http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support- The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Mon, 30 Jun 2008 23:36:44 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment8255 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment8255 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Sun, 29 Jun 2008 05:56:52 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment8199 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment8199 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Fri, 27 Jun 2008 00:45:24 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment8115 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment8115 Actually, i believe that there are free and open source tools for much of what you would need in the site interface. Wiki software may be the easiest way to get started, find out if your web hosts provides it... and if so which wiki software If not find out what flavor of hosting service your host is running on and if they provide a database back end, many do. then shop here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_wiki_software you should be able to find something free and under either a GPL or BSD liscense... this is most likely if you host is running a combination of MySQL and Apache... Of course then there is the problem of finding someone who speaks PHP... but i hear that some find it worth the effort to go self taught to save the money over and above the cost savings of going with the free software to begin with. **grin** The mapping part may or may not cost... but considering some of the frighteningly random things i have seen tied into Google maps... i suspect that you might be able to tie into them for free as well. If you know where to shop... all you need is a coder and a good hosting plan... and if you have the time and confidence to learn, the coder can be optional. Wed, 25 Jun 2008 22:09:11 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2856 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2856 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Sun, 22 Jun 2008 08:02:16 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7981 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7981 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Tue, 17 Jun 2008 02:27:31 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7890 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7890 Your idea is promising and I think there is room in the marketplace for this type of site, especially if it is very well done. One way to distinguish yourself might be through the quality of the writing on the site. If you could attract wannabe travel writers or others with strong writing skills to contribute - either about their own experiences or by going out to local spots and interviewing locals, you might be more likely to develop a following. You may also think about tapping into the college market because so many college students go out-of-state for college and often move again after graduation. Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:55:07 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2603 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2603 Yeah, there's also a footer that I'm gettin on the bottom of my emails, asking me to vote on my favorite city's nightlife and restaurants. Good luck! Thu, 12 Jun 2008 22:32:29 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2591 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2591 Its a really great idea! American express is attempting to do something similar to this. They pick a city and ask the people of the city about whats good for their in-flight magazine called 'American way'. But what you propose is way beyond what they have. I agree with br1168 that it is difficult to break into the market. But at the same time, I am sure there is a huge international fleeting population that you could cater to. Good luck! Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:36:03 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2525 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2525 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Mon, 09 Jun 2008 23:45:26 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7742 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7742 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Mon, 09 Jun 2008 00:16:01 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7716 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7716 I think this is a great idea. In addition to marketing to visitors to individual cities, maybe you could also market to people who recently relocated to the city. I know when I have moved around, I like to get travel guides to get acclimated to the city and things to do, but they are usually really touristy and focus on really expensive activities. Having a guide with a local persepective would be really useful and there would be so many relocation organizations and businesses you could disseminate the information through. Good luck! Fri, 06 Jun 2008 11:36:11 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2432 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2432 You described several technical features that will make your site different than hugely successful ventures in this arena like Yelp. But even with a good web developer at your side, you will face a much greater challenge... fighting the bigger brands that have already won customer loyalty. Like br1168 said, you need to define your niche further. That should help, but even still, there are hundreds (maybe thousands) of "go local" type concepts out there. Get Version 1 out there and begin developing that customer loyalty. And so you can start appearing in search engines whenever a specific restaurant is searched for -- the majority of visitors come to sites like these because of search engines. All the best to you! Sun, 01 Jun 2008 20:07:23 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2210 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2210 Sounds Great! Maybe you could even have volunteers set up in each city, who have a passion and knowledge of particular things who a traveler can contact with specific questions if they are in a city and have a question! Good luck! Sun, 01 Jun 2008 10:31:19 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2204 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice2204 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Sun, 01 Jun 2008 09:22:02 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7472 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7472 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Sun, 01 Jun 2008 04:33:20 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7467 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7467 I think this would be very helpful to travelers, if you can do it right. But given the broad nature of what you are doing, you are talking years of effort or tons of money to buy the talent you need to do this. I would suggest you start super small. Lock up an area, then go to the larger state, region etc. Starting broadly, you may be stretched too thin to accomplish much. Michelle InventorSpot.com - #1 Advice Resource for Inventors Thu, 15 May 2008 11:39:05 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1953 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1953 You're right, Yelp is somewhat similar. But there are reasons why I don't like Yelp. 1) it is very busy and cluttered, hard to read 2)they have a lot of junk listed like Domino's and KFC. It sometimes seems more like a yellow pages that quality suggestions. Here is how golocaling would be different. 1) You will be able to search by map 2) Things will be listed first that have the most votes, so you see the best suggestions first. 3)Each city will have a summary about the city, it's personality, community, schools, great events, festivals, where people go for day trips, great hiking trails, etc.. 4) A Local forum I will not allow national chain restaurants to be listed unless it originated in that city. I want this site to be a fast way for people to learn the ins and outs about a city. I know there are a lot of touristy websites out there, but I'm hoping the infomation that I receive from Locals will be very hard to find anywhere else and for that reason, people will continue to come back. Tue, 13 May 2008 20:37:22 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1923 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1923 Great idea...but I think Yelp.com is already doing something similar? Not to discourage you, but just so you know what you could be up against... Best of luck! Tue, 13 May 2008 16:01:07 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1918 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1918 Interesting concept, but this is unfortunately an extremely difficult market to break into because so many other organizations have or are doing it. Having user generated content certainly helps, but you'll have to snag users from the local sites that are already in existence, a difficult thing to do when cities like Philly already have sites like GoPhila.com and CampusPhilly.com. You might want to try a link exchange bc quite honestly those other sites are usually funded from the city and have full time staff with million dollar budgets. You may be able to find a niche in smaller to mid sized cities that don't already have an established tourism site, but I think that taking on large cities is going to be an extremely uphill battle. One thing that you might want to add to the features you already have for your site is local blogs. www.BlogHarrisburg.com has successfully implemented an interesting model that may suit your website. Good luck. Mon, 12 May 2008 10:43:40 -0600 advice http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1875 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#advice1875 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Sat, 10 May 2008 13:07:01 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7038 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7038 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Thu, 08 May 2008 22:35:25 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7015 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment7015 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Thu, 01 May 2008 12:57:42 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment6906 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment6906 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Thu, 01 May 2008 12:39:08 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment6905 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment6905 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Mon, 24 Mar 2008 15:33:18 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5944 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5944 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Thu, 20 Mar 2008 17:47:26 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5850 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5850 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Fri, 14 Mar 2008 14:34:40 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5737 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5737 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Fri, 14 Mar 2008 07:31:39 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5710 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5710 The site is www.golocaling.com. Ever been to a city and thought, "I wonder what the Locals would suggest?" Whether it's the favorite restaraunts, best hiking trails, parks, attractions, or unique shops. I want people to have a site where you can learn about a city fast and from people who know...the Locals. Suggestions will be ranked by popularity (voting). We will only list things that are unique to that city or region. It will also have quick links to city statistics like crime, jobs, real estate, wi-fi hot spots, local news and school ratings, community calendars etc... Wed, 12 Mar 2008 18:48:06 -0600 comment http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5648 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#comment5648 How much is a database, forum going to cost for a site like this?? Mon, 25 Feb 2008 21:24:22 -0600 challenge http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#challenge954 http://ideablob.com/ideas/rss/1659-Go-Localing-com-help-support-#challenge954