No place for negativity
Bimble’s musings on the power of positivity on social media.
The world’s a big and beautiful place and we get reminded of this every time we see incredible content on our app — whether it’s a Melbourne girl’s hunt for Aussie coffee in Nashville or a love letter to Istanbul by a Turkish-American westcoaster in New York. But recently a local business owner told us that Bimble feels like a village and we fell head over heels for the sentiment. Our space is welcoming for anyone and unlike typical rating and review services, which can be vicious and highly damaging to local businesses, Bimble is an entirely positive platform. It’s the app for your places — no-one else’s. So if you don’t like it, you don’t list it. We think we could all do with a little more positivity, don’t you?
Social media is a minefield. And whilst navigating it is part and parcel of modern life, it often seems like our online spaces are becoming increasingly hostile. We get our fair share of trolling on the net. From disparaging comments about the “pumpkin spice latte contingent” to some perhaps misplaced aggression about the word ‘Bimble’ itself — direct quote “The name is terrible. What a nightmare!” (Tad dramatic, no?) All of this has made us more sure than ever that our commitment to fostering a positive environment for the Bimble community could not be more valuable. We feel emboldened in our mission by our users who express gratitude for our space, with one writing:
“Bimble is a refreshing platform which doesn’t give negativity the time of day. You can explore the world from your phone and find the places which other Bimblers love”
At Bimble, the only thing we will ever advocate for is people saving and sharing the places that matter to them. If that happens to be where to get the best pumpkin spice lattes, so be it. It’s not our place or anyone else’s to make value judgments on the places that people like and want to tell their friends, family and the world about! You list what you like and leave off what you don’t — it’s pretty simple. And yet the simplicity in our approach is also deeply personal and we’re proud that our community chooses to celebrate rather than tear down.
Other ‘concerns’ we receive centre around the idea that places being listed on Bimble will make them too popular. We heard from a commenter that the great, little places we so advocate for will be “spoiled” by our platform. “Why blow up my favorite spots?” from another. Dramatics aside, one thing we know with absolute certainty is that when your favourite local cafe starts getting more customers through peer-to-peer recommendations, albeit digital, the coffee won’t taste any different. But the business owner and in turn you and your local economy would benefit from the net positive effect.
Bimble’s not about telling you what’s trendy and where to go and it never will be. Bimble is a space for people to organise their favourite spots, make recommendations to their friends and to find something new that will resonate with them. And to do it all quickly and easily. If your places are deeply personal to you, Bimble gives you the option of keeping your placelists private. We really mean it when we say we are a platform for everyone.
In any case, we are resolute in our belief that bringing more footfall to the small, independent businesses who are out-competed by chains and who have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic will benefit everyone in a community. Whilst we recognise that there are spaces designed for specific groups and purposes, concern about indie businesses becoming too popular or appealing to the “cute cupcake shop” crowd seems missguided to us to be honest. Here’s why. For every £1 spent in an indie, 65p circulates back into the local economy. That figure is a miniscule 5p when spent in a chain. You might buy a croissant from what seems like a trendy patisserie in an up and coming area, but keep in mind that the baker might later spend some of their earnings on music lessons for their child with a local teacher who lives down the street. Your contribution is tangible in ways you might not immediately realise.
Having spoken to so many business owners, it’s stories like these that make it rewarding to share the great places we love. To be frank, gatekeeping secret spots makes no sense to Bimble. We are also proud that we are entirely user — and therefore, community-led. Of course some places on our platform will become more popular than others over time but we don’t think this has to be a bad thing! Sharing is caring after all! 😉
If you have a story you’d like to share about a great little place or other bimbling experiences, get in touch with us at hello@bimble.com.
