Zip it up this winter

Two Cincinnatians "unzipped" their business to the public in 2005 - now they are ready to ring in the new year by marketing it to students.

ZipScene.com is a Web site created by Sameer Mungur and Jaydev Karande that allows people to find events in Cincinnati. On ZipScene's Web site are local happenings for bars, night clubs, sports, performing arts and theater.

"It is easy to search and free because we want people to go there," said Mike Halloran, marketing and sales director.

The Web site also offers a free membership, according to Halloran. If a person becomes a ZipScene member, they receive a personalized ZipScene membership card with their name in the mail.

"It is like an entertainment card," Halloran said.

The card is good at more than 100 venues in the Cincinnati area.

"Free and reduced cover, free tickets at The Comedy Club and drink specials at different bars are just a couple of [card] offers," Halloran said.

According to Halloran, there are at least 25 offers in the Clifton area.

Members of can use it as a communication device to connect to their friends.

"It doesn't matter what your age, but what your interests are," Halloran said.

However, the average age of a ZipScene member is 31.

"It [ZipScene membership] is relatively low around the college market, maybe ZipScene is unknown to many UC students. We want students to check it out and tell their friends," Halloran said.

Some students and student groups at UC have been trying to promote ZipScene through Facebook and events at Cincinnati.

"I learned about ZipScene through a promotion at Party in the Park. I have a ZipScene card, which I use when I go out," said Stephanie Putt, a fourth-year paralegal student.

The idea was created in late December of 2004, however, it was launched a year later.

"We launched the site in December 2005, a little over a year ago," Mungur said.

Mungur worked at Proctor & Gamble as an engineer for five years prior to the launching of the site. Karande planned events for clubs in Cincinnati and is a 2002 UC graduate. They had both met while working in the entertainment industry and thought ZipScene would be a good idea. They added Halloran in 2005 to enhance the Web site's marketing strategy. Halloran, just like Mungur worked at Proctor & Gamble, but in the marketing field.

"They [Mungur and Karande] were trying to develop an easy way for people to find out events at a single location," Halloran said.

Karande and Mungur felt information about all the events in Cincinnati were "fragmented" and could only be found in certain locations, not in one place.

"It was originally Jaydev's idea," Mungur said.

ZipScene contacts businesses in Cincinnati and tells them about the Web site. They can then post their events directly on the site.

"Other venues we work with to make sure we have all the events. Sometimes we even pull events off of the businesses' main Web site," Halloran said.

ZipScene members can sign up to receive information about events at the venues they frequent most, or can elect to receive information about all events in the area.

Halloran said they are planning on keeping ZipScene free to all its members.

"Members will never have to pay," Halloran said.

To still make a profit from this site, they get companies to advertise on their Web site. The more members ZipScene has, the more companies want to advertise.

The main office of ZipScene is located on the top floor at 401 Warner St. Although ZipScene was founded in Cincinnati, it has already began to spread through Chicago.

"We are looking to expand to 10 other markets in the Midwest," Halloran said.

One city ZipScene is looking to expand to is Indianapolis.

"ZipScene gets down to the detail of every event in Cincinnati," Mungur said.