BOULDER, Colo., Oct. 18, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- After a successful pilot program earlier this year, Nigh Technologies has incorporated consumer and business feedback and launched version 2.0 of the local social video app with new features that provide more choice and flexibility for both consumers and businesses.
One of the biggest requests from users — the ability to check in at a local business so other Nigh members can see your location and join you — is now available (for privacy, users may control who can see their check-in). Additionally, local businesses are no longer required to make a special offer fulfilled through the app as before. Instead, business owners can make an offer if they wish or simply share information about what’s happening now – like the day’s food or drink special, the start of a fitness class or a band getting ready to take the stage.
All business broadcasts are done with simple, 30-second videos that can be recorded on any smartphone and easily uploaded through the Nigh Pro app.
“While large corporations and e-businesses have reaped substantial profits by leveraging globalization and technology, little has been done to improve the profitability of local ‘Main Street’ businesses,” said Josh Ritzer, Nigh founder and CEO. “As we developed and tested Nigh, we listened to feedback and evolved to a more open-ended local social platform for businesses and consumers to interact in whatever way works best for them,” he added.
If a business wants to offer a deal, they can, but they can also just share information about their business any time they like. Nigh prioritizes “near and now,” so only people close to the business will see the broadcasted videos, which eliminates one of the major complaints with other platforms where businesses are paying for views, likes, and clicks for people that are not nearby.
"My roommate and I found Foolish Craigs on Nigh and went on a whim. It was a blast, and we got to meet one of the owners," said Nigh user Ben Bailet.
This open communication local social network format also allows more types of local businesses to be a part of the Nigh community. For example, one of the most popular channels on the new app is Boulder Reporting Lab, a local news website that does short daily videos sharing the local news in Boulder.
By allowing users to check in with a photo when they visit any business, friends and followers (who users allow to see their location) can find out where their friends are and join the fun. Businesses can also see when customers are checking in at their establishment and can then choose if they’d like to make time-specific offers and see the response.
“Nigh offers local businesses a closed-loop, same-day marketing opportunity they have never had before,” said Ritzer.
Over 100 businesses in Boulder are already part of the Nigh platform, and there are window stickers up at more than 80 stores around town.
"Nigh has brought us a lot of customers at no cost on the same day, and we can track when customers are showing up from each video we broadcast,” said Angelie Timm, owner of Bohemian Biergarten in Boulder. “It's been a great community to be a part of."
In the coming weeks, Nigh will launch Trending Themes, allowing users to check in during specific times on the app, like Game Day, Small Business Saturday, or New Year’s Eve. As Nigh expands, users will be able to see the Trending Theme experiences of other Nigh users both in their local community as well as across the nation. This will help Nigh introduce the local near and now community app to other markets.
"Nigh continues its mission to bring an easy-to-use, affordable and effective local social video marketing platform to help local businesses reach consumers nearby," Ritzer said. "Nigh 2.0 empowers businesses to create an authentic connection with the community and helps bring them customers on the same day.”
About Nigh
Driven by a mission to Bring Back Local to help local businesses and communities thrive, Nigh allows users to discover where their friends are going and see what's happening around them in an authentic community with no global noise, fakes, or bots. Businesses are able to share information, specials or discounts by broadcasting short videos to connect with people nearby, and consumers can check in at any business location and see where their friends are checking in. Nigh’s movement to Bring Back Local is currently in Boulder, Colo., and plans to expand to other markets in the coming months. For more information, visit www.Nigh.com.
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