Building Building Moxie (the internet and you -- one of maybe two)

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The online landscape

May 2008 -- I needed a place to start, a starting point, for a systematic review of the online landscape. And I found that rather quickly in http://alexa.com. Plugging in phrases like “Home Improvement” and “How-to,” boom, bam, like that I had a great point from which to begin my exploration.

Focused only on US-based websites, these initial searches yielded a list of about 400 sites. And . . . off I went asurfing the internet. I will point out again that I wasn’t necessarily reading content per se, or viewing galleries, at this point, I was looking, instead, at 1.What these sites were offering their visitors, and 2. How these sites were making their money.

I am not suggesting, no way no how, that just like that I had a comprehensive list. I am not certain that any list of websites could ever be totally and absolutely complete. The online landscape changes frequently.

Even recently, the Twittosphere has turned me onto http://www.homesavvi.com, a great site out of the Northwest, as well as a very promising community-oriented site in http://www.homedigz.com.

On the ground and running, though, banner, Google, and various other ads guided me down the right avenues. In the short term, my list grew . . . later, it ebbed.

Pondscapes (to borrow the name of a friend’s business)

First impressions -- well, since my first look, back in 2004, the online world had changed . . . a little; I was not oblivious to that. While not yet linked into the social networking scene, I was still aware of the movement towards “Web 2.0.”

With video streaming smoothly at that point, the online delivery of how-to video content was not only possible, but being done.

Nonetheless, I wouldn’t let that distract me. Technology had evolved a little, yes, delivery methods were maturing, but the audiences still there, were the same; right?

Chiseling (or is that raking and aerating)

I started first by systematically eliminating websites that were tightly tied to a product and/or a brand. In this category, http://www.benjaminmoore.com/ and http://minwax.com/ -- Great tools and tips available at both these and other locations, but not necessarily within the scope, and/or in the spirit of, my venture.

Mind you, too, that Alexa did not at the time have much focus on the blogosphere, and frankly I didn’t give it much credence either -- the irony in this of course is funny.

For me, blogging has been liberating, and certainly, there is great content being served up using better blogging tools. Strong and fluid voices are coming out of destinations like http://homefixated.com/ and http://www.younghouselove.com/ . . . to name a few.

But alas, these sites were not included in my research. And ultimately, I dwindled my list down to approximately 130 websites. These 130 sites, in the period between May 2008 and August 2008, were actively generating “how to”-oriented home improvement content.

Warning again – I am not suggesting that my list was anywhere near complete, nor on the other end, not overstated; but I did feel that it offered a large enough slice to allow me to do some significant analysis.

In the words of D.Boon . . . Enjoy the detour

In the five-month period that I researched, I categorized and I explored and I documented my impressions.

There were four websites, however, that had a course-changing impact on what and how I wanted to do my thing. I will talk briefly about three of them here: http://www.angieslist.com/, http://www.servicemagic.com/, and http://www.managemyhome.com/.

First, Angie’s List – I don’t think that there is anything more that needs to be said about this operation. Frankly, their growth strategy is tough to punch a hole in, and I admire, among other things, how they got that thing off the ground (shout to Angie Hicks). This service obviously has great value, and has gained many supporters/subscribers over the last few years.

Next, Service Magic – The near perfect home improvement website -- They balance equally do-it-for-me matchmaking with very robust, and intelligently-generated, support information. It was tough for me, when looking at this website (as someone who has worked in web development and who also understands their business model), not to simply drool all over myself. But . . . I didn't, and I will stop there.

The Spotlight Dance

And then, there it was . . . MMH – Manage My Home – I will call this website, flawed perfectly like a flower, the stunner (you know, that incredibly beautiful woman that walks into the room, stopping hearts, and spilling drinks).

In fact, if I were designing a website, this would be the website that I would want to model mine after. It’s the level of interactivity, laid out for those that like words, as well as pictures, for those that respect the AJAX, and for those who don’t like to click much -- that does it, all backed by expert experience and a vibrant homeowners community.

That said, though, they had me way before that: The one thing about MMH that really stood out for me -- their focus on the “you”. Countless numbers of great tools (synced with email reminders) just waiting to help you get things done around your house . . . with efficiency. And yes, I have occasionally referred my friends here. This site is simply a pleasure to visit and use.

Coming on like Vincent, the kid that tricked Elaine into bringing him vodka, cigs and a R rated movie (aka at this point, you might be saying, so what jb -- you haven’t done anything yet)

And it is true – I am in the early stages of slowly implementing my business plan. And with me, it is for practical reasons . . . this battle between ego/superego – ok no, it is a battle between sharing and guarding.

Bottom line is – I know what I want to do, I think -- thanks in part to the exploration above -- I know what I think my market might want, but I just don’t know fully how I am going to go about supporting it.

Maybe, I might write more about this in my next post, and thanks for reading.

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More Moxie:
Understand that I can be overly verbose, poorly edited, and it was written by someone who is sometimes called a technical writer, but I would be willing to send the full copy of my Web Market Report to anyone who asks. There might be something useful for someone in there. Email: j.bmoxie@gmail.com -- Anyway, BMoxie BMore.