.

Category: Startup

Portland Start-up Index for May 2008: Platial debuts at 12, Frappr at 5

Rick Turoczy on May 16, 2008

Techvibes has released the latest version of its Portland Start-up Index, with an interesting pair of debuts. Portland-based Platial has been added to the list, debuting at #12. What makes this interesting is that Platial-owned Frappr also debuted this month—at #5.

How did the other companies and products fare? Take a look. The usual “apples and oranges” rules apply.

  1. AboutUs
  2. Discogs
  3. Kongregate
  4. COLOURlovers
  5. Frappr
  6. Splashcast
  7. Earth Class Mail
  8. Jive Software
  9. Sandy
  10. MyOpenID
  11. Gone Raw
  12. Platial
  13. eROI
  14. NetworthIQ
  15. Stikkit
  16. Grabbit
  17. Attensa
  18. GadgetTrak
  19. Active Reload
  20. Art Face Off
  21. Walker Tracker
  22. Rocketbook
  23. Iovation
  24. ChoiceA
  25. Pibb
  26. Lunarr
  27. UrbanDrinks
  28. Iterasi
  29. FreeRange
  30. KnitMap
  31. WeoGeo
  32. GoLife Mobile
  33. Goboz
  34. Picktastic
  35. fmyi
  36. GoSeeTell
  37. MomHub
  38. Imindi
  39. VocalNation.net
  40. Kryptiq
  41. Cendix
  42. Lightfleet
  43. Kumquat
  44. Pheedo
  45. Jama Software
  46. Workplace2go
  47. Avnera
  48. Box Populi
  49. IDP Solutions
  50. Collaborative Software Initiative
  51. Techchex
  52. YourList
  53. Worldwide Nest

Techvibes ranks the sites, products, and companies by comparing Compete and Alexa rankings. To learn more about the metrics and the movement within the list, visit the Techvibes Portland Start-up Index for May 2008.

37signals: Start up your startup somewhere else (like Portland)

Rick Turoczy on April 22, 2008

It seems everyone is getting into the Silicon Valley bashing, as of late. But that’s what happens when you’re at the top.

And while I’m not going to pile on with the negativity, I thought a recent 37signals post—entitled “Are you sure you want to be in San Francisco?“—brought up one very positive point that we should all bear in mind:

So stop worrying to much about where you are and start worrying about how you’re going to make your business succeed the old fashion way: Through having a better product than the competition that people are willing to pay for.

Every single day, I’m lucky enough to talk to people who get this. People who have started amazing companies here in Portland and the Silicon Forest.

But you know what else is interesting?

We’re starting to become a destination, as well. We’re starting to attract both the talent and the companies to employ that talent. Companies that have chosen to come to Portland to succeed. Companies like Vidoop, LUNARR, Intrigo, Jive, WeoGeo… the list goes on and on.

All of these companies see something special here in Portland. And that is even more exciting.

(Hat tip Josh Bancroft)

Portland Start-up Index for March 2008: AboutUs retains top spot

Rick Turoczy on March 15, 2008

It’s the 15th of the month again. And that means its time to update the Techvibes Portland Start-up Index. While there was neither much movement this month—the top 4 remain in the same positions as last month, with AboutUs retaining the spot—nor, apparently, any new sites added to the index, I do find it interesting that two of the most newsworthy companies in the area, Jive and SplashCast, have actually dropped down the list one and two spots, respectively.

Given that the list changes month to month, here’s the ranking, for historical reference. To see the metrics and movement, please visit Techvibes. And, as always, I offer this with the “fruit salad” caveat: This is a very apples and oranges comparison, in terms of companies and products. The other caveat that bears mentioning is that widget- and mobile-based tools often report far lower Alexa and Compete numbers than Web-based services.

So, here’s the list:

  1. AboutUs
  2. Discogs
  3. Kongregate
  4. MyOpenID
  5. Earth Class Mail
  6. Sandy
  7. Splashcast
  8. Jive Software
  9. eROI
  10. Gone Raw
  11. Stikkit
  12. NetworthIQ
  13. Walker Tracker
  14. Attensa
  15. Grabbit
  16. Pibb
  17. GadgetTrak
  18. Active Reload
  19. Iterasi
  20. Art Face Off
  21. Iovation
  22. Rocketbook
  23. Lunarr
  24. ChoiceA
  25. UrbanDrinks
  26. WeoGeo
  27. FreeRange
  28. GoLife Mobile
  29. KnitMap
  30. Goboz
  31. VocalNation.net
  32. MomHub
  33. Lightfleet
  34. Cendix
  35. Pheedo
  36. fmyi
  37. Picktastic
  38. Imindi
  39. Workplace2go
  40. Kryptiq
  41. Techchex
  42. Jama Software
  43. Avnera
  44. GoSeeTell
  45. Lumeno.us
  46. Box Populi
  47. Worldwide Nest
  48. Kumquat
  49. IDP Solutions
  50. YourList

The Portland Start-up Index is compiled by Techvibes using an average of Alexa and Compete rankings. It is updated on a monthly basis.

Portland Startup Weekend, May 23 – 25, 2008

Rick Turoczy on January 31, 2008

I am happy to report that details on Portland Startup Weekend have just been announced. The event will be held May 23-25, 2008, at SMtvMusic.

Portland Startup WeekendNow, that’s not only Memorial Day weekend, it’s also pretty darn close to WebVisions 2008, which runs May 22-23, 2008, in Portland.

Oregon-native and Startup Weekend organizer, Andrew Hyde, has promised that he has a few surprises up his sleeve for this one.

I, for one, am looking forward to doing whatever I can to make this event a success for Startup Weekend—and Portland. And I hope you’ll join the fun.

(To help promote this event, feel free to use the Startup Weekend badge above.)

Just as Portland has made Ignite Portland an overwhelming success and promises to make Lunch 2.0 a Portland-flavored affair, I’m sure we can show the Startup Weekend folks how Portland puts its own unique spin on these types of events.

Tickets for Startup Weekend Portland will be sold here for $40. This is really a RSVP cost, and you will receive your fair share of food, swag and memories. If you or your company is interested in sponsoring a meal, shirts or massive amounts of caffeine, email sponsor@startupweekend.com.

For more information, see Portland Startup Weekend. To reserve your spot at Portland Startup Weekend, buy a ticket.

BREAKING: Portland Startup Weekend

Rick Turoczy on January 25, 2008

Just a quick note to let you know that your votes for have counted. Portland now has a Startup Weekend of its own.

Thanks to all of you have taken the time to vote. I think this could be a really interesting event for Portland and our community.

Details are still slim, but the date is set for the weekend of May 23 – 25.

More as details become available.

For more information, visit Startup Weekend.

Discogs rocks the Portland Start-up Index, now at 40 sites

Rick Turoczy on January 15, 2008

A few weeks ago, I reported on the Portland Start-up Index, a ranking of Portland-area startups compiled by Techvibes, based on the average of Alexa and Compete rankings for each Web site. At that time, there were fewer than 30 sites listed on the index. And I noted it was a bit “apples and oranges,” but interesting nonetheless.

Well, apparently, things change quickly around here.

Techvibes has released their first update to the index. And some interesting things have happened.

Not only has the index grown to 40 sites, but now, the top position—formerly held by Portland-based media-widget-wonders SplashCast (#2)—has been soundly claimed by Discogs (#1), a community-built discography engine that is working to categorize artists, labels, and their recordings. Perhaps most interesting about this change is that Discogs’ combined average (4,648) is nearly 50,000 points higher than SplashCast’s (53,642).

Other new entries I noticed (when the index updated, the original list became inaccessible) include Grabb.it (#10), fmyi (#18), Goboz (#20), and Free Range (#27).

And because it has become clear that—without a snapshot of the list today—we’ll be unable to compare the next rev to the previous one, the entire list is included, below. (For actual Alexa and Compete numbers associated with the rankings, please visit Techvibes. They did the research and rightly deserve the traffic. I’m simply republishing to save the information.)

  1. Discogs
  2. Splashcast
  3. Sandy
  4. MyOpenID
  5. Earth Class Mail
  6. Cliq
  7. Gone Raw
  8. Stikkit
  9. NetworthIQ
  10. Grabbit
  11. Attensa
  12. KnitMap
  13. Walker Tracker
  14. Pibb
  15. UrbanDrinks
  16. Iovation
  17. GadgetTrak
  18. fmyi
  19. Imindi
  20. Goboz
  21. Picktastic
  22. Art Face Off
  23. Box Populi
  24. Pheedo
  25. ChoiceA
  26. Lunarr
  27. FreeRange
  28. Kumquat
  29. Kryptiq
  30. GoSeeTell
  31. Avnera
  32. Techchex
  33. Lumeno.us
  34. Workplace2go
  35. Jama Software
  36. MomHub
  37. Lightfleet
  38. YourList
  39. Cendix
  40. IDP Solutions

Being the astute reader you are, you’ll likely notice a few missing.

For the second time around, Portland’s wiki-based Web-site-information site, AboutUs, remains conspicuously absent from the list. As does the highly recognized, funded, and awarded Jive Software.

It will be interesting to see the shuffling that occurs once those sites are added.

And, again, the arguments will likely surface about this being a rather superficial means of assessing impact in the market. And how it is an unfair comparison among widget-based tools and Web-site-based tools.

That’s true. But it is an available—and somewhat objective—metric. And it does provide a reasonable indicator of Web traffic from the user population that has download either of the tracking toolbars.

Uh oh. You see it coming don’t you? Oh, all right. I can’t keep anything from you.

If you think that the Alexa and Compete rankings are misleading metrics, what metrics would you propose we use to rank the Portland-area startups? (And perhaps, more importantly: Do rankings even matter?)

If we can answer those questions, then maybe, just maybe, the Silicon Florist could publish an index that provides a clearer picture. Maybe. If you want.

Portland Start-up Index: Is your site there?

Rick Turoczy on January 5, 2008

Given that I’m still happily digging out from an avalanche of new Twitter followers, I’m a little tardy on reporting the news.

So, a number of folks were kind enough to send me links to Techvibes “Portland Start-up Index,” a list of Portland-based startups ranked by averaging their Alexa and Compete ratings.

According to the post, they chose the Rose City because:

Portland’s unique culture, combined with its proximity to Seattle and Silicon Valley make it fertile ground for start-ups.

The list features an apples and oranges combination of both companies and products (which, quite honestly, isn’t immediately obvious to people who don’t obsess over monitor this stuff as actively as I do). So, companies with multiple products—but only one Web site—like Earth Class Mail (#5) (which unfortunately moved to Seattle to attract funding) and Kryptiq (#20) are mixed in with site-specific products like Matt King‘s Knitmap (#8) and JanRain‘s Pibb (#10).

SplashCast tops the list, with I Want Sandy and MyOpenID rounding out the top three.

Values of n garnered two spots on the index with I Want Sandy and Stikkit (#6). As did JanRain, with MyOpenID and Pibb.

Some notable sites conspicuously absent from the list include Jive Software, Platial, Unthirsty, and AboutUs. But commenters are already noting some of these exclusions.

Techvibes plans to update the list on a regular basis. And, I’m looking forward to seeing a few more of you folks on it, the next time around. Please comment on the post (as a number of folks already have) to ensure that your product or site is listed.

(Hat tip to Mike Berkley, Adam DuVander, and Ben Parzybok)

Cloud Four: Anything but cloudy

Rick Turoczy on November 29, 2007

[Editor’s note: I’m going to begin expanding the Silicon Florist beat, a bit, to provide coverage of new startups in the Silicon Forest area—as they come into being. Not only do these incredibly young companies need a little limelight, it will be interesting to cover them from their inception forward. Looking forward to your feedback on this expanded scope. And, if you’re starting a shop, please drop me a line.]

Please welcome a new startup to the block.

Portland-based Cloud Four, a Web strategy and development shop, boasts a team of known-entities from the Portland area and shows promise of quickly becoming a mainstay in the local development community.

I hear you. “Do we really need another Web dev shop in town?” And to that, I’d respond that I think we need more and more shops in town that think like Cloud Four.

Our philosophy emphasizes user experience over ego-driven, impractical designs or isolated, finicky engineering…. We believe that authenticity and integrity matter. We give you the advice we would give ourselves if we were in your shoes—even if it means less work for us.

For more on the cultural principles driving this fledgling organization, see the Cloud Four blog and Jason Grigsby’s post on the launch.

1 2 3 4