Surfing is a very popular sport whenever there are waves. Portugal is no exception. A new app is about to launch there. It is called CrowdSurf. It will allow you to engage and interact with your fellow surfers in innovative ways. I talked with Joana Matos, Co-Founder of CrowdSurf.
What is CrowdSurf and how did the idea come about?
CrowdSurf is the smartphone app which will revolutionize the way people surf and engage with brands. Surfing is one of the most awesome sports in the world, distinguishing itself due to its unique values like the community embracement, environmental care and the competitive mindset.
With that in mind, CrowdSurf’s mission is to change how people access to relevant information and interact with their community. We will provide wave riders with useful crowdsourced information, while generating a social engagement tool and wrapping it up with an element of friendly competition amongst users.
In what innovative ways are you planning to connect surfers?
On CrowdSurf, wave riders will be able to put together their own surf reports and share it with the rest of the community, spreading accurate and real time information. Users will be able to see reports from people they follow or from all the crowdsurfers that check-in in a certain spot. Besides the follower system, surfers will be able to connect through the ranking in which all users can show off their skills through a point system.
What is Crowd Ranking?
The Crowd Ranking will be one of the main features on CrowdSurf. Baring in mind that competition is a valuable element for wave riders, the main objective of the user ranking is to keep surfers motivated to evolve their skills every day. Surfers gain points by doing what they love the most: surfing. The more they check-in, get rated and earn badges, the easier it will be to upgrade levels. This will make it possible for them to show off their skills and compare performances between friends.
When will the app be available for download?
We’ll launch our beta version in a few weeks and we’ll launch the official version around May.
Are there plans to expand outside of Portugal?
Portugal is the market we’ve chosen to do our proof of concept and product development. The establishment of CrowdSurf as the main national surf app is our main objective in the midterm. After reaching this milestone, our goal is to expand to global surf markets like Australia or the US.
What other startup is currently on your radar and why?
One of the Portuguese startups we’re following closely is Vertty. Vertty has reinvented the concept of beach towels, turning it into a desirable and sexy item. Besides being an innovative product entirely made in Portugal, we can see that every detail (all the way from production to marketing) is carefully thought and shows a lot of passion. We identify ourselves with their values and see Vertty as a good inspiration for us and for the Portuguese startup community.
If you want to be one of the first to try it, just leave your email at crowdsurf.pt
Leave a Comment