WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW) – A Wausau native\u2019s smartphone app designed to encourage face-to-face connections will be featured on a television show this weekend.<\/p>\n
CEO and Founder Brad Steckart\u2019s \u201cSit By Me\u201d app will appear on \u201cProject Pitch It,\u201d where Steckart pitches his idea to a team of moguls.<\/p>\n
\u201cSit By Me is a social engagement app that helps businesses fill seats, increase revenue, and most of all, build community,\u201d Steckart said.<\/p>\n
The app allows users to connect with strangers at coffee shops, bars and other locations where they might be willing to share a table or start a conversation.<\/p>\n
It all started with an idea while Steckart was studying for his graduate program at UW-Milwaukee while sitting alone at a big table in a busy coffee shop.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s got to be a way where I could indicate I\u2019m working quietly. Maybe me and the other people who are also working quietly in this cafe could, you know, come to one table,\u201d said Steckart.<\/p>\n
How the app works<\/p>\n
\u201cThe app allows us to use our crutch, which is our phone, to go somewhere and maybe start a chat or send somebody an icebreaker question,\u201d Steckart said. \u201cNow you can set your phone down, and now you\u2019re having a real-life conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steckart said the app can help reduce the loneliness epidemic.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hope is people can use the app to sort of gamify going out and meeting people who might also be out looking for somebody to talk to,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Wausau currently has four Community Connection Points where users can log on and connect with other people through the app. The Pinery Coffee Co., Sconni\u2019s Alehouse & Eatery, Tucknee Coffee Company, and Kin & Kind. More locations can be added in the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you get a couple hundred to a couple thousand using it in Wausau, you\u2019ll really see the town start to buzz, and you\u2019ll see places kind of highlight with little dots,\u201d Steckart said.<\/p>\n
Pitching to moguls<\/p>\n
Steckart said appearing on \u201cProject Pitch It\u201d was nerve-wracking.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had note cards in my hand just in case,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
His biggest takeaway was the support around him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you want to pursue something that you\u2019re really passionate about and that you want to put everything behind, you\u2019re going to find support from every single, you know, pillar of the community and even from the moguls who you never think you\u2019d meet in your entire life,\u201d Steckart said.<\/p>\n
Steckart\u2019s episode of \u201cProject Pitch It\u201d will air Saturday at 10:35 p.m. and Sunday at 10:30 a.m. on CW.<\/p>\n
You can download the app here<\/a> and learn more about the \u201cSit By Me\u201d version three launch party on June 6.<\/p>\n Click here<\/a> to download the WSAW news app or WSAW First Alert weather app.<\/p>\n