Fiat takes Chrysler. What happens next?

April 30, 2009

"The way they worked was that the boss, Paulie, would start a business or join a business as a partner and buy things on store credit, but never pay for it. They would sell everything they bought out the back door at a discount. Once they had borrowed all the money from the bank they could and were out of money they would burn the place down for the insurance. It did not matter that they sold products for less than they bought them for since it was all profit because they never paid for anything."  Henry Hill from Goodfella's, 1990.

Chrysler is in the hands of the UAW and Fiat.  This is weird, because I thought Fiat was gone, and everyone blames Union's for companies failing.

Chrysler created the mini-van.  The mini-van is a franchise.  I know it is a product, and a brand, but the mini-van is representative of a system.  The mini-van is the soccer mom is the American middle class.  A system, can be franchised.  A couple of NJOY NOW soldiers have kids and drive mini-vans.  They are both Honda Odyssey's.  Good work, Honda.  Shame on Chrysler.  What happened?

Chrysler manufactures Jeeps.  Jeep is an institution.  Every American has owned a Jeep, or has at the least been in one, many times.  Jeeps are as patriotic as military vet's and baseball.  Jeep is a brand, and Jeep dealers make a wonderful living on their franchises.

Mercedes and Chrysler "partnered," before Daimler-Benz gave Chrysler to Cerberus.  Why did Mercedes decide it was better to sacrifice an American auto maker then use them to build their business beyond the luxury market?  Chrysler is an American franchise, and the greatest luxury automobile brand in the world, Mercedes shredded it, then walked away.

Why have we allowed Fiat!?! to acquire Chrysler?  How many Americans have heard of Fiat?  How many humans (American's, German's, Italian's) even realize Fiat exists?  The next Alfa Romeo I see on a Chicago street will be the first Alfa Romeo I have seen in 10+ years.  Why are they involved in the bankruptcy and restructuring of an American automaker?

If Chrysler needs a partner in the automobile industry, and no doubt they do, why Fiat?  Couldn't we engage, convince or bully a Toyota into this?  What about Hyundai?  There are companies that are forward thinking that actually sell cars to Americans that might actually help Chrysler fight out of this mess.  Companies like Toyota and Honda are franchises, and brands that represent quality, safety and efficiency.  What does Fiat mean to an average American?

I've bought Chrysler's, and have liked them.  We own a Jeep Cherokee now.  We all have owned or know someone that owns a mini-van or Jeep.  Why couldn't we find a management and finance solution that was more viable then what Mercedes did?  Mercedes neglected a fine company, then handed it/Chrysler off to a venture capital firm, Cerberus, and walked away.  Cerberus was not an auto maker or marketing company.  Name a Cerberus brand or franchise?  Now name one automobile made by Fiat? 

Are we letting businesses like Fiat take the booze out the back door, while setting the building on fire?

United States Senator Arlen Specter Leaves the Republican Party and Becomes a Democrat.

April 30, 2009

Senator Specter is a US senator that represents Pennsylvania, and Philadelphia.  I think this is an interesting move on his part.  Senator Spector feared he was going to lose the primary election to a Republican, who was more right wing conservative then Senator Specter.  This move puts him in a position to keep his seat in the Senate.  If he remains a Republican, which is the minority in government, and Pennsylvania, he may have lost the primary, and the Republican that won, would have virtually no chance of winning the senatorial seat.

Politics is Arlen Specter's business, and this was a business move.  He wants to keep his business going, rather then retire, or find a new political office.  That is the reality behind this switch.  There is no reason a person's or Senator Specter's political affiliation should influence their beliefs, or their vote.  To keep his office, Senator Specter had to make a choice.  Risk losing a party primary, and not get to compete for his seat, or negotiate a position with the Democrats, and switch teams and beat the Republican candidate from Pennsylvania.

Another thing I find interesting about this political party inversion, is our political system is set up as a two party system, which is to narrow for true competition.  Countries, like Canada have candidates from 5 or more parties, which offers a broader choice, and a more competitive government.  I would think our country would benefit by 30 members of the senate creating a new party.  Politics is a business, so this will not happen.  To win, you have to play for one of the professional teams, Democrat or Republican.

We sometimes need to remind ourselves why these men and women are in politics.  Obviously they want to contribute, on some level.  They also want to make money, satisfy their ego's.  They want to influence policy.  Politicians want to be on top, they want to be in charge, they want to win.  These traits lend themselves to working within systems that have proven track records of success.  This is the two party system.  The Democratic and Republican parties are franchises.  They are systems that produce political candidates that win office.

When we roll out products, like the NJOY NOW card, we must consider barriers to entry, and systems that will help our product succeed, like franchise systems.  Arlen Specter is a brand name product that needs the Democratic franchise, party to sell.  Right now, Barack Obama and his Democratic franchise, party is the big dog.  The McDonald's and 7-Eleven of politics all rolled in one.  Switching parties may not change the way Senator Specter votes on issues that relate to Pennsylvania or our country, but it will change his reach, and give him a chance to win an upcoming election.  This was a sound business move.

Playboy May be Delisted by NYSE

April 28, 2009

Reported April 21st, 2009 by Crain's Chicago Business. Playboy Enterprises, Inc. was told Tuesday its shares have failed to meet the New York Stock Exchange’s listing requirements.

The publisher of Playboy magazine has had an average market capitalization below $75 million over the past 30 trading days and less than $75 million in shareholders’ equity. Both thresholds must be met to be listed on the NYSE.

Chicago-based Playboy has said it will submit a plan within 45 days detailing how it will raise both its market capitalization and shareholders’ equity over the next 18 months to meet the requirements.

The company’s shares, which fell 13 cents on Monday to close at $2.08, will remain listed on the NYSE if its plan is accepted.

Playboy’s stock has fallen 76% in the past year as the multimedia company struggles to make money in the face of shrinking advertising revenue. It posted a $156-million loss last year, which included $153 million in asset impairment and restructuring charges. It has made aggressive cost cuts in recent months, including consolidating offices, eliminating corporate holiday cards and choosing a less expensive paper stock for its magazine.

Christie Hefner daughter of founder Hugh Hefner, stepped down as CEO in January. Jerome Kern, a consultant and former head of California-based telecom On Command Corp., is interim CEO as the company looks for a successor to Ms. Hefner.

Mortgages and Real Estate, Get Rich Quick? The Hysteria has Ended.

April 24, 2009

It may seem like ancient history now, but not long ago the mortgage industry was turning ordinary people into millionaires.  Real estate, and mortgages in particular was a late nineties, early 2000's global phenomenon that nobody ever anticipated ending, or even slowing down.  How quickly fortunes are lost, and entire industries are eliminated.

Real estate investing became an obsession.  How often was "you can't lose in real estate," repeated?  This obsession nurtured an abandon that drove people into investments and projects that they were not prepared for.  Our banks and mortgage industry was encouraging reckless borrowers, and rewarding lenders that continued to originate new business.

Management and evaluation of risk is a major part of any successful real estate investment strategy. Risk occurs in many different ways at every stage of the investment process.  Real estate was once considered risk free investing, when in reality, without knowledge, experience or preparation, real estate can be a very poor investment.  The price of the property, with the leverage involved by the need to borrow to make the investment, or purchase does not lend itself to risk free investing.  Without experience and knowledge earned by having worked in real estate for years, you are at a disadvantage.

Now lending is continuing, and the majority of us NJOY our homes, and we live in them.  This is still a large investment, but one we can and do manage.  Sub prime lending and the mortgage backed securities have hurt banks, and funds, but we will still buy homes.  We are just watching people that should only own one home, stop speculating on buildings, and markets that they do not work in, or understand.

This recession may not be gentle, but the real estate bubble has burst.  This is an economic challenge we will survive.  Many of us will be stronger.  On a personal level, it as refocused a lot of friends, colleagues and myself.  Focus on what we know, and what we know will reward us.  The "get rich quick," mentality of real estate novices attracted to stories of success flipping homes has ended.  I believe now is the time for all of us to get back to the slow and steady work and rewards of building businesses that yield revenue every day.

NJOY Earth Day, April 22nd, 2009, with us.

April 22, 2009

Earth Day and business are not independent, they are rather codependent.  Obviously money and revenue can be generated in many different ways, but without a clean planet, we will not have anywhere to NJOY the fruits of our labor.

Earth Day 2009 is a global celebration and a day to spread awareness of people's destructive impact on the planet. But before you jump right in there and start changing the world on a massive scale here's a few simple things you can do to make a difference right now, tomorrow and every single day after that.

Here's my list of five things to do to celebrate Earth Day 2009 and reduce your impact on our planet, NJOY NOW style;

1. Plant a tree or two. Then have sex.  NJOY.

A tree will absorb CO2 and other forms of pollution, provide a home to hundreds of creatures, help to create and retain soil and performs a whole host of other ecological functions. And, in case you needed a reminder, will leave a lasting legacy of your time on the planet.

2. Walk or ride a bicycle to work today.You'll feel better and the earth will be a much healthier place to live too.  This will also help you have a better sex life, as it is healthier then driving.

3. Have we mentioned sex yet?  Very good way to celebrate Earth Day.

4. Conserve electricity.  Use your clapper and shut your lights off, and your TV too.  Keep your computer logged into NJOY NOW, the Girl of the Month is coming.

5. Avoid bottled water.  Tap water is safe, clean and cheap.  It also reduces waste from bottles and delivery of bottles to our convenience stores.

I can add a 6th item here, which is far more obvious, and more fun then the 5 above.  Use NJOY NOW for adult entertainment, rather then Playboy magazine.  Consider how many trees you can save if you live a digital life, and NJOY, www.njoynow.com instead of any magazines?  Back to sex.

So, if you've got business on your mind this Earthday, perhaps you should take a few minutes to look around you and realize how precious our planet is and how beautiful that small piece of turf is right outside your window.  NJOY.

Britain`s Got Talent, Not.

April 21, 2009

We have been watching Simon Cowell capture global headlines, again.  He is doing it in our country, but from England this time.  Even as American Idol owns US network television our appetite is still enormous for more, and we find ourselves watching Britain's Got Talent.

We have a spoof news piece on the main site about Susan Boyle.  Steve can be ruff, but it is in fun.  Check it out here. 

This article is not all in jest.  We have made an offer to Amanda Holden.  She is a judge (think Paula Abdul) on Britain's Got Talent.  NJOY NOW has offered Amanda a significant figure to do an erotic video shoot and intimate interview with Steve Levine.

Holden's done other television in England besides Britain's Got Talent.  She has also done theatre, and has her fair share of scandal's, such as an affair that ended her first marriage to the British comedian Les Dennis.

Amanda is a British star, and her celebrity will translate well in the United States.  It can be supercharged by aggressively introducing all of herself to our NJOY NOW fans.  This is just the beginning for Amanda causing another country to fall in love with her, and NJOY NOW taking the UK by storm.

Tax day has past, now we can focus on the rest of 2009

April 16, 2009

If you watched the news yesterday, we were witness to 'tea parties" taking place all over the Country.  April 15th is not a fun day for a lot of us.  I like the enthusiasm, and I think it would be wonderful if this could lead to a third party establishing another viable alternative to our current two party system, which really means no options.

Are taxes bad?  Let's be realistic,the majority of us pay through our paychecks, then receive a tax return the next year.  This is from our federal government, then we pay any number of other taxes through our states, counties, cities and my bookie (juice).  So really, if you look at the federal burden, by itself, it isn't all that much.  Now think of what we are paying for.

We have the greatest military in the world.

A true democracy, with elected leaders that in theory, represent our needs and interests.

Clean water, and air.

The ability to open a small business.  Our country still runs on small business.

Great police and fire protection.

The freedom to follow any or no religion.

I must admit, we may not always love how our taxes are spent.  Aside from the elected officials we endorse, we cannot control how our tax money is distributed.  I hate Haliburton receiving government contracts.  This just seems criminal.

Does anyone want the largest banks in the country to receive tax money?  All Bank of America has done is buy more banks and businesses, and opened up more store front banks.  They collect more deposits, receive money from the fed at 0 percent, and lend through credit cards at 20 percent.  This is why monopolies are supposed to be illegal.

AIG receiving more money then anyone, and how does this help us?

The alternative is terrible.  We must pay taxes, and hope our leaders make good decisions.  I hope their greed does harm our nation.  We cannot let hatred for taxes cloud our ability to improve our nation, and ourselves.  We must pay taxes, let's try and elect good leaders so that we can trust that they are not stealing, too much.

The successful have a common mindset in business

April 16, 2009

As NJOY NOW has become a franchisor, and a successful franchise system, we have been learning what mindset's need to be adjusted prior to accepting partners into our business.  It is not unusual to meet excited prospects, that don't understand our franchise mentality.  Without us working together, we do not help each other succeed.  Here are some mind-sets that must be adjusted prior to becoming an NJOY NOW prepaid card distributor.

Short-term thinking may = long term failure.  Buying a franchise is faster then building a business from scratch.  You are investing in an established system and product.  It still takes time to make this NJOY NOW franchise stable, profitable, and a recognized brand to the consumers inside of the convenience store client you have.  If you have trouble thinking beyond next year, your comfort will suffer as this business like all businesses takes time to mature.

Are you a Maverick?  A franchise works because of the blueprint established by the franchisor.  Trying to reinvent the wheel, inside of a franchise system rarely helps anyone.  There is always room to improve a system, but wholesale change is avoided as this is costly, and inefficient.

Investor or business owner?  If you are seeking a passive investment, stock brokers and financial advisors are the answer.  A franchise is a business, and without being hands on, or having a hands on partner, you will not realize the true potential of your business.  This even applies to a small, home based business like the NJOY NOW franchise.  This distribution business is part time, but you are the owner, and responsible for the success or failure of your business.  Now if you are investing through an advisor from Morgan Stanley or Merrill Lynch, they manage your money for you passively.

Consumers may not be great franchise owners.  Shoppers that buy businesses because of enthusiasm, without considering the responsibilies of operating the business are like people getting in line to own a Portuguese Water Dog because President Obama owns own.  These urges need to be managed and the reality that this business must be run for the next 5, 10, 20 years.  Are you ready?  Consider this when you bring a new dog into your family as well.

Hobbyist, find a business you love.  There are countless opportunities that vary tremendously.  If you are passionate about sports, retail, hardware or porn, try and select a business that will maintain this enthusiasm.  You may do research, and this research may tell you that your ideal franchise may not be needed, but at NJOY NOW we firmly believe that your passion will help you become successful.  You can transcend a market, and the inertia involved in establishing this product, category, market and business.

State of the Industry. Convenience Store Reach, 2009

April 15, 2009

We have recently spent time with the large players in the convenience store industry at the NACS State of the Industry Summit.  CSP magazine, and NACS hosted this, and NJOY NOW has learned a lot related to what the convenience store industry needs through continued research with Nielson.

Can we learn from up to date consumer purchasing dynamics how to reach more consumers, and ultimately build the bottom line of our stores, and our business and brand?  Yes.  Our stores are, our partners in business, and their needs come first.  Together, NJOY NOW, convenience stores, franchisees and distributors all benefit from this research and our understanding of purchase dynamics, and buyers persona's.

3 Key components of all sales growth and decline.

Penetration:  Are fewer individuals buying?  How can NJOY get more individuals to buy?

In 1997 52% of US households were Shopping in c-stores compared to 40% in 2008.  This is a dramatic drop.

Purchase Frequency:  Are consumers buying less often?  How can NJOY NOW drive more frequent trips - purchases?

This is strictly for Convenience Stores, and the numbers are positive.  In 1997 the average number of shopping trips per year, per customer was 13, in 2008 it was 14, for a +1 change.

Purchase Size:  Are shoppers spending less?  How can NJOY NOW increase these shoppers spend per trip.  Big shopping carts.

Average dollars spent per customer in 1997 was $7, and in 2008 it was $15, for an enormous 100%+ increase of $8 per customer.

We are sorting through mountains of data delivered by The Nielson Company, NACS and CSP.  NJOY NOW has solutions that will help c-stores profit per square foot.  Let's work together to help our partners in business.  This is a straight line solution to more NJOY NOW card sales, and a better brand.

2 blogs for the price of 1. Adult Social Networking and Lenny Dykstra.

April 13, 2009

Some companies may block access to Facebook on the job, but that hasn't stopped Forrester Research from estimating that social networking will be a huge priority of "Enterprise 2.0."  If social networking is being adopted by business, what will happen and how will adult social networking expand?  NJOY NOW has the answers, and in most circles, NJOY NOW is the solution, at least on the adult social networking and entertainment side.

In a new report written for Forrester Research, the market research firm, analyst G. Oliver Young predicts that "Enterprise 2.0" applications will be a $4.6 billion industry by 2013. Social networks, Young wrote, will make up the bulk of that, with nearly $2 billion invested in them.

This means we'll probably see a lot of intra-company networking tools (souped-up corporate directories, for example, or internal forums) as well as more interactive varieties of technical support. Not surprisingly, Young's report predicts the biggest adopters will be large companies where you can't just stroll over to the HR or IT folks for a little face time, and where instituting collaborative tools from 37Signals or Zoho could speed things up when not everyone's based in the same building (or time zone).

On the adult social network and entertainment side, the market is already in place, and champing at the bit for a vehicle that allows more privacy, and freedom then Facebook.  Forrester Research has done more analysis then needed for us at NJOY NOW.  We read the market years ago, and have been a first mover on this new category, both as an adult social network resource, and a prepaid entertainment card for convenience stores and their customers.

Behind social networking, the Forrester report asserts that the "Enterprise 2.0" landscape of 2013 will consist of mashups ($682 million), RSS technologies ($563 million), wikis ($451 million), blogs ($340 million), and podcasting ($273 million).

As an aside, if you want to read a story of a mini meltdown, Lenny Dykstra, former center fielder for the World Champion 1986 Mets has not been weathering the economic recession well.  Here is an article from GQ magazine by a disgruntled former Lenny Dykstra employee.  Jim Cramer from CNBC was long Lenny Dykstra in a large way.  Cramer has worshipped Lenny's baseball career and his financial moves on his show, Mad Money with Jim Cramer.   Cramer... sell Lenny, I think he has been delisted on the exchange.  Another pie in the face of Jim Cramer.

Think Your Job Sucks? Try Working For Lenny Dykstra

Lenny Dykstra was known as Nails, and was famous for slamming into outfield walls, and barrelling through catchers at home plate.  Lenny might agree that slamming into a wall in center at Shea is far less painful then financially slamming into immovable objects.  This is a small example of the difference between CEO's and professional athletes.  Now, as for Jim Cramer...

NJOY a New Adult Social Network

April 09, 2009

If you haven't visited njoynow.com lately, please do it, now.  Finish reading this post first.

My NJOY Social Network is now live, and we Ncourage you to sign up.  It is only the beginning of the robust NJOY NOW 2.0 platform.  Our new api's and user interface have been built for adult social networking.  The elegance of this system extends deep beneath the obvious user interface.  Underneath this elegant adult social network is some fantastic, robust software engineering that will dramatically change social networking.

The My NJOY social network has not been built to compete with MySpace, or Facebook, or even Yahoo groups, or Twitter.  It is niche, and made for adults that NJOY erotica, and humor that may be in poor taste.  It is for adults, that are fun, and want their own place to meet.

Facebook has over 150 million members, and most people are found without even realizing they are being introduced by the Facebook application.  I know a lot of people that do not want their personal profile to be available to, their, fill in the blank__________ (wife, husband, daughter, grand parent, rabbi, boss, teacher, ex girlfriend, lover, etc.)  We welcome you to My NJOY.

As a social network, for adults, only, we are in a position (sometimes doggystyle) to protect people, while granting them the ability to let their hair down.  Just like a nightclub, casino, gentleman's club.  We want our community to have fun.  Our adult social network allows our members to maintain the amount of privacy they need.  They only engage and open up to members they choose to reach out to.  My NJOY members are special, and are looking for something they cannot find on My Space or Facebook.

Most of our NJOY NOW members have not road tested the social network for adults, yet.  You can still purchase cards in convenience stores, log on and watch wonderful adult movies without creating a profile.  This is the highest degree of privacy, as we do not require an email address or a credit card.  Anyone that has ever purchased a membership to an adult site, like Playboy, or Penthouse has been hit with hidden recurring charges.  This is not the NJOY NOW business model.  All our costs are up front, and there are never hidden charges.

The most exciting new feature of My NJOY is coming soon.  The Girl of the Month contest.  This is one of the main features we will be promoting this summer.  If you are in Chicago, please let us know.  We are preparing live casting calls, as well as the digital casting which will be through our social network for adults.  Stay close to www.njoynow.com, we are starting to create a lot of buzz.

Twitter, the Internet, and Business 2.0.

April 09, 2009

We are not going to have to explain to anyone what Twitter is.  Trying to understand the true value of Twitter assets and monetize the site is far more complex, and needs more space then our NJOY NOW blog can commit. The reality is Twitter is creating wonderful publicity for a service that is not very useful, for the majority of business and individuals.  Here a couple of examples of recent tweets:

RachelBaker rode my bike to work today...but now I am feeling lazy and I don't want to ride home. When will they invent teleportation?

Veronica Weird... my eye hurts when I *don't* have a contact lens in. Could I have something inside my eyelid that's scratching it? Eww.

This is very compelling and necessary information, and NJOY thanks Twitter for helping Veronica and RachelBaker reach all their followers.  Regardless of the product, Twitter is in play, and we at NJOY want to understand more about the financial structure of Twitter.

About $57 million of Twitter is owned by venture capitalists. CEO Evan Williams raised about $22 million in venture capital. Twitter is backed by Union Square Ventures, Digital Garage, Spark Capital, and Bezos Expeditions (led by Jeff Bezos of Amazon). Institutional Venture Partners and Benchmark Capital backed Twitter in 2009, investing an additional $35 million.  The Industry Standard has pointed to its lack of revenue as limiting its long-term viability. On February 13, 2009, Twitter announced on its official blog that it had closed a third round of funding in which it secured more than $35 million When asked about how he was going to use the additional investment funds in an interview, Williams said:

"We don't know all the ways we're going to use that money, hopefully we'll keep a lot of it in the bank. If we never need a lot of it, that's great, but in the climate we're in we don't want to assume too much, and we don't want any short term concerns to distort the potential of our long term vision, and our investors and the boards and everybody is very on board for building a very long term viable company. We need to do that step by step, and we need to invest a lot to get there."

Three months ago, reports surfaced that Facebook and Twitter were in discussions for a $500 million takeover, but couldn’t get a deal done. Today, early Facebook investor and board member Peter Thiel of Clarium Capital publicly explained what happened for the first time in an interview with BusinessWeek.

“It became pretty clear it wasn’t going to happen,” Thiel says from the mid-Manhattan office of his hedge fund Clarium Capital. “The deal would have to be done with Facebook stock. And then you have to figure out how much the stock is worth.”

Representatives of Twitter liked the sound of $500 million but balked when Facebook said its stock was worth $8 billion to $9 billion. Twitter’s team knew that Facebook was letting employees sell stock on the secondary market at company valuations ranging from $2 billion to $4 billion… 

At that point, Facebook offered Twitter around $100 million in cash, with the rest of the deal in stock. Facebook said it would come up with the $100 million by selling more of its stock to outside investors. Twitter agreed on one condition: that the Facebook stock it received be valued at the price company shares garnered on the open market. Facebook blinked and the deal talks ended…

Facebook and Twitter haven’t completely walked away from one another. The two companies continue to talk, though there are no serious discussions going on, so Google needs to have their name thrown into the ring for the Twitter brand.

Twitter's co-founder Biz Stone posted a note on the company's official blog saying the company's plans are to remain independent.
"It should come as no surprise that Twitter engages in discussions with other companies regularly and on a variety of subjects," he wrote. "Our goal is to build a profitable, independent company and we're just getting started."

Interestingly, Stone appeared on Stephen Colbert's "Colbert Nation" last Thursday, and during the interview he also said the Twitter's intention is to be a strong and independent company.  "We're recognizing a difference right now between profit and value. Right now, we're building value," Stone told Colbert.

Where is Google, who is consuming all companies and products Internet?  Google CEO Eric Schmidt, recently called Twitter "a poor man's e-mail" and wondered whether it will remain a stand-alone service or become an e-mail feature. Schmidt has also said recently he doesn't foresee Google making major acquisitions in the immediate future.

Google has the search market dominated.  Google owns search, which is enormous straight line revenue.  Google owns a lot of other businesses and products, like gmail, Orkut, maps, streetview, analytics, etc. that do not make money.  Mr. Schmidt is being responsible and a strong CEO by denying the urge to buy a business that is being mentioned on every network, every day.  To buy for the name in this economic environment is hubris, and foolish.  Google is not foolish.

NJOY NOW is not planning on taking a run at Twitter.  If you look to the right of this webpage, you will notice that NJOY NOW is using Twitter.  We are still not sure how this actually "adds value," but together we can try and figure out if there is real value here.

White Sox home opener was postponed, so we are doing IT analysis.

April 06, 2009

The weather in Chicago is pretty bad.  Snowed yesterday, and is cold as hell today.  The White Sox have postponed their home opener, so I'm not playing hooky today.  I'm grinding it out in the IT room.  I guess this a good time to dump some IT development plans on the NJOY blog.  I'll save my Twitter rants for later.  Let's think of tomorrow, and the way we make it an NJOY World.

You may notice we continue to change and improve njoynow.com.  Some of the most obvious changes are related to the user interface (UI).  We are an agile development company, and we are improving the site for today, and tomorrow.  Many of our changes are for the products that we are introducing, like the Girl of the Month contest.

Our sites will be stickier, if we deliver our products in an elegant and efficient way.  To determine what works, we have been dealing with the largest and most important Internet experts and consultants - the public.

We test market all our potential products and upgrades with the people that are in charge of buying our products.  The true decision makers.  The 18 to 50 year old Internet user.  This may sound obvious, but to many companies don't do this.  This is why NJOY NOW is a living, breathing Internet destination that will never stand still.

Social networking, blog pages, mobile device downloads and great web apps are easy to create.  True results and satisfaction comes from spending a lot of time and energy on these products once they are developed and launched.  It takes a lot of time, but learning what works and what does not work cannot be overstated.

Consider creative destruction.  This is building a product, then modifying and improving the product to the point where it no longer resembles the original product you created.  You have creatively destroyed it.  If you do this effectively, you will grow exponentially.  Companies do this, and as they get larger, they deal with more backlash.  We just witnessed this with Facebook, and the updates they have made that many members dislike.  Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook has been doing damage control on this.  Facebook is forward thinking with great leadership. 

Good leadership, with agile development and aggressive marketing on the Internet is NJOY NOW, Inc.

If you have any advice, or would like to see something specific on NJOY NOW, please contact us.  We need your opinion.

BlackBerry introduces App World, is iPhone concerned?

April 03, 2009

Research in Motion officially launched its App World, which is a move to compete with the iPhone.  BlackBerry hopes this will counter the attention that Apple has—rightfully—received for its App Store.

Apple's iPhone has changed how people view the capabilities of smartphone software. The iPhone and the iPod Touch offer a platform, similar to the Windows operating system, that allows for fast downloads of simple, fun and useful programs.

NJOY NOW will be releasing new iPhone applications this summer, so please stay tuned.  We currently have 10 feeds on the njoynow.com which stream exclusively for the iPhone.

RIM’s version for the BlackBerry has a long way to go before it approaches Apple’s success, but it will be good for BlackBerry fans if it works as easily as Apple’s version. Like Apple, RIM offers a mix of free and paid apps.

Many of the same applications currently available at App World, such as apps for Facebook, MySpace, The New York Times, Pandora and Slacker, have been on the iPhone for some time. And some have been available for the BlackBerry in recent months as well, as RIM prepared for a broader launch.  RIM expects about 1,000 apps to be available this week. More than 25,000 are available for the iPhone, so the BlackBerry has some catching up to do.

BlackBerry users first need to download the App World app. You can download to a computer (for later syncing) or directly to your BlackBerry.  App World requires payment through Paypal, like iPhone.

Marketing 2.0, the Internet has changed the landscape for advertisers.

April 02, 2009

Before the Internet, we as advertisers would try and reach customers with Billboards, print, TV and radio commercials, and sometimes events.  It was challenging, and expensive.  The Internet has changed all of this, and I personally embrace the brave new world of marketing, 2.0.

Consider our audience and it's unique needs.  How do we keep our customers happy?  Attention spans are short, and options are infinite.  Intelligent user interface, and great stories are needed to capture customers.  We may call our customers members, now, but they are customers.  Let's give them the best possible product once we capture them.

We have been carefully monitoring user loyalty, and bounce rates, and have been making gentle changes to try and increase loyalty, while decreasing bounce.  If you check out njoynow.com, you will see we have replaced the home pages with a new capture page, and we have a My NJOY member dashboard on the home page once you have logged in and created a profile.  We test marketed this system on 100 members had 85 percent approval, and only 4 percent disapproval.  The numbers don't lie, people love the improvements.

Girl of the Month is coming, and this is one of our core products.  This is web marketing 2.0, and I would like everyone to help us recruit beautiful candidates for the Girl of the Month.  We have a casting call coming up in May at Red Ivy, here in Chicago, and will have a tour set up so casting calls can be held in cities where NJOY NOW is available.  Monthl girls will win $2,000, and the Girl of the Year will receive a $100,000 modeling contract.  Let's get the best ladies working for NJOY NOW, 2.0.

Google launches venture fund with $100 million.

April 01, 2009

For a minute I considered a spoof, April Fool's day blog post, but the guys on the creative side, at njoynow.com have that covered.  I'll keep it business.  I am very happy to announce that quarter one at NJOY NOW was stable, and we are looking at a wonderfull year, with some large announcements pending.

Business and investors appear to be taking a wait and see approach.  I've spoken to a VC that said he and his fund are sitting out quarter two.  The big tech players aren't doing this.  IT venture capital is available.  Our rep's at the wireless convention in Las Vegas are telling us books are being requested.  Does this turn into venture capital?  Depends on the firm that requests and/or delivers the book.

Google has turned around, and like a martial artist, has transformed from student, to master.  Google, which is universally recognized as the leader of all things Internet, has launched Google Ventures, it's own $100 million dollar venture capital fund.  Bill Maris, and Rich Miner are running the fund, and they have already contributed to Pixazza's first round of funding.

Google would not be Google without the backing of firms like Kleiner Perkins and Sequoia Capital.  These firms have invested billions of dollars in early stage web and tech start ups, like Google, and they have yielded billions in returns for their firms and investors.  The early vision to invest in what is still an infant, the Internet, and the companies that form the Internet was not always as obvious as it is today.  What is shocking is, there are still firms, investors and entrepreneurs that are not holding positions in Internet businesses.

So Google, who is the leader of the World Wide Web, is now putting a little department together to invest in the most obvious, and strong modern investment available, Internet companies and entrepreneurs.  This is not only obvious, but it is elegent and intelligent.  What better way to manage cash for a business like Google, then to reinvest it in young companies that have unlimited potential.  I think the stable old S&P 500 and Dow Jones has shown us that companies that are huge, may not be good modern investments.

Is Google forming this fund to make acquisitions at a discount?  Are they going to mold businesses that are early stage so they become a compliment to Google, rather then competition?  Is Google going to eventually make pass through revenue off of all things Internet? Maybe?

I think they are trying to make great products, and want to help small businesses, that can make moves fast, make great products.  I also think Google is trying to make more money.  Small companies, well run, with adequate cash flow have potential to yield enormous return on investment.  CNBC, and 500 cable channels of doom and gloom may have otherwise bold, savvy investors forgetting the obvious.  The ROI must be considered as much or more then the risk.  Google "get's it."