The World Aquatic Industry directory (WAID) is a new endeavor that is launching today to create a global online repository of all things aquatic — fish stores, service companies, public aquariums, product vendors, aquaculture facilities and more. The online database, which has the potential to be a Yelp for the aquatic industry, was started by Keith Baxter and Paul Hunter.
The database is being developed in phases. The first phase is to provide a basic search engine and directory to connect you and your aquatic needs based on geographic information. Phase two is about bringing in businesses to help claim and manage their profiles. Right now the site has support for English but as it is intended for the global audience, there will be multi-lingual features down the road.
Like Yelp, you can search for a company or business by name, location and category. Each page allows for the business to share key information such as location, contact details and business hours, as well as share more details around its products and services via images, video and more. For consumers, it allows a feedback channel to rate and provide your experiences for other hobbyists to see to help make better decisions.
Here is what WAID said about itself in a short press release:
World Aquatic Industry (WAID) is the brainchild of both Keith Baxter and Paul Hunter who between then have numerous years of experience in different aspects of Aquatic nature. WAID strives to fill a gap in the market and provide a centralized online presence for everything aquatic. The initial primary functionality of this site will be around a very detailed directory service, events and numerous information sources to provide the end user with the all the information at their fingertips. WAID aspires to be the best in this space by providing the ability to search and navigate in order to obtain the necessary information.
We have seen a few ventures like this over the years and their value and longevity really rely on both the business and consumers being an active part of the process. WAID has the basic format in place and now just needs both businesses and consumers to participate for long-term viability.
[via World Aquatic Industry]
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