How? The big dogs of the internet become big? ebay, craigslist, myspace.

List some of the dominant and successful websites in the world.

Ebay
Craigslist
Myspace
Wike
Answers

These guys shot up the charts in no time.. they should be used as a tool and analyze how? did they get there?

I watched a documentary on NBC (or one of those channels) about the history of Ebay. In 10 years they were known in everyone's everyday house hold and probably talked everywhere... even on movies (I.E. Transformers)

Myspace, tila tequila. WTF!!! Two young guys created this site based off of friendster. They took charge of the online community in no time.

What are they doing that we're not?

Discuss.

 

Building Teams to help handle work load and be in more places at once also using word of mouth/viral marketing to a T.

 

I understand and agree to a point. But remember, their "Teams" were probably no more than you and me... with basic limited knowledge and resources.

For example, I'm trying to absorb everything I can to apply to benefit my website. I have 0 (zero) interest in Marketing, Coding websites, writing/content SEO, and etc...

I am however, interested in music/instruments/ and my website. I'm absolutely in love with my business... It's all I think about and care about.

Knowing all this useful knowledge is very helpful at striving to be better. Yet, I'm not interested in it for SEO for hire. I mean, I don't want to make a career out of SEO.. My passion is my niche.

With that said, I'm too broke to pay a quality team. As probably ALL the big dogs started. Limited resources.

We all have to start somewhere, right?


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EDIT:

Another example. The maker of ebay was just a 33(?) year old husband making a site for his wife to sell PEZ candy things. He's enjoyed coding and didn't think too much of "ebay" becoming anything 'special'. He had a 9-5 job and spent his weekend building the site. Yep, it only took one weekend he said. This was back in 1995.

It evolved into selling the "ever-so-hot" beanie babys. That really sparked it, and by 1999 ebay was on the express way to something HUGE.

The money he made and business management of his site was just a little scribble pad and a shoebox. He kept struggled to keep track of his results/progress of the site. He became to big for him to manage. So that's when he decided to sell out (he's an employee)

 

Myspace didn't shoot up immediately. It was actually created by a real company, you can read all about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MySpace#History

 

Build teams aka outsource to others the aspects of the business they do not have knowledge of, in an effort to save time, energy, and money in the long run.

I personally have a "team" of individuals I pull upon to do the things I don't have time to learn, or even things I do know, but shouldn't have to bother myself with doing.

 

Advertised.

Word of mouth.

How long they have been doing it.

Basically being the first one on the block for doing this, and then really working it.

Making sure, or trying to make sure that they get repeat visitors.


You can do the same.

 

One form of viral marketing people use is the affiliate program, I successfully use this method to get thousands and thousands of vistors and hundreds of sells of my products. Consider incorporating an affiliate program into everything you do.

 

The bigdogs were probably not on DP whining about why they can't be the next big thing... They were probably hitting up every resource, venture capitalist, friend who knew about SEO, Marketing,etc. People they didn't know about Seo, marketing, etc. going over and over design, then ripping it up and starting from scratch... repeat. The point is you say they came up very quickly but all of the work is in the preplanning and getting it right before you launch. The reason it caught on so quickly was because of its interface and user friendliness, which was sorted out before they even let us see it... It does take a lot of money to start the next big thing. Look in the phone book and call a banker or a venture capitalist and tell them you want a meeting for your idea. It may take you 10-50 tries to get 5 min. for a presentation, but if you do get one take it. Prepare and try your hardest to knock their socks off. Know every, every quesiton they are going to ask you(which will have to do with marketing and Seo and all the things you do not want to do) and give them an answer that is so clear - to them, not you- that they have no more questions and actually ponder if they want to put money into the idea.

Then... when they call you back in a week or so and tell you they are not interested, pick up the phone book again and find the next potential funder. you will be way more prepared for this meeting... having sorted out a lot more details of your multimillion dollar idea. Hell, you may have even started over to just the initial idea you started with and built from the ground up again(although it was easier this time because you had a lot of the information already in your head that you learned from your first failure.) This meeting may not be a knockout either... but you feel like your idea is there and the plan will work... Go to the next one (not everybody is as interested in your idea as you... it is your job to paint the picture so clear for them that they see what you see.) Do you think anybody saw art in Polluck's scribbles until he convinced everyone it was "abstract" art? No... His parents probably thought he was retarded, the true art was not giving up and making people see what he saw. Anyways... I spent way too much time on this post. Hope it inspired somebody.

 

oh yea as for tila tequila... some producer at MTV saw $$$ and a cheap show to produce with a lot of naked bodies... but they still had a budget, and as awful as that show is it will make a pretty penny, cause reality is sooooo cheap to make it isn't even funny

 

I'm sure the companies you noted above secured venture capital funding. That helped them buy the expertise they needed to develop and grow.

Also, these companies offer something unique with little competition when they launched. It makes it much easier to sell and brand a product/service if you have no competitors.

The key is to build a unique business, providing something that others are not. If you can figure that out and secure funding, you are well on your way to becoming a billionaire!

 

Yes they are big names but please note that they didn't get popular in no time. They were getting better day by day, for example ebay, compare their traffic just 3 years ago with their current status worldwide. One more point is that the team making these names are among the top, not just ordinary employees.

 

Making a thread to bring perspective to other people is "whining"? Guess every forum poster in the history of internet is a "whiner" then. We could imagine that hundred upon thousands of threads are produced world wide across the world wide web every one minute... and ALL are 'whiners' because they are posters asking insightful questions.

It's hard to fathom that ANY of thise "bigdogs" never used a message forum one time in their career.

otherwise, the rest of your post was a very good and insightful read. thanks for taking the time to post.

 

Simplicity and originality is always the key,
Great examples of simplicity over complication - google vs yahoo.

 

I know this thread was to spark discussion and offer insight, I did not mean to insult you in any way. I think I was pointing my comment at your second post stating that you have no interest in SEO and marketing and writing and everything else that goes into making a website... and want to focus on your passion. That is fine, but if your website is the second part of that passion you are going to HAVE to learn all of those things, or convince somebody else to love them for you, because it will not happen unless you do one of the two.

 

for example, I am going through backgrounds right now for some buttons to put on one of my sites... Do I want to be doing this? NOt really...I'd rather be having a beer playing pool... but it beats sitting in front of a computer typing out a memo, or worse yet, designing the same graphic that someone else gets all the credit for because they own the company(although the security is a little better)

 

I think the point that I was trying to make is SEO, Content keyword writing, and etc isn't something that I hate or dread... it's just a speed bump and discouraging because the time consumption to learn all this stuff that I won't use outside of my website. While I feel like I should be using my time for customer service and giving that next door kinda guy persona.

I willing to give my customers the absolute best attitude and willingness to help.. building a relationship with each person so they will 'tell a friend'.

I spend 14-16hrs on the net each day.. sometimes more. I only get off the internet to eat, shower, or sleep. I wake up in the morning excited to read my emails, help, solve, and close a sale. After that is done, I'll go make a pot of coffee to get mind ready to read up on "SEO" and "link development" and stuff.

I try to get my GF to help, but she's not interested. LOL. +she's going to school to major in business management, and shows little to know interested in my business. Then she'll get mad at me for not giving her enough attention.. so I have to try to give her one hour a day. blah. I'd rather be online makin things happen.

I didn't mean to come off with a bad attitude.. that's just my daily blog of life.

I really appreciate everyone posting in this thread. It helps look at things from a different angle and approach things in a different way.

Striving for constant growth is the success in becoming the elite. That's my theory.

 

Anybody that figures how they did should become the next bill gates

 

Like in the music world, if you have the right thing at the right time, your fortunes can turn on a dime. But its whether you have the talent/content that determines the longevity of your success.

 

brag man I gotta say I love the idea of your site... How does it do?

 

Sometimes it has to do with who you know or where you are.

However, you will have to have something "profound" in some way in order for it to take over by storm. It needs to be something that people will talk about... and redoing what somebody else already did is not profound.

Don't get me wrong, you can certainly compete with an existing model, but it isn't going to be the same as spreading like fire as you'll have to pay to get your message out.