When Eric Watson and his team at Spectafy Labs decided to launch a social networking app, they chose four unique locations – Times Square in New York, Disney World in Florida, Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco … and Healdsburg.
Why pick a small town for a national launch? “It’s a small, tight-knit community with common interests,” said Watson, naming food, wine, recreation and youth activities as examples.
Watson is the co-founder of Spectafy Labs, and said he and his team use a “lab” approach to app development. “A lot of apps fail, so we tried a lab approach, where we create a bunch of different apps and see what sticks.”
What he hopes will stick is “Spark,” an app that allows users in a defined area to share, communicate and influence each other’s activities.
“The content will be driven be members, I want a better way to connect with my neighbors and local community and find an efficient way to find out about interesting events happening near me,” Watson said.
Enthusiastic and fond of the word “cool,” Watson describes a typical Spark user as “looking for cool events, a cool thing happening at a local bar, a book sale at the library or a cool special at a local restaurant.”
Watson has designated “scouts” and “explorers” roaming the four launch communities, posting photos and comments about what they see and experience.
Recent Healdsburg posts recommend a play at the theater, gush about ice cream and the river, visit a dog park and take a swipe at an unpopular building.
“The goal is really to find cool things and have fun,” said Watson.
The app can be found at www.sparknearby.com.
