5 ms·

I would agree with those below who said the advice is largely nonportable (a trait I find to apply to most of what 37 Signals says, although it is interesting n

I would agree with those below who said the advice is largely nonportable (a trait I find to apply to most of what 37 Signals says, although it is interesting nevertheless), because most companies are not in the business of teaching or evangelism, nor should be/can be in that business. The injunction to identify and sell byproducts is a pretty bad one for most companies. Growth and success in business is achieved by returns to scale in core competencies, as a general rule. This does not mean you can't "branch out" and have other business units, but in general, loss of focus, especially for a small company and/or startup, can be devastating if already thin resources are cannibalised for some new offering wholly unrelated to the original mission.

jasonfried 16y ago
I went to a pig butchering demo a few weeks ago at a local restaurant. It was on a Sunday morning when the restaurant wasn't open. Admission was $50. They had about 20 people there. That's $1000 to the restaurant on a Sunday morning when they are usually closed to the public. They were butchering the pig anyway, but by turning it into a $50/seat class they were able to significantly increase their profit margin on that pig. It didn't get in their way, it didn't cause them to lose focus. What it did was increase their profits and get people excited about eating at their restaurant. I know I wanted to go back and taste some of that pork. It's great business.
- jakewalker 16y ago
  Reminds me of Zingermans in Ann Arbor, where Ari & company have turned a deli into a deli, baking classes, creamery, cheese-making demos, business training center, restaurant, dinner events, etc. For every new business Zingermans opens, they find a way to turn the business into a place where they can host events (dinners, earlier in the summer they had a bacon festival, they sometimes teach their method of opening their books to all employees, etc.) and really create profit and excitement in non-traditional ways. See http://www.zingermanscommunity.com/our-businesses http://www.zingermanscommunity.com/our-businesses Jason's right; while not everyone may be able to turn their office into a place where people pay $1,000 a head to attend a workshop, there is certainly something to learn from thinking about how to utilize your business/office space/etc. to earn incremental revenue and promote your business.
  - tptacek 16y ago
    Zingermans is amazing (it's one of the three things I miss about living in Ann Arbor). But I'm chiming in here to add that Zingermans doesn't just host random events; just like Jason Fried, Zingermans teaches workshops on "how to be like Zingermans". The Marion Street Cheese Market down the street from me in Oak Park went to one, and are rabid disciples.
- abalashov 16y ago
  I'm glad it worked for the restaurant; that's why I said "most" companies.
  - tptacek 16y ago
    It works for many restaurants. Vie in Western Springs also has a pickling demo I'm thinking about going to; they also coordinate a co-branded CSA basket with classes. Restaurant demos are a very widespread practice.
- tptacek 16y ago
  Did you go to Mado? I just bought a whole pig through them and was considering the butchering demo. Worth it? (I f'ing love that place).
  - jasonfried 16y ago
    Yup, it was Mado. The demo was definitely worth it. You get to go home with a few cuts of pork as well.
    - tptacek 16y ago
      Get a quarter or a half pig from Slagel Farms through them. It's cheaper than supermarket pig, no-shit blind-test 10x better, and the Mado staff is unbelievably cool about the whole thing (Rob Levitt helped carry my pig out to my car during the dinner rush). Can't say enough good things about that place.
- mkramlich 16y ago
  Gruesome.
tptacek 16y ago
We do open-enrollment training at Matasano for appsec issues. The advice ports to us. I can't be the only one here for whom this article resonates directly.
mikeryan 16y ago
" because most companies are not in the business of teaching or evangelism, nor should be/can be in that business" Actually most companies _should_ be in the evangelism and teaching business. The marketing is invaluable. And I bet more companies then you know do this. For example Google just had an event at the GooglePlex for small business owners on how to better user adwords (or something like that - I heard second hand from a friend thats a local small business owner). Even if you can't make a profit at it many businesses actively support user groups and evangelism groups. For example I share a building with Engine Yard and Sauce Labs. Both actively support the relevant user groups with space and time.

jasonfried 16y ago

I went to a pig butchering demo a few weeks ago at a local restaurant. It was on a Sunday morning when the restaurant wasn't open. Admission was $50. They had about 20 people there. That's $1000 to the restaurant on a Sunday morning when they are usually closed to the public. They were butchering the pig anyway, but by turning it into a $50/seat class they were able to significantly increase their profit margin on that pig. It didn't get in their way, it didn't cause them to lose focus. What it did was increase their profits and get people excited about eating at their restaurant. I know I wanted to go back and taste some of that pork. It's great business.

jakewalker 16y ago
Reminds me of Zingermans in Ann Arbor, where Ari & company have turned a deli into a deli, baking classes, creamery, cheese-making demos, business training center, restaurant, dinner events, etc. For every new business Zingermans opens, they find a way to turn the business into a place where they can host events (dinners, earlier in the summer they had a bacon festival, they sometimes teach their method of opening their books to all employees, etc.) and really create profit and excitement in non-traditional ways. See http://www.zingermanscommunity.com/our-businesses http://www.zingermanscommunity.com/our-businesses Jason's right; while not everyone may be able to turn their office into a place where people pay $1,000 a head to attend a workshop, there is certainly something to learn from thinking about how to utilize your business/office space/etc. to earn incremental revenue and promote your business.
- tptacek 16y ago
  Zingermans is amazing (it's one of the three things I miss about living in Ann Arbor). But I'm chiming in here to add that Zingermans doesn't just host random events; just like Jason Fried, Zingermans teaches workshops on "how to be like Zingermans". The Marion Street Cheese Market down the street from me in Oak Park went to one, and are rabid disciples.
abalashov 16y ago
I'm glad it worked for the restaurant; that's why I said "most" companies.
- tptacek 16y ago
  It works for many restaurants. Vie in Western Springs also has a pickling demo I'm thinking about going to; they also coordinate a co-branded CSA basket with classes. Restaurant demos are a very widespread practice.
tptacek 16y ago
Did you go to Mado? I just bought a whole pig through them and was considering the butchering demo. Worth it? (I f'ing love that place).
- jasonfried 16y ago
  Yup, it was Mado. The demo was definitely worth it. You get to go home with a few cuts of pork as well.
  - tptacek 16y ago
    Get a quarter or a half pig from Slagel Farms through them. It's cheaper than supermarket pig, no-shit blind-test 10x better, and the Mado staff is unbelievably cool about the whole thing (Rob Levitt helped carry my pig out to my car during the dinner rush). Can't say enough good things about that place.
mkramlich 16y ago
Gruesome.

tptacek 16y ago

We do open-enrollment training at Matasano for appsec issues. The advice ports to us. I can't be the only one here for whom this article resonates directly.

mikeryan 16y ago

" because most companies are not in the business of teaching or evangelism, nor should be/can be in that business" Actually most companies _should_ be in the evangelism and teaching business. The marketing is invaluable. And I bet more companies then you know do this. For example Google just had an event at the GooglePlex for small business owners on how to better user adwords (or something like that - I heard second hand from a friend thats a local small business owner). Even if you can't make a profit at it many businesses actively support user groups and evangelism groups. For example I share a building with Engine Yard and Sauce Labs. Both actively support the relevant user groups with space and time.