Too Soon?

Sometimes brilliant ideas come along and their biggest downfall is they were ahead of their time. There's an old saying with start ups, "Being early is the same as being wrong." One that comes to mind is Xpage.com. Xpage was around during my middle school years, so early 2000's. Xpage was a social media site that gave users their own "page" to design to fit their personalities that other users could visit and leave messages. The problem was, technology wasn't advanced enough, so Xpage didn't have much to offer in the way of customization. The site never took off with the older crowd, tens or adults. It seemed to attract the middle school group, but only held their attention for so long. Dial up Internet was what most homes still had at the time, so loading and customizing pages did require patience and for no family members to need the home phone line. Smart phones weren't a thing yet, so this social media site was limited to users updated from a home or school computer. IT did, however, pave the way for Myspace to come along when technology was slightly more advanced and it attracted the attention of kids and adults, and offered more customization, communication, and media. Myspace was huge, but even it was still just a little too early. Facebook came at the just perfect time and won over Myspace users with its much more advanced site. Besides attracting kids and adults, Facebook attracted businesses who began advertising, conducting business, and communicating with consumers. Many businesses were able to start up via Facebook only. It's now a huge, multi billion dollar company that's not going anywhere anytime soon. Facebook is big part of daily life for many people now, something Xpage just couldn't be years before.

Idea Tracking

We all know how it works.. You get your best ideas in the shower, walking through the grocery store, sitting at the doctor, etc. We always say we'll remember them and obviously never do. It sounds pretty obvious to write it down when have the thought, but most of us don't. I carry my cell phone around with me daily, so I've began texting ideas, lists, random thoughts, even conversations that I want to remember, to myself. I've tried using the notebook that comes on phones, but it doesn't work for me. Texting them to myself has proven to work for me. I also keep a bullet journal at home, which I review daily. It's very organized, and I add the important things from my texts to my journal. A lot of times you'll have an idea when you find a need, so try to write it down as soon as you can! Sometimes I only have a vague, generalized idea. I'll write that down, and draw lines coming from it and brainstorm the details or how to improve on the original idea.

The Best, But Most Overlooked, Marketing Tip

According to Jason Falls of CafePress, the most important trick to marketing (and often the most overlooked by even the most savvy business owners) is proactive listening. With the use of social media, it's easier now than ever to really see what the people want and where they want it. Many companies use their customer service to answer questions and handle complaints. You can use this medium to actively search for where your product or service is needed, individuals looking to purchase, or ways to better your existing products. Don't always wait for the customers to come to you; go out and find them! If you don't put yourself at the top, a competitor will. Through proactive listening you can find problems people find with the way other companies handle issues and implement better ways in your company. Giving the customer what they want is a great way to attract business.