Sunday, November 28, 2010

Pickin' Up GQ

My husband and I had a six hour drive back to Boston today, and at one of our stops, he picked up the latest edition of GQ. Now, I could have done work in the car, but instead I chose to do what any girl stuck in a car for six hours would do - flip through the magazine. And there, towards the end and past the pictures of Scarlett Johansson, was a fascinating article titled "The Viral Me". It was like the topics we've discussed in class, combined into one article, on steroids. Below are some of the highlights and what it was I found interesting about these:

1) There is a place in Silicon Valley called Y Combinator that basically exists to recruit brilliant "techie" people (read: the next Zuck) and provide them with the environment, counseling and initial $$ they need to pitch their business idea to angel investors in 3 months. Doing a little research, I found out that through this incredible initiative is that WePay (and Reddit and Weebly) got their start. Only 3% of applicants get in, but those that do...well, its history being made. This makes me consider a point we haven't discussed in class - "foreign" talent. There are so many amazingly brilliant people that are not US citizens, that come to study in the US and because they can't find visa sponsorship, have to go back to their home countries. I read an article in the Economist a while back about how they're trying to pass a law to permit certain students to remain in the US regardless of visa sponsorship. I'm wondering if a place like this company can get a movement started to retain this talent that is so crucial to the development of the US and what your thoughts are on that matter.

2) The article also talks about how far social media is going and how everything dealing with technology must include a social layer if its going to be successful. One of the latest social media platforms is called Blippy, where users register credit cards with the site and everything you buy with that site is posted for everyone to see...including price!!! Isn't this taking it too far??? The author felt the same way I did, but talked about how because of the way the site is structured with buttons like "Awesome" and "Funny" (similar to FB's "Like"), it actually is quite fun to use. I don't know if I agree - what do you think? Would you ever use a site like this?

3) Another point the article brings up is the concept of friction - how hard it is to do something and how social media platforms that eliminate friction will be crowned winners in the end. FB takes away friction because the fields are pre-populated and all you need to do is fill in blanks. Twitter takes away friction because unlike a blog, which you need to be creative for paragraphs on end (or at least attempt to be), Twitter is only 140 characters of creativity. Now there is another platform, DailyBooth, which is Twitter but with pictures. No 140 characters, just pictures. Eliminates the friction of having to be witty in 140 characters. Friction is also what drives the brilliant programmers of Silicon Valley to design new platforms, as they are trying to solve people's issues. The author poses an interesting question - what happens when you eliminate all friction? What do you strive for next? Is it possible to eliminate all friction?

There were other really interesting tidbits and examples, and a lot of new tools that he talks about. I'll bring the article on Tuesday in case anyone wants to read it (looked for it online, to no avail). That said, I did tear it out of the magazine, so if what you're really after is the pictures of Scarlett Johansson, just let me know and I'll bring the whole magazine in. ;)

4 comments:

  1. I first heard about Blippy last year before heading out west with the rest of the Graduate Tech Trekkers. I did not understand its appeal then, and I still don't understand it now. Yes, it's great to push the envelope and experiment with new technologies, but this just seems to be completely unnecessary and risky for both companies and consumers. And yet, in addition to Blippy, now another company called Swipely is emerging as a leader in this "social consumer" space. (From what I can gather, the main difference is that Swipley doesn't publicize the purchase amounts.) Maybe we are underestimating this need to create a "friction-less" way to publicize credit card payment. I read one article that said broadcasting purchases is a way for a customer to show his or her emotional connection to a brand. Perhaps there's some merit to that, but it's still TMI for me.

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  2. Two comments:

    1) I didn't know Jon was a GQ reader. I will have to tease him about that next time I see him :-)

    2) Your comment on foreign talent is very interesting. Without going into too much detail on immigration reform and whether or not the US should go to a more US style "points-based" system, I do think that the US needs to look for ways in which to be more flexible in attracting global talent. In this "flat" world, with low barriers to entry, the US will have to actively attract talent to its shores in order to remain relevant in the new age of social media.

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  3. sorry i meant, whether or not the US should go to a more Canadian style "points based" system.

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  4. HI,
    This is a bit random...I read this article awhile back and liked it. I wanted to find it so i was searching google and stumbled upon your blog. Anyway, I especially liked the part about "friction". I like the concept that the really hard, interesting, and worthwhile things require friction. Twitter is easy to use and simple. A blog post can be a bit more difficult but also more valuable. Writing a book takes time, effort, deep thought, but it is the most hard hitting and meaningful. My guess is a person would typically have 1000 twitter followers, 100 blog readers, and maybe only 10 people read their book. American culture is consumption driven. We stray away from the hard work and avoid discomfort at all costs. Isn't it worth noting that the most successful, interesting people spent a lot of time doing the high friction work? I may have to write a post on this. Anyway, Good post and summary of the article.

    Zach

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