The Mission: What We Do
So you think you know Boston? Think again.
Photo: John Fischer
T
hink you know Boston? Think again. Let us lead you to the secrets of the city, and the favorite people, places and things as recommended by residents and visitors, like a great dish at a family-run restaurant, a killer drink, an amazing deal, or a landmark or historic site you never knew existed. The world’s largest collection of Hollywood memorabilia, for example. The field where the first World Series was played (it’s not Fenway Park, and they weren’t yet called the Red Sox). Al Capone’s bar. The first Dunkin’ Donuts. The apartment where Barack Obama lived when he went to Harvard Law School. The house where marshmallow fluff was invented. The original route of the Boston Marathon. The boyhood homes of Malcolm X and Uncle Sam. We'll even guide you to the center of the universe. It's in Boston, too. Of course.
Planning to travel to Boston? Visit Massachusetts? There are way more free and fun things to do (and vacation deals) than you’ll find scouring the tour books. Wander off the beaten path with us for Boston sightseeing, restaurants, entertainment, shopping, and history you never learned in school. Tourist on a family vacation? Heading for a Boston holiday from abroad? Put aside the guidebook and follow us to great (and cheap) Boston-area attractions and things to do with kids. Live here? We’ll take you to hot spots, galleries, and events.
Then share your own Boston secrets with us. We’ll tell only our closest friends ...
Breaking the Code: FAQs
You got questions? We got answers.
M
ySecretBoston uncovers the things that make us love to live—and visit—here. We tell tourists (and other locals) what the locals know, and locals what the tourists dig up. And that's only one of the ways we're different from those other websites. Here are some more.
Who are you guys?
Our senior team was born, raised, and lives in Boston—not San Francisco, New York, or the other places where so many sites that cover Boston are based—and includes the former editor of Boston magazine.
Want to write for us? Let us know.
How is this site different?
We write about the stuff that isn’t in the tourist guides—often small, locally owned, off-the-beaten-path, creative places, along with landmarks and historic sites you never knew existed. Some are well known, but we’ll tell you secrets that you never knew about them: a dish that’s not on the menu, for example, or a way to get a table or a bargain.
Know something we don’t? Let us know.
We list only things we like—without relentless whining and complaining. We know our city has its drawbacks (all that whining and complaining, for instance), but that’s merely proof of how much we all secretly love to live here: We put up with them.
Disagree with a selection? Let us know.
We use great, high-quality photos to full effect, without slowing down your browser—not grainy thumbnails.
Want to shoot for us? Let us know.
We do not accept free goods or services, and our writeups are correctly spelled, grammatically correct, and fact-checked. Yeah, we know, right—on the Internet!
Who writes these things?
Editors, writers, and users alike write about the destinations listed here. All are edited and fact-checked before being posted.
You can contribute, too. Share something you know that almost no one else does.
Or click here to apply for a writing, photography, or video internship.
There’s a restaurant I’ve heard about that isn’t here. Why not?
MySecretBoston.com is not a comprehensive review site. We write about places we (and you) like that don’t get a lot of attention from the tourist guides and other sources. But we’re open to suggestions.
You recommend a place I don’t think deserves it. How can I register my opinion?
If we hear enough complaints about a destination, we’ll remove it from the site.
Feel differently about a place we recommend? Let us know.
What’s to stop businesses from recommending themselves or disparaging their competition?
We ask businesses to respect the spirit of our site. We also check the sources of nominations and complaints.
Does buying an advertisement guarantee a writeup?
Advertising and editorial are absolutely separate. Whether or not a business advertises with us does not influence whether or not we write about it. And, unlike on some review sites, businesses cannot buy top placement on a search-results page.
The legal stuff
MySecretBoston.com and Useful Media Group are not responsible for the content of other services that may be linked from this site, and we do not endorse and are not responsible or liable for any content, accuracy, quality, advertising, products, or other materials on, about, or available from such services.
By posting comments or other content on this site and its affiliated sites, a user is giving MySecretBoston.com the right to display such content on the site and its affiliated sites and to use such content for promotional and marketing purposes.
MySecretBoston.com reserves the right to edit or remove user comments.
By using this service, you agree to abide by the terms of this agreement.
This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the United States and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Slush Fund: Advertise With Us
Don't let your business be an undiscovered secret.
Photo: Les Wood
M
ySecretBoston.com has simple, clear, and reasonably priced ways for businesses of all sizes to market and promote themselves, from static and animated advertising to events that drive customers to venues. MySecretBoston.com spotlights what makes Boston special and unique—including your business. Plus, MySecretBoston is strongest in the most desirable demographic for advertisers: the young professional. Skewing female, the plurality of our users are between the ages of 25 and 40.
Want to do business with MySecretBoston.com? Contact us.
The numbers
Monthly page views: 108,130
Average time on site: 5:41, nearly six times the national average
Average number of pages viewed per visit: six
Audience gender: 61 percent female, 36 percent male
Audience age: 28 percent are 18 to 24; 40 percent are 25 to 34; 26 percent are 35 to 44
Visits from users in 56 countries. Top countries of origin, in rank order: the United States, Canada, the U.K., Germany, Australia, France, Thailand, Spain, Israel, Ireland, New Zealand, Switzerland
The old way
Conventional media’s audience is plummeting, meaning they (and their advertisers) reach substantially fewer customers.
Our way
More than 800 million people use the Internet every day to get information. The average American spends 67 hours and 39 minutes a month online and views 2,352 web pages.
Boston is one of the nation’s most Internet-savvy cities, with half of its adult population online.
• The average time people spend on interactive and community websites has surged 883 percent since 2003, accounting for more than 10 percent of all Internet use. MySecretBoston.com is an interactive and community website.
• Eighty-four percent of Americans say online customer evaluations influence their decisions about whether to buy products or services. MySecretBoston.com is an online customer evaluation website.
• The number of visitors to online discount and coupon sites is up 42 percent just since 2007. Searches that include words such as “coupons” rose 161 percent last year and “discount” 26 percent. MySecretBoston.com offers discounts, coupons, deals, and a category called “Cheap+Free.”
• The amount of time people spend watching online videos sites has soared 2,000 percent since 2003. Nearly 150 million U.S. Internet users—75 percent of all Internet users—watch an average of 96 videos online per month. MySecretBoston.com features locally produced weekly videos.
• Bostonians in particular flock to social-networking sites. Boston is among the top five Twitter cities, along with New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, and San Francisco. MySecretBoston.com provides its content simultaneously on Twitter, Facebook, and other social networks.
Who will see your ad
MySecretBoston.com has four target audiences and will tailor your ad to reach the one(s) you want:
The Young Professional
Age: 24-35
Likes to try new things
Greatly influenced by friends and social circles
Prefers the Internet as the primary source of information, including while at work
Very social, with significant disposable income
The Parent
Age: 35 to 50
Internet savvy but vastly underserved online in this market
Always in search of new activities and destinations for families with kids
Price conscious
Time constrained and eager for a source of ready information
The Tourist
Age: 18 to 50+
Heavily reliant on the Internet to plan a visit
Heavily dependent on customer evaluations
Eager to go where the locals go and off the beaten path
Significant disposable income for dining, entertainment, shopping, and accommodation
The College Student/Recent Graduate
Age: 18-23
Likes to try new things
Greatly influenced by friends and social circles
Prefers the Internet as the primary source of information
Very social and more likely to spend than save
What we deliver
MySecretBoston.com is strongest among the people who comprise the single most desirable demographic for retail advertisers: women aged 25 to 39. Because of the preponderance of college students in Boston, consumers aged 18 to 24 also drive the economy here.
Want to do business with MySecretBoston.com? Contact us.
Our partners
Here are more ways MySecretBoston.com can help you with you reach your audience:
Save My Table is a Boston-based on-demand, web-based software solution that helps restaurants manage their guest experience with online reservations, email marketing, detailed guest histories, comprehensive table management, and powerful reporting—without (as other such services require) special hardware other than an Internet-connected PC or a Mac, no startup costs, and only a few hours of staff training. For free trials and more information, contact a MySecretBoston.com sales rep or see our website.
Interested in Save My Table? Contact us.
Spy School: Internships
Hey, you! Yeah, you! You wanna be a secret agent?
B
ecome a secret agent for MySecretBoston.com and learn from the inside about the fastest- (and only) growing segment of the media industry: the Internet. Interns will learn the basics of search-engine optimization, site management, and other essential skills at a time when demand is soaring for web content experience and literacy. We’re looking for extroverts who want to have fun while they’re learning a valuable skill, and who will fan out across the city individually and in teams to help us search out those things that make Boston special.
Spending the summer on Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, or Nantucket? MySecretBoston.com is looking for interns to write about and photograph restaurants, nightlife, and shopping in these destinations.
Beyond a required in-person orientation, internship hours are flexible.
Writing interns propose destinations or draw from nominees that we provide, and write five 100-word writeups every two weeks. Some also work with the retail, restaurant, music, and social-media editors and bloggers.
Photography interns shoot high-resolution photos of MySecretBoston.com destinations, learning about everything from food styling to how to shoot architectural detail. Photo credits link to photographers’ online portfolios, where available.
Video interns help shoot and edit visits to MySecretBoston.com destinations for MySecretBoston TV, using equipment provided for them. Video shoots are usually on weekends.
Interns are added at the start of academic semesters and the summer. There is one required in-person orientation, after which interns work on their own schedules. The deadline for fall-semester internships is August 15. The deadline for winter/spring-semester internships is December 1. The deadline for summer internships is March 15.
Contact Us
