CoComment

Cocomment is a new website that allows users to track their conversations, web 2.0 conversations that is. I recommend checking it out if you regularly comment on other people’s blogs, talk in forums, etc. I haven’t used it yet but I thought I would pass along the information to others.

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid980795693/bctid1205096324

Daily Caption

A very ingenious new option for flicker fans is Dailycaption. Think the New Yorker cartoons, or maybe Maxim, where people write funny things about a picture- only now it’s on the internet, and everyday.

Check out today’s top comment, it’s mine- “I can’t wait to update my facebook profile to “married”"- with 4 points and 8 votes- no big deal.

Go Get After It

Over the past three weeks I have met with a lot of people about life, business, and Seattle. I’ve met with a consultant, a union leader, a mother, a general advisor, an entrepreneur, a salesman, an author and today I met with a VC. Everyone has given me great advice but one things in particular sticks out from my meeting this morning. When I asked about what he, the VC, did in a similar point in his life to mine he said, “just get after it”- go get a job, go do what you love, go improve skills, but get after it.

Getting Things Done

David Allen’s book “Getting Things Done” is my productivity bible. I recommend it to everyone. It eliminates a ton of stress by allowing your mind to empty- the system, not your brain, supports your every to do. This process also eliminates repetitive thoughts, which are a huge waste of time.

Here are some of the key points of the book:

-Take action on every task- do it, throw it away, delegate it to someone else, or put it in a folder/list if it is needed to be done later.

- The ‘to do’ list should describe actions and not broad statements. For example, “read the business plan, takes notes, reply information in email”. Do not just put down “b-plan”.

- If it takes less than 2 minutes to complete, such as an email or a phone call, do it now. This one is simple but very effective in increasing efficiency.

- Anything that goes on the calender must be done that day. No exceptions.

- Create a box with files designated for each day of the month- 1, 2, 3, … and a separate file for each month. Place information such as taxes, notes, etc. in the designated folder/day and get it done that day.

For more information check out his book, it is 15 dollars on Amazon. And yes, I needed a picture of David Allen that big.

There Goes My Secret Spot

Listphile, a part wiki, part list, and part map web application could eliminate every secret wave, every secret fishing hole, and every secret spot. It is a great application, and I’m sure that it will be more useful than hurtful, but as a fellow fly fisherman it’s just sad to think about the death of the unknown.

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….?

I’m not sure if Ian Lurie was too impressed by my Marketing is like Contra blog entry, he did give it a …? If I had to guess that means  something like, “Why would you make this comparison?” So let me explain.

In Ian’s book, which is written by a quality marketer because it is clear and too the point, Ian summarizes online marketing with comparisons and helps visualize the process with a story about Morgan’s bike shop. After reading the book I thought I would have some fun with a simple, entertaining, and too the point example of my own on what online marketing was.

Why Contra? Because earlier that day I met with James Gwertzman, Vice President of Asia/Pacific at Popcap Games, so video games were in my head. It is obviously an oversimplification of the process so if you want to learn more read Ian’s book.

I look forward to continuing this conversation with Ian in person- I meet with him this week. Although it should be very one sided because his knowledge of the process is xbox 360 and I’m more like Super Nintendo- Ok, that’s my last video game analogy.

Marketing is like Contra

I just finished reading Ian Lurie’s book on online marketing - a quick and clear read about online marketing. I recommend it if you have any interest in online marketing and want an overview of how it works, how to do it well, and what not to do. It also gives you some perspective on whether or not you can do it yourself. Ian highlights all the major parts to online marketing. And I’m sure I’m not the first to make the analogy that marketing sounds a lot like picking up women- dress appropriately, sound smart, know the room, make a connection, brag modestly, and observe and adjust (six major points of Ian’s book for marketing).

Web 2.0 Lunch at CarDomain.com

Lunch 2.0 is a lunch hosted by a web 2.0 company, such as Zillow or CarDomain, for people interested in Web 2.o to gather. It is a great place to network, learn, and eat free food. I highly recommend it.

I’ll highlight some of the interesting points of the talk. CarDomain had great success hiring contact managers to engage users in the forums. Users, they said, take pride in getting contact manager or editors to reply to their messages.

Cardomain also spoke a lot about ego. They said that their website supplied an emotional outlet- it was a place where people went to brag about their cars (this might, however, be a specific trait to car enthusiasts but a similar trend could probably be found in Zillow, and even Facebook).

Guy Kawasaki Talk on Start Up

One of the best speakers I’ve heard in awhile, not to mention some great content.

Goose Networks

A couple friends of mine started Goose Networks, a company that coordinates carpooling within networks, such as company’s or states, using text messages and online booking. It is a great idea and if it works it could solve some serious problems, such as traffic and CO2 emission. They started the company a year ago and they already have two clients. I’m excited to see how it all turns out. I think that if they produce a quality product- which I’m confident they will- the rest will be up to some seriously great marketing. The marketing is not taking a slice of the market but really trying to create the market- convince companies and people that carpool is worth it.

The other thing that I like about the company is that it is extracting more value from the social networking platform besides just marketing. Another company that is during this well is Redfin, which is an online service that helps sellers do it themselves and buyers do it for a reasonable price. It is taking away the 6% commission charge that every real estate agent charges- another noble cause.

Watch out for companies with this mentality, I think they will have lots of success if done right.