We’ve noticed that since Marissa Mayer came from Google to become the new CEO of Yahoo! (and a new mom!), the company’s undergone quite a few changes so Yahoo! can better compete with Google, Apple, and even Instagram. The most controversial changes Mayer has put in place is by far her ban on working from home, which used to be considered a huge benefit of working at Yahoo!. We think that Mayer’s most influential change is shifting Yahoo!’s focus toward technology, product development (particularly iOS apps), and partnering with some of the company’s potential competitors, such as Apple, in order to make the company more competitive with other industry leaders. Mayer recently decided to chop Yahoo!’s mobile apps from over 75 to about a dozen, so the company can offer consumers higher quality apps, while paying attention to the competition and finding Yahoo!’s niche. The new Yahoo! mobile app was just launched, which, in the words of Marissa Mayer, “delivers better mobile content discovery.” Yahoo! just bought Summly in March, a tech start-up from Britain that scans content to give an accurate but brief idea of what’s on a site. Using Summly’s technology (invented by a 17-year-old, who is now worth 30 million dollars by the way), Yahoo! was able to quickly benefit from its algorithms and machine learning to merge, as Mayer says, “great technology and beautiful design front and center.” Yahoo!’s new iOS app also includes the ability to learn what your interested in, so you’ll more likely come across the topics you enjoy, rather than those you don’t. The more you use the app, the more it understands your preferences, which you also have the option to select or remove yourself. Under Mayer’s leadership, there have also been positive responses to Yahoo!’s newly released weather app. The iOS app uses Flickr (owned by Yahoo!), which has recently added Instagram-like filters to better compete. Flickr has also been updated to allow users to download Flickr photos onto their phone, upload pictures to the app more quickly, and tag friends with an “@” sign. But another recent success is Yahoo!’s new iOS email app, honing in on the fact that Yahoo! is still a very popular email provider (the app has also been redesigned for the web, Android, and Windows 8). Mayer defends her new work from home ban, saying that these are the types of products created by the innovation and collaboration that becomes possible when people work together in the same space. Since Mayer’s start as CEO, revenue has gone down slightly, but earnings have increased 36 percent. Mayer recognizes that it will take awhile for Yahoo! to regain market share, but that they are officially “back in the game.” We think Mayer seems to know what she’s doing by simplifying Yahoo!’s strategy, and she’s definitely revamping Yahoo! to better compete with other internet and app industry leaders. The question seems to be whether or not Yahoo! can catch up with it’s competitors. We’ll keep an eye out on to see how she does.       Sources: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2417853,00.asp http://www.fiercedeveloper.com/story/what-yahoos-marissa-mayer-can-teach-developers-about-tough-choices/2013-02-19 http://venturebeat.com/2013/04/22/yahoo-app-summly/ http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/21/flickr-iphone-updated/http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/04/22/new-yahoo-ios-app-launches-integrates-summlys-technology

Over the last few years, mobile apps have become the main driver (get it?) in changing the way we solicit rides to get around town. Two of the primary companies offering alternative modes of transportation are Uber and Lyft. While there are certainly other rideshare companies, these are easy to compare because they have a few things in common: Most used transportation apps. Both founded in San Francisco. Both fighting aggressively and publicly for business. Uber was the first of the 2, starting in 2009 and paving the way for similar companies. In 2012, Lyft joined the game and scooped up much of the riders - and drivers - Uber used to have all to itself. Today, both are faced with fighting each other for a better reputation, more riders, and more drivers. As such, the fight is starting to get dirty. War for Drivers The rideshare apps are seemingly struggling to maintain a reliable fleet of drivers. The remedy? Stealing drivers from each other. Since 2014, both companies have aggressively been poaching drivers from each other, with offers targeted at drivers of the opposing companies and offering sign up bonuses. As 2015 was just getting its start, the fight became stronger. Uber launched a full assault specifically targeting Lyft drivers to make the switch. The promotion offers that if you can verify that you are a Lyft driver, Uber will give a $500 bonus to make the switch to driving for Uber. The Lyft driver only has to have been driving for Lyft for a matter of weeks to qualify for this promotion.   GET $500 AFTER YOUR FIRST TRIP Already a rideshare driver? Great! We're giving experienced rideshare drivers like you $500 after you sign up to drive with Uber and complete your first trip. To qualify, you must prove you have driven BEFORE 1/8/15 on another ridesharing platform. Ostensibly in response, Lyft put together a promotion for Lyft drivers to stay aboard while at the same time beefing up the Lyft driver base. This particular promotion was developed for Lyft drivers to invite their friends to get started driving. Lyft offered that the current Lyft driver and the new driver would get to split $2,000 upon the new Lyft driver’s first ride. Yep, $1,000 a person. “Refer a Friend. Split $2,000. Friends don't let friends miss out on Lyft promotions. Refer a new driver in San Diego starting today, and you'll both get $1,000 if they give their first ride before March 5.” As such, Uber’s offer suddenly increased to $1,000...   GET $1000 AFTER YOUR FIRST TRIP Already a rideshare driver in San Diego? Get $1000 after you sign up to drive with Uber and complete your first trip. To qualify, you must prove you have driven BEFORE 1/8/15 on another ridesharing platform. Don't live in San Diego? No problem, you can still sign up to drive here. All seemed too good to be true, especially for current and new Lyft drivers able to both earn a grand over one ride.   In Over Their Heads Too good to be true it was as the plan backfired, leaving scores of angry Lyft drivers and newbie Lyft drivers furious with the company. The promotion launched February 26, 2015 required that the new driver must pass background checks by the end of the very short deadline - March 5, 2015 - to receive the funds. Apparently, Lyft became overwhelmed, per an email sent to applicants the night before the deadline: “Last week's invitation - apply to be a driver, give 1 ride by March 5, and make $1,000 - brought the biggest wave of applicants in Lyft history. As we're processing the applications, it's important that we continue to fulfill our safety obligations. Some of these steps, including DMV and background checks, are outside our control and can vary in length for different applicants. It is possible that you won't qualify for the promotion if all steps aren't completed by the March 5 deadline, along with the ride requirement. In the meantime, you can check the status of your application at lyft.com/drivers. We'll be in touch again via email with another update on Friday. Thank you for your patience.” The day of the deadline, Lyft really seemed to be reeling on their heels: “Lyft learned a lesson this week, and we're sorry for the frustration it caused you. We vastly underestimated the volume of applications we would receive for our $1,000 sign-on promotion, which was created to help us keep up with record-breaking passenger demand. We owe it to the driver community and our passengers to make sure our approval process is rigorous and complete. All elements of our safety process are imperative and can take time - that means some applications haven't been approved yet even though the applicant's DMV and background checks are in. We know this can be frustrating. Based on ideas from our community, here are the actions we're taking: Extension of deadline to March 12 for those who applied for this promotion and pass their DMV and background check by March 5. We're still completing our internal review of many applications, but if your DMV and background checks pass by end of day today (March 5), we're providing an extension until March 12 to meet your ride requirement. We, at Lyft, will not benefit from an application if an applicant does not qualify for the promotion and does not want to continue through the application process. By default, we won't use any information from the applications of drivers who don't qualify for the promotion, unless they would like us to continue with the application. You'll receive an email from us tomorrow evening with your eligibility for the extension outlined above. If you are not eligible, you will have the choice of whether or not to continue with your application.” Uber must be enjoying the seeming implosion of the referral program gone wrong. Race to the Bottom? Both companies have aggressively sought new funding for their services, which provides the backing for such expensive promotions. But can offering promotions like this offer a sustainable model for new drivers? Especially if the promotions are not followed through, the trust of the driving and riding community must be reaching new levels of skepticism. All this funding must be paid back...but if the drivers get fed up with empty promises, there could be trouble for the companies. What are your thoughts? Do rideshare apps offer a sustainable model for business? Were these promotions doomed from the get-go? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Here I am almost a year after my first post, trying to write my second post. The lesson here is that writing a blog is tougher than I thought it would be. Minutes after writing the first post I lowered the priority of this blog. Things like securing contracts, pleasing clients, managing staff and keeping the lights on always seem to be pressing, urgent, and unrelenting. Yet I want to keep this blog active, as an outlet for me and hopefully a resource for others. First an update on Barefoot Solutions. Like most other American companies, Q4 was tough - absolutely brutal. Nearly every client I had, including the very reliable long term clients, reduced or eliminated our contracts. Long term projects are a bit of a double edged sword like that. If a site has already launched, or an application is already in use, the development partners are no longer mission critical. When purse strings are tightened, temporarily cutting back or shutting down development is an option that many take. When a business owner is worried about making payroll or laying off staff members, all the "nice to have" features fall right off the list, and rightly so. But with this downturn came many positives. It gave me time to look at fine tuning many of the business processes that needed work. It forced me to, for the first time really, think about marketing our services. Gone are the days where we can rely solely on referrals for new business. While I see that method still being the primary means of making contacts and securing contracts, there are certainly other avenues that need to be pursued and I have been doing my business a disservice by ignoring them. Onto the good news. Q1 is looking great! New projects that were put on hold are starting to move again. Venture capital and investment in IT projects seems to be starting to loosen up.  I seem to fall right in line with a growing trend. This post from the man who inspired me to start this blog, Joel Spolsky, says it all in Is the tech recession over? Seems that this company has experienced something very similar to other software companies. This is reassuring. With that I will close this post. I plan on posting at least once a week from here out, so please stay tuned. More to come.