The Chicagoist will be launching later but in the meantime please enjoy our archives.

Making Professional Connections In Chicago Has Never Been So Easy

By Sponsor in Arts & Entertainment on Oct 10, 2017 5:00AM

GirlsWithCoffee.jpg

It’s no secret that the best opportunities come from people you know. Whether getting seen for an important job opportunity, finding the right partner for your side project or finding the brilliant marketing idea to help your company succeed, it's all about meeting the right people to make it happen. Luckily for you, there’s an easy way to start building those connections and it’s called Shapr.

Shapr is a completely free app for networking that introduces relevant nearby professionals up for grabbing a cup of coffee or an after work beer. With over 700,000 people on the app in cities across the US including over 30,000 in Chicago, there have been many success stories from connections made through Shapr. Take for example Viraj Shah, a consultant in mobile and web design. Viraj started his consultant business a year ago, and says relationships made through Shapr helped him gain his initial clients.

“From the first week, I was being matched with a number of people that I would not normally have met,” offers Viraj. “Shapr is one of the most consistent ways to find clients. It’s really convenient—you can just do it from home.”

To get started, all you have to do is download the app and pick 10 interests to help you match. For example, you can select #tech if you’re hoping to meet people from cool tech companies around Chicago, or #graphicdesign if you’re exploring a career change and want to learn more about creative jobs. There are professionals from several fields including marketing, startups, entertainment, politics, finance, but Shapr’s smart algorithm shows you just the most relevant 10-20 profiles each day. Browse anonymously through your daily suggestions—you’ll get a notification when both people want to connect and can use pre built icebreakers to set up a time to meet.

shaprinsta.jpg

While Viraj has successfully met clients through the app, others such as Roshankie Hayes have discovered collaborators. Ros is a professional dancer, model and photographer who uses the app to seek out projects that fit his myriad of interests. Through Shapr, Ros met fellow photographer AJ Sharma and hit it off. The two artists collaborated on a photo series they revealed through Instagram.

“You’ve matched based on your interests so you know you have something in common,” shared Ros. “People on Shapr often don’t want to chat too much in the app, they just want to get coffee and meet.”

So what’s your goal? Whether it’s exploring a career change, getting your foot in the door at an interesting company or just making other friends in Chicago, Shapr is a must-use app to build the right connections.

Download Shapr for iOS or Android and start making connections today.

This post is brought to you by Shapr.