See you at the show!

I also added a link to my book list in the side nav and a quick rundown of the current books I’m reading.

Enjoy!

“who in technology wants to work with retail bankers, teachers, doctors, restauranteurs? As a result, hybrid businesses have little or no competition: technology companies want nothing to do with the real world, and real-world companies struggle to develop competitive technology.“

We talk about this all the time at BuildASign.com. With most internet “virtual world” start ups you are dealing with a very speculative business environment where there is a ton of competition and competing companies are run by incredibly smart, heavily backed entrepreneurs. Compare this to starting up a hybrid business where the biggest competitors have little to no idea how to take advantage of technology or the Internet, and they are more likely to have entered the business through inheritance than by being passionately disruptive. The result is that savvy entrepreneurs who can stomach getting off the web and into distribution, manufacturing or services will enjoy a simpler and extremely navigable competitive landscape.

More and more industries (both the sexy and not-so-sexy) are moving online or developing a strong online component — I think this is an obvious transition. It is baffling to me why some of the smartest entrepreneurs choose to ignore the lighter competition of an uncrowded not-so-sexy hybrid industry and choose to instead push forward in an incredibly competitive, overcrowded virtual industry. Maybe they just aren’t so smart.

Between iTunes, Amazon Unbox, Netflix and OnDemand Cable, I thought for sure we’d be watching the original in a matter of moments — think again. So I picked up the phone and began doing something I haven’t done in at least two years — I began calling Blockbuster videos (yes, there are some that are still open). “I’m looking for the original Tron movie” — the response? “Good luck!” I called at least 10 local video stores, both mainstream and boutique with no luck.

Looking on Amazon.com to see about buying it I come to find that if you want to buy it new it will cost you $200 and used only $90 for the dvd. Seriously??!?

I’m sure there’s a master plan here to release both together after the new Tron Legacy movie, but given the long gap between the 1982 release of the original and the one being released this week, I can’t believe the opportunity they are passing up to sell on both ends. Tron lovers would certainly be willing to spend money renting or buying the original prior to release and then buying the collector pack afterwards as well. They could probably make even more money re-releasing the original, releasing the Movie, releasing Tron Legacy on dvd, then releasing a collector pack (like they seem to be doing with Lord of the Rings – one at a time, then with extended footage, then the pack, then the pack with extended footage, then the short version on blue ray, and now everyone’s waiting on the extended pack in the blue ray edition). Annoying? Certainly. Profitable? You bet.

Timing is everything in movie releases. From the time of year it hits the theatres, to releasing around other hit movies, to world events taking place, to dvd release, to special editions, to putting things back in the “vault” (Disney’s favorite thing to do). They have definitely missed a huge opportunity with Tron — not only in DVD sales, but also in theatre attendance by people unlucky enough to miss the original and who are unwilling to watch the sequel out of order.

Today I received a proposal for a new product line that was borne almost completely out of competitor reviews, youtube videos, informational links and other data organized from massive numbers of online searches. Do you want to price your new product or pick a niche? No problem, Google and Bing can make all kinds of recommendations based on existing competition. Should you consider bringing the process in-house? You’re covered, find machine pricing, delivery times from a dozen suppliers and watch a slew of youtube videos demonstrating the machine in use — many of which take the form of step by step tutorials. Why rely solely on the manufacturer’s specifications? Just read complaint boards and watch video of machines producing real orders. Book the next trade shows, read the manuals, and send quote inquiries all resulting from web searching.

All of this is obvious to most of us, but it’s amazing how often we give up after a few quick Google searches. Treat it as a reference resource, devoting serious time to your investigation and you will be amazed at what you can put together.

At BuildASign.com, we have developed what we call our Customer Love Program. Our customer service agents are empowered to go the extra mile to surprise and delight customers and to create a unique set of interactions.

We define it as follows: “Customer Love is the expression of our caring and concern for our customers beyond the confines of the web. It is expressed through acts of creative kindness meant to touch the hearts of our customers and to show them BuildASign.com truly cares. “

Check out three of our Customer Love stories from last week that really well define what our program is about:

CSR Brandy: I spoke to a customer who was ordering a banner for her new cheese making business which she does on the side. I sent her some cheese tools and a cheese board when she has events showcasing her cheese.

CSR Sheri: I spoke to a gentleman who ordered some magnetics to advertise his business. He lives in Michigan and we had a conversation about how hard the economy has effected that area. He said he tries to find work, big or small, and is grateful for any job that comes his way. I sent him a home depot gift card for him to use towards supplies that he may need for his small business.

CSR Wes: I spoke to a customer who placed an order for vinyl graphics for his business. In conversation, I found out that he was a big fisherman and used to fish a lot of the FLW tournaments, but he had a fire in his pole barn and it burned up his boat. Fishing was such a great passion for him and he doesn’t get to do it as much since the fire. He still gets out to fish the Great Lakes when he can. I am sending him 3 Bass fishing ornaments and a 2011 fishing calendar to help bring a smile back about his love for fishing.

Over the past 4 years, BuildASign.com has grown to over 130 employees and we are bursting at the seams in the three Austin locations we occupy. The last time we moved, we had somewhere around 20 employees and it took us a few days. I’m really excited about getting everyone under one roof but I realize that it’s going to be an enormous undertaking.

There are so many variables to consider, such as price, commute time, area of town, proximity to restaurants, safety, work flow, electricity draw and more. We are looking for space that will house both our front office and our manufacturing and are hoping to find something soon in the 80,000 square foot range.

One of the challenges as a rapidly growing business is to get the right amount of floor space. Due to our space needs, we need to find a space that will appropriately contain our operation for the next 5-7 years — but due to our rapid growth, this will likely mean paying for space we won’t need at first, or forcing ourselves to expand a couple years down the road to meet ever growing space requirements — which is, by the way, how we ended up with 3 locations.

All in all, it’s going to be a very exciting move. I know everyone at the company is ready for a larger space — being packed in like sardines isn’t fun for anyone.