Punchbowl Blog

This post written by Sean Conta, Founder & CXO

A little while ago, a fellow skier turned me on to a website called “Steep and Cheap”(www.steepandcheap.com). Steep and Cheap is an example of a new breed of eCommerce sites with a unique format: At any given moment there is only one nicely priced item for sale on their site. When that item sells out, they put up another one.

If you’ve never heard of sites like this let me tell you, it’s a fantastic idea. Not only do they usually have great deals, but they bring the term “sticky” to a new level. If you have a “sticky” site, it means people come back to your site often. Everyone wants a sticky site but it can be a challenge depending on your business or service. Steep and Cheap and other “one-at-a-time” websites have really nailed it in my opinion

Steep and Cheap is great for skiers like me, but you can find “one-at-a-time” sites for many other markets. Another example is Woot (www.woot.com). They have a general focus in electronics and also have sibling sites for wine and T-shirts. Woot is slightly different, they only have one item a day, but it’s an equally sticky site.

Here’s a few more to check out. A word of warning though - you may become addicted. Oh and be prepared to buy stuff…

shirt.woot.com

wine.woot.com

www.tramdock.com

www.dillyeo.com

Know of any more? Add them in the comments below.

This post written by Stephanie Fader, Marketing & PR Manager

We get lots of feedback from our users and while some people email us with questions and suggestions, a good portion of the feedback we receive is praise. We get email after email saying how much people love our site and how helpful it was to them as they planned an event. It makes me feel really good to read this feedback and share it with the team.

The other thing that people write in is that not only do they enjoy using our site, but they tell all of their friends about MyPunchbowl. This is terrific! Our site already has a viral element to it via the host sending invitations to a number of guests, but when our satisfied users tell their friends about their positive experience it’s an added bonus.

We recently introduced a program that is perfect for those customers who love to spread the word about MyPunchbowl. MyPunchbowl Ambassadors are an exclusive group of MyPunchbowl users who receive special benefits and rewards from MyPunchbowl. MyPunchbowl Ambassadors promote the site, provide valuable user feedback, and share their personal stories.

Do you have what it takes to be a MyPunchbowl Ambassador? Learn more about the program and how to become a MyPunchbowl Ambassador.

This post was written by Matt Douglas, Founder & CEO

Think of the people you work with on a regular basis. How many of them are nice people and good at what they do? Most of the people that I’ve worked with in my career fall into this category. They are genuinely nice people, and they can do their job with an adequate amount of skill. They try their hardest to please, and you know that they intend well.

Now how many of the people you work with on a regular basis are GREAT? The truly great people are self-motivated, are able to read between the lines, and they deliver truly great results. They are the kind of people that want to get it right — and will often go above and beyond to make sure they do.

In my experience, there is a significant gap between those who are good and those who are GREAT. Usually, a great person is worth 4 or 5 good people. That is, they can do the work of 4-5 good people in the same amount of time. Yes, the difference is that large. That’s why great people command the respect (and compensation) that they deserve.

One of the wonderful things about running a startup is that you can choose who to add to your team. I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by a group of really GREAT people who are fantastic at what they do. In each of their disciplines (marketing, design, engineering, analytics, user experience) they often exceed expectations. They all want to succeed and it’s a great feeling to work among people who strive to be the best.

If this blog post sounds like a love soliloquy for the people at Punchbowl Software — well, it unabashedly is. Because one of the consequences of being surrounded by greatness is that it fills me with the confidence to step away from the office and take a few days off. As you read this, I’m far away from the office but I know that the team will continue to move our company forward and delight our customers.

And that’s what being surrounded by greatness really is all about.

This post was written by Matt Douglas, Founder & CEO

These days, with information overload and endless lists of things to do, it’s really easy to lose track of the most important topics on your to-do list. Those who work at Punchbowl have heard me repeat this phrase a lot recently: “There are always lots of things to do, but what are the top 3 impactful topics you are working on today?”

I think this is an important concept for any job — whether you work at a small company or a large company. In fact, I wish someone had introduced this concept to me when I was a young Product Manager at Adobe (a large company). I remember drowning in to-do lists and email after only a few weeks on the job. Everything seemed important. So I did what any ambitious, 22 year old would do: I worked 18 hour days for weeks on end. And as you might have guessed, I still wasn’t able to keep up with the volume of things to do.

In my position as CEO of Punchbowl Software, it’s not any easier. My inbox fills up daily, and there are endless lists of things to do and areas that need to be addressed. The good news is that I can now delegate some of the things on my to-do list, but yet I still don’t catch up. There are still too many things to do, and not enough hours in the day.

I believe there is a better way: focus on the top 3 most impactful topics on your list. Make a list of *only* 3 topics. The 3 topics should be followed by a very specific list of tasks that can be accomplished within a few days. Avoid items that don’t have specific action items. Steer clear of items that don’t have clear deliverables. Write them on your whiteboard or on a sticky note attached to your computer monitor.  Start and end your day with a close examination of your topic list. Are you spending time working on the top 3 most impactful topics or are you filling your time with other tasks?

You may be asking yourself: how can I figure out the top 3 most impactful topics to work on? Perhaps a top 3 list would be useful. Here are the 3 most impactful people to ask:

1. Ask your customers: What most matters to them? Make a list based on the top 3 topics that your customers talk about frequently (I’ve literally asked customers on the phone: what are the top 3 things you would improve about MyPunchbowl?)
2. Ask your peer: pick a colleague that you work with closely. Ask him/her to have lunch with you and then help each other make a top 3 list. (Bonus: how can each of you help each other achieve your top 3 list more effectively?)
3. Ask your boss: Sit down with your boss and ask him/her to help you come up with a list of the top 3 impactful topics that you should be addressing (it’s very telling if your boss can’t help you narrow down your list to 3 topics)

Does this methodology work for you? Why or why not? I look forward to hearing from you.

This post written by Sean Conta, Founder & CXO

I do most of the testing for MyPunchbowl and it’s an increasingly complicated task. We’re always adding new features and fixes to the site and everything needs to be thoroughly tested. But the functions of the site itself is only one dimension of testing. We also have to test in multiple web browsers.

A lot of people online today don’t even really know what “web browser” means, much less if they’re running IE6, 7, 8, Firefox 3, or Chrome (OK if you’re running Chrome you probably know a thing or two). But if you are in tune with the web world you’re painfully aware of browser options and you also probably share a fundamental disgust for that “cranky-and-slightly-crazy-old-man-who-hasn’t-taken-his-medication” of web browsers: Internet Explorer version 6.

Is your website working and looking fine? Boot it up in IE6 and turn that smile upside down!

Hatred of IE6 among web programmers is well documented if you spend a few minutes asking the internet. Our newest programmer (Ryan) has shown a real genuine and promising level of spite for the ‘ole IE6. He turned me on to a site attempting to organize the war on IE6: http://www.bringdownie6.com/. Check out the home page for a concise summary of the problem at hand.

The other day I came across another clever innovation that further illustrates the desires of the web programmers of the world: http://ie6update.com/. Here’s a piece of code that you drop into your site that makes it appear (if you’re using IE6) that Microsoft is prompting you to upgrade your browser. Phenomenal.

And that’s the other problem with Internet Explorer version 6. Users can ignore the Microsoft updates and suddenly find themselves running an 8 year old browser in today’s modern internet. As Matt likes to say (often to users) “that’s like riding a bicycle on the highway”.

So do yourself (and us) a favor: if you’re using IE6 to read this post, head over to Microsoft and upgrade your browser. You can thank me later for picking you and your bicycle up on the side of the highway.

This post written by Stephanie Fader, Marketing & PR Manager

It’s hard not to notice that Twitter has been all over the place lately. Between Oprah’s first tweet on Friday, April 17 and Ashton reaching one million followers on the same day (soon to be two million?), stories about Twitter are making the mainstream news.

One other celebrity is making news on Twitter. Hugh Jackman, of Wolverine fame, posted a tweet that he will donate AUS $100,000 (approximately US $72,000) to one person’s charity–the person who can best convince him in 140 characters why he should donate to their charity.

When I saw this story I thought I would try to come up with a solid tweet to send Hugh regarding my own favorite charity (we all have one, right?). When I did a search to see what types of tweets Hugh was receiving, I noticed that one had been retweeted quite a few times. Of course I had to click the link to see what was so retweet-worthy.

Here is the original tweet: @RealHughJackman PLEASE donate your $100k to March of Dimes in honor of my baby #Maddie http://tinyurl.com/dnewtk

I held back tears as I read about baby Maddie and looked at her adorable pictures on a blog dedicated to her short life and her family’s quest to raise money so other babies will have more of a chance than Maddie had.

I realize this story isn’t particularly relevant to MyPunchbowl but I know that many of our users are parents and moms, in particular, so I thought this story might touch you like it touched me.

Whether you want to hop on Twitter right now and retweet for Maddie or send Hugh a tweet about your own charity, this might be the thing that finally makes you take the next step to join Twitter.

And while you’re there, say hi to us at @mypunchbowl!

This post was written by Matt Douglas, Founder & CEO

Do you know what your customers really need? I believe there is only one way to really know. Be your own customer. Experience what your customers actually experience. There is simply no substitute.

Allow me to illustrate how to know what your customers really need with a story from today. Today (Monday, April 20, 2009) was the 113th running of the Boston Marathon. I’m lucky enough to live along the marathon route. My house is a short block away from Mile 10.

Now, I know what it is like to run a marathon. I ran the New York City Marathon in 2004. It was a grueling, memorable experience. There are many things I remember about that day, but I remember one thing vividly from the first handful of miles. It’s really quite simple: my nose was running a lot. From miles 5-10, I used my shirt, my sweatbands, and the back of my hand to wipe my nose. It was pretty miserable. All I needed was something dry to wipe my nose and face.

The following year after the marathon was my first Boston Marathon as a spectator. So I decided to give the runners the one thing that I wished I had that day: a piece of dry paper towel. That year, I took all of the paper towels in my house and went down the street to Mile 10. The smiles on the runners faces said it all. Within a half an hour, all of the paper towels were gone.

Since then, it’s become a bit of a tradition at Mile 10. Today was the best ever. Along with a handful of my neighbors, we handed out about 15 rolls of paper towels to the runners. We welcomed the runners to “Paper Towel Mile,” and were thanked by countless runners. It was worth every penny that I spent at BJs.

One thing that stuck with me today — so many of the runners looked me with deeply thankful eyes and said “Thank you! That is exactly what I needed.” 

Do you know what your customers really need? There’s one way to find out. Walk a mile in their shoes. Or better yet — try running 26.2 miles. Then you’ll really know.

This post written by Stephanie Fader, Marketing & PR Manager

Yesterday was a pretty good day here at MyPunchbowl. In addition to the great article in Fortune Small Business, MyPunchbowl was also selected as an Official Honoree for the “Services & Applications” category in the 13th Annual Webby Awards!

The Webby Awards is the Internet’s most respected symbol of success. The Official Honoree distinction is awarded to the top 15% of all work entered that exhibits remarkable achievement. The 13th Annual Webby Awards received over 9,000 entries from all 50 states and over 60 countries worldwide across more than 125 categories. That’s a lot of competition! 

Winners are chosen by the International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences, a global organization whose members incluce David Bowie, Harvey Weinstein, Arianna Huffington, Matt Groening, Internet inventor Vinton Cerf, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, Virgin Group Chairman Richard Branson, and R/GA Chairman and CEO Bob Greenberg.

MyPunchbowl was honored by the Webby’s last year as 2008 Official Nominee in the “Events” category and as an Official Honoree in the “Best Practices” category.

Needless to say, we are thrilled to be honored by the Webbys again this year!

This post was written by Matt Douglas, Founder & CEO. Follow Matt Douglas on Twitter

Once in a while, I take a moment to step back and really appreciate how far I’ve come. This blog post is one of those moments.

This afternoon, Fortune Small Business released their April issue. MyPunchbowl and yours truly play a prominent role in the cover story entitled “The Venture Game: What investors want.” Fortune is published online through a partnership with CNN.com. It’s quite humbling to see your own name lead off a major story on CNN.

The story leads off with a trip down memory lane — the early days of MyPunchbowl. “Matt Douglas had just embarked on a down-to-the-studs renovation of his home in Natick, Mass. when he and a colleague, Sean Conta, quit their jobs to launch MyPunchbowl.com, an event-planning Web site. “My wife and I were living in one 12-by-8-foot room, along with the refrigerator, stove and two cats,” Douglas recalls. “Sean would come over around 8:30 every morning. Then we’d sit at our two little desks with construction noise in the background.”

It’s all true. It’s hard to describe what those days were like — but that year was full of sacrifice and hard work. Those were the days when no one would return my phone calls, and this company was only a figment of my imagination. How far it’s all come.

In addition to the main story, my advice is featured in one of the “10 steps to catch VC cash.” Those of you who have followed this blog for a long time will remember the blog posts which covers this advice in more depth: “Don’t write a business plan.” Wow, that’s from July of 2007!

A high-profile article like this involves many people and takes many months. On January 14th, Lucy McQuilken (our investment manager from Intel Capital) emailed me with an introduction to a writer from Fortune. A few days later, I had an in-depth conversation with Sharon from Fortune. After a number of follow-up calls and an editorial review, I was asked to do a photo shoot for the article. The photo shoot took place on February 26th (that experience is another blog post in itself!) — and the article was published today, April 15th. Start to finish: 3 months. Not bad for an article with this kind of expsosure.

There is a long list of people to thank for this article. First — thanks to the PR team at Intel Capital for uncovering this opportunity and bringing it to Lucy McQuilken. Lucy: thanks for bringing the opportunity to Punchbowl, and for enduring my attempts at humor during the four hour photo shoot. Thanks to Spencer Heyfron for a fanastic and fun photo shoot. And most importantly: thank you to Sharon Kahn at Fortune for her attention to detail and accuracy. Sharon: this is a fantastic article and it’s been a pleasure to get to know you.

I sat on the couch this evening and showed my wife the article on CNN. Her smile said it all. She remembers the six months we lived in the 12×8 room, and she knows that I’m about the farthest thing from an “overnight success” that you can imagine. Today is a day I feel really proud of how far I’ve come.

Read the articles:  The Venture Game: What investors want and my startup advice: 10 steps to catch VC cash.

This post written by Sean Conta, Founder & CXO

We recently launched a new service on the site,”personalized candy”. Now perhaps you’ve checked it out and your first impression was “eh”. If so, let me tell you - it’s really cool! And I’m not just saying that because I’m a co-founder here, I’m saying that for the following reasons:

• You can choose which Jelly Belly flavors come in your tin (one flavor, a two-flavor combo, or a 49 flavor mix), or you can choose exactly which M&M colors you want (depending on the container you choose).

• There is no order minimum - you can buy just one if you want!

• You can upload a picture onto your container, add text, change the size and color, and it looks great!

The candy is custom printed and shipped quickly. I’m pretty sure you’ll be totally happy when your candy comes in the mail because I was.

My wife had ACL repair (knee) surgery this week, so I thought it was a good opportunity to give the new personalized candy service a spin. I scored major points when I presented her with my creation:

That’s a picture of her running a half marathon (meant to inspire her through recovery).

Listen, if you answer “yes” to the question “Do I like jelly beans or M&Ms”, then I hope I’ve convinced you to give it a try.