Comments for Shuhaib Shariff http://shuhaib.com The Dark Knight... Yeah, Right! Fri, 30 Jul 2010 11:07:12 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-2) by Bill Roy http://shuhaib.com/2010/06/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-2/comment-page-1/#comment-315 Bill Roy Fri, 11 Jun 2010 05:53:24 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=156#comment-315 Just a quick note as I would like to say that so far I am in agreement with your analysis (although being a maverick and a poor one at that perhaps this is not the greatest recommendation). I look forward eagerly to your ideas on monetization of local sites, but from what you have said above about requiring 'out-of-the-box' solutions I totally agree. Indeed it was coming up with such a monetization method that led me into geo-domains as a way to utilize the method. Just a quick note as I would like to say that so far I am in agreement with your analysis (although being a maverick and a poor one at that perhaps this is not the greatest recommendation).

I look forward eagerly to your ideas on monetization of local sites, but from what you have said above about requiring ‘out-of-the-box’ solutions I totally agree. Indeed it was coming up with such a monetization method that led me into geo-domains as a way to utilize the method.

]]> Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) by Shuhaib Shariff » Blog Archive » Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-2) http://shuhaib.com/2010/05/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment-311 Shuhaib Shariff » Blog Archive » Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-2) Wed, 09 Jun 2010 11:02:12 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=154#comment-311 [...] About « Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) [...] [...] About « Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) [...]

]]> Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) by David J Castello http://shuhaib.com/2010/05/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment-290 David J Castello Wed, 19 May 2010 15:30:46 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=154#comment-290 @Shuhaib: The problem with LosAngeles.com and the rest of Dan Pulcrano's portfolio is that he literally has too much of a good thing. He owns 20 of the largest US cities and, in my opinion, will need to partner with established media in each of those cities to get them where they need to be. If you look at some of our other projects like Bullion.com, Daycare.com, Manicure.com, Suntan.com, etc you will see that they are more modernist in their designs than our Geos. The problem with our Geos is that we monetized them first and quickly discovered that local advertisers were willing to pay top dollar to be on the prime real estate of the front page. Every re-design that someone has suggested has asked that we remove many of the the front page ads - which would be financial suicide. Believe me, Michael and I are always open to a re-design, but we need to protect the formula that has generated so much revenue for us. @Shuhaib:
The problem with LosAngeles.com and the rest of Dan Pulcrano’s portfolio is that he literally has too much of a good thing. He owns 20 of the largest US cities and, in my opinion, will need to partner with established media in each of those cities to get them where they need to be.
If you look at some of our other projects like Bullion.com, Daycare.com, Manicure.com, Suntan.com, etc you will see that they are more modernist in their designs than our Geos. The problem with our Geos is that we monetized them first and quickly discovered that local advertisers were willing to pay top dollar to be on the prime real estate of the front page. Every re-design that someone has suggested has asked that we remove many of the the front page ads - which would be financial suicide. Believe me, Michael and I are always open to a re-design, but we need to protect the formula that has generated so much revenue for us.

]]> Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) by admin http://shuhaib.com/2010/05/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment-286 admin Wed, 19 May 2010 06:34:04 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=154#comment-286 David, The real estate business has an ecosystem consisting of land owners, architects, agents, builders & contractors. Each party brings something to the table. An architect does not need to own a large chunk of prime real estate to demonstrate that he understands the business. Most of us wish we could own "a significant Geo such as a US city.com", but everybody does not have the resources to make that happen. The few who do own significant geos, believe they have it all covered ... the question is: do they? and should others follow them? If you owned a prime piece of land around Manhattan and you built a ONE Floor coffee shop, would you be a profitable business? OFFCOURSE you'd be profitable. Anybody can be profitable selling coffee, pizzas, pancakes at that location. Why? Because its MANHATTAN Im sure you'd agree: If a business is about maximizing profits ... The "ONE Floor coffee shop" is a bad idea. A twenty-floor office might be a better option. Lets take the example of LosAngeles.com - Newspaper: LA Times pays the salary of 660 people (its entire staff) out of revenues derived from only its "WEB" operations: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/jan/12/la-times-online-advertising The number is rumored to be $75 million - Radio: Clear Channel CHR KIIS/Los Angeles was the #1 billing station of last year, bringing in $55 million. http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=1743493 You rightly assert that those who own a city's .com : "own the BRAND for these cities on the Internet". Should'nt LosAngeles.com's revenues then be in the same league as the media properties mentioned above? I have absolutely no insight into the revenues LosAngeles.com generates but I'd be pleasantly surprised if its even 10% of the two media properties mentioned above. David, I have great respect for how you've built PalmSprings.com from a concept to an incredible business. I suspect that the nature of the geodomain combined with your sales & marketing acumen have made it possible. Its easier for people like me today to look at a business model, recognize its strengths, identify its weaknesses and come out with better solutions. It must have been really hard for you to build the entire model from SCRATCH ... and make it work. Its not for nothing that the Castello brothers are recognized for being pioneers in this space. I'd differ with your views on design ... you said owning the pure city geo has "immense psychological effect on our viewers that translates into an extraordinary revenue conversion factor" similarly an aesthetic design creates a better user experience for visitors and has similar psychological effects :-) I cant see how it will make advertisers unhappy either! David,

The real estate business has an ecosystem consisting of land owners, architects, agents, builders & contractors. Each party brings something to the table. An architect does not need to own a large chunk of prime real estate to demonstrate that he understands the business.

Most of us wish we could own “a significant Geo such as a US city.com”, but everybody does not have the resources to make that happen. The few who do own significant geos, believe they have it all covered … the question is: do they? and should others follow them?

If you owned a prime piece of land around Manhattan and you built a ONE Floor coffee shop, would you be a profitable business? OFFCOURSE you’d be profitable. Anybody can be profitable selling coffee, pizzas, pancakes at that location. Why? Because its MANHATTAN
Im sure you’d agree: If a business is about maximizing profits … The “ONE Floor coffee shop” is a bad idea. A twenty-floor office might be a better option.

Lets take the example of LosAngeles.com

- Newspaper: LA Times pays the salary of 660 people (its entire staff) out of revenues derived from only its “WEB” operations:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/jan/12/la-times-online-advertising
The number is rumored to be $75 million

- Radio: Clear Channel CHR KIIS/Los Angeles was the #1 billing station of last year, bringing in $55 million.
http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=1743493

You rightly assert that those who own a city’s .com : “own the BRAND for these cities on the Internet”. Should’nt LosAngeles.com’s revenues then be in the same league as the media properties mentioned above?
I have absolutely no insight into the revenues LosAngeles.com generates but I’d be pleasantly surprised if its even 10% of the two media properties mentioned above.

David, I have great respect for how you’ve built PalmSprings.com from a concept to an incredible business. I suspect that the nature of the geodomain combined with your sales & marketing acumen have made it possible. Its easier for people like me today to look at a business model, recognize its strengths, identify its weaknesses and come out with better solutions. It must have been really hard for you to build the entire model from SCRATCH … and make it work. Its not for nothing that the Castello brothers are recognized for being pioneers in this space.

I’d differ with your views on design … you said owning the pure city geo has “immense psychological effect on our viewers that translates into an extraordinary revenue conversion factor” similarly an aesthetic design creates a better user experience for visitors and has similar psychological effects :-) I cant see how it will make advertisers unhappy either!

]]> Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) by Nigel http://shuhaib.com/2010/05/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment-284 Nigel Tue, 18 May 2010 22:41:49 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=154#comment-284 Some very good questions raised. I have over 40 geos that i want to develop and create a steady income from so any information about geo related sites are most welcome. A very nice come back Dave. Some very good questions raised. I have over 40 geos that i want to develop and create a steady income from so any information about geo related sites are most welcome.

A very nice come back Dave.

]]> Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) by David J Castello http://shuhaib.com/2010/05/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment-282 David J Castello Tue, 18 May 2010 18:58:33 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=154#comment-282 You raise some excellent points and much of what you're saying is spot on. However, until you've developed and monetized one of these major Geos you won't know the full story because much of what you're saying is from the outside looking in. Michael and I have been criticized many times about our sites. And every morning we cry all the way to the bank. Here are five things I'd like to point out: 1) Our Forums, Classifieds and Calendar of Events have a heavy local readership. 2) There are other Geos that gross more than PalmSprings.com. You can ask Frank and Rick and there is no parked site that comes anywhere close to what the top 10 US city Geos are currently grossing. 3) We worked really hard to make PalmSprings.com look that basic :) In 1998 I decided that our priority was generating advertising sales and not graphic design awards. Our front pages have been called visual spam, but our advertisers love it. And guess who pays the bills? 4) There are at least three very important reasons why SanDiego.com failed. I tried to warn Mark Burgess many times (do you see many ads on his front page?). Mark is a genius and a purist - and he had SanDiego.com taken away from him. However, he never failed to remind me how "basic" PalmSprings.com looks :) 5) With the Geos we own like PalmSprings.com. Nashville.com, LagunaBeach.com, etc, we own the BRAND for these cities on the Internet. This has an immense psychological effect on our viewers that translates into an extraordinary revenue conversion factor. The only people who disagree with that statement are the people who've never owned one. These Geos have many inherent marketing powers that no other domain name will ever have. My suggestion is that you acquire ownership in a significant Geo such as a US city.com. Then you will know why someone would book a water taxi through Atlanta.com instead of Travelocity or Expedia. I look foward to the rest of your article. You raise some excellent points and much of what you’re saying is spot on. However, until you’ve developed and monetized one of these major Geos you won’t know the full story because much of what you’re saying is from the outside looking in. Michael and I have been criticized many times about our sites. And every morning we cry all the way to the bank. Here are five things I’d like to point out:

1) Our Forums, Classifieds and Calendar of Events have a heavy local readership.

2) There are other Geos that gross more than PalmSprings.com. You can ask Frank and Rick and there is no parked site that comes anywhere close to what the top 10 US city Geos are currently grossing.

3) We worked really hard to make PalmSprings.com look that basic :) In 1998 I decided that our priority was generating advertising sales and not graphic design awards. Our front pages have been called visual spam, but our advertisers love it. And guess who pays the bills?

4) There are at least three very important reasons why SanDiego.com failed. I tried to warn Mark Burgess many times (do you see many ads on his front page?). Mark is a genius and a purist - and he had SanDiego.com taken away from him. However, he never failed to remind me how “basic” PalmSprings.com looks :)

5) With the Geos we own like PalmSprings.com. Nashville.com, LagunaBeach.com, etc, we own the BRAND for these cities on the Internet. This has an immense psychological effect on our viewers that translates into an extraordinary revenue conversion factor. The only people who disagree with that statement are the people who’ve never owned one. These Geos have many inherent marketing powers that no other domain name will ever have. My suggestion is that you acquire ownership in a significant Geo such as a US city.com. Then you will know why someone would book a water taxi through Atlanta.com instead of Travelocity or Expedia.

I look foward to the rest of your article.

]]> Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) by Should GeoDomains Cater to Tourists or Residents? | Domain News, Videos and Domain Blogs http://shuhaib.com/2010/05/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment-281 Should GeoDomains Cater to Tourists or Residents? | Domain News, Videos and Domain Blogs Tue, 18 May 2010 18:21:23 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=154#comment-281 [...] Shariff, founder of DoubleSpring Media (a web development company) got in touch on Twitter and pointed me to this editorial he has written about GeoDomain [...] [...] Shariff, founder of DoubleSpring Media (a web development company) got in touch on Twitter and pointed me to this editorial he has written about GeoDomain [...]

]]> Comment on Geodomain Development: What works | What doesnt (Part-1) by Should GeoDomains Cater to Tourists or Residents? http://shuhaib.com/2010/05/geodomain-development-what-works-what-doesnt-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment-279 Should GeoDomains Cater to Tourists or Residents? Tue, 18 May 2010 17:57:35 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=154#comment-279 [...] Shariff, founder of DoubleSpring Media (a web development company) got in touch on Twitter and pointed me to this editorial he has written about GeoDomain [...] [...] Shariff, founder of DoubleSpring Media (a web development company) got in touch on Twitter and pointed me to this editorial he has written about GeoDomain [...]

]]> Comment on Bangalore Mirror : Blatant Rip-Off by Avinash http://shuhaib.com/2010/02/bangalore-mirror-blatant-rip-off/comment-page-1/#comment-208 Avinash Sat, 27 Feb 2010 07:33:35 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=132#comment-208 Most Bangaloreans consider "bangalore mirror" to be toilet paper. Their stories are not worth the paper they are printed on. I say Sue the B@st@rds!!! Most Bangaloreans consider “bangalore mirror” to be toilet paper. Their stories are not worth the paper they are printed on. I say Sue the B@st@rds!!!

]]> Comment on Bangalore Mirror : Blatant Rip-Off by ricky http://shuhaib.com/2010/02/bangalore-mirror-blatant-rip-off/comment-page-1/#comment-207 ricky Fri, 26 Feb 2010 12:48:19 +0000 http://shuhaib.com/?p=132#comment-207 The mirror has always resorted to ways that put the entire media community to shame. I say mirror and not just bangalore mirror because even its elder cousin mumbai mirror has resorted to such crimes. first of all they report junk and absolutely lies. Mumbai mirror had recently been widely criticized by the bachans. i pity the times of india which is allowing its mirror (pun intended) to such acts of literary crime and filth. Years of credibility struck with the citizens of india which has made the times the leading newspaper in the englis language section is suddenly being put to ransom by it filthy 'mirror'. The mirror has always resorted to ways that put the entire media community to shame. I say mirror and not just bangalore mirror because even its elder cousin mumbai mirror has resorted to such crimes. first of all they report junk and absolutely lies. Mumbai mirror had recently been widely criticized by the bachans. i pity the times of india which is allowing its mirror (pun intended) to such acts of literary crime and filth. Years of credibility struck with the citizens of india which has made the times the leading newspaper in the englis language section is suddenly being put to ransom by it filthy ‘mirror’.

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