Business Archives - Page 70 of 72

The Scary Thing About Ads – part 2. UPDATED

Posted on August 31, 2005 ·

I don’t want to write a part 3., but this is getting ridiculous, please see updates at the bottom.

Seth Godin explains what he meant in his previous post that I cited here.

Well, that’s not the only unfortunate ad placement – how about this, from my yahoo home page:

No, I am not blaming Yahoo for being insensitive – this is just technology without human feelings after all.

Update (8/31). Check out Michael’s post about juxtaposed ads.

Update 2. (8/31) Stephen Baker at Blogspotting: “Feel-good ads feel weird on hurricane coverage”

Update 3. (9/5) Another example via Jeff Clavier:

Update 4. (9/7) I wanted to give these guys the benefit of doubt, and considered the above ad a simple case of carelessness, but, boy, was I wrong! This company sets a new record of intentionally tasteless, exploitative advertising. The proof is in the date (8/2, Friday AFTER Katrina) of this job post on craigslist. I don’t expect the link to last long, they will probably delete the ad soon, so here’s the full quote:

New Orleans Own – Southern Comfort – Needs Models

Reply to: job-88476604@craigslist.org
Date: 2005-08-02, 12:02PM CDT

Born in New Orleans, Southern Comfort is seeking spirited girls to promote the brand around town! Must be attractive, willing to mingle, 21+, and have reliable transportation to get to promotions.

This job is all about having fun and involves no shot serving. Promotions will take place at local bars, conventions, music venues, and events such as Voodoofest.

“Southern Comfort – Born In New Orleans Where Anything Can Happen”

Job location is New Orleans, LA
Compensation: $20-$25 depending on experience / leadership

Hat tip to Jeff Clavier and I am joining him in linking to the call to boycott of Southern Comfort’s products until they abandon this tasteless campaign.

Tags: advertising, ads, marketing, blogs, blogging, adsense

Filed Under: Blogging, Business, Marketing / PR, Misc, Software ·

What You See Is Not What You Get

Posted on August 30, 2005 ·

Seth Godin captured what appears to be “The scary thing about blog ads” on Jeff Jarvis’s blog:

But this is the full picture from Jeff’s site:

Screen clipping taken: 8/30/2005, 7:31 PM

And clicking through reveals the “explicit” act:

“the former Baywatch star and longtime animal advocate’s latest project is “Kentucky Fried Cruelty,” an undercover expos

Filed Under: Blogging, Marketing / PR, Misc, Software ·

Not-So-Open-Source Applications

Posted on August 30, 2005 ·

(Updates at bottom)

“Enterprise software vendors who leverage open source, subscriptions and grid computing to meet customer needs will emerge as next-generation industry leaders. “ – says John Loiacono, EVP, Sun Microsystems.

Jeff Nolan recommends caution: “… open source and subscription licensing, two completely separate trends that often get lumped together, are not silver bullets for emerging companies.” His post is well worth reading, and I agree with most of his logic, which refers to the traditional Open Source “business model”, if there is such a thing (we’ll come back to this later):

Open Code
Broad Support Community
Paid Sales & Marketing staff
Paid core Engineering
Product Available free
Revenue from support / training / consulting… i.e. services

He then rightly concludes that this model is basically a service business, so investors should beware, when we peel the hype layer away, they don’t find the hypergrowth software business there.

Yes … but … this may just have been the “beta version” of an Open Source business model – if we can even say that. In fact we really shouldn’t: Open Source is not a business model, it’s a software production model (and philosophy), says Marten Mickos, CEO of MySQL (via Jeff Clavier). Absolutely.

The two examples Jeff uses, SugarCRM and Compiere could not be further away from each other – not only in terms of their product offering, but mostly their business model.

Compiere, for all I know is closer to that “beta model” of “trying-to-make-a-buck” on Open Source, or, if I may say, the idealistic, altruistic (?) Open Source company that makes ALL it’s products ( full ERP & CRM for the SMB sector) available for free, source code included. They even let Consulting/ Implementation Partners rebrand the product under their own name. They are the “nice guys” barely making a buck on support. (Sorry, Jorg, if I am mistaken.)

SugarCRM, on the other hand is not even a purely Open Source company, it’s a hybrid. (Hey, hybrids are popular nowadays ). “ It didn’t take me long to realize that there is a HUGE part missing in the open source version “ says Simon Romanski, director of information systems at Fulfillment America, quoted by ZDNet. The title says a lot: Commercial open source, a misnomer? Well, not a misnomer, but definitely commercial software: SugarCRM sells the Pro and Enterprise versions of their product, and also charges for the On-Demand version. Even the Open Source version can be “upgraded” by paying for extensions, e.g. the $39.99/user Outlook Plugin. Hm, I would not put my Sales Organization, no matter how small, on a CRM system without Contact synchronization. By the time we configure the basic needs of a small Sales Team, chances are pricing is on par with a truly commercial software company, e.g. 24SevenOffice .
So is SugarCRM using Open Source as a marketing gimmick, riding the fashion wave? I don’t think so. Nor do I think there is anything wrong with the business model… perhaps a little heavy on the hype, like the other guy selling software using the “No Software” slogan. SugarCRM is a successful hybrid that’s partly Open Source (development, support community, viral marketing) yet generates it’s revenue from selling software like any other company.

Only to prove Marten right.

Update (9/01): ZDNet’s SaaS blog has a good follow-on article on SugarCRM: “Outwitted by its own ecosystem”

Update 2 (9/01) The “Commercial Open Source” story reverberates; ZDNet’s Dan Farber follows on quoting Marc Fleury, CEO of JBOSS.

Update 3 (9/28): The Next Little Thing Isn’t Free by Sam Ramji

Update 4 (11/16) But is it really free? CIO Magazine

Hybrid Open Source Business Models by Zack Urlocker

Filed Under: Business, Enterprise Software, ERP / CRM, Open Source, SaaS, Software, Startups · Tagged: 24sevenoffice, ASP, Compiere, crm, Enterprise Software, erp, MySQL, On-Demand, Open Source, SaaS, salesforce.com, SugarCRM

On-Demand Software is Not Just a Lease (Where’s My Upgraded Lexus…)

Posted on August 30, 2005 ·

Tags: CRM, ERP, Enterprise Software, ASP, On-Demand Software, SaaS, Software as a Service, Salesforce.com, NetSuite, SMB, SME, Small Business

Recently several analysts downgraded salesforce.com’s stock, citing high valuation: Salesforce a A Harder Sell , Salesforce.com Shares Seen As Pricy . Chris Selland had voiced his doubts regarding the hosted CRM model before (“ won’t cure cancer anytime soon “) , and sees the downgrades as signs that “the media honeymoon appears to be mostly over”.
I beg to differ … a stock’s valuation is often not indicative of the business’s success, further growth potential, and certainly not of the underlying business model (hosted CRM) in general. The stock can become an underdog, simply because it had previously ran ahead, was overvalued, while the SalesForce.com (and On-Demand software) continues to grow.

AMR research reported 105% growth in on-demand CRM in 2004. Nevertheless, the debate continues as to how suitable the On-Demand model is, especially for larger Enterprises: “Is it less expensive to lease or buy a car? If you don’t have a down payment, a lease looks pretty attractive,” says Bob Thompson, founder of CRMguru.com. But if the total overall cost is the main concern, the best strategy is to buy a car and “drive it into the dirt,” (via The Deal.com)
I think the car analogy is seriously flawed: this is not a simple lease / buy decision. In the On-Demand model bug-fixes, even major upgrades are managed centrally in a painless manner, often not even transparent to the Customer. The car analogy would only be fair if it referred to a lease where any time the car manufacturer had an upgrade (we’re not talking about the new models every 4 years or so, with today’s cars software upgrades, amongst others are almost continuous) my friendly dealer drove up to my house, leave a new car with identical trim level, color, options (“customization”) at my doorstep and drove the old car away. Now, that’s a lease model not even Lexus came up with … but if anyone knows such a deal, sign me up! 🙂

Of course the on-demand vs. on-premise decision is not simply a matter of TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) analyses. Phil Wainewright discusses a few other criteria specific to large enterprises.

Debate or not, I think both camps agree at least in these points:

On-Demand software is now a proven business, here to stay
It is no longer “only for small businesses”
For small businesses though, it is likely to be the best choice
There is no “best choice” for a large enterprise, they all have to perform their own analyses and pick the best option.

After more than a decade in the Enterprise Software business with the “biggies” like SAP, IBM, Deloitte my attention is now focused on the SMB sector, their Enterprise Software and Infrastructure needs. It’s a very refreshing change, and I’ve come to learn a whole new world. (Having switched from Service Provider to Customer in a smaller business was a tremendously helpful eye-opener.) In the next several posts I will look at On-Demand, Open-Source and other new trends from an SMB point of view.

Filed Under: Business, Enterprise Software, ERP / CRM, SaaS, SMB / SME, Software ·

The Story of the Bitch Dog and the Palestinian Bomber

Posted on August 27, 2005 ·

What does a “Bitch Dog” and a “Palestinian Bomber” have in common?

My guess: disgruntled customer service employees messing up their employer’s CRM data.

LaChania Govan complained about her cable box/PVR (these things die every two months or so), so her next Comcast bill arrived addressed to “Bitch Dog” “If this is not that customer’s name, it shouldn’t be on that bill,” said Patricia Andrews-Keenan, vice president of communications for the company. “ IF??? Wow! That’s from a Comcast VP!
Sami Habbas, Palestinian-born US Citizen, US Army Veteran who lived here for 51 years received a credit-card-offer which began: “Dear Palestinian Bomber.” When he called Chase, he was actually greeted with: “Yes, Mr. Bomber, what can we do for you?”
(via Chris Selland and Brad Feld)

Update: (8/28) Oops, there’s more.. has being rude and brainless become a hiring criteria nationwide?

Peoples Energy addresses letters to customer as “Scrotum Bag”
Waitress at a NJ restarurant writes “Jew Couple” on check – this later shows up on Credit Card statement.

What’s next?

Update (3/18/07): Next is Hertz calling Phil Wainewright “English John”. Phil, compared to the above, that’s not too bad 🙂

Tags: CRM, Customer Service, Customer Disservice, Customer Data

Filed Under: Customer Service, ERP / CRM, Misc ·

Google to Acquire the World

Posted on August 18, 2005 ·

(Updated)
While some are still wondering, I have the answer: Google to acquire the World in a cash/stock transaction … details undisclosed … the only information known a this time is that they need a little more petty cash for the transaction.

(Those who doubt the seriousness of this news are reminded the Microsoft to Acquire the Catholic Church “news” from the 90’s.)

Update (2/4): Ha! I’m not alone: Google to Acquire World

Update (3/29): The Googlers are refilling the warchest. Now we know it’s definitely happening.

Google Needs Another $2 Billion Because…It must want to buy something

Tags: Google, Microsoft, GOOG, MSFT, Acquisition, Stock Market, Secondary Offering

Filed Under: Business, Humor, Misc, Software ·

Beta or Rel 1.0? Sick of Products That Don’t Work.

Posted on August 17, 2005 ·

(Updates at bottom)
Guerilla Product Marketing Principles from Charlie Wood’s Moonwatcher (via Paul Kedrosky’s Infectious Greed):

“Version 1 of a product should crawl. This means it should do the bare minimum to be recognizable as what it’s intended to be. If it’s supposed to be a foo, and someone could look at version 1 and say, “That’s a foo,” you’re done. Ship it.

Version 2 should walk. This is where you add enough functionality that the product is useful in day-to-day life. This is not the time for polish. Basically, it’s just adding the things that most people insisted should have been in version 1, because without them, they said, the product is completely useless. They were wrong then, but they’re right now.

Version 3 should run. This is where the product hits its stride. What it does it should do well. It should be comfortable to use. It should be strong, polished, and effective.

Version 4 should fly. This is where the, “Oh man, wouldn’t it be awesome if…” features get added. This is where you start implementing things that aren’t necessarily useful now, but have a lot of possibility. “

I’m sorry, I just don’t buy it. The product, that is. Having been in cash-strapped startups myself, I understand the need to hit the market fast, and start generating revenue… but I am a Customer, too, and as such am sick of non-working products. It’s frustrating to waste time installing, learning the damn thing when it’s really just a Beta! Give it to someone who signed up as Beta-tester, not to me, a Customer.

“Give me what I want or I am out of here” – says Seth Godin. In our case it means: Uninstall, don’t look back until 2 releases later. Quite a way to build a happy customer base.

Update (8/31): “When a Beta Isn’t Enough” by David Beisel is worth reading.

Update (11/20) : “Web 2.0: Web of Beta”

Tags: Software, Product Management, Customer Satisfaction, Customer Disservice, Software Testing, Beta

Filed Under: Business, Customer Service, Software, Startups ·

Clueless …

Posted on August 16, 2005 ·

I must have a twisted mind .. reading Seth Godin’s story about a 90-year-old lady (I figured she must be around that having been a bank customer for 70 years) in the bank reminds me of an article about infants caught up in the “no-fly” confusion… hm… what do the nice old lady and the babies have in common? They are victims of mindless, clueless “due process”.

The lady in Seth’s story (read it!) has been a customer at her bank for 70 years, comes in every week, sees the same teller for 20 years, yet has her signature checked against a master signature card every single time. If the same old lady goes to a corner grocery store (that is if there’s one left in her neighborhood…) I am sure she gets a very personal treatment and perhaps could have her purchases ‘added to the tab’ to be paid once a month, like in ‘good old times’ – but that’s because the small business owner can actually THINK and make his/her own decisions, do what makes sense and keeps the customer happy… apparently all the bank teller cares about is to follow due process.

Ingrid Sanden’s 1-year-old daughter was stopped in Phoenix before boarding a flight home to Washington at Thanksgiving. Sarah Zapolsky and her husband had a similar experience last month while departing from Dulles International Airport outside Washington. An airline ticket agent told them their 11-month-old son was on the government ‘No-Fly” list. According to the article 89 children , 14 of which were under the age 2 have been stopped as “suspicious”. Now, for sanity’s sake let’s assume the TSA agents did not quite believe the infants were terrorists … they still went through the full process, getting passports faxed, background checks.. etc, before releasing the children – the followed ‘due process’.

‘Due Process’ kills what makes us Homo Sapiens: Thinking.

Tags: bureaucracy, due process, cluelessness, no-fly, tsa

Filed Under: Business, Customer Service, Humor, Misc ·