FAQs
- Why “Neo”Neighbourhood?
- Who decides what makes the cut?
- How do you decide what to cover?
- How can I suggest something you might like?
- Are the cities up now the only ones that will be covered?
- Why aren’t there more neighbourhoods in each city?
- What’s a NeoGuide?
- How does becoming a Member work — and why should I do it?
- Where do I go to become a Member?
- Why should I upgrade to become a Premium Member?
- What's a "primary city"?
- What’s My NeoWorld?
- What’s a Day Pass?
- OK, got it. I think. Actually, could you run me through it one more time?
- What should I do if I’m having technical difficulties with the site?
- I run one of the places you mention and we’ve got new details, what do I do?
- Who built this site?
- What are some of the useful sites we've found?
- What’s the capital of South Dakota?
Because we wanted a place on the web that does things in a new way (and we liked the Ancient Greeks’ word for new, neo).
We started by thinking about what we didn’t want. No meaningless lists of places we’d never want to be, nothing that has zero connection to what we need.
Right about then it became clear that algorithms need not bother applying, not when we wanted to skip the dross in favour of the kind of lowdown a close, well-connected friend could give us.
(You know the kind of friend - one who puts together a killer playlist as a bon voyage present, sneaks your iPod away for an hour or two the day before you go and loads it up, then at the airport hands you a stylish, useful big silk square wrapped around a gorgeous card that clues you into the surprise.)
So we moved on to what we do want. We want to be treated like curious, open, questioning, global people. Not like passive blank cheque books. If we hear about a shop, or a singer or an art gallery or a meal, we want to know what makes it memorable – what makes it worth investigating. Empty celebrity and hollow reputations don’t rate.
And no being put in a corner: all that ‘if you’re interested in books you won’t be interested in cars’, ‘if you love luxury you don’t care about sustainability’ nonsense.
So we built a place we wished we’d been able to find, and we’re delighted you’re here to stroll around the neighbourhood.
2. Who decides what makes the cut?
A trusted handful of keen-eyed, big-hearted, easily amused, easily unamused, smart as a whip people like you.
We’ve been to all the places we write about, anonymously, and paid our own way.
Verity Byth is our Chief Experience Officer. A social scientist and researcher, Verity combines a rare understanding of market and consumer directions with an unerring eye for the new, different and endlessly fascinating.
In a previous incarnation, she led the consumer research for Yahoo! Australia, identifying key drivers of online interest. Verity has worked at IBM, was Executive Director of the KPMG Centre for Consumer Behaviour (Asia Pacific) and has a Master’s degree in technology. Her job is to make NeoNeighbourhood a place for discovery and delight.
Ross Honeywill is our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Marketing Officer. A former director of KPMG (Asia Pacific), Ross has created and managed successful businesses and has been a senior executive in major corporations.
He is known internationally as consumer behaviourist and has marketing experience in both online and offline business. Ross has played a role in the commercial success of Yahoo!, Qantas, David Jones, Lexus, Westpac Broking, Sony, Moët-Hennessy, Energex and other national and global brands. His job in the NeoNeighbourhood is to keep meetings short and to be our evangelist, spreading the word.
John Ashby is our Chairman and Chief Commercial Officer. Former founding managing director of global strategy consultancy AT Kearney, initially in SE Asia and subsequently in Australia, John brings wisdom, experience and diligence to making NeoNeighbourhood a sustainable business. His job in the NeoNeighbourhood is to be our guide, and to make it pay its way.
Hazel Flynn is our Editor-in-Chief. Previously an ABC Radio producer and presenter, magazine section editor and book publisher, Hazel is also the co-author, with Sue Pieters-Hawke, of the bestseller Hazel’s Journey: A Personal Experience of Alzheimer’s, about Hazel Hawke. Her job in the NeoNeighbourhood is to keep the content fresh, lively and accurate.
3. How do you decide what to cover?
If it’s the kind of place, thing or person you want to text your best friend about, or mention in a handwritten journal, we’re interested in knowing about it.
We’re aiming to bring you lots of whispered secrets and to surprise you with great new discoveries.
We gather ideas from everywhere and sift them to get a 'visit list'. Then we go and see for ourselves. We're seeking those things that are individual, authentic, unpredictable and most of all, a good experience.
If it passes the test, we let you know about it.
And we hope you’ll whisper a secret back, if you’ve got a good one. Which leads us to…
4. How can I suggest something you might like?
Send us an email or hit the Suggest button. Tell us what and where it is and why it’s earned your attention, and we’ll take an interested look.
5. Are the cities up now the only ones that will be covered?
No, the cities that are clickable at the moment get new buddies every couple of weeks. It’ll be a little while before we enmesh the globe, but we’re working on it.
The cities you'll soon be able to explore are:
Adelaide ... goes live on July 21, 2008
And then there's Auckland, Amsterdam, Hobart and many more. New cities are being added all the time.
If there's a metropolis you'd love to see on NeoNeighbourhood, hit the Suggest button — if you're persuasive enough, maybe we'll bump it up the list.
6. Why aren’t there more neighbourhoods in each city?
It comes down to distilling information.
When we say “neighbourhood” we mean an area where you can find a bunch of rewarding experiences; somewhere you can happily spend a few hours or a lot longer.
There are lots of sweet spots of interest here and there across the cities we cover, but these are the honey jars.
Unlike the city-specific experiences, NeoGuides cover podcasts, downloads, books, online conversations, specialist websites and a whole lot more that will be equally useful no matter where in the world you are.
8. How does becoming a Member work — and why should I do it?
You get to see and do so much more when you become a Member.
There is no cost and it's quick and easy.
You just need to give yourself a user name and a password and enter a couple of other basic details.
That's it.
As soon as become a Member you get immediate access to more of the neighbourhood, so you'll be able to see a selection of experiences in each category in every city, as well as featured NeoGuides.
And once you’re a Member you can sign in whenever you like, and your primary city will open automatically. You can switch cities anytime you like.
You’ll find out first about new cities, new guides and new experiences you won't want to miss. (But don’t worry, we’ll never pass your details to a third party.)
We think that once you take a look around you’ll like it so much you’ll upgrade to become a Premium Member. But even if you don’t, you’ll always be welcome in the neighbourhood.
9. Where do I go to become a Member?
Just click here.
10. Why should I upgrade to become a Premium Member?
As a Premium Member you get immediate unlimited access to the whole Neighbourhood – every place of interest in each category in every city. Your access-all-areas pass also includes all the NeoGuides.
You’ll be able to select the things that interest you the most and then, on your My New World page, you can sort them the way you want and give them your own tag.
And you get 10 Neo Special Guest Day Passes which are yours to give to friends, inviting them to look around the neighbourhood as your special guests.
Upgrading to Premium Membership costs only $198 (including GST) for 12 months. It’s quick and easy. Click here.
This is the city whose listings are most useful to you, most often. It might be the city you live in or the one you travel to the most.
Once you're a Member and you've selected a primary city from the drop-down menu, this is the page you'll be taken to first when you sign in.
If you're a Premium Member and you want to change your primary city you can do that easily in My Neo World - just choose the "edit my profile" option.
If you're a Member and you want to change your Primary City, just email us here.
It’s your personalised best of the best: the page where you can store your favourite experiences or those you’re keen to try.
Just hit the "select" button on the experiences you want to store. They'll then appear on your My NeoWorld page and you can organise them whichever way is most useful to you.
You can also tag them anyway you want. Create a list and tag it “wedding present ideas” or “good food, cute waiters” or “necessary distractions" or anything else you like.
It's also where you can update your profile.
Premium Members go straight to their My NeoWorld page upon signing in.
If you think you want to become a Premium Member but you’re the cautious type, a Day Pass, costing just $20, allows you access to the whole neighbourhood for 24 hours.
There are also Special Guest Day Passes: When you become a Premium Member you’ll get 10 of these special passes, which are yours to give to friends, allowing them to come and look around your new neighbourhood as your guests.
14. OK, got it. I think. Actually, could you run me through it one more time?
Sure.
As a Visitor you get to sample a little of the great experiences we've uncovered in each city. You can also delve into all lifestyle pages: Cars, Homes, Jobs and Ideas.
If you'd like to see more become a Member at no cost.
As a Member you can explore more great finds in each category in every city, plus the featured NeoGuides. You'll find out first when new cities, new experiences and new guides go live on the site.
If you want full access, simply upgrade to Premium Membership.
As a Premium Member you get immediate unlimited access to the whole NeoNeighbourhood – every place of interest in each category in every city.
All the NeoGuides.
Your own My NeoWorld page.
And 10 Neo Special Guest Day Passes to bestow as you wish.
In other words, you are the Neo Ruler of all you survey.
15. What should I do if I’m having technical difficulties with the site?
Curse extravagently, obviously. Then email us here and we'll try to help.
16. I run one of the places you mention and we’ve got new details, what do I do?
Email us here with any new information or corrections to opening hours, phone numbers, updated website addresses, etc. And thanks for taking the time.
Graphic design is by Fabio Ongarato Design. Web design and development is by Bam Creative, under the direction of Ricky Onsman.
18. What are some of the useful sites we've found?
All for Women
AusDirectory.Org
Australia Directory
Australian Travel & Tourism Directory
Australian Web Directory
Bizclickers Australian Web Directory
BuggerAll.com.au
ComeOnAussie
Cooee Online
Discover Australia
Down Under Index
Gonzoz
Gumtree
Oz-Directory Australian Web Directory
Oz-Directory Australian Web Directory
OzDisk Link Directory
OzFind Australian Web Directory
Shopseek
Small Business Support Network
stickerart.com.au
Travel Australia
Web Directory Australia
Web Directory Australia
Web Directory - Online Business Directory
19. What’s the capital of South Dakota?
This is a reference to Groucho Marx’s response when a medium at a seance asked if anyone had any final questions for the spirit world, isn’t it? The answer is Pierre.