If you’re a person involved in a creative profession, one of the most important words in achieving success is diversity. Australian writer Amanda Smith can attest to this. Penning novels, copywriting, content writing for blogs, and just about anything that involves words in the written form have been the bricks used to construct her career.
For this Adelaide native, it’s about the enjoyment of the writing process rather than the format drawing its boundary. Her career has placed her in the midst of gunfire in Latin America, on the unforgiving frozen lands of the great north, and a variety of backdrops in fifty different countries spanning the globe. The experiences have been numerous and eclectic.
Saying “yes” results in a much better story and interesting life than saying “no.” When award-winning global content solutions agency EnVeritas Group (headquartered in the US, UK, and Singapore) hired Smith as the “local expert” to prepare the Adelaide content for Google Trips, she accepted without hesitation. She knew that this new mobile app was intent on helping travellers experience what her hometown had to offer. As a professional travel writer and enthusiastic daughter of the city, the pairing seemed sublime for Amanda.
In preparation for the release of their Google Travel app, the tech giant sought out experts in the industry to research and write about different cities. They wanted more than facts and statistics. Goggle wanted someone with a creative eye, a curious mind, and an ease of communicating what’s special about different locations.
Years as a travel writer crisscrossing the planet brought her work to prominence, and attention from EVG. The company reached out to her on behalf of Google to enlist her talent on the ground floor of their massive app project.
The app (available in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, and Spanish) is designed to give visitors all the info they need when they land: neighbourhoods, transport, attractions, eating, hotels etc.
Amanda’s favourite part of the project was presenting information about her beloved Adelaide, South Australia’s costal capital. The city is renowned for its museums, art, and numerous festivals. Having spent the first her first twenty-seven years in this cosmopolitan centre, Smith had a knowledge and network of connections which allowed her to compile a list of attractions spanning the familiar to the uncommon.
She comments, “I visited areas like Glenelg, Unley, North Adelaide, Bowden, Semaphore, and Norwood. A lot of the ‘answers’ I found simply exploring. This is what Google desired, a local travel expert who knew what travellers wanted.”
It’s counter-intuitive to the younger generation to simply remember the directions to destinations; why do this when you can simply use your phone? In contradiction, Google’s travel app seeks to help travellers use the device benevolently, to connect with the experience rather than be distracted.
For her part, Amanda Smith relishes the idea. She confirms, “I love technology. I believe that we should embrace its opportunities and not be afraid of it. This project was a perfect example of cool tasks writers can do that are outside of the box. I do have an affinity for technology but given my travels, I follow more of a minimalist approach. Investing in a few good pieces of technology is important for me rather than overdoing it.”
The experts seem to agree with the idea of quality when it comes to the Google travel app which Smith was a part of. Forbes magazine referred to it as “A Fantastic (And Free) Travel App You Should Download Now” and PCMag.com rates it in the top 5 of all travel apps.
In our struggle to use technology to assist our real-world life, this is a big step in the right direction…thanks to experts like Amanda Smith.