What NAVU Is and What a Membership Includes
NAVU is an app that keeps local life organized in one place: local businesses, local events, and local products. When someone opens NAVU, they're looking for somewhere to go, something to do, or something local to buy.
Your business shows up in three places on NAVU.
The Discover Page Is the Directory of Businesses
The discover page is where people browse businesses by category: Food & Drink, Agriculture, Entertainment & Nightlife, Outdoors & Adventure, Shopping, and more. Under Recommended for You, we show each person the businesses that match the interests they picked. Businesses that just joined show up under New to NAVU.
This is where someone finds you, opens your profile, and follows you.
The Events Calendar Holds Your Events
The events you post go onto the events calendar, sorted by day. People scroll through the days to see what's going on, and when they save an event, it goes onto their own calendar with reminders the day before and the day of.
The Local Marketplace Holds Your Products
The products you post appear in the local marketplace, where people go when they want to buy something local. They can save favorites to come back to, and each product links to wherever you already take orders.
Your Profile Works for New Customers and Regulars
Your profile introduces you to people who haven't found you yet and keeps the people who already love you up to date. Anyone who follows you gets a notification when you add something new, like "Honey Coffee added a new menu item" or "Sage Brewing added a new event."
What a Membership Includes
- A verified profile with your photos, hours, and contact info
- A spot in category search and on the discover page
- Unlimited events, posted to the events calendar
- Unlimited products, listed in the local marketplace
- Your menu and services on your profile
- Customers who follow you and get notified when you post
What It Costs
One membership, one price: $29.99 a month, or $299 for the year. Your first two months are free.
Money can't buy visibility on NAVU. It's a flat fee, the same for every business, whether you're a one-person operation or a shop with twelve employees, and nobody can pay for placement. We don't take a commission on anything you post or sell.
Recommendations Come From Matching Tags
When someone downloads NAVU, they pick tags for what they're interested in. Businesses pick those same tags to describe what they do. We recommend businesses by matching the two.
How to Join
Fill out the form on our website, and you'll hear from us within 48 hours. Once you're verified, you'll receive an email with a link to build your profile.
How NAVU Works Alongside Instagram, Google, and Yelp
A lot of businesses ask whether NAVU replaces the tools they already use. It doesn't have to. NAVU does a few specific things, and it works next to whatever you're already doing.
People Open NAVU to Keep Up With Local Businesses
People come to NAVU to catch up on local businesses and stay connected to their community. NAVU has just one purpose: local life.
Your Followers Hear From You Directly
When you add something new to your profile, the people who follow you get a notification that says exactly what you added: "Honey Coffee added a new menu item, Banana Bread Latte," or "Sage Brewing added a new event, Trivia Night."
NAVU Is for Visitors and Locals Both
A newcomer can find you on the discover page, and the customer who's been coming in for years can follow you and stay updated.
Recommendations Come From Interests, Not Ad Spend
NAVU shows people the businesses that fit their interests first, then lets them look around at the other shops, makers, and events in the area. Money can't buy visibility on NAVU. The fee is the same for everyone, and nobody can pay to rank higher.
You Don't Have to Choose
Keep doing what works best for your business. Stay on Instagram, stay on Google, keep your newsletter going. NAVU is an addition or an alternative, and it works either way.
How to Join
Fill out the form on our website, and you'll hear from us within 48 hours. Once you're verified, you'll receive an email with a link to build your profile.
Why People Download NAVU
People already have apps for finding things. So the honest question is what NAVU gives someone, and why they'd keep opening it after the first week.
NAVU is built for continuous planning, not for scrolling. Someone opens it because they want to shop or do something local.
They Can Follow Their Favorite Businesses
Regulars follow your profile and get a notification whenever you add something new. The notification says what you added: a new product, event, service, or menu item.
They Get a Calendar of Local Events
The events calendar shows what's happening, day by day. When someone saves an event, it goes onto their calendar with reminders so they don't forget.
They Can Buy From Local Makers in One Place
The local marketplace gathers products from local businesses, so people can buy from local makers without hunting across a dozen sites. They can save favorites to come back to.
They Can Plan With Friends
- Follow friends: See which events their friends have saved and which businesses they love. A good recommendation usually comes from a friend anyway.
- Create groups: Start a group, add friends, and drop in the businesses and events they want to hit. It works for a Saturday, a birthday weekend, or family visiting from out of town.
- Change locations: Heading somewhere new, they can switch their location and see the shops, makers, and events there.
Your Regulars and Your Visitors Both Find You Here
NAVU is how new customers find your business, and it's how your regulars hear about what's new. The people who've been coming to you for years are the ones most likely to follow your profile. Once they do:
- You add a product: Your followers get a notification, and it goes up in the local marketplace.
- You post an event: They save it, it lands on their calendar, and we remind them twice.
- You add a service or menu item: They know about it that day.
A Full Profile Gives Both of Them a Reason to Come Back
A profile with a name and an address tells a visitor where you are and nothing else, and it gives your regulars nothing to follow.
A profile with your photos, your description, your products, your services or menu, and your events gives both of them something real. A visitor can see what you actually do before deciding to make the drive, and your regulars get a reason to keep their notifications on. We recommend filling out your profile as completely as you can.
How to Set Up and Optimize Your NAVU Profile
Setting up your profile takes about twenty minutes, and you only do it once. After that, adding something new takes a couple of minutes.
Here's what goes in each part, and what it does for you.
Your Name, Category, and Tags Decide Who Finds You
Use the name people say out loud, not the one on your paperwork. Your category puts you in the right place, so a bakery under Food & Drink comes up when someone's looking for something to eat.
When someone downloads NAVU, they tell us what they're interested in, and we put the businesses that match at the top of their page, under Recommended for You. Your tags are what get you there, so pick tags that really describe what you sell and who you sell it to.
Your Photos and Description Come First
Your photos sit at the top of your profile, and people can swipe through them. Show your space, your products, and you working. Phone photos in good light are perfect. You don't need a photographer.
Your description sits right under your name. Say what you do and who it's for in two or three sentences. Someone should finish reading and know whether they want to come see you.
Your Location, Links, and Contact Info Sit Right Below
Add your hours, your address if you have one, your website, your social handles, and a phone number (optional). Your town and how far away you are show under your name, and the Get Directions button takes people right to you. Your website, social accounts, and phone show as buttons, so people can reach you in one tap.
If you're mobile, home-based, or a pop-up, you can still add a location, say where to find you, and list the events you vendor at.
The Bell Is How People Follow You
The bell next to your name is how someone follows you. Once they do, they get a notification whenever you add a product, event, service, or menu item. The bookmark on your photo saves your profile for later, and the share button sends it to a friend.
Your Products, Services, Menu, and Events Each Have Their Own Section
- Products: Post what you sell and attach your own link, wherever you already take orders. Your products appear on your profile and in the local marketplace. If an item is only available in person, post it as in-store only so people can see what's on the shelf.
- Services or menu items: If you take appointments or serve food, post them here. When you add one, the people following you get a notification. This is what keeps you in front of them long after they first found you.
- Events: Post anything people can come to: classes, pop-ups, markets, concerts, tastings. Events show on your profile and on the events calendar, and when someone saves one, it goes onto their calendar with reminders the day before and the day of. If another business is hosting and you're a vendor, they can tag you, and the event shows on your profile too.
The Businesses You Work With
Add the other NAVU businesses you source from, work closely with, or share a guild or organization with. It gives someone a fuller picture of how you actually operate, and it connects your profile to theirs.
What You Can Track
Three numbers, and each one means something you can act on:
- Product saves: How many people saved each product.
- Event saves: How many people saved each event.
- Profile follows: How many people signed up to hear from you.
We don't show profile views, on purpose. A view count tells you how many people glanced at you. A save or a follow means somebody wanted what you offer.
How to Join
Fill out the form on our website, and you'll hear from us within 48 hours. Once you're verified, you'll receive an email with a link to build your profile.