Recommendations from friends and trusted contacts are invaluable when making plans for a big night out or to try that new restaurant in town. Now if only we can easily organize personal recommendations all in one place.
The brand new Raved app (available today on the iPhone and iPod Touch and in the coming weeks on Android devices) aims to do just that. The company’s “mobile-first” recommendation engine leverages multiple social networks, digital media properties and more than 20 million U.S. merchants to provide instant advice on hotspots as well as other locations off the beaten path that are worth exploring.
See for yourself:
Upon downloading and signing-up for Raved, users access instant recommendations based on where they have previously checked-in, as well as preferences from members of their social graph. Once you find and sample new places, of course you can share your experiences with friends directly within the app.
Users submit their own “Raves” of favorite places, and have the option to expand on why they like a particular locale via a “Tips” section. User-submitted signals and content are combined with publicly available information (hours of operation, addresses, discounts, etc.) to paint a complete picture.
Raved is run by serial entrepreneur Henry Vogel and is based in Silicon Valley.