This week, ForgettheBox.net looks at three of the hottest tech startups in Montreal. The local tech community has been growing very quickly recently and is something Montrealers should pay more attention to. Our city is a fertile place for young, savvy entrepreneurs (like you didn’t know that). This week we will look at Wajam (read our feature on Wajam), Artfox and MConcierge.
Wajam Great Minds Think Alike
Wajam is a social search tool that allows users to search their social graph for pertinent and relevant information. Wajam indexes user’s Twitter, Facebook and Delicious accounts to aggregate search results from the people you trust.
The Latest Update from Wajam
Wajam’s latest update added two features to enhance the service. The first addition is the toolbar that is added to the website link you clicked. The toolbar shows your friends that have clicked/shared that link before and if they left any comments regarding the website you are visiting. You also have the opportunity of sharing that link with your social profile as well.
Another great feature that was added to Wajam is a full-fledged search engine of aggregated social content. This is unique because it completely removes established search engines result pages from the selection process. This means that Wajam is no longer enhancing Google, Bing and Yahoo but competing with them. Although this may seem like a daunting task, the big three have yet to execute social search well.
The Future of Wajam
Wajam has taken the first step in the right direction by adding more substance to its overall product offering despite there being a lot left to do. The ability of aggregating content is one thing, but serving up relevant data based on specific keywords that are being used by users is another thing. For example, if a users searcher the term “diamond necklace” chances are they are looking to purchase a diamond necklace. More specifically, if they search for that term in Wajam, chances are they are searching for a diamond necklace their friends have worn and would recommend to them. This is an important factor when developing a search engine.
ArtFox.com Work in the Arts and Entertainment
Artfox is an online platform for professional artists to expand their opportunities in the industry.
Its Value Proposition
The Artfox platform provides tools to help people find jobs, collaborators, manage job applications, get recommendations, showcase work experience and create a detailed account. In a nutshell, Artfox looks to be the LinkedIn for the arts.
Artfox is still at its early stages but has a portfolio of companies using their platform located primarily in Montreal while its user base is from around the world. These companies include the Montreal Jazz Festival, Cavalia, Sid Lee and EA.
Why It Will be Successful
It is still very early to tell if Artfox will be a success or not, but they surely are hitting on a niche that can desperately use the help. It is very difficult for artists to find work and promote themselves so providing them with a platform makes perfect sense. Although LinkedIn is ‘the’ professional social network, they’ve had issues with serving industries that require an emphasis on visual works or portfolios.
MConcierge Client Loyalty Beyond the Client Desk
MConcierge is a hotel concierge on your mobile device for select hotels located around the world. It has recently been funded by Real Ventures, a Montreal Venture Capital fund and is looking to make a splash in the hospitality industry.
What it Offers Customers
MConcierge offers users a quick and easy way to unlock a hotel’s amenities. The user has the ability to order room service, wake-up calls, transportation and any other hotel service directly. The application also provides links to local directories so users can access information about local restaurants right from their mobile device.
A lot will be riding on how many hotels MConcierge will be able to partner with. The more hotels that are on board, the more chances they have of users adopting the application.
What it Offers Hotels
MConcierge offers a new revenue-generating application for hotels because it provides visitors with a tool that easily bridges the gap between ordering services and receiving services. In addition to hotel staff, MConcierge offers clients an additional means of ordering services and acts as a platform for advertising the services available. Clients will have access to a list of amenities and prices that they will be able to order and charge to their room directly.
There are lots of exciting tech related companies and startups in Montreal right now. We would recommend checking these websites out and seeing what they can offer. They would truly appreciate the feedback and the support you can provide them. If you see another interesting company or something else tech related that you think we should know about, leave us a comment below.
Artistic images from ArtFox.com homepage artists: Giorgio Fratini (top), Julie Larocque (middle)
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Alex Galasso writes for various websites on the subjects of startups and video games. Alex’s latest venture is Groupideo, a social video application to watch videos with friends in real-time. For more information, please contact him at alex [at] groupideo [dot] com.
