I attended Twiistup 5 yesterday at a private hangar at Santa Monica Hangar. You could call it a 21st century form of expo which was held from 7 PM - midnight. Twiistup has been around for quite some time and apparently this has been the biggest till date with over 600 visitors. The best part about this event is that it’s unlike a conventional tradeshow which are mostly held in daylight and are formal in nature. Grab a beer, a cigar and if you are hungry get a cupcake; roam about in a lounge-like atmosphere and stop by one of the start-up company’s booths to play around with their product/service. I will not say that this is a geeky conference as there are  a lot of ideas that any manager/entrepreneur could use after attending it. But yes, you will find a ton of geeks :-D

Upon speaking to many start-ups I realized that there were many who were backed by VCs and angels; while on the other hand there were also those funded by the founders themselves - so Twiistup presented a platform for them to show off their company and connect with some investors. For me, it was merely a networking event but I found a lot of interesting business models as well.

“Ad revenues is not always the only source of revenue for a web start-up. There’s premium subscription, pay-per use and many more.”

Myself, Daniel and Scott - the Pepperdine MBA students at Twiistup!

The most common feature of all these start-ups (mostly web 2.0 services) was “convergence”. They let you show your updates from across different platforms such as twitter, Facebook, wordpress blogs, Linkedin on one website (such as chi.mp). “Convergence” in terms of being able to connect with various non-profit organizations from one website was enabled by causecast.com. Another example of convergence was the scour search engine which can fetch search results from Google, Y! and MSN and use its own algorithm to put the best one at the top of the query results. 

So where were their revenue streams? I did ask this question to many of the startups (which were mostly only looking to build audience at this point and did not seem to have a revenue model). Surprisingly to me, not all of them said ‘advertisements’ (while many others had no clue how they were going to make money). Some companies already had deals with partners who enabled their service which could sustain them as the company grows. For example, if you are a website that brings together all the shoe manufacturing companies together on an electronic marketplace you would charge the suppliers to pay you a fee to be displayed on the website. Although, initially you would not expect them to pay as you are still building an audience. How else could you make money with your Web 2.0 startup? There was also another way to generate revenue. Say you came up with this excellent tool for your iPhone that lets users access and connect with specific businesses such as hotels or car-rental companies. You would need their company information, their IT resources and create a custom design to be shown on your website, your mobile tool, etc. If you are dealing with brick-and-mortar businesses it’s likely that they don’t have the expertise and even if they do, they don’t know how your tool could help them grow their business. If you are enriching their business, you might as well consult them with their online/mobile marketing strategy. If your tool is useful and can enrich their business, they would be more than willing to pay you for your knowledge.

“Another observation I made was that so many start-ups which provided a one-stop shop web 2.0 startups such as Twitter had them because of the audience that Twitter or such other services have. But what if they go kaput because of no revenue model? I don’t mean to be cynical, but it’s just a thought. Especially, when so many start-ups are based on a service like that. Apparently, Twitter would get one soon, but no solid ideas as of now.”

Taking a step back, let me talk a little about who I met at the event. Investors, entrepreneurs, techies, geeks, head-hunters, prospective employers and MBA students :-). I could go on about the interesting people from various fields that you could meet at Twiistup. But, if you fall under any of the following categories, it’s totally worth attending Twiistup!

• Someone who likes to read different blogs on the interenet and loves Google and wants to party on a Thursday night
   
• Someone who thought he knew so much about social media and thinks that it’s just crazy and a lot of fun
   
• Job-seekers
   
• A budding entrepreneur
   
• Someone who has extra money, loves to criticize, analyse and make money from an idea - investors
   
• Someone who’s really ignorant about internet startups and thinks its a bubble 
   
• Most of all - headhunters - who are looking for new talent (I’m looking for a summer internship :) )

What else is there about Twiistup that you should know?:

• If you liked a startup gives the participating companies a pebble, those startups with the maximum number of pebbles win. No idea what they win though!

Causecast.com lets you broadcast your cause! They got my pebble! :)That's Nate from CauseCast.com. They bring together non-profits so that you can connect with them from a single interface. You can also create your own communities for any cause close to your heart.

• Loads of freebies - t-shirts, coasters, stickers, glow sticks, t-shirts, food, drinks, pens, mouse-pads, t-shirts and more :) 
  

  Check out the $1 note - that's scour.com's incentive to use their search engine!

• Drinks, drinks, drinks
   
• Free Business ideas
   
• Guitar Hero, Beanbags and free cigars! :)
   
• It costs $75 in case you didn’t win that FREE ticket (they have contests and give-aways!) or don’t have a friend who can sneak you in
   
• No idea when Twiistup 6 is going to be held but I hear in the next 3-4 months. Keep checking their website or connect with them on twitter! and remember to watch-out for the give-aways. Unfortunately, I didn’t know about it but I might know someone to sneak me in for the next event :D

I’m reading a very compelling book on business and management. It’s called A Whole New Mind:  Why Right-brainers will Rule the Future and it’s a must-read. I would like to write a review about it some time soon as I complete it but for now let me tell you a little bit about one of its chapters - Story. Telling a ‘Story’ or dispensing knowledge by way of a narratives can be a valuable insight about who you are and what you do. This is especially true in the age of Web 2.0 where you are closely and continuously interacting with your target audience. A story is nothing but..

understanding something “in context” which can leave memorable impressions in the minds of your target audience.

Mass-media advertising such as television commercials have always been around and will always be around because of this very reason. It allows marketers to tell a unique ’story’. What are the benefits of telling a story anyway?

• A story lets you be more creative with your brand and mould it depending on your target audience. It can be in any form - video, poster, an actual story, your blog.
• Every story is unique and if well-said it can be a lasting memory
• A story lets you sell more than just your brand - an experience or short preview how it would be to use your product/service

I found some unique examples of ’stories’ on the net that I would like to share with you:

• Pepsi tells a story about generations with this video advertisement while blending their brand’s purpose: to refresh everyone!
• This is a website by KitKat. What does it do you ask? Check it for yourself and tell me why it’s telling their story…
• Google tells us a mix of stories that has made for a strong brand. We’ve all heard about how Google is known for not using mass advertising as a means to promote itself but rather relies on word of mouth. Google is characterized as being ‘good’. Why?Their tagline ‘Do no evil’ is one reason but there are various other reasons too: one of them being that they don’t believe in mass advertising which is often considered as an ‘evil’ by consumers. Google enjoys this reputation of being ‘good’ with its users for another important reason: their design tells users that they are good:->Clutter-free websites that load really fast
  ->User Experience over glamorous websites
  ->Intuitive design
  ->The Google Blogging culture: transparent, honest, personal and casual in nature - their blogs make you feel they like you are talking to a friend.

  All these factors above along with their tagline ‘Do no Evil’ makes an awesome story, doesn’t it? Do me a favor, check this blogpost and tell me if you think Google’s good…

Remember: “The universe is made of stories, not of atoms.”

Do you see any stories on the Web?  please share it here…Do you have your own story to share? Even better… :-)

I was watching an episode of The Simpsons on Hulu and thought of writing this post. Around six months ago we wondered how YouTube would find ways to monetize their business. At this point in time, they already have an advertising program in place and serve over 100 million videos a day. Their revenue potential out of video advertising is estimated to be over $150 million (a very rough estimate). While there are many roadblocks that YouTube and many other ‘legitimate’ video-sharing websites need to surpass in a free world of content-sharing such as copyrights violation, content protection, etc., there are a few things which are certain (as time has told):

• While one can not say for sure if TV will be extinct in the next couple of decades, one thing’s for sure video is here to stay on air or online!
• Television shows, movies and other videos online present new opportunities for companies to market their products and services.

• More and more production companies and studios are accepting these online avenues to syndicate their content. Some also willing to start off on their own such as Hulu.com (started by NBC Universal).

So what’s so great about advertising on video-sharing websites, anyway?:

• It’s more about the combination of contextual and video advertising that is very appealing. The consumer does not click to visit the website of the advertiser or his specific landing page for that ad but rather clicks to watch a video. The idea of watching a video is in itself a much enriching experience than visiting a website.
• Search engine advertising was excellent business model as it was non-intrusive and contextual. Video advertising has the same benefits but more (only in case of YouTube). From the perspective of a business, a video advertisement let’s you send out a much more ‘fancier’ message and can ‘emote’ your message better. For example, check out this Cheetos advertisement the brand is truly personified - bold, mischievous (and ridiculous I think! :)):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPuq8F8_SR0

What are the cons?:

• Intrusive opportunities of video advertising may not be favored online, such as those provided by Hulu.com where videos are sponsored, meaning, they show ads while the video is being played just as a commercial break on TV. I really doubt people are used to such intrusive advertising in this age.
• Video advertising is costlier than search engine marketing compared to search engine marketing. Period. Click here to see some stats.
• Video advertising has additional costs of production attached to it compared to search engine advertising where you need a simple text copy.

Comments on this post? Shoot…

Over a period of time, an idea rots. This one mutated into a personal blog! Bombay Quotient was supposed to have a central theme with content from multiple bloggers (mostly based out of Bombay…err…Mumbai). Well, I think I never paid too much attention to the execution part. But hell, I don’t want to keep this idea to myself and let people know why I booked this name….a long time back! Here’s what Bombay Quotient was supposed to be:

First post on the BQ Blog

(Yes, I was so pepped up, I even made a logo for it!)

BQ is a medium dedicated to Bombay. This is an outlet to speak out about the city - no strings attached. Bombay truly has that never-say-die spirit! But unfortunately, Main Stream Media hypes it for all the wrong reasons. For instance, the very fact that the city started moving on after the 7/11 Blasts in no way defines the spirit of Bombay.

Let’s get real; when the whole world is fighting terrorism, the city’s getting used to it? Some media houses have put it exactly that way by sensationalizing the issue and labeling it as the ‘Spirit’ of Bombay.

We aren’t a media house; we aren’t a sensation. We are a sensible medium for young minds.
We don’t have reporters on the payroll (we don’t need any) nor are we endorsed by brands. Let’s make the best of this freedom and speak what we want to and why

We want to represent the educated, young mass of the urban population. Let the youth speak about what they think about the city and get heard by like-minded people.

The Anti-Reservation stir got youth from this very sensible mass together. Students and Professionals came together for a common purpose. Critics may say that it was futile and some may even feel that it was a sheer waste of time. In fact, ultimately it really didn ’t work out, did it? Wrong! It did. This stir pinched every one of us surely. Such a phenomenon was never heard of in the past ever. An educated class on the streets fighting for their rights! It’s true that there was an ‘Educated Awakening’. As a matter of fact, efforts are still on.

It was the internet that made this movement as strong as it became. No doubt, it was covered by the MSM effectively, but it was the e-mails and the forums on the net that spread the word like fire. .

But all this can be possible with your participation @ bombay?quotient

So blog on…

What’s wrong with Bombay?

First of all, the name itself! What’s wrong with Bombay anyway? Why the hell do we need ‘Mumbai’?

We are quite fed up of the manipulated rickshaw fare meter as well as the promising ‘work in progress’ by the BMC. The roads have more potholes than the total number of pimples on Om Puri’s face. There are anti-reservation protests by the educated youth and the best corners at the nearest coffee shops are reserved ;)Bollywood is getting undue importance on local tabloids when there are even more happening stories in our neighbourhood. While the whole world is fighting against terrorism, Bombay’s getting used to it! Family Disputes are becoming public tamashaa’s! Boomtown Rap or Uptown Rape? Clean Mumbai? Dream Mumbai !!! Is there an educated class with an illiterate mentality? This site is dedicated to the ‘Educated, Sensible, Passionate, future of Mumbai’ Bombay Quotient is for the educated Bombayite youth with a literate mentality! Let the citizens speak for what they think about the city! Everyone’s a celebrity here. Recognition for commendable achievements is what is important here unlike Rakhi Sawant! Oh Hell! It’s high time, Bombay gets it’s very own website.

Get involved > bombay quotient (at) gee-mail.com

bombayquotient.com

Ordinary People…Celebrity Roles

Damn, I love this tag-line. Although, it doesn’t suit what Bombay Quotient is right now!

As a lot of my friends might already know that I use Fring too often. Yes, you could say that am addicted to it. But it’s really cool and let’s me stay connected with everyone - anytime over cellphone. I just updated my Fring version on my cellphone and now even my Y! messenger contacts can IM me (whenever am online on Fring)

For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about - Fring is a free Instant Messenger that I use on my cellphone to connect to the Live (MSN) Messenger, Google Talk, Y! Messenger, Skype and Twitter. AOL or ICQ users can also use Fring but since I don’t have any friends on those I don’t use it for any of those services. And am sure that my account must have been deactivated since ages!

Most of all, this post would be incomplete if I didn’t write why there’s such a hoopla for Fring, even when there are other IM apps available on the web. It’s because it allows you to call any of your IM contacts for FREE - directly from your phone. Sounds amazing isn’t it? But all you Indian users (or atleast for those who use Vodafone GPRS in India) should know that your ‘Vodafone Connect’ network’s bandwidth is too low to support this without any major time-lags! So expect it to work as a walkie-talkie for sure :P

Anywho - this post is also to let my blog visitors know that you can now instantly  message me if you see that am online on the widget I installed on the sidebar of this blog. (Please  comment on the blog though)

You need a GPRS connectivity on your cellular phone to use this application. Different telecom providers have different GPRS plans that may or may not allow you to use Fring and other high-bandwidth consuming applications. If you have the GPRS plan which allows you to surf the web on your laptop, you should  probably be able to use Fring.