A Viral Marketing Program That Needs to See a Doctor I hate sites that make you register in order to read things sent by friends. What a crappy consumer experience. If you’re going to make people register to use the site, fine. But at least allow a small crack in the walled garden for friends to read articles and try your site out. Today, my friend Len Ellis sent me what looked like a really interesting article in Ad Age via the “send to a friend function.” When I clicked through the link in the email, it first made me complete a lengthy registration process, including various special offer checkboxes and subscription offers for the magazine and its newsletters. I…
Archives / July, 2007
Collaboration is Hard, Part I
Collaboration is Hard, Part I Every year when we do 360 reviews, a whole bunch of people at all levels in the organization have “collaboration” identified as a development item. I’ve been thinking a lot about this topic lately and will do a two-part post on this. So, first things first…what is collaboration and why is it so important? Let’s start with the definition of collaboration from our friends at Wikipedia: Collaboration is a process defined by the recursive interaction of knowledge and mutual learning between two or more people who are working together, in an intellectual endeavor, toward a common goal which is typically creative in nature. Collaboration does not necessarily require leadership and can even bring better results…
Everything That is New is Old
Everything That is New is Old With a full nod to my colleague Jack Sinclair for the title and concept here…we were having a little debate over email this morning about the value of web applications vs. Microsoft (perhaps inspired by Fred, Brad, and Andy’s comments lately around Microsoft vs. Apple). Jack and his inner-CFO is looking for a less expensive way of running the business than having to buy full packages of Office for every employee to have many of them use 3% of the functionality. He is also even more of a geek than I am. I am concerned about being able to work effectively offline, which is something I do a lot. So I worry about web…
Why Do Companies Sell?
Why Do Companies Sell? Fred has a good post today about Facebook and why they shouldn’t sell the company now, in which he makes the assertion that companies sell “because of fear, boredom, and personal financial issues.” He might not have meant this in such a black and white way, and while those might all be valid reasons why companies decide to sell, let me add a few others: Market timing: As they say, buy low – sell high. Sometimes, it’s just the right time to sell a business from the market’s perspective. Valuations have peaks and troughs, and sometimes the troughs can last for years. Whether you do an NPV/DCF model that says it’s the right time to sell,…
Starbucks, Starbucks, Everywhere, Part II
Starbucks, Starbucks, Everywhere, Part II In 2004, I blogged about Starbucks’ implausible Forbidden City location (post includes picture) in the heart of one of China’s most prominent national monuments. Today, under pressure from the Chinese government, Starbucks announced that they’re closing the location, reflecting “Chinese sensitivity about cultural symbols and unease over an influx of foreign pop culture,” according to a very short blurb about this in today’s Wall Street Journal. It must be indescribably different to live in a society that’s so tightly controlled.
Book Short: A Good Dose of Introspection
Book Short: A Good Dose of Introspection I rarely blog about non-business books since this is a business blog — and I read a lot of them! But occasionally, one manages to slip in, and this time, it’s The Five People You Meet in Heaven, by Mitch Albom. From the author of Tuesdays With Morrie, which I also liked quite a bit, this one is excellent. And a very, very quick read. The book, in short (i.e., a book short <g>), is about a guy who dies, and who, in heaven, meets five people who have shaped his life and died before him. Some he knows well, some he knows barely, some he’s never met. Each one tells him a…
The Acquisition (a parody of a parody)
The Acquisition (a parody of a parody) I just spent a great 4th of July with my brother Michael, one of the finer and funnier people I know. Among other things, we treated ourselves to about the 18th viewing of Mel Brooks’ History of the World, Part I on DVD. One of our favorite moments in the movie is the Broadway musical version of “The Inquisition” (lyrics, download MP3). Since both of us work in the online marketing industry (Michael is a marketing manager at search agency Did-It), Michael came up with the brilliant idea of a parody of a parody…so here goes, all in good fun. The acquisition, what a show The acquisition, here we go We’re on a…