Many of America’s great apparel brands started out by catering to a specific sporting lifestyle. Some, like Filson and Orvis, have largely stayed true to their roots. While others, like Abercrombie & Fitch, have moved far away from the brands that they once were. Lands’ End got its start as a yachting supply company in Chicago, but today it is based in Dodgeville, WI and is “an international apparel brand synonymous with timeless American style.” The company is certainly still inspired by its nautical heritage, but they definitely had to broaden their horizons a bit to get where they now are–generating well over $1 billion in revenue annually.
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Have you ever seen an article in the middle of the day explaining that a stock’s price was rising on specific news and then seen essentially the same article in the evening saying that the same piece of news caused the price to fall? There are rare occasions when it actually works out that way, but often it’s just lazy journalism. The truth is that it can be pretty hard to explain why a stock’s price moves up or down; however, we all know that specific products can have a huge impact on how a business performs. That’s why Trefis has developed a set of tools that “helps you understand how a company’s products impact its stock price.” The Boston, MA based company “was founded by MIT Engineers and former Wall Street analysts who realized that most people do not understand the seemingly familiar companies around them.”
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You’ve probably looked at thousands of ads already today, but chances are that you haven’t thought about how they got in front of you. Behind all of those ads is a group of people who made a complicated set of decisions to get that specific message to you in a specific place at a specific time. Managing those kinds of decisions at scale is really hard. Centro makes it easier. They’re a Chicago, IL based company that works “to improve the lives of those working in the advertising industry by building media management software that helps marketers engage with audiences across all digital channels in the most successful manner possible.” The goal is put all of the options in one place so that advertisers can make the best decisions for themselves or for clients.
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If you’ve ever had a job that involved working on a computer, you’ve probably done something that you weren’t supposed to on the computer at some point. Maybe it was as simple as checking Facebook or printing a personal document. Chances are that your boss wouldn’t have cared even if he or she was looking over your shoulder; however, there are some times where a company needs to look back and see exactly what an employee (or former employee) was doing on a computer or network. That’s where Forensicon can help. They’re a Chicago, IL based “firm specializing in computer forensics analysis and consulting within the areas of Internal Investigations, Trade Secrets Misappropriation, Employment Litigation and Hacker Investigations.”
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Have you ever thought that you accidentally liked something on Facebook because a post suddenly showed up in your feed from a site that you recently visited? It’s creepy, right? It’s called retargeting, and it’s amazingly effective. For at least the last few years, advertisers have been tracking your movement around the web and showing you ads based on where you’ve visited. Taking to Facebook was the obvious next step, and that’s the specialty of Triggit. They are a San Francisco, CA based company that “enables advertisers and agencies to build, run, measure, and optimize retargeting-driven display campaigns from a single platform.”
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It still amazes me how much old media drives new media. If you’re already famous, you can almost instantly carry that fame over to social media. A show like Shark Tank can drive millions of dollars in online sales. And the right tv mention can crash a website. What I think is cool is that we’re starting to see the reverse happen. People who are famous on Youtube, Twitter, or Instagram are carrying that fame over to more traditional channels. In short, it’s all coming together, and marketers need to be ready for it. Fullscreen is a Los Angeles, CA based agency that is aiming to build “the first media company for the connected generation—together, right at the intersection of tech and entertainment.”
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It almost seems that a person’s comfort with buying something online has an inverse relationship with the item’s size. Books, digital goods (size = 0), and clothing are no brainers these days, but people still seem to prefer an in-person experience when it comes to furniture, cars, and homes. I guess it could be based on cost too. Either way, some things are easier to sell online than others. Home furnishings, decor, and outdoor furniture fall somewhere in the middle, but online will win eventually. Hayneedle is definitely pushing for it. They are an Omaha, NE based company that “has become one of the nation’s largest online retailers, offering more than 3,000 brands and nearly 2 million products for the home.” It all started with Hammocks.com, and they just kept adding niches.
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Travel decisions are almost always open to outside influence. If you know where you’re going, you may need help figuring out how to get there or what to do once you get there. If you don’t know where you want to go, the possibilities are truly endless. That’s why marketers love the travel market (it helps that travelers are often exceedingly willing to spend money to travel). Just like in every other industry, marketers in the travel space are getting much more sophisticated. Sojern is a San Francisco, CA based company that is leading that trend. They have developed a “robust audience engagement platform [that] is powered by machine-learning technology, enhanced programmatic buying (real-time bidding), and data insights.” The goal is to engage travelers and affect their decision-making process, and it seems to be working.
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Apparently a guy named Asa Candler invented the coupon in 1887. He was one of the founders of Coca-Cola, and it was his marketing tactics that put the brand on the path to where it is today. Coupons are ingenious for two reasons. First, they influence people to do things that they wouldn’t otherwise do. Second, they allow companies to track the success of different marketing strategies and tactics. Here’s a simplistic, old school example. A company runs the same coupon in two competing local newspapers for the same cost. One gets twice as many redemptions. The company now knows where to spend their ad dollars. RevTrax is a New York, NY based company that is taking a more modern approach to using coupons to track customer behavior.
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Last night Amy was bragging to me about how popular one of her pins on Pinterest has been. Apparently she was the first to pin something repinned by thousands. Pinterest always struck me as having far more commercial potential than most other social media sites (LinkedIn being the biggest exception). Yet most of the software developed for marketing on social media sites seems to be focused on Facebook and LinkedIn. Ahalogy is a Cincinnati, OH based company that is “pioneering the science of discovery on Pinterest.” It’s not “some do-it-yourself suite.” Instead it’s “a marketing service, powered by [their] network and technology, and paid for performance.”
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If you’ve watched as much Seinfeld as I have, you’re familiar with Lloyd Braun. He’s the guy who George Costanza’s mother wants George to be more like. Anyway, the real Lloyd Braun was Larry David’s lawyer and manager. I’m not sure how similar he is to the tv character, but let’s hope it’s not very. Anyway, the real Lloyd Braun moved away from the legal side and started a company called BermanBraun. The company recently rebranded as Whalerock Industries, but it’s still “a media company for the 21st century, one where the best and brightest minds come together to create world-class content, spanning all mediums and screens.” They’re based in Santa Monica, CA, and they’re behind some brand that you may be familiar with–for instance they’re managing Moviefone for AOL.
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It used to be that most websites were the same for everybody, but today almost everything seems to be personalized. Whether I log into Facebook, search on Google, or visit a jobs website, there’s a very good chance that my experience is being altered based on data that they’ve collected about me. Sites with this customization based on who is logged in used to be referred to (and maybe still are) as portals. Liferay Portal is free and open source software that allows anyone to build this kind of web experience. Liferay is a Diamond Bar, CA based company that was started in 2004 and “houses a professional services group that provides training, consulting and enterprise support services” focused on the Liferay Portal software.
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When I think about real estate, I don’t usually think about art. And when I think about art, I don’t usually think about real estate. However, some of the most interesting companies and organizations that I’ve come across have been born out of seemingly odd combinations. Chashama is a perfect example. They are a New York, NY based non-profit that “nurtures artists by transforming unused property into work and presentation space.” It makes so much sense. Artists get much needed space to work and show their work, while an empty space is brought to life.
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I barely shop in retail stores any more because I know that I can almost always find a better price online. Retailers have realized this and started getting much more aggressive about pricing merchandise competitively. The problem is that few people are willing to drive from store to store just to save a few bucks. That’s why you should do a little pre-shopping on Find&Save, a site run by Wanderful Media. The former seems to be the sole product of the latter at this point; however, the Los Gatos, CA based Wanderful Media is aiming “to transform the $4 billion business of traditional advertising circulars through digital innovation – just as joint media ventures such as CareerBuilder and Cars.com strengthened the industry’s position through the use of new technology.”
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There’s an episode of Saved by the Bell where Zack Morris convinces Mr. Tuttle (the head of the teacher’s union) that Mr. Belding called him a “spineless jellyfish.” That’s a pretty big insult to someone who is in charge of negotiating against you. Our spines are both metaphorically and anatomically an essential part of our being. That’s why the thought of a spinal injury is absolutely terrifying for most people. Luckily, we as a society have made a ton of progress treating spinal issues. Whether it’s an injury, disease, or deformity, K2M is one of the companies leading the innovation. They are based in Leesburg, VA, and they “deliver and develop technological innovations which enable surgeons to more effectively treat the world’s most complex spinal disorders.”
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Every time that Amy and I move (four times over the last six years), we say that we’re going to do a great job setting up our new place. When we move to the next place, we end up repacking the framed pictures that we never got around to hanging on the wall. Interior design isn’t our strongpoint. Next time we move, we’ll have to use Houzz for inspiration. They’re a Palo Alto, CA based company that offers “a collaborative platform for home remodeling and design, bringing homeowners and home professionals together in a uniquely visual community.” It’s kind of like Pinterest, but only for home design and decor.
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A few days ago we looked at a company called Groundspeak that uses GPS data to “to make everyone an explorer and to put an adventure in every location.” There are lots of other ways to use location data, and an obvious one is advertising. It used to be that you knew an ad would target a specific locale because it was on a billboard or a local radio station. Today it’s possible to advertise to people all over the planet with a few mouse clicks, but what if you want use where they are to your advantage? xAd is a New York, NY based company that allows advertisers to pinpoint “target audiences at pivotal moments during the consumer’s decision-making journey.” It’s a kind of targeting that seems to get far less attention than it should.
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Right now I have a shot at winning $1 billion. My bracket is 100% correct… though no games have been finished yet. In case you haven’t heard, Quicken Loans has put up that amount for anyone who gets a perfect bracket (and Warren Buffet backed it with one of his insurance businesses). It sounds like March Madness until you crunch the numbers. There is essentially zero chance that someone will win the prize, yet millions of people entered… and shared their information with Quicken Loans. That’s exactly why the Detroit, MI based company sponsored the contest. New leads are the lifeblood of a mortgage business, even if you’re already the “#1 online retail lender.”
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A year or two ago subscription boxes were the hot business model. Startups were finding anything they could to shove in a box and send to customers once a month for 20 bucks. Lately, I’ve been seeing a lot of jewelry business pop up. Not fine jewelry, just designer stuff made from non-precious materials. You know why? Because the margins on those pieces are insane. The two business models actually fit together nicely, and that’s what RocksBox is taking advantage of. They’re a San Francisco, CA based company that lets you “experiment with different looks, discover the latest designers, wear new pieces all the time, and only buy the jewelry that you truly love.” It’s a little more like Netflix (the old DVD version) or Rent the Runway for jewelry than other subscription boxes, except for the fact that you can keep anything you like for 20% off retail.
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As a job seeker you know that having a digital presence is essential. This obviously true for brands as well. If someone is going to do business with you, they’re probably going to check out your website at some point. One thing that frustrates me is when restaurants have no website or a website that won’t display properly on my iPhone. All I want to do is check your hours, look at the menu, and maybe make a reservation! Anyway, most restaurants need help with their digital presences, and that appears to be what TVI specializes in. While the New York, NY based “award winning digital agency that designs leading brand experiences” doesn’t say anything explicitly about restaurants, a lot of their clients seem to be in that industry.
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I’ve heard that the way math is taught in schools has completely changed since I learned to add, subtract, multiply, and divide. That seems crazy to me, but I know that there is a ton of room for innovation in the way that we educate children. While there are certainly some great for-profit companies working on this problem, there are also some great non-profits. One is Digital Promise, a Washington, DC based organization that “supports comprehensive research and development to benefit lifelong learners and provide Americans with the knowledge and skills needed to compete in the global economy.” Digital Promise is a bipartisan effort that is authorized by Congress, so it has serious support.
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I can’t stand political advertising, but it must be pretty darn effective. Why else would politicians have spent $6 billion on advertising for the 2012 elections? Though it may seem crazy to think that people who spend other people’s money for a living are rational spenders, remember that getting elected is what they’re actually good at. Still, they often need outside help, and that’s where Targeted Victory comes in. They’re an Alexandria, GA based agency that has “anchored digital campaigns on the local, state, and presidential level.” While at some point they seem to have worked with non-political clients, today they seem to only work on the Republican side.
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You can buy clothes in a lot of places. Where you buy typically depends on whether you’re looking for a good price, convenience, or your favorite brands. Then you have to decide whether you’d rather shop online or in person. If you’re brand focused and like shopping online, you may want to check out REVOLVE. The company is based in Cerritos, CA and is the “virtual home for an unrivaled collection of the world’s most coveted brands.” REVOLVE offers both men’s and women’s clothing, though the focus definitely seems to be on women’s lines.
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Raise your hand if you’ve come to the realization that college didn’t prepare you for the job market. I see a lot of hands. I’m not knocking college, but the skills that I’ve developed from starting a business are way more marketable than the ones that I developed in the classroom. So what do you do if you realize that you don’t have what employers want (or you want to start your own business)? You can hustle and develop the skills on your own, or you can speed up the process by enrolling at General Assembly. They are a New York, NY based company that is “creating a global community of individuals empowered to pursue work they love, by offering full-time immersive programs, long-form courses, and classes and workshops on the most relevant skills of the 21st century.”
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About 10 years ago I bought a Magic Bullet (in a store, not through the infomercial). I don’t often need a blender, so it has served me well for making the occasional smoothie, pureeing veggies for soup, and chopping herbs. That’s why when it came to our wedding registry, we didn’t do what many couples do and register for a top of the line blender (though we did register and receive a food processor that haven’t even used yet). The consensus top of the line blenders seem to come from Vitamix, an Olmsted, OH based company that is “improving the vitality of people’s lives and liberating the world from conventional food and beverage preparation boundaries.” That’s the kind of hyperbole that you can only expect from the company that created the first infomercial in the U.S.
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For me entrepreneurship is about starting something brand new and building it. For others it could be buying an existing business or becoming a franchisee. Today we’re going to talk about the latter. Odds are that you patronize quite a few franchises. Franchising is a cool model because it gives local businesspeople the opportunity to tap into an already successful network and brand. The only issue is that strong communication between the franchise and its franchisees is essential to the health of the brand. FranConnect is a Reston, VA based company that offers Franchise Management Systems. These are software solutions that “allow franchise organizations to manage all aspects of their operations including Sales, Marketing, Financial Data Collection and Analysis, Royalty Invoicing and Automated Funds Transfer” and much much more.
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I’m pretty obsessed with my dog. I never thought I’d be like this, but I’m really careful about who I let take care of him. It’s so easy for an inexperienced dog handler to mess up his training or get into a dangerous situation. We haven’t needed a dog walker because I work from home, but if we did use one, I’d want one who will be responsible and keep up our training (walks are a key time for training). Worthee is a Chicago, IL based company that can help me find this kind of person. They aim to deliver “reliable, trustworthy, best-in-class service day in and day out, 24x7x365” for clients and their dogs. A year ago I would have thought that it was overkill to have a professionally trained dog walker, but now I’m not so sure.
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I am an outdoorsman. I fish, I hunt, and try to spend as much time in the wilderness as I can. Ok, that’s not completely true. I tend to stay in hotels/motels on my fishing trips, but I know a lot of people prefer to camp on those kinds of trips. It always seemed to me like a lot of work and equipment for a little more time outdoors; however, for many camping is the main event. In my mind that means sleeping in a tent, but I guess it can also mean sleeping in an RV. The people who prefer the latter definition are likely customers of Camping World. The Bowling Green, KY based company is “the camping and recreational vehicle enthusiast’s one-stop-shop for everything they need to enjoy living in and traveling in their RV.” Camping may be in the name, but it seems to be all about the RV lifestyle.
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There are generally two ways to market to people. You can build your own audience, or you can rent somebody else’s audience. That’s why a lot of companies are built around building audiences to rent to other businesses. FierceMarkets is a perfect example. They are a Washington, DC based company that specializes in business-to-business media, publications, and marketing. The end goal is to “connect companies with the right audience and ensure each campaign generates the highest possible return on investment.”
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A few years ago I got a lot of free stuff from Bonobos and Gilt Groupe by referring people. It was certainly out of self interest, but it’s hard not to refer a product or service that you love when they’re giving both referrers and referees free stuff. Referral marketing is tremendously effective, but it can be hard to implement a system that works. Extole is a San Francisco, CA based company that specializes in helping “brands acquire new customers at scale by rewarding existing customers.” Why build out your own software to reward customer referrals when you can use Extole’s platform instead?
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