Treadless.com

So last week I started talking about a article I read about Treadless.com and the guy who started it, Jake Nickell. I realized that I was getting quite wordy in my entry so I've moved it to today. I hope that's not cheating.

As I said last week, I've been reading the marketing magazines that come into my work and I'm very fascinated by them. It so interesting to understand the why of people's purchases and how some campagines work and others don't. I think it's the psychologist in me that gets interested in this kind of stuff. Anyway, I read a cool article about Jake Nickell and Treadless.com.

He, unintentionally, started the company on the basis of 'user innovation'. That somewhat means that the people who use the product come up with the product as well. It's similar to what you see happening in shareware for computers. In shareware, someone wants something and designs it for themselves, then lets other people use it since it might help them too. Pretty cool.

So this guy was a part of an online community already that frequently bounced ideas back an forth between each other. He designed a t-shirt, just for fun in the community's annual get together. His design was chosen and it felt cool to win. So he started online competitions for people to design t-shirts with other people voting. Whatever one wins, then he prints up a bunch and sells them. Initially the winner won $100 but that prize has now risen to $2500 and he is a millionaire. Crazy.

What is so cool about the program is what I find exciting about American Idol. The reason American Idol works so well is that you spend the entire season becoming involved in the final product. You vote for who you like. You do all of the market research for the record company. You tell them, I'll buy David Cook's album if you make one. So, they make one. Instead of launching an unknown artist and spending thousands of dollars for you to get to know him, they do all of the test marketing as they go. They let you get to know all of the contestants during 4 months of 'marketing' all while they narrow down the final, most profitable product.

This t-shirt company is doing the same thing just on a smaller scale. They are letting people vote on which design wins so they are telling you 'this is the shirt I would buy.' In fact, the owner says, that was his main idea. 'Why wouldn't I let people buy something they like?' Now on top of that, he's not only letting you tell him what you want, he's letting you make what you want. So cool.

So now this guy who's a college drop out and makes t-shirts is giving lectures at MIT to teach them business principles that they only theorized about. It so exciting!