JCurving

Be Aggressive, But Stay Humble

Jonathan Cooper — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 23:04:35 +0000

Anyone recruiting references the “airport test.” That is, if you were stuck in an airport with this candidate, could you sit at a bar without it getting awkward? Well, as if any confirmation was needed, Chris Dixon (@cdixon) passes this test easily. Recently, six InSITE fellows, including myself, had the unique privilege of talking tech, startups, hiring and venture capital with Chris in his company Hunch’s office.

Chris shed some light on a number of topics including how successful entrepreneurs have to be aggressive and have meaningful opinions, which means potentially coming across as, well, a dick. InSITE fellows would agree that most of the entrepreneurs we know and meet are amazing. Persistent, yes, dicks no. While aggressively pursuing your vision comes with the territory, the entrepreneurial community understands that business is business, not personal.

One of the stories Chris shared concerned hiring programmers when he started SiteAdvisor. I suggest reading this exact story on Chris’s blog, as he followed up our meeting with an appropriate blog post called “Showing Up.” The story and Chris’s comments to our group highlighted important, but not always followed lessons for any entrepreneur. First, how just putting the effort in will get you further than you can imagine. Also, call it what you want, but persistence is a necessary cornerstone for building a great company from the start. In regards to aggression and persistence, Chris asked the obvious question, “what do you have to lose?” The downside is someone says no. The upside is your startup is closer to changing the world.

Aggressive, but humble entrepreneurs have more success with hiring and converting any idea into the next big thing.

-This article was originally posted by InSITE here: http://insiteny.org/media/

Incoming search terms for the article:

Is Congress Pushing Wireless Carriers to Adopt Mobile Billing Services?

Jonathan Cooper — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 15:50:01 +0000

Please note, this article was initially posted on Netmobo’s blog, click here to read it.

According to a recent Bloomberg article, wireless carriers seem concerned with a potential new regulation requiring telecoms to help consumers avoid “bill shock.” Bill shock refers to a consumer’s surprise from unexpected cell phone charges, many times due to over-use. The article states that:

“A new bill in the U.S. Senate would force AT&T, Verizon and other wireless carriers to send you a message – either by e-mail or text – if you’re approaching the limits of your monthly service plan.”

The bill may also demand that carriers receive the consumer’s permission before charging for services outside the regular plan. For example, using BilltoMobile to bill your carrier for the latest copy of Angry Birds. This second change is reasonable as our carrier bill looks more and more like a credit card and privacy concerns on the web remain prevalent.

While the carriers have legitimate financial gripes, they won’t be able to avoid these types of warning systems. Whether it comes to fruition due to government regulation, or free market forces, consumers hate bill shock and from my personal experiences would appreciate a warnings system. In addition to just minutes, as most carriers do away with their “all you can eat” data plan’s a consumption warning will be welcomed. Moreover, the technology needed to fulfull this regulation is already commercially available in the form of metered subscription services. In fact, Netmobo and competitors provide just this type of service. Also, the perfect medium for sending these warnings, SMS and push-technology are both readily available on Smartphones.

Passing this regulation may be a welcome surprise for companies operating in the mobile billing industry. If the bill were to pass, carriers like AT&T and Verizon would now be required to either build the solution themselves, our outsource to a reliable metered subscription provider. The second option is the cheaper and quicker way to market and would create a potential windfall for certain players in the mobile billing industry. However, this new required demand may lead to lower metered subscription prices as more competitors enter the market giving the carriers greater power through choice.

Incoming search terms for the article:

Do Mobile Developers Add Value by Offering Less?

Jonathan Cooper — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 15:47:10 +0000

Please note, this article was initially posted on Netmobo’s blog, click here to read it.

Product pricing decisions can be very difficult, especially for mobile app developers. While paying for more options seems to be the norm, yesterday’s headline regarding presentation, document and video sharing site, SlideShare’s new freemium offering had me thinking about innovative pricing strategies. In particular, as opposed to paying for more features, SlideShare customers can pay a premium for control, or the elimination of features:

The silver plan, which is $19 per month, includes…the ability to turn off ads. And the platinum level, which is aimed towards enterprises…gives users the control to turn of [sic] comments and more. Brands such as Dell, Microsoft and Pfizer are already using SlideShare’s pro offerings.

-TechCrunch

Paying a premium to eliminate ads is nothing new, but paying to eliminate a feature, in this case comments, was a novel idea for me. This strategy makes great sense for SlideShare. While enterprises want to easily share content on the Internet, they still want control over their brand. For example, Dell may want to garner customer feedback by sharing a product presentation through SlideShare, but Dell also wants to prevent any potential smear campaigns from competitors or other adversaries.

This pricing strategy can work for mobile app developers, but it requires a delicate balance between offering an unwanted feature, while not alienating potential customers. If implemented appropriately however, there is added value to eliminating features or providing more control. Due to growing concerns over privacy policy and the sheer volume of consumer data that is shared on the Internet, allowing customers to pay for fewer features or more control will help alleviate these concerns.

SkillSlate is Great for Finding Individual Service Providers

Jonathan Cooper — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 02:52:49 +0000

Individual service providers are a reliable staple in my life. I have moved between five cities, renovated real estate and have always needed cleaning help. In each case, I hired local movers, cleaners, handymen and electricians to help with the jobs. These local individuals offer two distinct advantages. One, they are known for their higher quality work due to personal accountability and two, they can be much less expensive than larger companies as they don’t have high overhead costs. Unfortunately, finding dependable individuals can be tough. I usually rely on word of mouth and getting lucky, as I haven’t found a reliable and comprehensive website to replace limited personal recommendations.

Now that is all changing, as a Stern classmate of mine, Brian Rothenberg, runs a New York City startup called SkillSlate. SkillSlate takes an interesting angle on empowering individual businesses while helping consumers find these local professionals. SkillSlate.com creates profiles for a wide range of service providers, like this one for a hairdresser in Staten Island or this one for a DJ in Brooklyn. The individual’s business profile not only highlights the important details of the provider’s rates and services, but also focuses on who the individual is through introductions, photos, and recommendations. The directory organizes this information giving consumers the power to filter through local individual service providers to quickly find exactly what they are looking for.

Next time I need reliable help, because there will be a next time, I am very excited about accessing SkillSlate. Moreover, as a member of New York’s entrepreneurial community, I look forward to seeing this startup expand and the positive impact it will make for New Yorkers and beyond.

Incoming search terms for the article:

The Web is Alive…for Both of Us

Jonathan Cooper — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 02:44:51 +0000

I took time Sunday to finally read the article that I have read so many other articles about, Chris Anderson’s, The Web is Dead, from the September edition of Wired. Chris’s point about the web browser dying is well taken. He supports his thesis with examples such as how users predominantly use app’s on their smart phones, and to access much of the social media experience, and how RSS readers are ubiquitous.

After reading many articles both for and against Chris’s opinion and with the great debate between apps and the mobile web raging, I do agree that browser use has declined, but the web is still alive. It seems to me that many consumers still use search and other google products, such as mail, reader and calendar in the browser. Also, while, I don’t log on to Facebook often, I believe users still do so through their browser and the same goes for Twitter. Finally, I list watching video under browsing and video consumption is flourishing.

Personally, I feel like a poster boy for the argument against the web. I use apps for almost everything I do on my iPhone and I mainly access social mediaI through my iPhone, which keeps me out of a browser. Also, in a new development, I further upheld part of Chris Anderson’s argument, by migrating much of my browsing experience onto third party applications. I did this so that both my web browsing, and overall computing experience’s were richer, easier, and more organized.

Ironically I finished the migration this week. I now access most of my productivity and google browsing, including e-mail, through 3rd party applications. However, I don’t feel like I helped to kill the web. Much of the motivation for this move was to unclog Chrome. I still browse tons of websites each day, reading articles or blogs, searching, researching, listening to pandora, tweeting and certainly checking out a new startup. Previously, I would open up, what felt like, 100s of Chrome tabs. Now, I have fewer tabs devoted to must-have tasks and my browsing is more focused. As a result of my move, the web, is not dead for me, just more easily accessible.

Thunderbird Here We Go

Jonathan Cooper — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 00:07:45 +0000

For those who read my post titled The Web is Alive for Both of Us, you know I recently migrated much of my browsing experience to third party applications. There are a number of reasons why I did this, including a more efficient browsing experience, as discussed previously. However, I also wanted a more efficient e-mail system. So, in addition to using iCal, NettNewsWire, and Adium (chat), I transitioning out of GMail this week and picked up Thunderbird.

Don’t get me wrong, I have been a loyal and supportive GMail user for five plus years. But recently, I kept thinking that an Outlook like application may be a better way for me to organize my four e-mail accounts (gmail, school, work and non-profit). So, on a co-workers recommendation I went with Thunderbird for my MacBook Pro.

Thunderbird has been great for the two days I have used it and I can easily see it replacing GMail permanently. A few of the positive aspects of the transition include:

Organization. My four accounts are more easily accessible. The three-panel layout provides fast and easy access to all inboxes and any folder within one screen shot, which is more concise then GMails stacked inboxes layout. Also, I have easier access to more content in each folder.
Keyboard shortcuts are easy in Thunderbird and necessary for the success of this applications organization. I am picking the shortcuts up quickly and I now work within Thunderbird as fast as I could within GMail, if not faster.
Offline is necessary and Thunderbird is better. I travel a lot and work in many different locations, so the ability to draft e-mails without a connection is important (although less and less so).
Tabs. As opposed to opening up new chrome tabs my e-mail is self contained in Thunderbird tabs of their own, I love this and it is way more organized than the gmail/chrome tabbing combo.
Search in Thunderbird is accurate and again, easy to use. The combination of the layout and self-contained tabs make the search UI great. I loved GMail search, but so far, I don’t see a downside with Thunderbird.
Data access. I set up my transition to Thunderbird on a weekend so I made a clean break from gmail and now everything prior to that date is in my GMail, still searchable.

The transition to Thunderbird has improved my overall computing experience. Some users may agree with my switch and others will hate it. Just this week, well known venture capitalist, Brad Feld, blogged about how he took the exact opposite approach by switching from Apple’s Mail to GMail. The articles comment thread had much praise for gmail. Personally, at this point, the transition was a success and seemingly here to stay.

Incoming search terms for the article:

7 Business Strategies to Improve your Mobile Apps Profitability–including Advanced Billing

Jonathan Cooper — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 23:16:24 +0000

Please note, this article was initially posted on Netmobo’s blog, click here to read it.

Yesterday’s blog post suggested that generating profits in a Mobile App Store is possible, but difficult. Today’s post highlights seven business strategies for improving the odds of an apps success. While there is no proven strategy or algorithm for winning in this industry, the significant and fast growing market is worth pursuing. Here are a few tips for getting noticed:

Create an experience: A great user interface is a must for any successful app. Ideally your app will be powerful but packaged in an easy to use, fast and attractive interface. No matter how mundane or genius you think your app is, the user experience matters most. If a user struggles to understand your application or just doesn’t like the functionality or look, you could lose a potential paying customer.

Develop, develop, develop: Continually updating your app not only keeps your user interface and functionality on the cutting edge, but also re-engages existing users who may not remember your app. Downloading an upgrade will entice your user to check out the new functionality.

Get ranked: According to a number of sources, getting “ranked” by Apple, Google or whatever app store you sell on, will create a temporary sales spike. So, get listed! Unfortunately, this creates a chicken vs. the egg scenario, as most of these rankings are based on some unit of sales—the ultimate goal anyways. The key is to sustain this ranking or the sales from being on that list. A great way to do this is with marketing. Always mention your apps success where ever your product is described and in all marketing campaigns.

Embrace marketing: Leveraging multiple marketing channels, especially social media will help you sustain your sales spike from a ranking. You’re focus should be on getting the word out about your ranking, your app, the problem it solves and why it is awesome. With the advent of social and digital media marketing there are a number of free, easy-to-access resources for understanding how to market your product.

Avoid greediness: Just like the SaaS business it will be important to test out pricing strategies. Unless you truly believe that your customer will find and need your app or that your app is revolutionary, you may want to begin with a price closer to $1.00. At first, it will be important to build a user base, as oppose to revenues, and you can always increase your price. There is a reason many app developers have both a free and premium version of their app—something you may want to try.

Use analytics: Implement a back-office analytics solution that allows you to collect customer data. While app stores are great distribution channels they do not provide an effective solution for truly understanding your customer. By implementing a third-party’s analytics platform, you will better collect and understand data about your customer’s usage, needs and interests.

Implement advanced billing: Providing flexible payment options to your customers and implementing timely promotional strategies will help your business. An easy to implement promotional tool is to simply discount your app once it has been discovered. Statistics show that, on average, subsequent downloads will increase, as there is now a perceived value associated with your app. In addition, with in-app billing you can implement creative selling tactics. Similar to the freemium model, you can offer an initial free or discounted download, but then once your customer is hooked and wants more features—they can be purchased within the app. In-app billing keeps the customer engaged with your app, as opposed to leaving for payment.

Finally, while these strategies can and will work, they will only succeed if you, the decision maker, put the time and effort into understanding these strategies and customizing them for your app. Good luck!

Incoming search terms for the article:

apps profitablity

Successful Mobile Apps can be Developed in a Garage

Jonathan Cooper — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:10:38 +0000

Please note, this article was initially posted on Netmobo’s blog, click here to read it.

Many computer developers, tech professionals and anyone else with an idea have jumped into the mobile app market ever since Apple debuted their “app store” in July of 2008. And why not, it does not take a large share of the fast growing $6 billion mobile app market (Source: Gartner) to earn an income. There are a number of success stories, including:

Angry Birds – a present day advanced version of the classic Nintendo game “Duck Hunt.” Two Finnish developers have sold 11 million copies, including 6.5 million premium versions for $0.99.

Trism – a Bejeweled like game developed by the one-man-company, Demiforce, generated $250K over two months.

ishoot – inspired by Trism, developer Ethan Nicholas made $600K in a single month on his $3.00 artillery game (Source: NYTimes article).

So while it is possible to emulate a successful gaming company and make $1 million in less than two months by creating and selling a mobile app like F.A.S.T, an air combat game by SGN, it’s no cake walk and increasingly difficult.

According to Alex Ahlund, former CEO of AppVee, an iPhone app review site, the industry is very top heavy. Alex wrote an article for TechCrunch summarizing the findings of 96 app developers. While this is a small sample size, it is telling. Over 9 months, these 96 developers each sold an average of 101,024 copies of an app with an average price of $5.49—approximately $750K of revenue annually.

While $750K a year is feasible, when the 10 most successful developers in the sample are excluded, average units sold drops to 11,625, at an average price closer to $1.00—only $15K a year. The point: this is an emerging market with many competitors, but only a few important distribution channels. So, while you can succeed, you must work hard to get noticed. In March alone, the Android store introduced 9,000 new apps, err, new competitors.

Tomorrow I will provide a few business tactics for making your app a success–including using enhanced mobile billing.

Incoming search terms for the article:

units sold was 101 024 copies appvee

Introducing Netmobo — a Future Mobile Back Office Leader

Jonathan Cooper — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 15:24:17 +0000

The summer of 2010 has provided me with an amazing learning experience. At one point during my summer internship, I became a founding member of a New York City startup. My company, Netmobo, LLC, offers infrastructure technology solutions to mobile app developers. More specifically, Netmobo provides an advanced and flexible mobile billing solution. You can learn more about us on our website.

Currently, I am addicted to building Netmobo and I barely sleep as we prepare our product to enter a Beta test. In the meantime, our team is commencing a capital raise, implementing a comprehensive sales and marketing strategy, and forming strategic relationships.

The most significant reason for my growing passion for our business–the mobile back office–is our focused and experienced management team. Even though Netmobo operates in a competitive market where internet blue chips, such as Google and Facebook, are beginning to invade. Our team understands that Netmobo’s unique solution is well positioned to fill the need of a a large and fast growing market that wants our product.

Working in an exciting industry this summer has been a blast. As I complete my second and final year at Stern this fall, growing Netmobo will remain a priority.

Incoming search terms for the article:

Blog Updates

Jonathan Cooper — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:51:11 +0000

Late last night I made a number of improvements to the JCurving blog (new name)—the changes include, but are not limited to:

The ability to subscribe via e-mail, as opposed to only by RSS;
Comments operated by DISQUS—give me a shout if you see me in the DISQUS community;
Increasing the sites speed by removing unused and unnecessary add-ons; and
Updating the “about me” section

Thanks for reading. I will keep you posted on future updates.