Tag Archives | Bizzy

Bizzy Wants You to Check Out Its New Feature: Check-Outs

Posted by Harry McCracken on March 8, 2011 at 12:50 am

Local-information service Bizzy debuted last August–and it’s been evolving ever since. It started out as a guide to local businesses that hoped the local businesses would get involved. When that proved tougher than expected, it shifted its strategy to providing a Web-based recommendation engine for neighborhood spots. Then it brought those recommendations to the iPhone and Android.

Now Bizzy is building on its recommendations with a new feature for its iOS and Android apps it calls check-outs–a sort of flipside of check-ins as seen in FourSquare, Facebook, and innumerable other places. You check in when you arrive at a location, so your friends know you’re there; you check out when you’re ready to go and have formed an opinion you want to share.

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Bizzy Gets Busy With a New Local-Business Recommendation Engine

Posted by Harry McCracken on November 2, 2010 at 12:10 am

A little over two months ago, I wrote about a new local-business site called Bizzy which aimed to help consumers stay in touch with their favorite neighborhood establishments. It was an interesting idea, but one which would only work if said local businesses knew about it and committed themselves to participating. At the time, I wondered what the chances were that they’d sign up in large enough numbers to make it all work.

Well, the Bizzy folks found that getting restaurants and other small businesses to participate wasn’t a cakewalk–and rather than redouble their efforts to make the concept work, they’ve gone back to the drawing board. They’re previewing a new version of the service that’s still about eateries and other local outfits. But instead of focusing on helping you learn more about the ones you already know, they want to help you find new ones you might like.

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Bizzy, an Intriguing But Incomplete Local-Business Guide

Posted by Harry McCracken on August 19, 2010 at 6:01 pm

I’ve been playing with Bizzy, a new service that feels a little bit like Facebook, a little bit like Yelp, and a little bit like Groupon. It has lots of potential, although at the moment it feels like an interesting framework that hasn’t yet been stocked with useful information.

The site–which currently provides information for San Francisco, New York, Dallas, and Shreveport, Louisiana–is one of a bevy of new companies built around the idea of connecting consumers with local businesses. More than most, though, it focuses on letting you keep tabs on your favorites rather than helping you find a place to go on one particular night.

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