Third parties out. Celebrity direct in. This is YayWay: Collaborate, Inspire, Connect, and Share.
‘We want to protect influencers, not only socially but financially,’ says Founder Charles Simmons. The problem he shared with me is that the little blue checkmark that confirms a celebrity’s profile doesn’t actually empower influencers to maximize their offerings, such as concerts, merchandise, courses, or speaking engagements.
‘Sick and tired of being blocked and censored?’ asks Lamar Brown, founder of BP Pro Fitness, as he encourages viewers to come over to YayWay. Lamar is among several high-profile early adopters including NFL Hall of Fame Quarterback Warren Moon, Sports Marketing Expert David Meltzer, Former Head of Business Affairs for Columbia 20th Century Fox Peter Lang, and Entrepreneur Tyler Malin. ‘It’s a fan-celebrity engagement app that offers a solution against scams,’ adds producer Peter Coleman who has worked with the likes of Marlon Wayans. A technology called Veriff is providing the fraud protection support that undergirds the mainframe.
YayWay is now available in beta on Android and iPhone app stores. It has a sleek purple and gold design and a user interface that combines some of your favorite social media elements such as a feed, stories, and direct messages. One standout though is a live store that lets celebrities sell tickets and much more without the excess transaction fees. The app also expands the definition of ‘influencer’ to elevate and drive traffic to up-and-coming content creators. Users will have the option of signing up as a fan or content creator with different profile features for each. With an opportunity to grow their online stores and become verified, this decentralized artist platform puts monetization at the forefront, effectively eliminating the need for both influencers and fans to enlist the middleman, saving both time and money.
Simmons plans to disclose more of the unique benefits in a follow-up. His focus right now is to attract next-round investors to see how far they’ve come on a fraction of what was projected for the development budget. ‘Experts told us we’d need 2 million, we’ve done it in under 500K,’ he reveals. ‘Imagine what we could do with the 2 million and the right endorsements,’ he goes on. Athletes and musicians are the target market, along with their respective followers.
He’s got a strong team around him, which is one of the most critical components funders look for. Co-Founders Bill Shook, Brian Capezzone, Linda Yang, Lisa Ward, and Darcy Ward are in it to win it. Sports networking should be fun. But identity theft isn’t a game. YayWay’s goal is to keep impersonators out. For more information contact CEO and Founder Charles Simmons at [email protected]
Jenny Carrington is a dancer, writer, philosopher, and yogi. After successfully walking across the United States from Delaware to California (over 3,000 miles), she now focuses on social activism.