Feb
20
Need some PR? Google can help!
Since the launch of ShopSavvy in 2008, we have had two primary competitors – Google and Amazon. Last week Google launched their THIRD barcode scanning shopping app (1st was Barcode Scanner (open source project by Google folks and 2nd was Google Goggles) called Google Shopper. All three are great apps. Lots of people have asked me, “So is this the end of ShopSavvy?”
The simple answer is, “I hope not.” Google and Amazon are NOT the sort of competitors a startup should take lightly, but I do think their (repeated) entrance into our space is good news. We really stumbled onto something when we our app first won Google’s Android Developer Challenge and (obviously) they didn’t over look this fact.
100% of our focus is on making ShopSavvy the BEST shopping application on the market. Our goals are simple:
- No. 1 INFORM the user
- No. 2 EMPOWER the user
- No. 3 INSPIRE the user
We have been doing No. 1 for about 18 months. We are just about to offer No. 2 with our payments integration. Finally, we hope to complete No. 3 by the end of the second quarter. Earlier this month I wrote about focusing on what your competitors are doing in a post titled, “Negative Target Acquisition“. We will keep trying to make ShopSavvy the BEST shopping application on the market. Ironically, Google’s new app has DRAMATICALLY increased our download volume. We are adding new users at a level we have NEVER seen before. Google’s PR effort is amazing, but interestingly my Google Alert’s for ‘ShopSavvy’ have been going off every hour as a new stories mentions both Google’s new app AND ShopSavvy. It is insane. So, I just wanted to thank Google for all the PR. We will continue to attempt to innovate and users will decide the ultimate winner(s).
Awesome post. Glad to hear you’re looking at this with such a positive light. I gotta say, I checked out Shopper and was disappointed – it’s not nearly as robust as what you guys have put out here. The one thing I did like about Shopper was the cool (yet pointless) animation it uses while scanning.
Can’t wait to see ShopSavvy’s future.
Comment by Ryan — February 20, 2010 @ 11:08 pm
Nice Post Alex.
I have been following the Google PR closely as well.
As Carlos Slim Helu (the guy who bought Telmex and the richest man in Mexico, I think…) once said:
“In this new wave of technology, you can’t do it all yourself, you have to form alliances.”
The question recurring questions I have:
1) Who do we form these alliance with when we have a choice?
2) What is the proper basis for forming these alliances?
The core message our company has continued to promote is that we don’t compete in the same marketplace with our allies. Pretty simple.
The trouble is what about when our allies compete with one another? Do you have Carlos Slim’s phone number? If you do, call him collect and ask him.
He can afford the call an I am guessing that he does not have to pay his phone bill anyway.
John Bailey
Comment by John Bailey — February 21, 2010 @ 3:31 am
would suggest focusing on points of differentiation that Google cannot – more importantly, will NOT – mimic.
Comment by Nishan — February 21, 2010 @ 11:11 am