All you need to know about Kokomo online

Posted: Thursday, October 8, 2009 1:00 am | Updated: 8:06 am, Thu Oct 8, 2009.

By Peter Adelsen staff writer padelsen@kokomoperspective.com | 0 comments

For people in the Kokomo area who are looking for something to do locally, there is a Web site where they can find that for which they are looking. For businesses looking for another way to market themselves, there is a place for them, too. That place is AllKokomo.com.

This Web site is completely local, even down to its founder, Brandon Driscoll. Driscoll grew up in Peru and has lived in Kokomo for the past eight years. He received finance, economics and business management degrees from Indiana University Kokomo and is also a disabled Air Force veteran. On March 1, he launched Profit Web Systems, a premium Web site development company. A few months later, he launched AllKokomo.com as a way for locals to find out about local activities, businesses, and government easier.

Driscoll wants the feel of the Web site to be like a community page; everything from the background of the page to the logo of the site. Everything on the Web site incorporates the Kokomo area, he said.

"My idea behind it was most of us younger people are more into going on the internet," he said. "I have an iPhone, and that's how I find businesses. I don't pick up phone books anymore, and most people don't."

From that, Driscoll created a small business.

"The biggest problem with a lot of businesses is advertisements are so expensive, and so I created my own advertisement. That's where AllKokomo came about. It has my name all over it with Profit Web Systems. I'm not trying to make an arm and a leg off of this, so what I'm doing is people pay a simple $150 a year to be listed on our site. It has direct links to your Web site, coupons, employment, and all kinds of things. Everything on the site is very, very cheap. My philosophy behind this is I'm looking for a low price for maximum numbers versus a higher price for a select few."

The Web site is more than where to find a business. It is also a community site.

"Instead of remembering all of the local Web sites, people can just bring up AllKokomo.com," he said. "It's kind of like a 'Kokomo Google' in a way."

In a time when people are not as together as they once were, the site is tying to get a sense of community.

"AllKokomo.com is just a way to bring the community together," he said. "It's linked up through Twitter and Facebook so people can become fans, and they can post their comments and suggestions there. I do read the feedback from the community because it is for the community."

The site also features a business industry listing, advertisements, school delays and closings, a resources page with direct links, and 'deals of the week.'

"We are incorporating a lot of things that are already out there, but all we are doing is generating another avenue for people to find it," he said.

Driscoll said that AllKokomo.com cares to know about how each of the businesses that advertises is doing.

"I actually want to learn about everybody's businesses," said Driscoll. "We do things by bringing in numbers, saying 'We had 10,000 hits on our Web site. Are you interested in doing any more marketing, or is there anything we can do for you?'"

AllKokomo.com is continuing to add more features in the next weeks and months, he said. Recent additions have been a business spotlight and a photo gallery with scenic pictures from the area. Another addition will be an RSS feed to the Kokomo Perspective's Web site.

Also by Jan. 1, AllKokomo.com plans on having an application available for the iPhone and Blackberry.

"Very few people have phone books in their car," he said. "What if you need to call ahead for a reservation? What if you can't figure out where you want to go, or if it is still open? Now you can get on your phone and get straight to it. There are so many things you can do at the touch of your phone, and they are available soon."

If a business would like to be a part of AllKokomo.com, they can contact Driscoll through the Web site, he said.

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