CEO of Quest Software. Watch the video to get the background, then, after the jump (that makes us sound cool, but we don’t really have a jump here), let’s talk about why this is awesome.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez2MCnE7Apw
Why This Is Awesome…
1. This is a subtle dig.
Really, making fun of a logo because it looks 1992? (And it’s actually from 1987?) Okay, but, do we have better things to do?
Subtly, the CEO (a/k/a my new hero) tells us this: I don’t know what you bloggers do for a living, but we’re so focused on creating a great product that, well, we really don’t care what you think of our logo.
2. “It’s on my surfboard.”
Maybe the greatest line in the whole video – though the LOL-worthy moment where they show an animated logo is also priceless – is when Doug Garn shows you his surfboard with the logo on it.
This is the whipsaw effect that video marketers are always looking for; and, in one fell swoop, he took this from “CEO who might be hip” to “this guy has a surfboard, he can’t be a goober.”
And you forgot what we were talking about. Bad logo? Old? Outdated? What? Let’s go surfing!
3. He’ll buy the blogger a cool watch.
Was he digging on the watch that the blogger owns? Maybe. Is he offering to buy a new one for the blogger? Yes.
Thanks, sheilagranger.comOr Not. But now that we have your attention…
In the middle of Mind Mapping, recalibrating 2011 plans for World Internet Marketing Domination, and taking stock of what we’ve got to work with here at HQ, we stumbled upon the remarks from a speech we gave in 2008.
We went there with two missions: (1) share valuable information (we were speaking at the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization at their global conference) and (2) don’t use PowerPoint.
So we went up there with one page of information – and, believe it or not, we kept that page of information on the Internet for the past 2-plus years. We’re crazy like that.
Web 2.0, the groundswell, and how you’re gonna make millions*
The asterisk was explained as “millions not guaranteed.” In fact, at the time, U Sphere was making a tiny amount of scratch, and we had started to focus all of our efforts on Area 224.
We had also JUST seen a joint venture with another company in our space — “eHarmony meets Lending Tree for college admissions” was where we operated — fall apart as only really bad breakups can.
About me:
used to be a corporate pr guy | didn’t really like pr | either get an MBA or build a business | spent time at Syracuse and Chicago State
Here was the setup: who was this guy and what qualified him to get up here and speak? Great question, and one that, IMHO, a lot of conference organizers get wrong.
[Not for the “social proof” thing; we could talk about that for hours, as I think it’s vital these days, especially with all the blow-hards out there.]
This is already telling me, within the first couple of minutes, that this guy’s story is, at the very least, interesting. Dare I say this is the “whipsaw effect” that a lot of people miss when planning their conference speaker roster.
The whipsaw effect. What would prompt a guy to leave a cushy PR job to go into college admissions? (Honestly: I’m much more interested in a counter-intuitive presentation, speech, speaker or whatever. See UnMarketing for an example. Market yourself by NOT marketing yourself. Sign me up!)
About uSphere:
bootstrapped the business from its inception in 2005 | we’re still at it | cross between eHarmony and LendingTree and Facebook for college admissions | goal is student traffic, parent traffic, college admissions people traffic | the brand is out of your hands | be prepared to embrace that fact or get the heck out
Foreshadowing. Since I’m older and wiser now, I realized I was tipping my hand to my own future direction. First up, we had changed our own “brand promise” or “value proposition” or “tagline.” We were now “eHarmony and Lending tree and Facebook for college admissions.” We use the word “traffic” three times. AND, we started to beat the “brand is out of your hands” drum for the first time.
What we did right:
not collegesphere, it’s uSphere: international focus, not just USA | outsourced virtually everything | virtual business | ad networks | affiliate networks | dialogue is part of the brand | oh yeah we actually have a brand
Somewhat self-explanatory. While we didn’t make tons of dough at it, we do credit ourselves with making some noise.
What we didn’t do right:
kids don’t buy stuff, parents buy stuff | wasted too much time figuring out pricing of student stuff | didn’t go after parents early enough
We could write a book on this section. Proving the adage that you’ll learn much more from failure than success.
Advice, for what it’s worth:
think long and hard before raising money | if it smells bad, it’s bad | if it looks bad, it’s bad | if they won’t tell you what they’re up to, it’s bad | partner first | talk to everyone | “A Team & B Idea”
More book-worthy material. We had been through so many Investor Meetings and Investor Presentations and Bad Meetings With Shady Characters that we learned so so much from.
That last line comes, indirectly, from a gentleman who is a legend in Chicago Angel Investment circles. “I’d rather invest in an ‘A’ team with a ‘B’ idea than a ‘B’ team with an ‘A’ idea.”
(The last two? Let’s just say the first one precedes an NSFW-ish word that gets used an awful lot lately. The second one preceds an NSFW word that a certain book’s title tells you not to hire.)
About the groundswell:
read the book! | seriously, go buy it right now | go to groundswell.forrester.com and you can get all the info that you need about the groundswell | I cannot overstate the importance of getting this book | POST: people, objective, strategy, technology
You can tell I really liked the book. I still do like the book. POST is probably the number one acronym in all of social media campaign planning.
A couple notes here: Grubhub had suggested us to the organizers – but we had also used the service, too. And Edward Tufte is considered to be the “DaVinci of Data.”
Well, a few things. First of all, stick around afterwards. People love to talk to the speaker. We made some connections that stick with us now.
Also, don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. In this case, this was us at possibly the most vulnerable moment: a company at a crossroads and a guy telling the audience, honestly, what went wrong.
Finally, and this is key: if you plan to speak from slides, what happens when they can’t get the laptop hooked up?
We work with a good number of small businesses here at Area 224 HQ. Think “Small” Equals “No Silos?”
These are Silos.
Sometimes, even the smallest of businesses have a silo mentality.
Marketing may be a loosey-goosey term. If so, Sales may “own” Marketing – bringing with them their own ideas about what it means to “market” your company’s products or services.
Unless you’re in a financial services or legal position where having a silo mentality (in the form of a regulatory “Chinese Wall”) is required, you’ve got to get away from the “I, me, my, mine” mentality.
HOW?
Well, for starters, think about how you’re using your company’s web data. We’re not talking Social Media (YET), we’re talking about the baby steps.
You DO have a web site, right? Okay, good, bad or otherwise, you’re getting analytics.
If you’re getting those analytics – whether or not you are Marketing or Sales or Operations or anyone else – you have an opportunity to learn something.
If you’re not getting those analytics, stop reading now and find out who owns them. Then get them.
Next, you want to focus on some key things. For instance:
Who? You may not be in the business of capturing emails – and the jury’s still out on whether it’s about list building or providing information that keeps you top of mind with limited fuss. (I favor the latter for Area 224, but the former has worked in the past with other businesses.) If you don’t capture emails, you can still figure out who by glancing at your analytics. Sites that are referring visitors is one way to start – specific tabs on your site where people begin their journey, or “landing pages” may give you a clue as to where people are coming from.
How Long? Back in our U Sphere days, we knew we were on to something when we had visitors spending an average of 7 minutes per visit on the site. If you’re anywhere close to that number, you probably have the content that captures people. Good on ya, mate. If not – a focus on the right sorts of content is a good idea.
What Does It Cost? Acquisition cost is a great metric to have at your disposal. And it doesn’t have to be that tough to get – value your time, figure out how much of it you’re spending doing web stuff, see how much you are spending on keyword advertising — and decide on what “acquisition” means to you. Is it a bona fide customer? An email address? A registrant?
At U Sphere, when we started, it was costing us $20 per user — all in, 20 bucks to acquire a college-bound student as a registrant wasn’t bad.
But we got better at it — lowered that acquisition cost to $3.50 a year later.
How did we do it? Well, Sales talked to Marketing, and Marketing talked to Sales — and they both were best friends with the Web Analytics Guy.
Here’s the question: are you going to do something “Revolutionary” in the New Year?
First Work Day of 2011. Lists, Best Of, How Tos. Maybe there’s a self-help book or three waiting for you. Maybe you’ve downloaded some e-books and you can’t wait to get started.
Or Maybe You Shouldn’t Get Started On The Same Old Stuff.
I’ve never been one for New Year’s Resolutions. They always seem too big, and aren’t broken down into small enough chunks for me.
Instead, it’s the small simple goals that work best for me – and may work for your company, too, as you figure out exactly how to market your “stuff.”
As long as these goals add up to something “revolutionary” – then you’re headed in the right direction.
Let us give you a for-instance…
The “revolutionary” idea for Dave from Area 224 was, simply, build a startup. The small goals leading up to that date were attainable in chunks – but would have been too too much to accomplish all in one big bite. Incorporate. Build the website. Find partners. Build brand.
In fact, the revolution was built over a few months, as opposed to overnight.
But, when a big change came – downsizing, in this case – the backup plan was already in motion.
Revolutionary ideas, sure. Small chunks, well-planned, got the idea off the ground.
The New Year’s Resolution, then, shouldn’t (in our opinion) be “Lose Weight.” “Quit smoking.” Or “Build the Startup.”
Those can be the New Year’s Revolution – just break them down into smaller, more attainable chunks.
