Comments on: One of My Competitors Owes Me A Favor http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor Patrick McKenzie (patio11) blogs on software development, marketing, and general business topics Sat, 11 Feb 2012 04:17:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: 47 Hats » Blog Archive » MicroISV Tactics #1 - Treat their customers like your customers. http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1054 47 Hats » Blog Archive » MicroISV Tactics #1 - Treat their customers like your customers. Thu, 13 Sep 2007 23:35:54 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1054 [...] McKenzie, Bingo Card Creator, posted about why he treats his competitors’ customers as if they were his own, even to the point of [...] [...] McKenzie, Bingo Card Creator, posted about why he treats his competitors’ customers as if they were his own, even to the point of [...]

]]> By: peter donegan MI Hort http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1058 peter donegan MI Hort Thu, 13 Sep 2007 18:15:28 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1058 .... a plant in a pot …. a plant in a pot

]]> By: peter donegan MI Hort http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1057 peter donegan MI Hort Thu, 13 Sep 2007 18:15:07 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1057 soulseeker ann! would you not get a pot plant? soulseeker ann! would you not get a pot plant?

]]> By: soulseeking http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1056 soulseeking Thu, 13 Sep 2007 15:59:33 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1056 Found your blog as I was surfing the blogosphere as a captive at my desk. It's beautiful outside, but I'm held hostage working as a director of communications. The perk is reading some interesting stuff, and I'm always interested in entreprenuerial struggles. Bingo cards, huh? Well, glad you're making a go of it. And thanks for teaching me a new word, microISV. : ) Ann in Miami Found your blog as I was surfing the blogosphere as a captive at my desk. It’s beautiful outside, but I’m held hostage working as a director of communications. The perk is reading some interesting stuff, and I’m always interested in entreprenuerial struggles. Bingo cards, huh? Well, glad you’re making a go of it. And thanks for teaching me a new word, microISV.

: )

Ann in Miami

]]> By: peter donegan MI Hort http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1055 peter donegan MI Hort Thu, 13 Sep 2007 13:15:47 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1055 I have to say that's a very entertaining approach to time saving - enough so, that you have time to return to your blog. I have a blog on not getting paid which is the absolute extreme opposite! As an english teacher - most of mine usually bored me - you've a great snse of humour. I'm just very surprised you didn't end up with this girls number?!!! As lke technobility, I think the people who like this blog will be those who comment on it and applaud in appreciation of your style and sns of nobility! well done! you make me gentlemen everywhere proud! I'm your newest purple cow! peter I have to say that’s a very entertaining approach to time saving – enough so, that you have time to return to your blog. I have a blog on not getting paid which is the absolute extreme opposite!

As an english teacher – most of mine usually bored me – you’ve a great snse of humour. I’m just very surprised you didn’t end up with this girls number?!!!

As lke technobility, I think the people who like this blog will be those who comment on it and applaud in appreciation of your style and sns of nobility!

well done! you make me gentlemen everywhere proud!
I’m your newest purple cow!

peter

]]> By: technobility http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1060 technobility Thu, 13 Sep 2007 11:16:32 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1060 Very Savvy approach. I've done similar things, with impressive results. If we're in business, we're here to be of service and one of the ways to keep score is cash flow in... another way to keep score is goodwill out. Yep it does make a 'self serving' post on a blog - and there's nothing wrong with that. All blogs are self serving. More power to you that this particular story has gone viral for you. Have fun with it. Very Savvy approach. I’ve done similar things, with impressive results.

If we’re in business, we’re here to be of service and one of the ways to keep score is cash flow in… another way to keep score is goodwill out.

Yep it does make a ‘self serving’ post on a blog – and there’s nothing wrong with that. All blogs are self serving. More power to you that this particular story has gone viral for you.

Have fun with it.

]]> By: Top Posts « WordPress.com http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1052 Top Posts « WordPress.com Thu, 13 Sep 2007 04:19:43 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1052 [...] One of My Competitors Owes Me A Favor I run a small business which sells software over the Internet to people who need to create bingo cards, typically […] [...] [...] One of My Competitors Owes Me A Favor I run a small business which sells software over the Internet to people who need to create bingo cards, typically […] [...]

]]> By: Paul Robinson http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1051 Paul Robinson Thu, 13 Sep 2007 03:32:00 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1051 Haha - great article (and the comments are pretty entertaining too!) Even if she has no idea why she just got a free Bingo Card Creator, it made for a great blog post. :) Haha – great article (and the comments are pretty entertaining too!)

Even if she has no idea why she just got a free Bingo Card Creator, it made for a great blog post. :)

]]> By: CiaranG http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1049 CiaranG Wed, 12 Sep 2007 23:27:15 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1049 What a great story - definitely the right move for all the reasons you gave. However, I had to chuckle when you said "Whenever she thinks of bingo cards, she’ll think of Bingo Card Creator, and whenever someone around her talks about bingo cards, she’ll talk about Bingo Card Creator." Do you want to re-assess that based on her track record? ;) Purple cow, green cow, blue horse? I can't remember. What a great story – definitely the right move for all the reasons you gave. However, I had to chuckle when you said “Whenever she thinks of bingo cards, she’ll think of Bingo Card Creator, and whenever someone around her talks about bingo cards, she’ll talk about Bingo Card Creator.” Do you want to re-assess that based on her track record? ;)

Purple cow, green cow, blue horse? I can’t remember.

]]> By: Anon http://www.kalzumeus.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1061 Anon Wed, 12 Sep 2007 21:33:48 +0000 http://microisvjournal.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/one-of-my-competitors-owes-me-a-favor/#comment-1061 She wasn't a customer to start with. You could have sent her away as "still not a customer" or "one chance in 50,000 that at least one more customer will be generated as a result." Sounds like a win to me. The other thing people worry about is the possibility that all her friends will try to take advantage of the same trick to get their free copy. The good news being that as you're your own boss you can edit company policy at any time, and decide not to do it for the 50 people who emailed you on the same day. People often say you can't do things like this because you'll be taken advantage of, and it may be true - but it's a bridge to burn when you get to it and until then it's good PR. She wasn’t a customer to start with. You could have sent her away as “still not a customer” or “one chance in 50,000 that at least one more customer will be generated as a result.” Sounds like a win to me.

The other thing people worry about is the possibility that all her friends will try to take advantage of the same trick to get their free copy. The good news being that as you’re your own boss you can edit company policy at any time, and decide not to do it for the 50 people who emailed you on the same day. People often say you can’t do things like this because you’ll be taken advantage of, and it may be true – but it’s a bridge to burn when you get to it and until then it’s good PR.

]]>