Trusted Places

I'm a bit of a Trusted Places newbie but I think that it is brilliant. It's a simple concept, in fact one that I've chatted about setting up with friends in the past (I think that we called the site Tip Top Top Tips) Based out of the insight that we are always looking for top tips for people who we trust, Trusted Places does exactly what it says on the tin.

Why do I like it? Well the suggestions are smart and not always expected, I think that the visual based registration is very cool and it's easy, both to upload and to search.

Then I find out that I am not alone in my admiration,  the Guardian featured Trusted Friends founders Walid and Sokratis in their top 1o UK digital start-ups.

Walid and I connected through my post on the Covent Garden Night Market and he invited me to their beta testing of their new site - you can read all about it on Trusted Places Blog. Odd after being in so many usability labs suddenly having to do it myself, but enjoyable.

Interesting mix of people including Ian Forrester from Backstage at the BBC, who blogs at Cubic Garden, and a girl who sat opposite me who is a food taster for Waitrose and whose life seems to consist of eating her way along Marylebone High Street.

Well worth signing up and having an explore of TrustedPlaces.

Comments

[Jonathan]

Hi there,

How weird... I read your blog every couple of weeks and there you were sitting opposite me at the Trusted Places beta test...

If only we'd known.

Nice to meet you... my "advertising" blog is:

http://aroundbritainwithapaunch.blogspot.com/

should you be interested...

See you at the next Trusted Places event

Jonathan

[neilperkin]

Hi Amelia, I've met Walid and Sokratis as well - their idea is genius in its simplicity and their execution is pretty smart too. Seems like they are rapidly becoming regulars in the 'Top Digital Start-ups' lists!

[Erin]

Great, ANOTHER network thingy for me to join. :p Sounds like Trusted Places is doing the right thing (meaning more useful/functional) with social networking: using it for unique reviews to help people with similar interests and minds to find places they like.

I posted an article somewhere that recited a statistic: consumer reviews are preferred over expert reviews 6 to 1. Pretty cool, it definitely supports the trend that says brands shouldn't talk at consumers but rather engage them. ;)