Proxi

Proxi is a Seattle-based company that provides a no-code web platform for building, sharing and crowdsourcing interactive maps and related location-based programs. Users create a map by naming it and selecting a city, then add points by typing a business name or address; maps are customizable with branding, colors, categories and icons, are collaborative and editable over time, and can be embedded in websites, shared by link or printed without requiring an app download.

The platform has expanded beyond map-making into a set of connected programs for community and place-based organizations. A central "Places" listing database holds businesses, venues and landmarks, which businesses can maintain through a self-service portal; those listings then feed programs including interactive maps, business directories, embeddable community event calendars, passport and check-in trails, scavenger hunts, mobile guides, and community choice or "best of" voting campaigns. Participants check in via QR codes, GPS or photo verification, and organizers can message them by email and SMS, capture leads through sign-up forms, gate access, and view impact analytics.

Customers can also generate revenue on the platform through map and event sponsorships, paid or promoted listings, and paid access to events and passport experiences, with payments collected directly to the organization's account.

Founding story

Melinda Haughey, a former U.S. intelligence analyst with a background in geospatial technology and a University of Washington graduate researcher, built a crowdsourced map of COVID-safe trick-or-treating homes in Seattle during Halloween 2020 after seeing parents post long address lists on Facebook. The map grew to roughly 2,300 homes and about 500,000 views and drew requests from people with other mapping needs. Haughey teamed with longtime friend Chelsey Roney, whom she met as an undergraduate at Texas A&M University and who has a background in marketing and startups including five years at Microsoft and a prior software-as-a-service company she founded and sold, to build the product, first under the name Map Your Idea and then as Proxi, a play on "proximity." The pair had previously started a QR-based payments company that they did not pursue full time.

Business model

Proxi operates a software-as-a-service platform sold to organizations and individual map creators. The product is free to start, with paid tiers and premium features; the company has described plans for a subscription-based premium option including analytics, and for partnering with creators and businesses on advertising and affiliate linking. The platform also supports payments so customers can accept sponsorships, sell map listings and promoted pins, and gate or ticket access to passport and event experiences, with funds collected to the customer's own bank account.

Revenue is expected from subscriptions and premium features such as analytics, from partnerships with creators and businesses on advertising and affiliate linking, and from platform-enabled monetization options including sponsorships, paid or promoted map listings, and charged access to events and passport experiences. Third-party classification describes the model as B2B subscription SaaS with a freemium customer profile.

Traction

By February 2022 Proxi had three full-time employees and displayed about two dozen interactive example maps on its site. Named users have included the King 5 "Best of Western Washington" map, the Traveling While Black in Seattle travel bloggers, the Bothell-Kenmore Chamber of Commerce, the blog Tilted Map, and El Paso guide crowdsourcing by influencer Rachel Vigil. The company stated in an August 2024 post that the number of maps created on Proxi had doubled every month since its MVP launched the prior summer, and its site states that thousands of communities build on the platform. Testimonials come from Livability Media.

Latest developments

The company's current website presents an expanded platform spanning a places database with a business portal, event calendars, passport trails, scavenger hunts, mobile guides, community choice awards, email and SMS audience tools, and built-in monetization through sponsorships, paid listings and gated or ticketed access. A secondary-market data page lists Proxi as a private company headquartered in Seattle with an employee range of 5 and reports customer additions including the North Bend Downtown Foundation and Angi-Rx.