We always knew SmartCompany would have its finger on the pulse, but we didn’t know there’d be so many pulses.
I’m in shock. My whole world map has been rearranged — and I am very embarrassed by it.
What happened was this. After writing about globalisation for decades, I wrote a rather excellent business plan for SmartCompany that stipulated that we would launch in Australia, then expand into New Zealand (I’ve just breached Part 4A of the shareholder’s confidentiality agreement, so I may as well keep going) before striding briskly into Asia.
Well, we went global soon after our launch on February 1. Our statistics, which reveal in astonishing detail what is being read by whom, from where, wearing whatever, reveals that SmartCompany, by the end of the first week, was being read around the world.
The vast majority of readers are in Australia, but we also have avid readers in Japan, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Britain, India, China, France (bonjour to all those nice HP people in Paris) and the US. The majority of our overseas readers are in Silicon Valley.
But suddenly I have a new set of problems. What exactly will we export? Now things are instantly global on launch, do our import/export buttons on the site look old fashioned? How do we make our emails more familiar for our Mandarin-speaking friends? How relevant — for goodness sakes — is our calendar which is so popular here? And how will the SmartCompany winter sock promotion with true-blue Aussie wool go down in Papua New Guinea?
I also have to admit to being mildly offended that no one from Africa is reading us. But fortunately that gives me a whole new angle to present at the next SmartCompany board meeting. My original export plan might be useless, but I have some new ideas about developing new markets in Botswana. Now if only my stats would tell me what they wear on their feet …
Blog auditions
As I mentioned in my blog last week, we are running auditions for a new bloggist to fill this spot. We have chosen three from all the entries. Have a look here and tell us what you think by emailing feedback@smartcompany.com.au
It’s not too late to enter … if we like you, we’ll give you a free ticket to attend a sales workshop by renowned sales guru Jack Daly, courtesy of The Executive Connection. (You can blog on it.)
Send trial blogs to feedback@smartcompany.com.au.
Want to see the contenders that have already thrown their hat into the ring? Click here.
Smart Company is a sister publication to The Mandarin, catering to Australia’s entrepreneurs, small and medium business owners and business managers.
