Black Friday vs Cyber Monday

“It wouldn’t be the Christmas Shopping Season if the stores were any less Hotter than they are.” Yes, the quote by Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) from Christmas Vacation still rings true even in this “internet era”. Black Friday showed retail sales of about $41 Billion. Cyber Monday, by contrast, showed sales of about $850 Million illustrating that the internet is still very much in its infancy… at least when it comes to on-line shopping.

Not to say that we haven’t come a long way in the past 15 years. As a matter of fact, 15 years ago, the internet was heard of by a handful of people in the US government, many college students, and a few businesses that had heard of this idea called e-mail.

In a span of about 5 years, that interest grew as on-line startup companies came out of the woodwork and started offering on-line solutions to real world problems. Some of those companies had great business models and were hugely successful and still exist today (Ebay, Yahoo!, Google, Amazon, etc…). Some had simply horrible business models and would have not been funded were it not for the frenzy to get any internet company to market and capitalize. And there were many that had solid business models that went by the wayside. Even on-line shopping was difficult in the mid-to-late 1990’s with most people suffering through dial-up connections on slow PCs.

Then the whole bubble burst! Interestingly, as the bubble was bursting, the bandwidth and faster PCs that make browsing, shopping, and generally using the internet a pleasant experience were being put into place.

Today, you can shop on-line at just about any large retailer and countless boutique retailers. We’ve also seen the use of the internet spread to letting people do tasks more simply on-line that used to take hours such as on-line banking and renewing your driver’s license or auto registration.

Beyond on-line shopping we’ve seen the internet grow into a way to connect people using social networks such as Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn and mircoblogs like Twitter. We’ve also seen the popularity of growth in User Generated Content – now everyone can be heard on any topic.

And, talk about access! Not only can you access the internet quickly from your Laptop or PC at home or at the office. You can also use your iPhone, Blackberry, Treo, etc…

We believe that Public Chalk is a site that will be part of the next evolution of the internet. It is a place where User Generated Content meets social interaction. It is a place where activities and events such as a holiday party can be planned and discussed real-time before, during, and after the event. And it is a place that is accessible “traditionally” via any web site or via the iPhone (eventually going to include the Blackberry and others).

The next 15 years should be a heck of a ride!

ETJ

Time to Step Back and Give Some Thanks

It has been a tough year for me. I tried to sell my car to support my startup habit but the economy crashed and that didn't work out. Speaking of the startup, we missed just about every deadline we set. And, my dog of 14 and ½ years moved on to doggie heaven. But, truthfully, I kind of like the car anyway. And, the deadlines we missed were mostly because we changed up some functionality and have really made our product better. The dog… well, anyone who has ever had a pet die knows that it is just tough. Still, I have much for which to be thankful!

First, I would like to take a moment to thank some of the great people I've met this past year who have been extremely helpful in making Public Chalk a reality. There are all the great people at NextNY who host great events and support the NY Tech community. There are the folks over at Mashable who keep us informed as to what is going on in the world of Social Networking. And there are the guys at Center Networks who keep us up to date on just about everything.

Second, I've had the pleasure of meeting and working with Tobin Schwaiger-Hastanan from Cupid's Lab. Tobin has been instrumental in getting our iPhone application off the ground. And we got some great advice (and some inside information way back in May about who our next president was to be) from Marc at Celebrifantasy.

Third, I'm thankful for my business partners John and Matt. We don't always see eye-to-eye or even understand what each other are talking about. Sometimes John and I think Matt is crazy. Often, Matt and I think John is crazy. I cannot even imagine what they say about me when I'm not there… I hear enough when I am there. But, our individual strengths over the year have really moved Public Chalk forward.

Finally, I'm thankful to Claudia, Sara, and Paul… the "significant others"… for letting us get away with working so many evenings and weekends instead of spending more time with them. I know that all three of them often think that the three of us have lost our collective minds… especially when we get home from working all day on Saturday and make them look through all the new design changes and features before we eat dinner.

Have a happy Thanksgiving!

ETJ

Dating Your Website

No, not putting a date on it or using graphics or logos that date it like the rings on a tree. I'm talking about actually dating your website. Taking it out for dinner and a movie and then deciding whether or not to call it the next day. I know it sounds a bit odd at first, but really, it is what we do. We all visited Facebook or Yahoo! or Google or any of the other thousands of sites on the internet and we make a decision as to whether or not we like the site enough to come back… after waiting 3 days, of course.

The problem with "dating" web sites isn't on the client side. I don't really care if a site I visit isn't attractive enough or smart enough. I just move on. And, unlike dating in the real world, the web site itself is just a bunch of code that somebody put out there. It is incapable of feeling and is therefore not "rejected" and won't devour a ½ gallon of ice cream while wondering why you never called if you never go back. But there is a parallel. Just like the teenage girl out there who is starting to date, the web site has creators (parents). And, just like the teenage girl, the creators of the web site want nothing but the best. A boyfriend (or users) who will call often, use the web site for its intended purposes, and love (maybe even worship) the web site… not only for its great looks but also because it is smart and adds something to that person's life. Of course, as creators of a web site, we are really interested in the dowry.

Much like dating… when you arrive at a web site (or see a potential mate), you must find something very attractive to make you want to stay and find out more about it. Without that initial attraction, you will probably pass right on by without looking any further. Now, once the entity is a bit more well-known you may be inclined to stop by for a visit even if it isn't the prettiest choice out there. For example, you might find out that, while it doesn't look the best, that it is really easy to use and you get a special prize at the end. But, suffice it to say… the old adage holds true, "Looks aren't everything, but they sure do help.".

Again, like dating… after you arrive and decide to stay for a while, you're going to start caring about much more than the looks. How well do we get along? Do they do everything I want to do? Can I live with the things that they don't do? Can I ask to have certain features added? Are they smart? Can I talk, be heard and understood, and get stimulating feedback? Or is it a one-way conversation.

In the world of building websites, this dual-need means that you need a great user interface and some great software that users will find intriguing and useful to back up your good looks. If you can manage this, you'll have plenty of dates… I mean users…

ETJ