Top Recommends Pledges $50,000 to Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium

A plaque went up this week at Mote SEA recognizing Top Recommends' five-year, $50,000 pledge to Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium. The commitment supports the organization's research, conservation and education work across the Gulf Coast.

Mote SEA is the organization's new science education aquarium at University Town Center in Sarasota. The plaque marks the beginning of a half-decade partnership between a marine research institution that has operated in Sarasota since 1955 and a local recommendation platform that now connects more than 700,000 community members across Sarasota and Manatee County.

What Top Recommends does

Top Recommends operates a network of 81 Facebook groups where neighbors share recommendations for local businesses. The platform grew from a simple idea: the businesses worth hiring are the ones people actually recommend, not the ones with the biggest ad budget.

Founder Craig Wallace built the platform around a principle that shows up in every part of how it operates. Real recommendations from real neighbors, never paid placement. A business cannot purchase a ranking or guarantee selection for a feature. The platform's business directory and award programs draw entirely from what community members say when they share which pros exceeded expectations.

Wallace spent the last decade helping local businesses grow online. Top Recommends is the platform he always wished existed, where word of mouth works at scale and trust is earned instead of bought.

The 700,000 combined members across those 81 communities power the platform. When a neighbor asks for a plumber, an electrician, a wedding photographer or a contractor, the responses come from people who have hired those businesses and seen the results firsthand. It is where neighbors and businesses share the local pros who exceed expectations and raise the industry standard.

Real people, not ads. Recommendations come directly from community members. Earned, never bought. Businesses cannot purchase rankings or recommendations. Placement cannot be purchased, and submission does not guarantee selection.

Supporting local institutions

The Mote Marine pledge represents the platform's first major institutional partnership. Mote operates one of the Gulf Coast's leading marine research centers, running programs in shark research, coral restoration, red tide mitigation and sea turtle conservation. The new Mote SEA aquarium at University Town Center opened to bring that science directly to the public through interactive exhibits and education programs.

The $50,000 commitment runs through 2029. It will support ongoing research and conservation efforts across Mote's programs, from restoring coral reefs to studying the health of coastal ecosystems.

Building trust across the community

Top Recommends also runs events designed to connect business owners with each other and with the communities they serve. The platform hosts Marketing on Main, a business expo and speed networking event that showcases more than 30 local businesses at a time. The Sarasota and Manatee Business Expo & Speed Networking sessions create opportunities for businesses to meet potential partners and customers face to face.

Sit & Lit Sessions bring business owners to locations like Clive Daniel Home for full-day video and photo production with a professional crew. The content production days are filmed with complete production teams, giving local businesses access to professional photography and videography that helps them show up online the way they show up in person.

The platform also organizes community mixers, including events like the 20s & 30s Stoplight Mixer, and professionally written business features. Every service aims to help local businesses show up the way their best customers already see them: as real people doing work that matters, chosen because someone trusted them enough to say their name out loud.

The Sit & Lit Sessions filmed at Clive Daniel Home include full production crews. Business owners walk away with polished video and photo content they can use across their websites, social media channels and marketing materials. The sessions turn a single day of production into months of professional content.

Top Recommends serves businesses throughout Sarasota and Manatee County. The platform also runs community-voted business awards and member giveaways featuring local prizes. Each program connects back to the same principle: building local trust at scale by letting real recommendations drive real results.

The recognition plaque at Mote SEA will remain on display for the duration of the partnership. It sits alongside other donor recognitions in the aquarium's public spaces, visible to the thousands of families, students and visitors who walk through each month.

Where to find Top Recommends

The Top Recommends directory is open at toprecommends.com. Community members can browse businesses by category, read feature stories and submit their own recommendations. Business owners interested in the platform's services or upcoming events can reach the team at (978) 943-0920 or craig@toprecommends.com.

Mote SEA is located at University Town Center in Sarasota. The aquarium is open seven days a week. Admission supports Mote Marine Laboratory's research and conservation programs across Florida's Gulf Coast.