Guest Post at Trendslate.com
Sanjay Sabnani, CEO of Crowdgather wrote a guest piece today for Trendslate.com. We invite you to check it out and to weigh in on your tablet opinions at PadComputerForums
The Emperor has no clothes: Will iPad’s non-technology woes delay launch?
Last week, Steve Jobs’ iPad launch highlighted perhaps the greatest manifestation of the company’s legendary reality-distortion field that we have seen to date. Apple and Steve went into the iPad launch with a negative trifecta of no domain name, no issued trademark, and no FCC approval. Despite these deficiencies we all saw the Emperor resplendent in a decadent outfit projected from the incandescent glow of a 10 inch tablet.
iPads, Tablets and Slate: Our launch of Padcomputerforum.com
Everyone (well at least everyone interested in technology) has been discussing the launch of the long-awaited iPad at CES. 
Interestingly enough, according to Techcrunch Apple did not purchase any of the iPad domains We took a look at this convergence of events and realized that launching an online community, www.padcomputerforum.com/, dedicated to these new devices would give people a place to discuss this technology with like-minded tech-geeks.
But what is an iPad, HP Slate or the host of other "pads" or "tablets" that are being marketed as the next big thing? Well, when I first saw one it looked to me like an over-grown iPhone, minus the phone part. I couldn’t understand the appeal or why anyone in their right mind would think it was a good deal to spend the low price of $499 for a device that was not a laptop or a phone.
But then my kid’s laptop broke and the idea of going out and spending $1000 dollars for them to type up reports or to watch videos on Youtube seemed even more ridiculous. As a household comprised of four avid readers it also may save us from being swallowed up by our books without needing to get a dedicated device like the Kindle. As I looked more into the capabilities I started feeling the lack of this gadget that I didn’t know until yesterday that I needed to get.
The iPad, the HPSlate and all the Android tablets are changing the face of technology. We are excited to be a part of that and we look forward to discussing this with you further at: padcomputerforum.com/
Social Media Campaigns Don’t Have To Be Scary!
Launching a social media campaign on an online community can be intimidating. You know that social media is working on Facebook and Twitter, but can it work on your online forum? With a little bit of thought and some useful new tools you can be better prepared to understand what will work and what won’t.
The first step is to figure out who is on your site. Are your members mostly men or women? What age are they? Do you know their income bracket? You can pay for this service through Quantcast, conduct a poll on your site, or get some basic information for free through Google Analytics.
Once you know who is on your site it is time to understand how these types of users interact with the web. To understand what your customers are ready for, I recommend using Forrester’s Social Technographics® Profile tool available here.
Through this tool you can create a profile for what type of media your users will be willing to create. It is critical to conduct this research prior to launching any social media campaign.
Also it is important to realize that although many of your members participate actively on your site they may not want to have their identity revealed. When you are first trying out social media campaigns on your site we recommend creating situations where your members do not have to reveal who they are in real-life.
It is also important to make the prize worthy of the campaign. Find out what will motivate your users and award accordingly. For example, if you have determined that most of your members are men between the ages of 18-24 you probably won’t want to give them a subscription to Elle magazine.
Some examples of campaign ideas are:
1. Photo Contest
Most users know how to add photos to a forum web site. The first step would be to decide what the theme of the campaign is. Make sure that the campaign concept is specific so that people will know what to do.
"Take a picture of yourself dressed in all blue."
2. Blog Entries
Have your members submit a review of a product, a blog or a story. Your members are already used to writing online so this could be an excellent way to get people involved. Again, keep the subject clear so that users know what is expected of them.
3. Graphic Design
Designs are fun but before you begin a campaign like this you need to be sure that your users have some awareness of Photoshop or other photo-editing software. It would not be a good idea to run this campaign on a site that is not media centric or alternatively a very large forum community would be sure to have some designers on it.
4. Video Contest
Getting a video from your camera, phone or computer to Youtube seems like it should be easy but for many users it is not. Many users find video to be intimidating and aren’t willing to take the step. But, video campaigns can also be highly entertaining and can generate a lot of page views. The key here is to expect that you may only get a handful of entries.
If you have any other ideas then send them our way!
Crowdgather’s Year In Review: 2009
One thing is for sure: We won’t forget 2009 anytime soon. It was a year of uncertain financial markets, of fallen heroes, punctuated by the loss of many celebrated artists. Yet it was also a historic year, with a new president striving to set a new tone and to inspire a population to innovation in the face of adversity. It was a reality check, where all of us were reminded that a prosperous nation is only capable of supporting lofty ideals when there is fundamental integrity and transparency in action.
Despite the depressed economy, Crowdgather rallied in the last year. Although we faced challenges, we were able to grow our network to include some exciting properties, notably Anythingbutipod, Matrixwatch, vBulletinsetup, MJHQ, and AdminFusion, among others.
We also learned that diversifying revenue stream is never a bad thing, and in the light of that we launched two service products for the forum world: RoamingThreads and Crowdgather Hosting. RoamingThreads allows members to stay connected with their forum while they are on-the-go, and Crowdgather Hosting is a hosting site designed to work with forum owners.
We look forward to seeing what this next year and decade will bring.
CrowdGather Launches Crowdgather Hosting
Picking a web hosting service can be one of the most important initial decisions that a company can make. Businesses can’t afford to to have their sites offline and the host literally has control of your presence online.
We are always looking for ways to better serve forum communities and to diversify our revenue base. After looking at what is on the market we believe that we can offer a superior hosting service. Hosting experts say good support is the most crucial issue for a small business owner. We believe our experience with forums will allow us to offer exactly the kind of support that forum owners need.
CrowdGather Hosting will initially sell Linux hosting accounts for use by forum members, but intends to offer vanity forum email hosting on the CrowdGather Forum Network by early 2010. We also will start offering forum hosting services for forum owners during the summer of 2010.
"Members have come to us looking for these services, but especially if we can integrate the hosting package with their forum experience in order to provide them with web accessible vanity email accounts associated with their favorite forum. We have also been asked for a hosting solution by forum owners and will work towards that initiative in calendar 2010 as well," said Sanjay Sabnani, CrowdGather’s Chairman and CEO.
Sanjay Interviewed by Young Entrepreneur Blog
Our CEO, Sanjay Sabnani, was interviewed yesterday by Young Entrepreneur Blog. Founded by brothers, Matthew Toren and Adam Toren, Young Entrepreneurs is a growing social networking forum for young entrepreneurs.
Adam and Matthew have a keen interest in both assisting entrepreneurs as well as highlighting entrepreneurs that are already making it. We encourage you to check out the interview with Sanjay as well as other interviews on the site.
Click here to read the interview.
The Real Power of Listening: Insights from "Groundswell"
I have been reading "Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies" by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, published by Harvard Business Press. The book discusses the activity of customers online and how consumers are defining your business. Groundswell is a a clearly written and refreshingly grown-up look at social media used by entire corporations.
One particular area that they discuss is the ability for companies to listen to the customers in a way they never could before. In the past, when companies decided to launch a new product they would create focus groups which were both time-consuming, limited and expensive. Li describes the growing interest on the part of large companies to shift and find a new way to keep their ear to the ground. The popularity of shifting focus groups to online communities has spread throughout the business world because they "…deliver not just insights but actionable insights." Companies like Dell, Charles Schwab, Unilever, BMW and many others have begun to take advantage of online communities to get into the heads of their consumers.
But how can you get started? Listening is not as easy at it may sound and Li set forth a plan to be able to begin to utilize online communities to understand your consumer:
1. Check the social technographics profile of your customers. Not all consumers are active creators on the Internet. You will benefit the most from communities that have demonstrated that their customers interact with your brand online.
2. Don’t try to monitor all of your brands at once. Pick one that already has activity.
3. Make sure you have an experienced team to work with to do the listening. You need people that are experienced in managing the data that comes in.
4. Don’t let the information sit on the shelf! You will need someone that can interpret the data and help you to integrate it into a plan for action.
Finally, it is important to remember that when you start listening to your customer base you might hear things that you don’t want to hear. Make sure you and your company are willing and ready to change before you start listening. Are you ready to turn insight into change?
This book is a must-read for anyone in the forum space — or any other social technology.
Sanjay Invited to Speak at the 2nd Annual LD Micro Conference
Sanjay Sabnani, our CEO will be presenting at the 2nd annual LD Micro Conference on Thursday, December 3rd at 1:30pm PST at the Luxe Sunset Hotel in Los Angeles.
LD Micro is a by-invitation only newsletter firm that focuses on finding undervalued companies in the micro-cap space. Since 2002, the firm has published an annual list of recommended stocks as well as comprehensive reports on select names throughout the year.
LD Micro’s first conference was held last year and they invited 60 companies to present. This year they have upped that number to 77 companies with CrowdGather being numbered among them.
"We are honored to have assembled such a great cast of publicly traded companies to present at our second conference. Since our inception, we have concentrated on finding, researching, and investing in companies that are overlooked by institutional investors," said Founder and President of LD Micro, Chris Lahiji.
We are also honored to have been invited to present! For more information: LD Micro Conference
On Acquiring AnythingButiPod.com: Think For Yourself. Be An Individual.
CrowdGather announced today that it acquired the site AnythingButiPod.com, the leading mp3 player review site. The mp3 player market is one of the fastest-changing consumer markets as customer needs and desires change and technology advances. In 2004, 15% of Americans owned a portable media player. By 2009, according to Pew Internet & American Life, that number jumped to 45% of Americans. Of these, the NPD Group shows that 69% percent are iPod owners.
So who are these ‘other’ 31% of mp3 player owners? Grahm Skee of AnythingButiPod.com says they are “…individuals who can think for themselves. Individuals who can make a decision based on the facts, not what corporations or the media dictates. Individuals who do not need TV to tell them what to do, how to think, or what to buy.”
When you crunch the numbers, approximately 10 million “other” mp3 players are sold each year in the U.S. The users that take the time to research other mp3 options are dedicated and are looking for alternative features that the iPod doesn’t currently offer, like subscription-based music options.
Graham Skee leveraged this market when he built the AnythingButiPod site up to a multi-million, page-view-per-month media property through his keen understanding of online community-building, marketing, and search engine optimization. Obsessed with usability and design, Grahm maintains an open dialog with top device manufacturers seeking input from him and ABI’s members on their latest product launches.
The site has gained widespread enthusiasm, growing to over 62,000 members and gathering mentions in the New York Times, Newsweek, and other publications thought the world. In 2007, PC Magazine named the site one of the top 100 undiscovered websites of that year. How far has the site entered into our lexicon? Just two months back, the Christian Science Monitor wrote a review of the Zune HD called the “Anything but iPod” crowd. When your site becomes used as a term for a movement, you know you have made it.
Sanjay Sabnani Speaks at the Association for Corporate Growth
On November 4th, Sanjay Sabnani, CEO of CrowdGather spoke at The Association for Corporate Growth. ACG is the premier organization for professionals involved in corporate growth, corporate development and mergers and acquisitions. ACG 101 serves corporate executives and professionals in the West Valley-Ventura County-Santa Barbara areas.
The subject of the talk was "Weaving The Web Into Your Marketing." Sanjay focused on the efficacy of acquiring sites with high search engine rankings. One clear example of this was the acquisition of ZuneBoards.com. The Zune media player has been a highly successful platform. ZuneBoards consistently appears on the front page of Google when any search for "zune" is entered. In order to to achieve this through site building one would have to invest large amounts of money and time. Acquisition is a highly effective way to arrive at your destination in short order.
Read what ACG had to say about Sanjay’s discussion here.
