Mobile apps can provide everything from online banking capability to restaurant reviews, so why wouldn't they be able to untangle your love life, too?
A unique new app,
Dear Appvice, is willing to give it a shot. Developed by Todd Gross at media company New World Productions, the app's name is a nod toward popular advice column Dear Abby, and it's designed to make any user into a budding expert on relationships.
Featuring a simple interface, the app lets users pose a question and get up to five responses. Other users can give advice or see what's already been written. The categories are love, sex, dating, and relationships.
Gross thought of the idea after working on corporate projects at New World. Looking for a venture he could do independently, he was struck by a morning talk radio show that featured callers who gave each other advice on love.
"It occurred to me that I could put that in an application, and let people talk to each other, with the same level of anonymity you'd get from a call-in show," he says. "Sometimes online, it feels like everyone is running their own promotional campaign for themselves, but this is something where they could interact instead."
Of course, the app launched on Valentine's Day. Since then, the reaction has been strong, and users are embracing the concept. A couple of very heartfelt interchanges let Gross know that he was on track with his goal of creating something useful and important to users.
"You always think, what can I do to make the world a better place, to increase communication?" he says. "Matters of the heart affect all of us, and that's why I think this app is so well received. I'm excited to see where we can take it."
Source: Todd Gross, Dear Appvice
Writer: Elizabeth Millard