Paul David Olson | Business, the Google, Sailing, Ad(s).

I was wrong: EVERYBODY* wants an iPhone 4S

By pdo | Published: February 2, 2012

Well, I was wrong. Pretty, pretty, pretty wrong. Turns out everybody* wants to buy a new iPhone, even people that just bought one, their grandmothers, their newborns … everybody*. And the oddest thing? People are damn jazzed to give Apple their money. I don’t understand this post from David over at 37 Signals:

I campaigned tirelessly to enlighten my fellow classmates at Copenhagen Business School about this injustice, about why they should get a Mac. I managed to convert my entire study group and a fair number of other people too. It was invigorating to be able to convince people of the fundamentals.

…

Still, financial results of the likes Apple delivered yesterday serve as an affirmation of all that energy spent telling their story. Believing in the underdog. Like your favorite home team who couldn’t get into premier league while growing up just won the Superbowl, the Stanley Cup, and the World Series all together for the 10th time in a row — and you were the only one to believe in them. It’s an immensely satisfying feeling.

…

I’m well aware that this level of gushing is somewhat unbefitting in public, and I normally wouldn’t indulge the impulse. I’m just so proud of Apple that I’m willing to look foolish saying so.

No other company has inspired me more when it comes to marketing, design, focus, and even capitalism than Apple. Make the best damn product out there, charge a profitable price, and win the world.

What triggered this gushing? Apple’s quarterly profit results. He was just so happy they had made so much money. Which makes no sense if all you do is buy their products, but it makes all the sense in the world if you own their stock.

I still don’t understand Apple, I guess.

*Everybody except me, perhaps. I really, really dislike iTunes.

Posted in Business, Media | Leave a comment

Leveraging The Saddam Hussein Body Double Strategy For Online Reputation Management

By pdo | Published: January 2, 2012

Make getting your online shit together one of your resolutions for 2012. Google shouldn’t stumble when people are looking for you … unless you don’t want them to find you. Then, do this:

Look, you’re the CMO. You don’t have time for the Google or the Facebook or the Twitter. You have time for reading the iCrossing Great Finds blog, that’s about it. And LinkedIn? You’re not unemployed. Come on.

However, effectively managing your online identity is good insurance against negative content surfacing in search results targeting your name. If somebody writes a blog post about how you “suck,” it sure would be nice for that not to show up on page one of Google. What then do you do?

Find a body double – somebody with your same name – and make him your Saddam Hussein-style body double on Google. If your body double is on Facebook, sign him up for Twitter. If he’s on LinkedIn, get him on Squidoo. Create a Wikipedia page for him. Hell, create a custom home page with an optimized domain name about how great this guy is. Optimize the shit out of everything. Build links like crazy. Buy some AdWords and some 300×250 displays. Create YouTube videos about how your body double is totally awesome, and curate a Tumblr blog of his favorite images. Consider releasing a sex tape. Negative press targeting you won’t have a chance.

Or you could actively manage your own search presence. But search is just a fad anyway. Real business is done on paper.

Paul’s traveling the country as a digital nomad. Keep track of him, his wife, and their minivan home on drivinginertia.com.

Posted in The Google, The Internets | Leave a comment

Who Will Buy The iPhone 5 (or 4S)?

By pdo | Published: October 3, 2011

Ok, I’ll say it. I’m not so sure the iPhone 5 is going to be a raging success. In fact, I think only two groups of people are going to buy one. And there are two huge groups that are not likely to buy, and that’s going to be a problem. Let’s start with who will buy:

People that still have the iPhone 3G, 3Gs

Not everybody pulled the trigger on the iPhone 4. There are still a lot of 3s out there. Either people’s contracts didn’t line up or they were scared off by the antenna thing — or they just didn’t want to spend the money — people that have the 3G/3GS version of the iPhone are the most likely to grab an iPhone 5. Why? Because people with the iPhone 4 just bought theirs, and it’s still badass. The 3G/3GS just isn’t hip anymore. It’s old. It’s tired. The 5 will be a big upgrade for anybody in this group. And given that they’re already part of the family, they’re less likely to go Android. But they will likely switch carriers.

The Apple Lovers

Yep, that’s an easy one. People LOVE Apple. And if you don’t care about cost and want the latest, greatest Apple toy, you’ll get one.

I’d bet these two groups make up at least 90% of the iPhone 5 market. And they will buy a LOT of iPhones in the first month or so — and this will bey heavily hyped. But long-term, I’m doubtful of Apple’s chances. Mostly because of who’s NOT going to buy:

iPhone 4 Normals

Normal people, who don’t have sex dreams about Steve Jobs, are unlikely to buy the iPhone 5 if they already have an iPhone 4. That’s tough. The iPhone 4 was a good seller, and it’s unlikely the 5 is compelling enough to convince an owner of a 4 to upgrade. As stated earlier, the 4 is badass. So unless you’ve broken yours or cracked its case or NEED to switch networks, you’ll stick with what you’ve got.

The Kids

Will somebody think of the children? Even if Apple releases a “cheap” version of the iPhone, the kids aren’t going to flock to it. Mom and dad have iPhones. The kids have Androids. And the kids have Android phones because mommy and daddy can buy them for nothing (and iPhones aren’t cool anyway). Unless Apple gives the cheapie version away for free, they’re not going to be able to compete with Google’s offering on price. Can’t do it.

And no parents are such Apple fans that they’ll insist their children carry iPhones. But nearly every parent likes to save money. Android wins this round. And these are the customers Apple can’t afford to lose. And unless Sprint gives them away, it’s likely to lose too.

Posted in The Internets | 1 Comment

Keep Calm and Optimize

By pdo | Published: October 2, 2011

“Never be daunted. Secret of my success. Never been daunted. Never been daunted in public,” says Bill in Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises. Good advice. It’s true for SEO too.

The other day I was on a call with Phoenix search engine optimization guru, James Constable, and he realized the audience was daunted. They needed inspiration. They needed encouragement. They needed motivation … They needed propaganda posters, James decided. Something like: Keep Calm and Optimize. SEO Needs YOU!

That’d do it. SEO isn’t rocket science. We can all do this. Let’s all do this. Post these in your offices immediately.

Posted in The Google, The Internets | Leave a comment

Dappered Moves to Rackspace

By pdo | Published: September 19, 2011

This weekend, Dappered.com moved into the Rackspace Cloud. We’re excited to be there. I’ll share stats here soon, but it looks like we’re already seeing quicker response times.

So far I’ve found their reputation for fanatical service to be absolutely true. I love being able to jump on chat and immediately having somebody available. And I’m excited about having Dappered on a cluster of servers instead of a single VPS. I’m confident their reputation for reliability is true as well.

photo credit: mootown | Affordable men’s style needs more internets.

Posted in The Internets | Leave a comment

Welcome to WordPress, artofwilderness.com!

By pdo | Published: August 16, 2011

Welcome to WordPress, artofwilderness.com! Bob’s wildlife art and environmental interpretation site is now live. It’s got a pretty slick ‘static’ implementation of WordPress, if I do say so myself.

Posted in The Internets | Leave a comment

Virgin Mobile Brings A Bazooka To The Gun Fight (AKA The Motorola Triumph)

By pdo | Published: July 24, 2011

The mobile phone business is a gun fight, and Virgin Mobile has been battling with a knife — until now. Over a year ago, I wrote about how the pre-paid market was perfect for Google Android phones, and Sprint (owner of Virgin Mobile) is finally catching on. The proof is the Motorola Triumph. This is a serious phone with specs that rival / surpass the previously top-of-the-line Nexus One. And you can have it for a few bucks more than a subsidized phone, on a plan that’s significantly cheaper than any you can find with a 2-year contract.

Sure, there are better-spec’d phones in the market, but the difference between the top-of-the-line and the entry-line is getting smaller by the day. Apple is going to have a tough time responding to this new reality. The Apple mystic is one of exclusivity and luxury. That brand promise is tough to balance when you need to go after mass-market success with lower-cost products. Sure, there are rumors about some sort of lower-end iPhone Lite, but I don’t like their odds of pulling this off. iPhones are already becoming ubiquitous and boring, while Google’s multi-handset approach allows buyers to better identify with their purchase. Virgin Mobile’s Motorola Triumph is youthful and fun. Sprint’s EVO 4Gs are high-tech and fast. There’s the HTC Status on AT&T, an Android-powered phone that plays off Facebook updates. There’s the Droid Pro, a business-focused phone from Verizon.

photo credit: antwerpenR

Honestly, I don’t see how Apple wins this. They need to keep “innovating” — but how long will it be before we realize all they’re doing is using bigger, gee-wiz touchscreens on more products? It took them about 3 years to start falling behind in the phone arena. It’ll be a surprise to me if the iPad is able to hold off the competition as long. The end of the Apple era is here (and here).

Update: There are issues. Bummer.

Posted in Business, The Google | 3 Comments

Nice Logo, @TechCrunch, Now Fix Your Mobile Site (And Your Comments)!

By pdo | Published: July 12, 2011

I like the TechCrunch redesign. It’s simpler, which is good. It gets out of your way and makes the site easier to read. They didn’t do a Gawker and muck it all up with bullshit tablet UI and all sorts of jazz-hands crap. It’s good. But they’ve got some loose ends:

Upgrade to WPTouch Pro

Dappered has WPTouch Pro, but if you trust the footer of their mobile site, TechCrunch is using the free WordPress plugin for their site. Come on, guys. Shell out the $40 for the real deal. We did for the fashion blog. Take some of that AOL money and make the plugin work for your site too. On the way home from work I saw that TechCrunch had rolled out an update, but I couldn’t switch to the non-mobile version of the site on my phone to check it out. Annoying. Make that work.

Go Back to Disqus Commenting

Here you report that Google+ is surging beyond anybody’s expectations, but you’re stuck on Facebook Comments for you site’s discussion. Go back to Disqus. It’s better (and, honestly, why I started to read Engadget instead of Gizmodo … and why I’m getting tired of Mashable). Why are people flocking to Google+? Because they’re sick of being on Facebook. Your comments are just a reminder of that soon-to-be-dead social network. Get back on Disqus where multiple networks play nice. I’m sure they’re working on some sort of Google+ integration already. If I was building a blog for my mother, I’d use Facebook Comments. You’re TechCrunch — be better than that. I understand the accountability argument, but accountability doesn’t lead to good discussions. Accountability leads to the discussion you have with your boss at your annual review. Disqus fuels the discussion you have with your co-workers at the bar afterward. The uninhibited discussion at the bar is much more fun.

So two complaints. Not bad, actually. At least you’re still rocking WordPress.

photo credit: Robert Scoble | You, sir(s), are no Blake Lively.

Posted in The Internets | Leave a comment

Honestly, The Winklevoss Remora Should Have Bought MySpace, Here’s Why

By pdo | Published: June 29, 2011

A few minutes ago, I jokingly tweeted: “@tylerwinklevoss and @winklevoss should have bought @myspace and shown @finkdwhat’s up.” Now I’m starting to actually think I’m right. Here’s why:

These guys are fighting the perception that they’re just suckerfish on the Zuckerberg shark. If they honestly think they’re the brains behind Facebook, they should use their brains to eclipse Facebook. Why not start UConnect 2.0 on MySpace?
They’ve racketeered / extorted / won $65MM from Facebook. Minus attorney fees which they maybe didn’t have to pay if their dad hooked them up, they’ve got the cash needed. But they may have lacked the vision to pull in Timberlake and pull the trigger on the deal.
Supposedly they want to be media moguls — they want(ed?) to own / run / row Facebook, but they’re best known for dicking around in courthouses. That’s not what moguls are know for. If they want to be entrepreneurs, they should be doing entrepreneurial things.

That’s it. Wish it would have happened. Would have been wild.

photo credit: exfordy

Posted in Business, Media, The Internets | Leave a comment

Steve Jobs And Wonko The Sane Build A New Cupertino HQ

By pdo | Published: June 8, 2011

Steve Jobs thinks big. I like that, but he’s a little nuts. And he’s getting to be more nutty as he grows older. His latest space-themed office building / mothership headquarters / Wonko the Sane’s outside the asylum nut-barn finally shows him as being over the edge. If you haven’t read it, here’s the quote from So Long and Thanks for All the Fish from The Hitchhiker’s Trilogy by Douglas Adams:

It was like this:

It was inside out.

Actually inside out, to the extent that they had had to park on the carpet.

All along what one would normally call the outer wall, which was decorated in a tasteful interior-deisgned pink, were bookshelves, also a couple of those odd three-legged tables with semicircular tops which stand in such a way as to suggest that someone just dropped the wall straight through them, and pictures which were clearly designed to soothe.

Where it got really odd was the roof.

It folded back on itself like something that M. C. Escher, had he been given to hard nights on the town, which it is no part of this narrative’s purpose to suggest was the case, though it is sometimes hard, looking at his pictures, particularly the one with all the awkward steps, not to wonder, might have dreamed up after having been on one, for the little chandeliers which should have been hanging inside were on the outside pointing up.

Confusing.

The sign above the front door read “Come Outside,” and so, nervously, they had.

Inside, of course, was where the Outside was. Rough brickwork, nicely done pointing, gutters in good repair, a garden path, a couple of small trees, some rooms leading off.

And the inner walls stretched down, folded curiously, and opened at the end as if, by an optical illusion which would have had M. C. Escher frowning and wondering how it was done, to enclose the Pacific Ocean itself.

…

“Ah yes,” he said, “that’s to do with the day I finally realized that the world had gone totally mad and built the Asylum to put it in, poor thing, and hoped it would get better.”