for our guides. If you enjoy an article or video they’ve created, a free event they’ve run, a Facebook Live show they’ve hosted, or a podcast they’ve produced, we’d love for you to share the love and send them some a small tip. If you’re not sure who to tip, you can also send one to a general fund that will go to basic business costs.
We realize that financially, this is a tough time for most people, and we’d like to keep our content free. If you’re not in a position to tip, you can also share the love by generously reposting and commenting on our social media posts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Spreading the word about our work is like giving us all a big hug.
Thanks for your consideration. We hope to bring you more of the world for a long time to come.
We welcome and appreciate your support for Guide Collective.
Image | Sam Dan Truong, Unsplash