#Yelp indy free

Her team has shifted to organizing a slew of virtual events, ranging from a Cinco de Mayo celebration with Sun King Brewery, to a lunchtime barre class with The Dailey Method, to an online chocolate tasting with Xchocol’Art. Of course, in the world of COVID-19, that sort of thing isn’t always possible. “I like to help people see their city through a new perspective,” she says. Through Yelp, she’s now built partnerships with some of the same local businesses that had purchased the farm-grown food she helped raise.ĭuring her time with Yelp, Smith has discovered a passion for activating public spaces-turning Monument Circle into a pop-up dinner party for 1,000 guests, or organizing an inner tube float down the Central Canal. “I feel like half my education was in the classroom, but the other half was through boots-on-the-ground, first-hand experiences.”Īs a student, Smith was also involved with the Center for Urban Ecology and Sustainability, helping launch The Farm at Butler. “The beauty of Butler is that it’s so well-connected to Indianapolis, which made it an ideal location for me,” she says. She followed through with that goal, completing internships not only with Downtown Indy, but also with Indiana Humanities and Indianapolis Monthly. She knew she wanted to pursue something related to tourism or community building, and she knew Butler would give her the chance to engage with the city and gain hands-on experience through internships. It was that love for Indianapolis that first brought Smith to Butler, where she majored in English and Communications. While her current responsibilities expand beyond the city-and even beyond the state-her heart is still in Indy. She loved connecting people with their city.Įight years later, she’s now Yelp’s Regional Director of Marketing and Community for the Midwest. She was the one to spread the word if a bakery added a new kind of croissant, and she told the stories of local parks and other greenspaces.

#Yelp indy free

Smith spent her days elevating the city she loved by providing free partnerships with local businesses, hosting and promoting events, and being an advocate for Indy. Yelp does a lot more than provide a platform for restaurant reviews. It was a role that, even today, a lot of people probably don’t know exists. But the chance to serve Indy in a new way, and to help pave the way for the emerging field of community management, was an opportunity she couldn’t turn down. It was a dream role she had worked toward even as a student at Butler University, where she completed an internship with the organization that opened doors for a full-time position.Īnd she loved it. It was the spring of 2012, and Smith had just wrapped up the first year of her post-grad career on the communications team at Downtown Indy, Inc., where she helped promote Indianapolis as a leisure destination. Well, I guess this means I’ll need to get a smartphone, she thought. Have a favorite local “mom and pop” shop? Give them a shoutout.At 23 years old, Brittany Smith ’11 received an offer to work remotely as a community manager for Yelp. Cheers to these two businesses for representing Indy. The list highlights 150 businesses across the country in 10 different business categories on Yelp that best represent what it means to be an independently-owned and operated business in 2023. | This rock climbing gym - which features a yoga and fitness studio, Top Out Cafe, and co-working space - also made the list, recognized by many Yelpers for fostering a strong sense of community. North Mass Boulder | 1411 Roosevelt Ave.| This plant shop offers a curated selection of high-quality houseplants, along with uniquely designed lifestyle and wellness products made by people of color + women-owned businesses. Yelp and Entrepreneur announced their first-ever list of America’s favorite mom-and-pop shops across the country + two Indianapolis businesses made the list: “Mom and pop” shops are the small, family-owned, independent businesses that make up some of Indy’s greatest gems - and a new national list is proving this to be true.