Reel Buds
Social network for anglers: partners, guides, tournaments
The Challenge
The fishing community lacked a dedicated social platform to connect anglers with each other, find tournament partners, discover local events, and access guides and lodges. Existing general-purpose social platforms didn't address the specific needs of competitive and recreational fishing.
Constraints & Requirements
- Real-time messaging and matching between anglers
- Location-based discovery for tournaments, guides, and lodges
- Scalable infrastructure for user-generated content and media
- Cross-platform mobile and web experience
Our Approach
Discover
Collaborated with experienced anglers and tournament organizers to define core features: partner matching, tournament discovery, guide booking, and community feeds.
Design
Created an engaging social feed with fishing-specific features: catch logs, tournament brackets, guide profiles, and lodge directories.
Build
Full-stack development with real-time features, geolocation-based search, media uploads, and a recommendation engine for partner matching.
Launch
Beta launch with key fishing communities, gathering feedback on matching algorithms and tournament management features.
Iterate
Added influencer profiles, brand sponsorship tools, and conservation tracking features aligned with the '3 C's' mission.
The Solution
Full-featured social networking platform with real-time messaging, location-based discovery, tournament management, and community engagement tools built for the fishing industry.