Karmaback has been upgrading its servers in advance of the roll-out of our new upgraded Social Sweepstakes systems from companies.  Watch the video to learn just how many TPS (transactions per second) we can handle! *hint=it’s a lot!*

Special thanks to the Disqus team for showing us the way to MASSIVE scale!

Also, check out the video to get a sneak preview of the many new customizations you can do with our sweepstakes system.

Google+ Will Fail and Why.

Many of you know I’m in the business of Marketing; specifically social marketing.  I’ve been playing with Google+ lately and have come to several opinions about the service that I thought I’d share.  In general, I think the service will die, and die quickly.  Here are the 5 observations why I think this is so:

  1. Google+ has no cachet… it’s not really that cool to be on Google+… there is no reason to right now (as opposed to just being on Facebook).  Google tried to make some buzz with the “fake” limits on user growth, but those in the know, know that was contrived.
  2. Google + doesn’t help companies (yet).  I expect Google will get around to it, and when that happens, companies will rush to setup their pages… but soon they will realize: it’s EXPENSIVE to maintain Google+, Facebook, and Twitter: then they’ll say, gee, we’ve invested in Facebook; we’re staying.
  3. Games will kill it.  Games on Google+ are coming, and when they do, let the spam wars begin.  Google has a TON of work, trial, and error to do, to keep up with Facebook on this delicate balance of fun and non-annoyance.
  4. Google+ doesn’t “give me more” of anything over Facebook.  It’s just not superior in any way; so what’s the point?
  5. Google Adwords is too expensive; and Google+ may “dilute” prices over time for adwords (which Google WILL NOT LIKE).  Hence, the quick, fast, and early demise of Google+.  
Google.  Stick to search!  It’s making you rich!

Video: Engineers Make Better Business People, because they MEASURE!

I have a strong core belief that (if they wanted to) Engineers (and other mathematically trained professionals) would make better business people than “business graduates” or MBAs.  An Engineer-MBA is the best combination, because they learn the MBA lingo, but not the bad habits.

Watch the video to see WHY I think Engineers make better business people, and what you can do about it.

Summary from my Entrepreneurship Speech at The University of Texas: Austin Technology Incubator

Sometimes I wish I had a little camera the followed me around taping some of my ranting/speeches.  Would certainly save time having to type anything up!  Usually I speak about either Marketing or Entrepreneurship; so when I was asked to speak on “What it’s like to be an Entrepreneur” at The University of Texas: Austin Technology Incubator I thought I knew just what to say…. but after some thought I realized, the usual crap people say about Entrepreneurship is just flat wrong.  Hard work WILL NOT win the day.  An awesome idea is NOT the way to success.  What is needed is 1 skill: Sales.

I began this speech saying that I wasn’t going to say the usual stuff about Entrepreneurship.  Yes, you’ll be poor for a bit, and yes, you’ll work hard, etc.  But in truth to be a successful entrepreneur all of that barely matters; what matters is:

  1. Sales (your ability to sell product/service/and STOCK).  
  2. Presentation/Showmanship (your ability to present ideas and put the best foot forward; even when sometimes “THERE IS NO FOOT”.
  3. Persistence (your ability to NOT QUIT, even when everyone around you [especially potential investors] make it seem hopeless.
Theses skills can all be learned and practiced, and here are a few “Sales books” that I think are really, really good:
Sales Dogs: A great intro to sales and YOUR personality for sales.
Sales Bible: Amazingly good book filled with tactics and skills you NEED to learn to be good at sales:
I also went into great detail about the organization of VC funds (their management structure and decision making process), and also some small bit about my Laser-beam-Shotgun approach to fundraising!
More on those topics soon.

Video Blog 6/14/11: Magic Marketing Formula for Engineers

Discover the “magic” of Marketing in an Engineering Formula.  The Dominant Coeffecient might surprise you… it’s what makes a product/service SUCCESSFUL vs. UNSUCCESSFUL.

In case you missed it, the Formula is:
       SALES = REVIEW_SCORE * (SUM_OF_OTHER_MARKETING_STUFF_YOU_DO)

This is a true statement for at least the Killer NIC and various iPhone games I’ve worked on.

Is it true for you?