Starting a Fire...

It is my understanding that Incendia Media is all about being cutting edge and the leader in niche social networking.  While I personally believe this is true and there is probably no one more knowledgeble and skilled in this Biz than Dan & his Kung Fu Techy Crew, we're failing miserably on our 5 Seconds of Fame.  How strongly do we believe in "democratization of the web" and "empowering the passionate members of our online communities"?  Are we so committed to this ideal that we will hang our own laundry out for all to see from time to time in an ongoing attempt to stay sharp and hold ourselves accountable to be the best we can be?  Let's find out... 

We have made a point of telling anyone who comes to our site that we are "The #1 niche social networking company", and yet, in that first 5 seconds of engagement, we show them the same tired old message that has been there since we renovated this site in October or November of 2008!  Why is a failed experiment like Bobizzo, which I believe is already in the tank, still occupying our most valuable space?  Please tell me what is compelling about this message?  Why on earth would anyone want to dig deeper?  And, why aren't we flying something new and intriguing and compelling up this flag pole, like for instance, Dave's comp work on the Outdoor Network Home Page?  This section of our site needs to be dynamic and changing all the time!  Our best work and our most current work should be flying proudly on our home page.  To me, this should be the window to our soul...the "WHY" and the "WHY NOT" that our visitors are looking for.  We need to be truly unique in this area of our business. 

So, what's the deal, here?  I thought we were the Best in this Biz!  Oh, I know, we are all so busy trying to make ends meet, we don't have time to manage our own flagship!  And, let's not talk about the money, because, Dan, you have said on many occasions that it is not about the money.  So, once again, I ask...What's the deal, here?  Maybe this is one reason we are still floundering out here in the Internet doldrums and can't get the traction we should be getting!  Our priority's are all screwed up!  We have lost touch with our original focus and are chasing far too many rabbits.  We're doing an incredible amount of work, but not finishing anything. 

One thing is for sure, we need to replicate all of the principals of Incendia Media, because all of your plates are full.  That brings us back to "democratization and empowerment"...  I would like to challenge you guys to re-think the ownership structure of Incendia Media and seriously consider Bill Gate's "less is better" approach to ownership and spreading the wealth to more talented people who share our vision for building one of the next giants of online media and publishing.  With the economy where it is right now, and the prospects of it getting worse before it gets better, there are multitudes of very talented folks around the world who would jump at the chance to get involved in such an endeavor.  If you only think of your own sheres of influence, you can probably come up with a number of folks who would be valuable additions to Incendia Media and could help us move this boulder up the hill much faster than we are doing currently. 

Face it, we are not only underfinanced, but more importantly, we are understaffed and need to ramp up.  The thing that has stalled us out has been that we have put the cart before the horse...we have been waiting on the money to grow the company, whereas we should be growing the company to capture the money.  Not sure if any of this is making any sense, but I would like to see if we can't attract some other talent to get us all where we want to go.  My thougts are that we change the ownership structure to entice these talented folks to come on board now and share the wealth later.  As I understand it, Bill Gates owns just 5% of Microsoft, and gave away the reamining 95% to a lot of talented folks, thereby empowering them to build their own future.  I would like to think that a similar approach could do the same for Incendia Media.  How about let's dangle a bunch of carrots out into cyberspace and see if we can't attract a team for the ages?  Could we also engage them into working on specific niche social networks that they are passionate about?  As I look through the Hiking/Outdoor Enthusiast Blogs, I think there are not only people of wealth involved, but there are also some very talented folks who love what they are doing.  How about bringing a bunch of new talent into the fold and empowering them to work for Incendia Media? 

Back to the fire starting thing...will someone out there please remove "Bob..." off of center stage and replace it with something cool?