Businesses Change: Pivoting

The business world is constantly changing. The online business world is changing exponentially faster. With constant change, it is imperative for any business - old or new - to adapt quickly to market shifts. In the digital era, it is rare for a business to remain the same through its stages of conception, creation and establishment. Indeed some do remain the same, but at a grave cost. Here are a few real-world examples of the ever-changing world of business.

Instagram:

The popular image-sharing social network of Instagram started as a platform similar to Foursquare. The company, then called Burbn, quickly realized its niche in the market and after receiving $500,000 in seed funding focused primarily on photographs. Today the company has over 100 million monthly users.

Twitter:

The social media site Twitter began as Odeo, a podcast company in 2006. The board of the company held a meeting in which they discussed the idea of “sharing a SMS message to a small group of people”. The idea took off in 2007 when the company launched a marketing campaign at the South by Southwest Interactive conference. Six years later, the site generates 65 million tweets daily and has a valuation of over 3 billion dollars.

Fab.com

This fabulous e-commerce design and shopping site was once part of the realm of social media. When the site launched in 2010, it was competing against Facebook and Myspace before moving solely into design shopping. Once the site found its niche, it began expanding more rapidly than any other site on the web.

So what do all of these successful businesses have in common? The ability to pivot. Each company adapted to the environment of their respect market and capitalized upon a new area of market-fit. In a world where registering a new web domain is clicks away, every online business must be constantly aware of market trends and adapt quickly.

To see how Flash Purchase is doing this click here!

Say Hello to 100,000 Deals

Dear Flashers,

In case you haven’t noticed, Flash Purchase now has a new menu tab that for you should mean much more than a tab.

We just launched over 100,000 great deals from our partners in a wide range of product and service categories. From that perfect bag to your dream spring break getaway, you will not be disappointed by our up-to-date and ever expanding deal library, which, hopefully, will give you fresh new ideas about what you can create and buy with your friends ;)

Follow this link, browse editor’s picks and get started!

While you are helping us with an exciting online shopping revolution, have fun saving for you and your friends!  Happy shopping.

I Want It That Way

Burger King hit the nail on the head when they coined, “Have it your way.” The marketing team at BK obviously foresaw the future trend of consumerism in our millennium market: I want what I want, when I want, where I want, for how much I want it.

Call it lazy or call it efficient, but one thing’s for sure, the “mega-mall” way of shopping is quickly going out of style. Consumerism in the future won’t depend on a flashy ad campaign or annual department store mark-downs. No, the big future of shopping will rely on something quite small- maybe even small enough to fit inside your pocket.

Whether you’re packing an iPhone, a droid, or you’re testing out Blackberry’s last chance brainchild, your smart phone is your portal to the online marketplace. And as mobile usage increases, social media consumption will continue to rise. Compared to last year’s numbers, 76 percent of consumers increased their social application time. This means more time on Pinterest, Facebook, Snapchat, and- yep, you called it- mobile shopping apps.

If we can check our email, log into our bank account, make a call, and book a flight all from our mobile device, then why shouldn’t we shop mobile too? Well, wake up 5th avenue because we are. Mobile sales are up 96 percent since 2011 (National Retail Federation 2012) and by 2014 mobile internet is predicted to take over desktop internet usage (Microsoft Tag 2012).

What’s more, nearly 50 percent of shoppers believe they are more informed than in-store associates (Motorola 2013). Translation? We know what we want and we want to buy it how we want in a format that fits seamlessly with our daily technology habits.

Enter Flash Purchase. Call it the poster child of millennial consumerism; Flash Purchase is an online and mobile marketplace that recognizes the selfishness of modern day shopping. It provides a transparent platform that allows buyers and sellers to create deals for goods they need at prices they want. Built on individualism and reliant on social media, Flash Purchase embodies the future of consumerism.

So as I pull out my droid to check my Facebook notifications, I also log into Flash Purchase to check the status of the deal I created for Logitech Tablet Keyboard. Why pay retail price in-store when I can get the product I want, for the price I want, without having to talk to a salesperson who doesn’t know what I want? Call me a millennial, but that sounds like a pretty great deal.

iPhone: A Love Story

Over the weekend I was devastated when I cracked the screen of my new iPhone 5, dropping it as I was getting out of my friend’s car. There is a huge fissure starting from the bottom left corner that runs throughout the phone, effectively destroying the beautiful display. The phone still functions pretty great with little to no effect on the touch screen. However, one thing I’ve noticed now that I don’t use my phone as much, (it’s pretty hard to read anything) is how much I have been using my phone recently.  

I had only just gotten my phone over Thanksgiving having upgraded from a dumb-phone that only could text and make calls. Upon activating my brand spanking new iPhone I was in love, within minutes I was on the blazing fast 4G LTE standing in front of a display in Best Buy looking up what case I should buy to protect my lovely new toy. I downloaded many, many apps, some purely for entertainment, but others to help me be more productive or informed. I was infatuated. I became more connected than ever, not only to my favorite websites, but also to my favorite sports teams. And because many of my friends also own iPhones I was able to connect with them more easily and became more aware of what was going on in their lives.

However, my relationship with my phone was beginning to change my life in ways I was not expecting. Having had a dumb-phone for far longer than most people I know, I had seen the dangers of the smartphone: the commitment to always be up to date, the inability to stay focused for longer than a few minutes, the longing for a device when you forget it on your dresser, that sense of urgency that comes with every vibrate, and the compulsion to be attached to it when alone or in an awkward setting. I fell prey like many before me and lost some of myself to my love affair with my phone.

The iPhone has changed not only the way people interact but our very behavior. People multitask more and more while their attention spans continue to shrink. We have become addicted to our devices often placing greater importance on what is going on in our mobile world than the real one. One only needs to look around at a sporting event or concert and see that many people will have their phones out taking pictures or shooting video at the expense of not really pay attention to the show. Posting pictures online through Facebook or Instagram have changed how we experience life. For many people living in the moment is not enough, they must take pictures on their phones to share with their friends in order to prove that they are having a good time.

Apple’s trademarked phrase “There’s an App for That!” has become a reality. It’s constantly improving capabilities have made many things obsolete while creating “needs” that we never knew we needed. More and more households no longer have landlines and when was the last time you popped a CD into your Walkman? The cellphone has transformed into a device with almost unlimited potential when combined with different software. In fact a new app “Uchek” allows people to analyze their own urine to check for health problems by taking a picture of a test strip. (http://investorplace.com/2013/02/urine-tests-theres-an-app-for-that/). The smartphone created a need to be always connected and it is still evolving.  

There is a certain intimate relationship that people have with their phones. They put their entire lives into their phones turning their devices into an extension of themselves. While my relationship with my iPhone has literally taken a tumble and I might be spending a little less time with my baby and a little more time on my MacBook, I know I’ll be back. I’m looking into patching up our relationship (fixing the screen) and getting her better insurance and protection so that we may have a long and happy relationship (at least until the new iPhone comes along). As a generation that is more connected than ever, we have to realize that time spent with real people is infinitely more significant than time spent with our phones.

So why don’t you check out some deals on Flash Purchase, the only user driven community that creates mutually beneficial connections between buyers and sellers? Use our platform to empower and unite the buyer: you and your friends, so that you can get the things that you want at the price you deserve.

New Money Saving Tip for This Spring

Cold weather is finally waning and it’s time to dust off winter with new spring gadgets, clothes, accessories and trips. Are you ready for more shopping but your wallet hasn’t recovered from the winter holidays? No worries! Here at Flash Purchase, our hard working Flashers have just created a Springtime Deal Creators Contest for all innovative shoppers and sellers to get great deals AND a chance to win $200.

How to join the contest?

• Register with us at www.flashpurchase.com if you haven’t already, and create a deal on whatever product or service you want to buy or sell by the end of March.
• Share your deal with friends and invite them to join. The bigger the purchasing group, the more you save or make.
• The deal creator whose deal transacts with the largest number of participants will be rewarded a $200 Visa gift card.

Get pumped for this spring party with all other Flashers! There are better ways to shop and sell online that you may not know yet. Why not try something new this Spring and help us build a more transparent and user-driven online shop where everyone benefits? :)

How will telecosm change your business?

In the year 2000 George Gilder published what has since been called the “bible of new age communications”. This book outlines the future of telecommunication in all of its facets. The biggest point that Gilder makes, and the point that is most relevant to you and your company is the idea of infinite bandwidth.

What is infinite bandwidth?

Now this term “bandwidth” can be confusing, but it simply means communication. Infinite communication, that is what Gilder sees as the future of the technological era. So how is this relevant to the business world? Once applied, this concept completely changes the game; the future of business is online. With infinite bandwidth geographical limits disappear and the traditional business model changes. People will be constantly connected and easily united.

Where are we now?

We’re not completely there yet. Traditional businesses still exist and will for a long time. However there are some examples of infinite bandwidth businesses. Flash Purchase is one example of this. The company started in 2010 as an idea. This idea quickly grew into a business concept, and in late 2011 Flash Purchase, LLC was born. The company consists of 6 members, most of whom have never met one another in person.

How does it work?

The biggest avenue of communication is through email. Email can follow you most anywhere with the advancement of smartphones and it’s a easy to use. Online databases serve as the heart and soul of a company. With these databases everyone can share documents, images and anything else. Verbal communication is easy with online conference calling. The only thing that you really miss out on with an infinite bandwidth business are the awkward handshakes!

How to Run A Promotional Contest On Social Media

(Image from a previous contest we ran on Facebook)

For small and large businesses alike running a promotional contest on the web can help your company gain large amounts of traffic that you wouldn’t normally see. Even simple contests like giving away a gift card can increase interest in your business. Yet there is always a risk, even with the most basic promotions, that scammers can make their way in and disrupt the contest by unfairly biasing the results of it.

So here are a few tips on how to avoid an unfair contest that will actually promote your business.

1. Always use a social media marketing tool. These applications, such as Wildfire or HootSuite will help you greatly manage any competition. Whether your are using Facebook, Twitter or any other social media, tools like these can give you progress reports on contest entrants, analytics on those entrants and even help randomly select a winner.
DISCLAIMER: Most of these tools do cost a small amount to use, though some have free trials.

2. Include a “Contest Rules”. This seems commonsensical, but when running a promotion your “Rules” are often the only thing that can save you from a tainted contest. In a recent contest we ran on Facebook (for the company Flash Purchase) we asked for “likes” on user-submitted photos. Much to our surprise and chagrin we started seeing “likes” on photos coming from completely falsified accounts. Lucky enough for us we had a clause in our official rules stating we had the right to cancel the contest at any time… so we did that and donated the what would have been our contest giveaway money to Hurricane Sandy relief.

3. Give incentives to increase your business. Don’t simply make a contest to give away a prize, make your entrants earn it. Some ideas for this include following you on Twitter to be entered, registering for an e-mail list or to “like” your page on Facebook in order to participate. For a gift card or free iPod, I find most people are more than willing to do this.

4. Make it fun! Your contests don’t have to be cut and dry. Ask for photo submissions or new ideas for your business. This not only gets you publicity but can actually give you new content for your company.

Promotional contests are a great way to engage your audience. Though people may become interested only for the prize you are giving away, they are your audience for the duration of the promotion and if you do it right, you can keep them on board even after the contest is over.

To see Flash Purchase’s most recent contest click here.

The Flash Purchase iPad App is Here!

After sorting out the kinks and making sure Flash Purchase looks just as great on a tablet as it does on other browsers, we are happy to announce that Flash Purchase is now fully accessible on iPad and other tablets. We thank all of our current fans who have registered and been with Flash Purchase since the beginning stages and are so excited for what the future holds as we continue to make improvements to the site.

In honor of this, we are initiating a new contest in which one lucky entrant will win an iPad mini. All you have to do is go to Flash Purchase and if you haven’t already, register. Then, click on create a deal and enter a unique deal that you would like to see on the website. Then, share the deal on your social networking sites and get at least nine friends to join your deal. If at least 25 users create deals, each deal creator will be entered into a drawing, and one person will be rewarded with the iPad mini with Wi-Fi 16GB.

The sweepstakes will be running from now through February 14, 2013, and what better way to start off the new year than great savings and possibly an iPad mini?

Launching Is Like An Open House Party

Launching a start-up is like having an open house and not knowing who will show up and how they will behave at the party!

As a user-driven platform, that’s part of the fun! It is entirely up to our users how the website will function best!  As much as we planned for our Flash Purchase launch, the way users interact with the site is always a mystery which makes it very challenging and hopefully very rewarding.

To get our guest list better acquainted with the figurative Flash Purchase party, we are featuring some of our most important frequently asked questions.

How is Flash Purchase different from other online shopping websites?

Flash Purchase was created to empower buyers to create their own deals, join other deals and share them with anyone they wished to help build consumers with like-minded interest to band together to get great deals based on the volume associated with group purchasing. Sellers can bid on these deals or create deals of their own that can have prices vary depending upon the number of buyers in a deal.

How do I join a deal?

If you are interested in purchasing a product, simply click “Join” and the deal will be added to the “Joined Deals” section on your dashboard. You will be asked to fill out or confirm payment information upon joining a deal, but you will not be charged until a seller meets the Target Deal Price. If the deal is completed, you will be notified via email and charged the final price of the product.

What does it mean when I join a deal?

When you join a deal, you agree to buy the deal if and only if, a seller offers the Target Deal Price or lower. A deal will not be transacted unless a seller meets its Target Deal Price or lower when it expires.   If a seller doesn’t offer the Target Deal Price or lower, you will not be charged if you have previously joined that deal.

Can I create my own deal?

Yes. A unique feature at Flash Purchase is that you can create your own deal and name your own price. After creating your own deal, Flash Purchase makes it easy to share so that you can increase participation in your deal which will help get even better prices than the target deal price you set.

Where can I view deals that are created by myself?

You can view deals that are created by yourself in the “Deals I Created” section under your account. After your deal is approved by Flash Purchase, you will receive an email that asks you to activate the deal. It will then show up the “Joined Deals” section on your dashboard.

Can Sellers Create Deals that I can join?

Yes! Sellers can create tiered deals where they can vary prices by the number of buyers that join the deals. You can join these deals and share them too to help build the purchasing group that will result in lower prices for all.