There’s something icky for me about commitment, I realise – especially financial commitment. It has never been my strongpoint. Putting down in print what I’m aiming to spend makes my stomach thud a little. Whether I spend it or not is a different matter, but, truth be told, if this project is going to work, money, and lots of it, will have to be found, and spent again. I’m going to have to go through many more hoops like this to make my plans come to fruition.
It did help to map everything out over the next few months, however, and re-defining the core business idea with a business-minded audience in mind helped clear up some vagueness in my thinking. It’s a strong plan, and I’m proud of it.
If I get the grant, (I’ll hear in 3 weeks or so), there’s going to be a wonderful 2-week trip around Ireland to look forward to. Not a holiday; the next stage is doing my market research, which will have to be face-to-face, and as much about making good first impressions and establishing good business relationships, as it will be about about selling the idea.
In allowing myself to see what sort of features I want in my website, how I imagine it looking, there are some wonderful examples out there. As my del.icio.us links are added to my business feed every day, you can wander through them all yourself if you’re curious, I won’t list them here, but I have to marvel at what Protopage are up to, their design principles take my breath away, their focus on user-friendliness. I covet what they’ve got. And another hats-off: an Irish company, for PXN8, a superb online photo editor.
This project is going especially well at this early stage because my general invitation of a month ago, when I announced to the open space that is the blogo’sphere that I was about to start down the business road, resulted in an angel (there isn’t a better word, really) getting in touch. He’s been offering me exactly the practical financial/managerial advice and support I need, because he thinks it’s going to work.
So, folks, blogging works as a means of connecting people, in a way that I’m really impressed with. If you find yourself needing something, just put it out there and ask. You never know who might answer.
{ 5 } Comments
I’m intrigued Dermod and I’m guessing you’re working on something related to social bookmarking. Which is an area I have a growing interest in because of how I see a rudimentary form of Collective Intelligence emerging out of such services.
If this is the direction you are going please make sure to OPML enable everything – I’d dearly love to be able to browse the del.icio.us folksonomy with a Feed Grazer.
Maybe I’m way off target, but if Paddy Power were taking bets I’d be having a few quid on
I take it bootstrapping is not an option for what you want to do ?
Thanks James,
Yes indeed, one of the aspects to the service will indeed include social bookmarking, although in a way I don’t think has been done before. I think you’ll like it a lot!
As for OPML enabling everything – I can see how that could be interesting, and will certainly consider it. I look forward to being able to discuss it with you properly, but I’m not ready yet. How do I get in touch with RSS/OPML web developers in Ireland who do consultancy work? Is that you?
In answer to Mr/Ms Anonymous: bootstrapping would be an option except that my service has to gleam with quality design and rich features to make a good impression, right from the start. It also requires a strong degree of security, and needs the endorsement and support of one particular profession in Ireland, who aren’t going to get involved unless it is done “properly”.
My prototype for one part of it is working fine and looking good – and it’s just a Blogger blog combined with Scuttle! Pleasing to look at, and hopefully persuasive in pitching the project to investors/selling agents, it simply couldn’t work as it is out in the real world.
Aha, so I was at least half right
That’s great news Dermod, now I’m more intrigued than ever. Looking forward to learning more.
As regard RSS/OPML development, no, I’m not a developer as such. I have been using OPML to build directories but Rowan Nairn in the guy I’d ask as regards the programming side of things. Rowan built OPod, the first web-based Feed Grazer -
http://eurekaman.com/opod/
I can pass you his email address if you’d like to contact him.
cheers that would be good! I’d seen his “Feed Taxonomy” post before, he’s on the ball, defo.
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