Paloozoo Gives Users Control Over Their Social Media Experience

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Paloozoo is a social media site designed with one overarching goal in mind: creating a positive experience for their members, on their own terms. The vast majority of social media sites today control the user experience through algorithms, resulting in a rather lackluster, and sometimes negative, experience. Paloozoo thinks that social media works better when the user is in control of their own experience. Below is our interview with Mark Reinisch, Co-Founder & Chief Product Officer of Paloozoo:

Q: Mark, what is Paloozoo?

A: On Paloozoo, people engage with what we think is the most diverse content in social media – Social posts, Reviews, Classifieds and “best of” Lists. The diversity of content, and our unique, patent-pending user interface and content filtering features, enables members to control their experience by choosing what type of content they want to see, allowing them to filter out the negative noise prevalent on so many other social media sites.

Q: What’s Paloozoo’s story? How did Paloozoo start?

A: Paloozoo was created by Rick Link and myself. The concept started to form when I wanted to boost my music library with new and eclectic artists. I thought it would be fun to reach out to my friends to see what they’re listening to. So, I went on a social media site which serves billions and posted a request for ideas of bands to sample. My post got lost in a sea of mundane and negative content and generated just a few responses. What I really wanted to see was top ten lists and reviews from people I knew and trusted. Content like that, from one’s trusted network, was nowhere to be found on social media.

So, I closely examined various social media sites and couldn’t shake the conviction that there was a compelling opportunity to rethink the space and create something that was much more uplifting, entertaining and meaningful. I then mocked up a prototype and pitched the idea to Rick Link, a technology leader I had worked with at a previous company. Rick loved the concept, so we launched a partnership and built out Paloozoo.

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Q: How does Paloozoo stand out from competition?

A: Social media today is dominated by trolling, fake news, divisive political commentary and being forced to scroll through reams of meaningless content delivered by profit-driven algorithms. The social media user is not in control of their experience. The outcome of all of this negativity is very predictable. As many studies have suggested, social media actually makes most people unhappier (Happiness Research Institute Study).

That’s where Paloozoo is very different. We think there’s a better way to do social media, all centered around placing the user experience at the forefront. At Paloozoo, we’ve focused on four game-changers to transform social media into a positive experience:

1. Offer The Most Diverse Content in Social Media – on Paloozoo, you can engage with Social posts, Reviews, Classifieds and Lists, a one-stop experience which engages and enriches on many different levels

2. Empower Members To Be In Control Of Their Own Experience – algorithms dictate what you see on other social media sites. At Paloozoo, we don’t like that “Big Brother” approach. With our patent-pending Content Controls feature, we allow you to see what you want to see and filter out what you don’t. Paloozoo becomes a positive experience on your own terms

3. Earn Money For Charities & Make A Difference – with each action you take on Paloozoo, you earn points that are entered into a monthly drawing. Winners can earmark charitable donations made by Paloozoo on behalf of the winner

4. Trusted Social Media – trust, safety and convenience are at a premium on Paloozoo when you browse Reviews or interact with Classified posts

With these four game-changers, and other planned innovations, Paloozoo is committed to its mission of transforming social media into a fun and positive experience for our community.

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Q: What geographic markets are you focusing on currently?

A: We’re focused on the US market currently and envision expansion into the rest of North America in 2019.

Q: What are your plans?

A: Probably similar to most social media startups – expand our membership base, look for effective ways to get our message out, continue to build out the product roadmap, and, of course, attract funding. We have a very differentiated vision for Paloozoo, a vision which addresses significant voids in the social media landscape. Though it has been very rewarding to see this vision come to life, we know we’ve just scratched the surface on the potential of our unique concept.