Web-based Services

Diving Into the World of Dial-Up….Again

By Mark Evans in Web-based Services 2 Comments Tags: , ,

When I started using the Internet in 1995, there was no high-speed access, which probably strikes many people as difficult to believe.

Instead, there was dial-up access in all of its 28K or 56K glory. It delivered the Web in an agonizingly slow way but we were so amazed by this thing called the Web that driving in the slow lane was just fine.

That said, dial-up was not only slow but it tended to stop working for a variety of reasons. If someone picked up another extension, the connection would crap out. If someone called and left a voice-mail message, the connection would disappear. These Web interuptus tended to happen with alarming frequency when a download was 98% completed, forcing you to download the software again, which could take 30 minutes as opposed to 30 seconds.

This nostalgic look at dial-up burst on to the scene last week after learning a much-anticipated high-speed connection at a beach house in rural Prince Edward Island was, in reality, dial-up. The pain, the agony, the molasses-like slowness of it all.

After the purchasing of a U.S. Robotics modem (the last one apparently to be found on PEI), extensive support from Bell and some painful configuration issues, we finally got the dial-up connection up and running.

Well, I wouldn’t describe it as running; it’s more like a languid stroll or relaxed amble. Each page requested appears with glacial-like speed. In other words, it’s agonizing for anyone who takes a high-speed connection as a god-given right.

The upside is it makes multi-tasking easy because there’s so much time between the appearance of Web pages – there’s no instant gratification each time you decide to look at a different Web site.

That’s the crazy part about speed; the faster the connection, the less appreciation about the size and speed of the pipe. For anyone who thinks today’s high-speed connections leave something to be desired, try living with dial-up for an hour, let alone a day.

Of course, any kind of Internet access is better than no access if you’re digitally engaged and make your living from being connected. So for the next week, I’ll live with dial-up access even if means taking a long time just to check e-mail. And the best part is when I get home, my high-speed connection will seem ultra-fast.

Canada: Get Ready for Broadband Bandwidth Tiers

By Mark Evans in Web-based Services 2 Comments Tags: , , ,

Last week, Rogers ruffled a few feathers when it unveiled bandwidth changes to its broadband services. New customers who sign up for the Lite service will get 15 gigabytes of data rather than 25GB; while Extreme users will now get 80GB rather than 90GB.

The negative reaction from “enthusiastic” Web users was not surprising given they’re the ones using a lot of bandwidth to download or stream music, movies and games, as well as surf the Web and use social media services. For most of the population, the bandwidth changes will likely have little or no impact.

There are two angles to Rogers’ bandwidth tinkering. By reducing the amount of bandwidth, Rogers has an opportunity make more money by selling additional bandwidth to customers. Along with higher-speeds, this is how Rogers grabs more of our dollars.

More important is the fact that tiered broadband pricing is going to become a hard and fast reality. While bandwidth caps have been in place, they haven’t captured much attention because they’ve been fairly generous and few consumers bump up against the limits. But in reducing bandwidth caps, it seems likely Rogers could be moving to a pricing structure in which bandwidth plays a more important role.

For consumers, it means the speed of their Internet connection will no longer be the only consideration. When selecting and paying for broadband service, consumers will have to cough up for speed and bandwidth. These tiered plans have been embraced by cablecos and telcos around the world such as BT. In North America, however, speed has been the name of the broadband game but with penetration rates getting pretty high, broadband players need new ways to generate more revenue.

In other words, we’re probably moving from an all-you-can-eat market to a pay-to-play market. Given there’s little competition in the broadband market and that consumers are using more online services, the size of your Internet bill is poised to increase.

The Ingredients for Startup Success

By Mark Evans in Web 2.0, Web-based Services 4 Comments Tags: , , ,

In my post about the success of Sysomos (which was acquired by Marketwire earlier this week), I talked about how Sysomos benefited from great timing – having the right product at the right place at the right time. This, of course, is just one of the many ingredients that, along with a healthy dose of luck, have required for successful startups.

So, what else does an online startup need to make it?

1. Perhaps the biggest “ingredient” is having a service that meets a need in a new or different way. Too many startups are vanity projects that cater to someone’s personal interests or needs as opposed to the larger market. They fail because they serve a niche that is far too small to create a viable company.

2. The service must be easy to “get” what the startup is offering and why a potential user should care. In the multi-tasking, time-strapped world in which we live, startups have small windows of opportunity to capture someone’s attention.

If consumers fail to quickly understand the service is being offered, they’ll quickly move on. This means a startup needs messaging that is clear, well-articulated and user-friendly. I’m personally a big believer in the power of the demo video because many people will watch a video before reading even the most well-written text.

2. The service or product has to do the job well. This is something that should be a given but you’d be surprised by how many startups create mediocre or, worse, bad services. This includes startups that launch an alpha or beta that instantly disappoints. Even if the messaging is clear, a bad service will quickly kill any interest from consumers.

4. The service has to be intuitive and user-friendly. Any hurdles, or “grit”, will quickly kill any kind of traction. This starts from the registration process to how quickly someone can start using the service or product. People have little patience, and want a gentle learning curve so having a service that is intuitive and user-friendly.

5. Fanatical customer service is also a key ingredient, particularly in the early days when a service is still being developed. The ability to quickly and effectively deal with problems or issues and actively solicit suggestions and feedback can make a huge difference.

6. Identify and nurture your champions and evangelists. As much as great messaging, terrific customer service and being active within the social media community are must-dos, the real marketing magic happens when a user is so excited with a service that they enthusiastically and actively start telling anyone and everyone. By identifying and supporting these people, a startup can jump-start its marketing and sales efforts.

There are, of course, a lot of other variables that go into creating successful startups such as having terrific employees and, if required, financing, but the ones above are “low-hanging fruit”.

What do you think are the most important “ingredients” for a successful startup?

When Should Startups Start Charging?

By Mark Evans in Web 2.0, Web-based Services 4 Comments Tags: , ,

One of the challenges facing many online start-ups is getting people to actually pay for their services, which probably explains why so many of them offer free services. This is great for consumers but leaves start-ups scrambling for ways to generate revenue so they can transform themselves from projects into businesses.

I have come to the conclusion that this approach is untenable because there’s too much risk and uncertainty inherent in the belief that a business model will eventually emerge. As a result, I think start-ups should have a revenue-generating business model from the start, even if it’s a freemium model with a free, basic service.

Given this philosophical approach, it was interesting to hear Sean Ellis’ presentation at meshU yesterday. In a nutshell, Ellis believes many startups should launch their services without charging for them. Instead, he suggests start-ups focus on creating services that resonate with a small group of engaged users, who will provide them with insight, guidance and feedback on how to evolve a service so can have broad appeal.

This is a process Ellis describes as the “gratification engine” – something that start-ups need to spend more time focused on as opposed to trying to attract more users by adding features.

When the start-up has a better idea of the service and how it meets the needs of consumers, Ellis said it can introduce a paid service, while providing the original users with a discount as a reward for their contribution.

When I pushed back about coming out of the gate without charging for services, Ellis said making money from early or beta users is somewhat irrelevant given the more significant revenue could come, in theory, from the large amount of users who come on board afterwards.

To be honest, I’m still not completely convinced that only having a free service is the right way to go. If people want to pay for premium services, there should probably be a way to take their money.

Six Questions with…Prezi

By Mark Evans in Web 2.0, Web-based Services 2 Comments Tags: , , ,

If you’ve got to a technology conference recently, you may have noticed some presenters using a new and cool tool rather than PowerPoint. Instead of slides, these presentations look like a giant landscape with text and images on them that can be easily be accessed by roaming around. For presenters, the downside is the presentation tool attracts as much if not more buzz than their presentations.

So, what is this new and mysterious tool? The answer is Prezi, which can be used to create presentations online, and then, if you want, have them downloaded for off-line use.

Prezi is a freemium service with a free versions, and two premium versions selling for $59/year and $159/year. The company started in Budapest before opening an office last year in San Francisco. Its investors include Sunstone Capital and TED Conferences.

Curious to learn more about Prezi, I fired off an e-mail to CEO Peter Arvai while attending WordCamp Toronto on Saturday.

1. Why did Adam Somlai-Fischer and Peter Halacsy decide to start Prezi?
Adam and Peter working on Prezi in 2007 as they felt slides limited their ability to develop and explain ideas. They were frequent presenters before working with Prezi and thought that Prezi could help them in their work.

2. How is Prezi different from other presentation software and services?
Prezi works with a big canvas instead of slides. This allows users to develop their ideas in an uninterrupted way. Presenting with the Prezi canvas offers a new presentation style: you can skip the slide-by-slide approach, show the big picture and then drill down in the topic that interests the audience.

3. Do you see Prezi as a rival to Powerpoint, or complementary?
We think slideshows are good for monologues aimed a large crowd (the path walkthrough of a Prezi works like a slideshow). The canvas approach is better for smaller meetings where dialogue, questions and brainstorming plays an important part.

4. What’s the target audience? If other words, who are the people out most likely to use Prezi?
Prezi is for anyone who’d like to develop their ideas and communicate them on a single surface. We see a lot of users who are used to presenting ideas as part of their everyday work, e.g. marketers, sales people, teachers, students, project managers.

5. Are you surprised by how Prezi has been embraced, particularly in the presentation market?
We’re very happy and proud of the embrace of Prezi.

6. How is Prezi’s freemium business model been embraced.
Our model has worked well so far. Its aim is to encourage both users who can and can’t afford to pay for services. We have asked our free users to publish their presentations so that they contribute with the content they create.

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