Bright Things Share Discussion Threads

[the analyst] 08/5/2010 11:43

SocialGO are hiring, ning are firing!

[the analyst likes this]

[carl79] 08/5/2010 10:09

That's good if so - you dont start hiring if you need to watch the pennies - you make the existing team do more with less until cash is not so tight...promising...

What would a B/E announcement do to the BGT share price if it were the next RNS we got. Double it? More?? What is the magic number of networks to get us there - 6,000 give or take?

yes, my guess was that if the widgets are popular (and they are capable of developing them in house) then giving up revenue to 3rd parties is a complete waste...if not many networks take them, there is no point spending resource churning them out but if they are in demand then the numbers stack up in terms of RoI...

[the analyst] 07/5/2010 21:52

Definitely looks like a new job to me

A good sign and shows they obviously want to get V2 released as quickly as possible

The news that they are taking all of the third party widgets in-house is also interesting and gives us a clue as to where they are taking the product, imo

[carl79] 07/5/2010 18:10

Has this job already done the rounds?? Are they re-advertising or continuing to grow the team...if growth, money cant be too tight??!??

Also interesting to note they want skills at building wordpress themes...imo...


CSS/Interface Designer at SocialGO

Location: United Kingdom

URL:

Type:
Full-time
Experience:
Associate
Functions:
Art/Creative, Information Technology, Design
Industries:
Internet, Design
Posted:
May 6, 2010
Referral Bonus:

* $500 for Anyone.

Job Description

SocialGO is looking for a smart, ambitious and talented CSS designer to join our team. You will be coming to SocialGO at an exciting time as we work on our next generation templating system to power the platform.

This posting is for a full-time position (or a contract to hire - based on job performance).

It is expected that you:

- Write clean, highly reusable, and easily maintainable code compliant with web standards

- Have a solid grasp of java script/AJAX and are experienced with java script frameworks, specifically jQuery

- Is familiar with building templates for systems such as Wordpress or Joomla

- Have a good design sensibility (you should be able to notice if something is off by 1 pixel)

- Have a keen personal interest in web standards, trends and new technologies

- We are looking for someone who can solve problems, contribute good ideas, and work independently as well as under direction. This position is a good opportunity for someone looking to be an important member of a growing team

- Hate IE6 as much as we do

SocialGO is based between Shoreditch and Liverpool Street in London. We share an office with growing startup BookingBug.com and have a team of 20.
Company Description

SocialGO is a leading Saas platform for building niche social networking websites. Founded in July 2007, SocialGO focuses on a subscription business model. The team comprises of 25 people, 8 in the engineering team which you will be joining.

[the analyst] 07/5/2010 16:58

Interesting landing page - does the "Trusted by Top Brands" section gives a few clues to recent client wins?

[norbus] 07/5/2010 10:44

Better day altogether with Brown on the way out. Must hurt all the more to think he could have pulled a fast one. Cameron will be in charge by Monday .
Amazing how ladbrokes odds were sensitive to the results throughout last night

[the analyst] 07/5/2010 10:29

Good to see you back up on your feet again, norbus - much less windy today ;)

[norbus] 07/5/2010 08:13

TA
Release shows good transparency, a good sign, but they can hardly hide their performance in an open market place. You took my "wind up" pulling your leg yesterday as criticism ;-) . I've never bought a share on another's advice. BGT are too far into the game not to come out right. my issue is when I start to buy again.

[the analyst] 07/5/2010 00:13

Keeping new features and functions in-house going forward...


"Latest Release
by Alex H on 6th May 2010 | View all blogs by Alex H
Hey Guys,

Over the past few weeks we have been working hard to replace third party widgets which where causing major performance problems on our network with built-in alternatives.

The performance problems caused by some widgets degraded the service so severely that we pushed out a release to introduce the replacements last week to improve the situation. This had knock-on effects which we are now in the process of fixing up and expect the majority of issues to be resolved today. Going forward, we will be focusing on maintaining service quality by keeping new features and functions in-house.

We will keep you updated as roll out a further update today. "

[the analyst] 06/5/2010 21:54

Pound down 2.6% against the dollar tonight, which adds to the BGT bottom line

Every little helps!

[uncle_bob] 06/5/2010 21:18

There is no doubt the Socialgo Brand is getting stronger whether or not this translates to hard cash who knows.

[the analyst] 06/5/2010 21:13

Nice find, uncle_bob - more evidence that there are real, established companies out there taking SG seriously

[uncle_bob] 06/5/2010 19:55

Here's a company looking for a Socialgo developer to assist in setting up an eCommerce site. I would guess the company is spending a fair bit of dosh on widgets etc.

[the analyst] 06/5/2010 16:49

"Whether the update is via RNS or simply a statement posted to the interweb, i dont care but i do want to know what BGT are going to do now Ning has shown its pricing hand"

Exactly, it doesn't have to be an rns. Dom has already come up with two official (but non-rns) responses to the ning news, so I'm sure there will be another one as they assess and react. Getting rid of 'free' would be consistent with their policy of focussing on premium, so would not require an rns. It would not be a change in their desired business goal of subscriptions over advertising

The good thing is they can monitor the progress minute by minute and respond very quickly if need be. There is still quite a while before the free-brigade need to leave ning...

[norbus] 06/5/2010 16:47

Osborne has a keen mind and good nerves; Clarke will be there for Osborne. The intellectual is Gove though.

If there is a hung parliamen as the odds seem to indicate, then heavens help us all.

[the analyst] 06/5/2010 16:43

Clarke is an experienced hand, so if the conservatives get in I hope he replaces Osbourne in the chancellor position. Osbourne seemed clueless in the debates and that is worrying. He also refused to answer any questions, which is even more worrying

[norbus] 06/5/2010 16:21

The Conservatives are the most likely lot to fix the broken economy; they've done it twice in recent memory, and Clarke is a very experienced hand. Brown destroyed and wasted to bring people down to a level, rather than build up to a higher standard for all. Also, Cameron seems genuine in his pitch to fix the broken society. I am hoping they will get in, else, we'll join basket cases like Greece, Italy, Ireland, Spain & Portugal.. Heavens help us.

[carl79] 06/5/2010 15:56

If we get no RNS till Sept, the implications are that they are generating healthy revenue and are closer to B/E so this is why (I think ) TA's mouth waters at the prospect...mine too - nothing would please me more than for the company to announce they are in or virtually in the black and self financing...Agree with TA though, i'd be surprised if we are there yet and thus expect another bought of funding (hopefully via debt as opposed to dilution)

Regards an update though, TA I think I disagree. With Ning dropping the bombshell and with this bombshell impacting our model at a fundamental level, I think BGT should be re-confirming or resetting their strategy to us shareholders.

If we become the de-facto home for free networks, our ability to market ourselves as a premium network supplier gets diluted - its okay when you have a healthy proportion of premium custoemrs but if we slip below 1% of sign ups being premium then i'd argue we lost focus - i would also argue the premium customers are not getting the service/attention they are paying for and with the likes of Ning actively out for their business BGT can not afford for that to become the perception...

Whether the update is via RNS or simply a statement posted to the interweb, i dont care but i do want to know what BGT are going to do now Ning has shown its pricing hand - i would not be comfortable investing more money until i felt sure they were monetising the opportunity effectively and whilst Dom clearly understands and is vocal about the flaws of a freemium model, i am not seeing evidence that BGT are actively creating a premium business - what is the difference between the current model and Nings old one (in general - not at a specifc level)?? Even the ratios of free v premium seem in line with the old Ning model - hence my desire for an update becasue that clearly can not last...I take on board our lower cost base etc etc and if it is working for BGT, great, i think they should tell us that retaining a free product and having x% of free networks does not adversely effect profit / service and then i'll buy more shares...simples....

[the analyst] 06/5/2010 13:19

On a different note, hope you are all voting today?

Imo, anyone voting for Clegg should be certified insane - reducing the capital gains allowance from £10,200 to £2,000 and raising the top rate on cgt to 50% (from 18%) doesn't seem like the best way to encourage our small businesses owners

Entrepreneurs work hard and risk their own time and money to create new businesses, new technologies and jobs for the future. To discourage them from doing that is suicide, imo

[the analyst] 06/5/2010 13:10

"so what's the big deal about waiting till September"

It's not about 'waiting', it's about the 'implications' of not getting an rns until September that are mouth-watering

Somehow, though, I think we will hear from the company before September, which would be a shame, but predictable...

[the analyst] 06/5/2010 13:04

I'm realistic norbus, whereas I see your vision of pumping the share price with spin and selling into it as totally unrealistic and unsustainable. That's my idea of a rose-tinted vision, based on nothing tangible.

I don't mind if they pump the share price, but it's not my target.

I have targets for the business and many of them are being met and a few seem to be taking longer than I had hoped for. One thing for sure, over the last 12 months they have become a real player in the sector. They have a product, people are paying for it, they have a revenue stream that increases month on month and right now they are getting great PR (do a google news search for socialgo). In what could be a $4 billion market, that is impressive

Your targets seem to be based around share price, yearning for an MDC circa 2005 scenario - spin, pump, sell, spin, pump, sell, repeat as necessary. I don't think that creates genuine long-term value for holders

With regards long-term investing, this is how I make a living. I still hold some ASC bought back in 2002 and I'm still waiting for them to come right too. Just drags on and on...