GT&A's 'Short-Takes from Summer Internet World'

Our Wrapup of Summer '98 Internet World:

Dear clients, partners, associates, friends, and assorted Internet whackos:

Just spent a few good days in Chicago at Summer Internet World...what a great town! Lake Michigan about as gorgeous as it gets, fun happenings on Navy Pier, nice cabbies, super restaurants...and the usual hype and hoopla at McCormick...not as well attended as the Spring show in LA, but who would expect a summer show to draw anything but the hardest core?....herewith, some notes and random experiences:

1) INTERESTING PEOPLE you probably would have enjoyed meeting (I did):

Royal Ferros, CEO/founder of iPrint, Mountain View, CA...Mark Goldstein, CEO/Founder of ImpulseBuy.net, Burlingame, CA...Susan Gore, Partner/Tech Practice, PricewaterhouseCoopers, San Jose, CA...Dana Blankenhorn, freelance journalist, who writes frequently for Ad Age, Business Marketing, and others...Dave Carlick, Silicon Valley high-tech marketing guru, formerly with Poppe Tyson and Doubleclick, now with VantagePoint Venture Partners...

2) BEST QUOTES noted in the conference sessions:

- Royal Ferros, CEO, iPrint.com, the leading Internet printing site: "In a faceless EC environment, only the very best customer service wins."

- Yvonne Schneider, VP, American Express Interactive Travel, when I asked her if smart cards were in their plans: "You bet. We want to kill the expense report in Corporate America." Look out...

- Chris Dolan, Dir of EC, Oracle: "What makes a winner on the 'Net? Brand, creativity, and community." Chris, you gotta real way with words there....

- Mark Goldstein, CEO, ImpulseBuy.net, who gets the award for the best new sound-bites: "The Year of Merchandising" and "Deal Feed". Yeah, Mark, keep feedin' us those deals! (It's a really cool concept--you should see the whole demo.)

- Paxton Cooper, Dir of Product Marketing & E-Commerce, Encanto Networks: "It's all about niche. Consumers look to the 'Net for specialized products/services...so small business is actually better fit for it. SOHO on the Web must succeed for e-commerce to succeed."

- George Nassef, Sr VP/IS, BizTravel.com: "Web businesses must build and support a clear branding strategy." Please note: spoken by an IS executive....

- Mahesh Murthy, VP-Marketing, iCat: "The next big app for online commerce won't be about selling stuff--it'll be service businesses doing scheduling." (for customer appointments, service calls, etc)

- George Zachary, Partner, Mohr Davidow Ventures: "The big trend we see as an early-stage VC is in services businesses, driven by the outsourcing trend. Most VCs think you can't get multiples in services--wrong! There's a whole new 'uncovered' world in professional services. The key is to have a scalable methodology."

- Michael Zeisser, Internet Practice Principal, McKinsey & Co., NYC: "We're seeing a spillover of Internet marketing innovations into traditional marketing. And, what's more, the 'Net is altering how consumers use traditional media." Hello, New World Order of Marketing....

- Dave Carlick, tech marketer extraordinaire, now pushing a new venture called Eyegive.com: "At successful content sites, the editor is no longer in control--the users are." And another great point: "We need human intervention in the online world. We don't have Artificial Intelligence--we don't even have Artificial Common Sense."

3) MOST PROMISING concepts among business presentations I heard:

Both headed by impressive startup veterans who have their respective acts together...watch out for:

http://www.iprint.com
http://www.impulsebuy.net

4) BEST "FAST ACT" to get ready for the show:

PricewaterhouseCoopers, the just-finalized merger reducing the Big 6 to 5....(yes, it's one word, but at least they seem to have a sense of humor about it, with their tagline "The biggest name in accounting")....they had an impressive presence at the show, with a great new booth, well put-together literature, and a fired-up team pushing their management consulting service unit's Internet Practice. (Accountants doing html? Hey gang, it's The New Economy.)

5) FUNNIEST T-SHIRT seen on my walks around town:

At the LaHavanita cigar shop on Navy Pier: "Smoke My Torpedo!"

6) BEST E-MAIL I READ while at Internet World:

Easy: the latest missive from Chris Locke (aka Rageboy.com), called "Shameless"....Chris just did a great column for The Industry Standard, too, on "Gonzo Marketing"...check it out in the July 13 print edition, or online at: http://www.thestandard.net/articles/article_display/0,1449,1019,00.html

7) LAMEST PRESENTATIONS to sit through:

Two that come to mind were from guys who couldn't be bothered preparing a visual presentation (geez, Meckler, some people actually pay big money to sit through these things): the head of EDS' Internet consulting group in Dallas, CTO (Chaos to Order)--500 people, but apparently they're still so confused no one knows PowerPoint yet...and the CEO of eToys, who also figured he could just wing it for us...sort of a rambling, stream-of-consciousness thing (they don't hawk follow-on purchases of Barbie items to someone who's bought the doll--that would be gauche--then, saying later they're adding features to do just that)....so which is it then?

8) BEST "WHACKS UP-SIDE DA HEAD" on making money in e-commerce:

Two of them: first, it's the repeat, stupid...nobody makes money from a one-time online shopping customer...take CDnow, one of the biggest, who spends about $40 acquiring a customer (not as high as some)....meaning they have to get 8 orders from that person, at $5 average profit per order, just to *break even*...and you wanted to get rich in online commerce, huh? we'd love to hear the plan...

Second one, from Stuart Spiegel of iQVC (profitable from month 3!): "Online selling is no different from the real world. Old-fashioned retail values still apply, and emotion and trust are key." Stuart impressed me as a really relaxed, thoughtful guy, who speaks with the confidence of actually *getting* this stuff. My bet is retailers will rule the New World of Consumer Commerce, certainly not geeks.

eight is enough--that's it, folks! be good, spread the word, buy stuff online, and be kind to marketing people everywhere....

cheerio,

Graeme R. Thickins, President
GT&A Strategic Marketing Inc.
*Minneapolis *St.Paul *Anywhere
...Branding & Marketing to Win
in the Knowledge Economy(tm)...
612/944-1672, fax 612/944-1673

Questions?
Fire away.