I was watching Jason Fried’s talk at Web Expo 2.0 in 2008. At the 6:50 mark he discusses a very important topic that few people (in my experience) touch on. Here are the key points…
- “Listen to your customers but Innovate on behalf of your Entire Customer Base”
- “Certain customers will be vocal and as time goes on they will be more and more vocal”
- “Be very careful at agreeing to everything the vocal minority says”
- “Customers know a lot about what they want but don’t know what’s best for your actual product”
- “You aren’t building for an individual you are building for a group”
- “If you listen to just a few people you are going to have a problem”
- “If you add everything that everyone wants you are going to have a problem”
I’ve experienced everything Jason discusses first hand. Customers always feel their wants, likes and dislikes represent everyone’s feelings. In many instances customers don’t actually know what they want. MySpace customers WANTED freedom to customize their myspace pages. Facebook came along and took that freedom away. What happened? Users switched from Myspace to Facebook. Why? Because in theory customizing your own profile page was great. In reality it was an absolute nightmare.
I believe this is often the difference between a successful website and an unsuccessful one. As a website owner you have to understand your customers’ needs but you also have to know what’s best for them and the site. It isn’t easy and takes a lot of trial and error (and analytics studying).
Here are a few things I’ve learned…
- You will never be able to please 100% of the people 100% of the time
- 1 to 5% of people are unhappy no matter what you do. They are impossible to please and their only happiness in life comes from complaining.
- A very small percentage <3% of your overall user base actually provide feedback
- That small percentage is usually made up of your two extremes followers. Those that LOVE your product and those that HATE your product
- There is a group of customers that provide feedback that represent a large majority of your user base. Identifying them is key. They’ll help you keep your finger on the pulse of your product.
- Many customers will act as if they know better than you. If they knew better they’d be in your position. Remember That!
I wrote this as a reminder to myself. It’s very easy to forget the points discussed and as soon as you do you’ll find yourself heading down the wrong path.
I’d love to hear your experiences and thoughts on this.
Once in a while I come across a gem. I like to do my best to spread the word so these gems get a chance to really explode as a company and enjoy the great success they deserve. Not to mention I want them to stay in business so I can continue to using them.
A few years ago I was planning a trip to New York City for my wife and I. I was looking for a high end (4 or 5 star) hotel. I usually would book directly from the hotel website or use expedia. The prices I was getting quoted were insane. So I decided to head to google. The first paid sponsor link was http://www.newyorkcityluxuryhotels.com. I rarely click a paid sponsor link but for some reason this time I did. When I got to the site they had some great hotels but no prices. You had to call to get a quote. To this day I have no idea why I called but I’m extremely happy that I did. When I called I was given a quote that was almost 50% off the lowest price I had found online and that was for a 5 star hotel. I booked it hoping it was for real. I couldn’t believe my luck. Sure enough it was for real and I’ve been using that company “Magellan Vacations” ever since.
What is Magellan Vacations?
My understanding is they book hotel rooms in the best hotels in major cities and book in such bulk they are able to offer the rooms at INSANE prices. I’ve been using them for 2 years now and not once have I ever found a lower price than what they offer. It’s not always 50% lower but it is ALWAYS lower than the best price you’ll find online.
There is no membership. No bs. Use them as you need them. They offer hotel rooms in New York City, Miami, Los Angeles, Washington, San Francisco and Chicago. Usually they only have really high end hotels.
I can’t say enough about Magellan. I tell all my friends about them. You can call them anytime and they’ll hook you up. I missed a connecting flight in NYC once and was stranded there for the evening. It was 11pm. I called Magellan and explained my situation to the agent. He asked me if I wanted the same hotel, same price as my last trip. I replied yes. Same credit card? Yes. DONE! The call was less than 90 seconds long and I was checked in and ready to go. Not only did they bail me out of a jam they saved me on cell phone roaming charges.
I have nothing to do with the company. They are just the best hotel service I’ve ever come across and I hope someone reading this can enjoy the same fantastic experience I’ve had with them as well.
You can check them out at MagellanVacations.com
I was thinking about all the domains I’ve bought and sold over the years. There is one domain that really sticks out. It wasn’t the best domain I ever bought. It wasn’t the most expensive domain I ever bought. It wasn’t even the domain I sold for the most. Yet it still is my favorite domain story. Here it is.
This took place in early 2001. I wanted to buy the domain CrazyApe.com. The domain was already registered and listed for sale. I emailed the owner to find out his asking price. He wanted $1500 for it. I replied with a counter offer of $600. He never bothered answering my counter offer.
After I made my counter offer I pretty much forgot about the domain. One day, 2 months later, I was cleaning out my email and came across the original email correspondence I had with the domain owner. I decided to see what he had done with the domain. I was surprised and pumped when I logged on and found out he failed to renew it and the domain was available to be registered. I gladly picked it up for $15.
Here is my favorite part of the story. 2 weeks after I registered the domain I was approached buy someone who wanted to buy it. After a very brief negotiation the buyer agreed to pay $3500 for it.
After writing about my best domain story it got me thinking what is my worst domain story? The very first domain I ever bought IWCA.com.
I got online in the fall of 1996. I was a young kid (20 Years Old). I was hungry but very narrow sighted. I’d focus on one thing and not consider all the factors that played a role like a domain name. Instead of investing my time in finding the perfect domain name I spent all my time planning and thinking about the site. I wanted to run a BEST OF site. IWCA stood for Internet Webmaster Choice Awards. I don’t know how for the life of me that seemed like a good idea. To this day I can’t think of a worse 4 letter domain LOL. I never did start the Internet Webmaster Choice Awards. I still have the domain I’m holding on to it for nostalgic purposes more than anything.
My narrow sightedness would continue for the first few years I was in business. The second domain name I bought was 12 letters long and the third was 15 letters long. I didn’t register a decent domain until I met my business partner (who also happens to be my wife). She clued me in to the importance of a domain name. It’s a bummer to think back to the domains that were available at the time that I was too busy to research and find. You live and learn.
The Business Lessons I Learned From This:
1. Don’t forget to consider all the factors that may play a role in your success.
2. Finding a partner that can balance and offer something you don’t have could be the key to your success.
Here’s another business lesson I learned from other domains I bought… Never buy domains when you are drunk. They may seem like a good idea at the time but when you wake up and find out you registered 10 variations of the worst domain and business idea ever you’ll regret it.
A few weeks ago I discovered Gary Vay-Ner-Chuk and I’ve since become absolutely obsessed and hooked on him. Everything he says is so accurate and dead on and exactly what I believe and practice in business. I’ve never read or watched anyone who gets it to the extent and clarity that Gary does. He is quick and to the point. His book CRUSH IT! Is phenomenal and a must read.
If you don’t know who Gary Vaynerchuk is you should watch this video. He is a marketing machine and a social media guru. Below is his keynote at Web 2.0 Expo in 2008. It may be almost 2 years old but it is still very relevant and true today.
If you are an online entrepreneur and this video doesn’t get you fired up you should quit right now Enjoy!
I'm an Internet Entrepreneur trying to balance work and enjoying life to the fullest. I'm not selling anything here. Just writing down some of my thoughts, ideas and observations for whoever is interested :)
Enjoy!