Richardine Bartee
YPlan launches new, hip app in The Big Apple
YPlan, pronounced as “Why Plan”, launched their app late last year in London, and it has garnered great reception thus far. For the first mobile-only event booking and discovery app in the world, they’ve managed to secure over 300,000 downloads in London since going public 9 months ago. Today, they are expanding their market to New York City.
It’s a product that’s very easy to understand and identify with, says co-founder Rytis Vitkauskas.
YPlan’s new app is geared toward 20-35-year-olds who like to be social, spontaneous and to do stuff outside of their natural environments, which is a match made in nirvana for the lifestyle of an active New Yorker and 47 million foreign and American tourists that visit the city each year.
One day that might be a comedy show and another day that might be an art exhibition that they would have never gone to, had it not be for YPlan, he explained.
It’s not only a shortlist of events, but it’s also a curated list of events. There are only 10-15 gigs per day, so it doesn’t overwhelm you but keeps the exclusive events in your reach. There are great events for date night or buddy night out, or to take your friends who are visiting out [on the town]. Within two taps on the app, you’ll be on your way to your event(s) of choice.
You show up to the event just with your smartphone. You don’t need to print anything. You don’t need to call anyone to confirm the booking. You just show up with your phone. They’ll just let you through, and with others, you’ll have to collect tickets at will call. It’s an extremely smooth process, and often times we try to apply for extra benefits like skipping the cue and VIP access, says Vitkauskas.
When asked, what’s the criteria for the curated events, he replied, First and foremost, we curate. We handpick as a team. I have a team that just does that. In New York, we have people that are just ‘on it’ all the time. We’ve people who come from professional backgrounds in theatre, in music, in performing arts, in clubbing and they know what’s trending. They’re out and about 3-4 times a week, literally.
YPlan also listens to its customers. Through email, you can submit events that you’d like to see on YPlan, and thirdly they’ve taken the social media route as a key tool of research. They see what’s trending on Twitter in real-time. They look for what’s interesting and if it is hot and buzzing on the Internet, they “basically establish a commercial relationship with that event organizer”.
If you’re wondering how YPlan has managed to be so popular so quickly, its users are the ones to credit. People learn about the new, hip app mostly through word of mouth or viral elements.
We are only focused on the last 48 hours. Over 90% of the business that we do is for today and for tomorrow.
Naturally, people share the events, like the events and literally are showing the app to friends.
Today, if you look under the concerts for the day, you will see that YPlan will present Pharrell Williams at Finale in the Lower East Side at 8:30 PM. We’re totally on the list!
They’re ready to disrupt the $50 billion ticket industry. To download this awesome app that is sure to cure your boredom, click here. Currently, it is available on iTunes only. Available on Droid shortly.
Here’s a video that can also provide you with a little more color about the app:
