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I know the founders and have been enjoying watching my Work For Pie score grow (but unfortunately did not find a job through them, as my score is just starting

by hmsimha 13y ago

I know the founders and have been enjoying watching my Work For Pie score grow (but unfortunately did not find a job through them, as my score is just starting to gain some merit). I think if they had been in a more tech-friendly city they would have been in a better position to develop successful marketing campaigns. Unfortunately, Memphis does not have the best climate for startups or tech businesses. I wish Brad and Cliff the best on their future ventures!

kintamanimatt 13y ago
Can you elaborate on why you think Memphis was a bad idea? With the ability to talk to people anywhere by phone, email, Twitter, forum, blog post, etc, what do you think is the drawback to being in Memphis? It seems like their customers are geographically dispersed, rather than concentrated in a more tech-friendly city.
- hmsimha 13y ago
  I guess since I've moved to Portland, I've been spoiled with what a thriving tech scene can be like. I also went to a hackathon in Nashville right before I moved away and was impressed by their community. Brad (one of WFP's founders) is the organizer of the Memphis Python user group, which is (as far as I know having moved away from Memphis mid-May) one of Memphis' few tech meetup groups. There's a reason that a disproportionate number of startups come out of Silicon Valley. The culture there feeds into itself, and networking opportunities are orders of magnitude greater. You mentioned that you not hearing of them was indicative of a marketing failure on their part. My own take on it is, if they had been in the silicon valley area, they would have had many more opportunities to get their name out. The Memphis tech scene is too far from any of the big hubs, and, yes, it's true that anything that can be done in person can be done over the wire as well, but in practice, not having the ability to put yourself in meatspace with people who might be interested in your product/startup is still a huge disadvantage.
  - kintamanimatt 13y ago
    I guess I've never thought of it that way. I've always been quite happy to talk to people from far, far away.

by hmsimha 13y ago

kintamanimatt 13y ago

Can you elaborate on why you think Memphis was a bad idea? With the ability to talk to people anywhere by phone, email, Twitter, forum, blog post, etc, what do you think is the drawback to being in Memphis? It seems like their customers are geographically dispersed, rather than concentrated in a more tech-friendly city.

hmsimha 13y ago
I guess since I've moved to Portland, I've been spoiled with what a thriving tech scene can be like. I also went to a hackathon in Nashville right before I moved away and was impressed by their community. Brad (one of WFP's founders) is the organizer of the Memphis Python user group, which is (as far as I know having moved away from Memphis mid-May) one of Memphis' few tech meetup groups. There's a reason that a disproportionate number of startups come out of Silicon Valley. The culture there feeds into itself, and networking opportunities are orders of magnitude greater. You mentioned that you not hearing of them was indicative of a marketing failure on their part. My own take on it is, if they had been in the silicon valley area, they would have had many more opportunities to get their name out. The Memphis tech scene is too far from any of the big hubs, and, yes, it's true that anything that can be done in person can be done over the wire as well, but in practice, not having the ability to put yourself in meatspace with people who might be interested in your product/startup is still a huge disadvantage.
- kintamanimatt 13y ago
  I guess I've never thought of it that way. I've always been quite happy to talk to people from far, far away.