Facebook Announces New Facebook Photos With Hover Promotion.

Perhaps because they are continually rolling out new products and split tests.Perhaps because they are terrific product marketers and designers. And/or perhaps because they need to figure out how to message 600m+ users in efficient, effective ways. ... Facebook is the best at "in the river marketing". Yet another example:

This week Facebook rolled out a new Facebook Photos features to all users. Rather than an email announcement, page takeover, or letting users mysteriously figure it out... they promoted the change simply, cleanly and directly at the point of importance. If you had not yet clicked on a photo, Facebook revealed a message upon hover that clearly stated the new change. Once the photo was clicked, the new experience was obvious and the hover over disappeared. Well done.

Where in the Bay Area should I live to be a part of the startup action?

Continuing to post select Quora answers on my blog - you can view them here.

Below is my answer to the Quora question "Where in the bay area should I live to be part of the startup action?" And below that is an interactive map put together by Garry Tan. It's terrific and has notes on each community in San Francisco, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Berkeley, etc. I hadn't seen it - but worth playing with. The two major hubs of entrepreneurial activity are: SOMA in San Francisco (5th street and north, Market street and east), and Downtown Palo Alto

If you want to be around "the startup action", find a place in either of these hubs. So many start-ups are based in these areas because the train is accessible, the areas are walkable, and it consequently helps with recruiting.

For what it's worth: I've lived in both areas. They are equally great.

View Garry's SF Guide to Where Your Startup Should Be in a larger map

What are the do's and don'ts when introducing game mechanics in a website?

What are the do's and don'ts when introducing game mechanics in a website? Note: this is my answer to a Quora question. I post them to my blog from time to time... which you can view here.

People can chime in with specific, tactical responses to the question... but my simplest response is probably the best: Game mechanics must be natural, rewarding and straightforward.

Think about classic examples of game mechanics: - eBay's feedback rating - Twitter followers - MySpace friends - Amazing Review counts - Quora answer votes - etc.

They share the same common characteristics: the mechanics fit clearly into the site experience and are unique to that environment. Furthermore, they are integrated deeply enough into the product / experience that they are never interpreted as 'game mechanics'.

Sites struggle when game mechanics become one of two things:

1) a superficial layer - ala creating a badge strategy that is neither rewarding nor core to the web experience.

and / or

2) too complicated - for instance, badges and rewards for a myriad of activities. Simpler is easier to digest and therefore easier to incentivize. This too is exacerbated by not being core to the experience.

Should slides in a deck have boring solid colored backgrounds or images/snazzy backgrounds?

Should slides in a deck have boring solid colored backgrounds or images/snazzy backgrounds? Very much depends on 1) your goal, and 2) your audience.

If you are speaking at a conference, big visuals and builds can be quite powerful as they are fun / captivating. For big audiences, the message is as important as its delivery.

If you are speaking to investors or partners, too much imagery can come across as too much 'fluff'. I read dozens of decks each week - as most investors do - and have seen a trend towards text and product screenshots.

I generally believe simpler is better. And I generally like to feel as though more care was put into the content than the colors. Just my two cents!

If you are an investor for an early stage company, do you place more value on 1MM unique visitor or the ability to convert at 5%+ but only 1000 customers?

Trying something new: posting my Quora answers to my blog through the new Wordpress integration... Question: If you are an investor for an early stage company, do you place more value on 1MM unique visitor or the ability to convert at 5%+ but only 1000 customers? My answer: Ryan Spoon, Investor: Polaris Venture Partners

Very much agree with Keith Rabois' answer... with a slight twist: those 1,000,000 users need to have some 'conversion' metric of their own. That does not need to be upgrade / purchase rate; instead, it could mean engagement of some sort (usage, return, etc). It needs to show that the audience is active and lasting.

For most properties, it is easier to optimize for conversion than it is to optimize for growth. Reaching 5% conversion rate is promising but not necessarily extraordinary. Reaching 1,000,000 uniques (or more impressively: users) distinguishes yourself as a major audience.

Calling Developers! Dogpatch Desk for Chrome Extension =)

Attention developers:

I am looking to have a Chrome Extension / Application built and am willing to host you at Dogpatch Labs (http://www.dogpatchlabs.com) during the build... or longer depending on the result / your interest! It's a straightforward concept that would aid my daily work. And because nothing else similar is available, it would be unique and, dare I say, innovative.

If interested - please drop me a line at rspoon at polarisventures.com with Chrome App in the title.

Dogpatch Labs Updates Heading into 2011

As we head into 2010 winds up and we head into 2011, there is a lot of terrific news coming out of Dogpatch Labs. Here is a sampling from just the last couple weeks in Dogpatch Labs San Francisco. Of course, I have missed several exciting updates... and I apologize! We look forward to a terrific 2011! There are several great new companies and entrepreneurs joining in January. Dogpatch Labs New York is currently taking applications (apply here) and you can always drop me a note for San Francisco here.

End of 2010 Dogpatch Labs Updates:

- Movity was acquired by Trulia earlier in the week (Movity is also a Polaris company). Read more...

- Instagram hit 1,000,000 users. Read more...

- Curated shopping site Everlane soft launched this week

- Trazzler launched a deal platform specifically for travel

- ChompOn launched a couple killer partners. Read more....

- Cardpool released a new marketplace version yesterday. Read more...

- Stickybits released a totally new iphone version to great brand feedback (Note: a Polaris company). Read more...

- Frid.ge released an enhanced version of http://frid.ge, including full email integration (Note: a Polaris company)

- AllTrails has the #1 noteworthy iphone app in travel. Download here...

- Fanvibe released a new iphone version and NBA integration. Read more...

- Yardsellr and Formspring recently closed follow on rounds of funding. (Note: Formspring is a Polaris company) Read more here and here...

Must Read Quora Threads for Startups

For entrepreneurs, Quora has become the new Hacker News: the go-to-place to glean great, rich information related to startups - culture, technology, product, design, history, financing, etc. It's all there and much of it is outstanding. My goal is help build a list of must read Quora threads for entrepreneurs and startups. This is by no means a comprehensive list - so I encourage you to share threads that are important / helpful to you and I will supplement the list. In no particular order, here is a list of Quora threads that I think are critically important to startups. I have tried to include content relevant to all avenues of entrepreneurship: from hiring to product to financing... and everything in between. And enjoy spending the next hour getting lost on Qoura =)

Must read Quora threads for entrepreneurs

Building a Great Team

- What would the ideal web technology start-up team be composed of?

- How does one hire really good product managers?

- What are the best ways for gauging or assessing product "spidey sense" during an interview?

- What is the best way to evaluate a potential startup to work at (full-time)?

Financing

- Are there examples of good start up term sheets?

- What are the top 5-7 questions a start-up CEO should ask of an angel investor early on, to determine if they and you (& your project) are a potential fit?

- What are the top qualities to look for in angel investors?

Startup Culture

- What key values led to early PayPal's culture of entrepreneurship?

- What companies are the best examples of great corporate culture?

Miscellaneous Startup Advice

- What percentage equity should an "involved" advisor receive?

- How do you get TechCrunch to cover your startup?

- What are the most common mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make?

- What is the most useful, shortest and most generally applicable piece of wisdom you know?

- If you could today send a tweet to yourself back when you were graduating high school, what would you say?

find me on Quora

Email notifications & engagement from SlideShare and Digg

Last week I wrote about email as a vehicle to drive user engagement. Here is another good example from SlideShare. Earlier this week I posted a presentation on paid search best practices from a recent Dogpatch Labs event. That day the presentation made the front page of slideshare.com... And they immediately delivered an email notifying me of the popularity. Its not a new concept (Digg for instance is great at this) but its an example of powerfully conveying accomplishment and driving engagement via email. And in this case (and in Digg's) their content rotates so frequently that is quite compelling: