Alexa Is Paperless (4)

Alexa Is Paperless (1)
Alexa Is Paperless (2)
Alexa Is Paperless (3)

Alexa says she is a very internal person. As in, she does not attend many events. She stays focused on her customers and her team, and that right there is more than a full time commitment. The media and pundits are lagging indicators. They are usually three months behind. It is so much more productive to get on the phone with a customer who might feel compelled to pick up the phone.

Alexa Is Paperless (3)

Alexa Is Paperless (1)
Alexa Is Paperless (2)

Deploying the basic product meant people started sending cards out to people in their network. Everyone who received the cards were potential new users. Many of them did come along as users. And when these new users sent out cards, the circle only widened.

Alexa Is Paperless (2)

Alexa Is Paperless (1)

Alexa grew up in New York City. She attended Harvard. She was at CBS for two years after college. She did not find the medium - television - all that interesting. Everything had already been figured out. The idea for the company first came from her brother who is a cofounder. I don't know of another brother sister cofounding team to a tech startup.

She thinks the ability to appreciate what people bring to the table is key. She thinks it is important to know what she does not know. Every wanna be leader pays lip service to the team concept, but Alexa means it.

Alexa Is Paperless (1)

I managed to show up on time. I simply ran after I got out of the train. I was on time. I showed up at 2 PM. At first I went into the wrong building. I was supposed to show up at 151, but I walked into 115. The place did not have an elevator, and I am having thoughts of walking up nine flights of stairs. I will definitely be late, I thought. Then I realized I got the house number wrong. I got out quick. And I ran. I showed up. On time.



I took an immediate liking to Alexa's new office. This would be my idea of a great office space. There was this big, open space in the middle. There were work tables. People ended up facing each other, although at some distance. There were unused work spaces. Obviously Alexa had expansion plans.

Microfinance, Not Just Microcredit

Image via WikipediaOne of the major lessons the microfinance industry has learned over the decades is that the poor need more than microcredit. They need a broad swath of financial services.

As soon as they start a business, they want to be able to open up a savings account with you. They want to be able to make easy payments. They want to be able to receive money from relatives who might have gone to some distant city or country.

And you have to offer the whole package deal. Although I do think microcredit continues to be the crown jewel of microfinance. But people don't just wear jewelry. They also like to wear clothes, also undergarments perhaps.

Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare, FoodSpotting: Sharks

Image via CrunchBaseI asked a question at the final event during Social Media Week I attended.

Microsoft tried to buy or bury Google. "My question is for the FourSquare guy. Google tried to buy or bury Facebook. Facebook tried to buy or bury FourSquare." Well, Facebook tried to buy or bury Twitter first. "But FourSquare instead has attempted integration with FoodSpotting. And that is right by the market, right by the consumer, right by FourSquare, and right by FoodSpotting. Where did that wisdom come from? What made you want to do the right thing?"

And yesterday news was that Google was attempting a much deeper integration of Twitter in its search results. Integration is key. Facebook should similarly attempt deep integration with web properties like FoodSpotting. And there are going to be many, many players in that space. FoodSpotting has occupied but one vertical.

MacBook: First Impressions

Image via WikipediaIt is cute. The aesthetics are obvious. Somebody put some love into making this thing.

It does not crash. It holds steady.

How do you do right click on this thing? I had to google that up.

How do you take a screen shot? I had to google that up. You actually get to hear the camera click sound.

And the speaker is great. This is a huge differential.

Toshiba Satellite To Macbook To Chrome Notebook

City Bakery After PaperlessPost

Image by Sifu Renka via FlickrLarry Ellison

I am dropping by the PaperlessPost offices this afternoon. I will be there for about two hours, maybe two and a half. The idea is to talk to Alexa for about 60 to 90 minutes, then talk to some of her key people for 10 to 15 minutes each.

Then I am hoping to walk over to City Bakery to tidy up my papers and collect my thoughts, jot down some additional notes on my own. 3 West 18th Street.

Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge

I think I might end up doing a half dozen posts on this gang. This is the fourth post on Alexa already. I think I will have done 10 or more by the time I am through.

Dumbo And Union Square

Image via WikipediaI am headed to Union Square Friday afternoon to spend a few hours with the PaperlessPost team and its fearless leader Alexa Herschfeld. I had a voice mail from her Wednesday and Google Voice had transcribed her name as Celexa Ourselves. Not good, Google Voice, not good.

And to me it is feeling like I am headed to Dumbo. Dumbo and Union Square are two places in town that have tech clusters. There are a whole bunch of tech startups congregated in those two locales.

If there are other such clusters in the city, I am not aware of them as of yet. I am surprised there are not similar clusters in Williamsburg and Chinatown. I know of at least one major tech company that is based out of Chinatown, but I don't think you would call that a cluster.

Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge

Rangeela

Toshiba Satellite To Macbook To Chrome Notebook

Image via WikipediaOn my grand journey to the Chrome Notebook, I have decided to give the Macbook a try for a few days. Then it is Chrome Notebook all the time for me. The switch is going to be total. There is just something about the Chrome browser.

I am on a Macbook right now. But not for long. My Chrome Notebook is on the way. I have an email directly from Google.

I have a message for you MacBook users. The thing about the Chrome Notebook is you can't buy it out there in the market. It just does not exist. It is too futuristic to hit the ground right now. It is too cutting edge.

You are going to have to wait for about, ummm, six months. Sorry. Life is unfair. You are just going to have to wait. There are some things money can't buy. Right now a Chrome Notebook is one of them.

Barack Is Going To Need Me All Over Again

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeBarack is going to need me all over again during his re-election bid, and I am going to be there for him. Barack needed me in his run for the presidency. And he is going to need me all over again. I will be there for him in his hour of need.

I maintain the hunger of someone who was forced to skip the victory parties of June 2008 and November 2008, and felt Inauguration 2009 simply pass him by. I missed the celebrations. I stayed hungry.

I am going to bring that hunger to the table for Barack all over again.