A
t first blush, Auren Hoffman’s improbable idea seems easy to
dismiss with a shake of your head: “Only in California.”
But think again.
Although the concept behind the Silicon Valley 100 might
seem simplistic or the results questionable, Mr. Hoffman has found a
smooth way to give myriad companies across the nation what they want:
a venerable environment that generates honest buzz and excitement
about a new product.
His solution, which celebrates its first anniversary in January, eschews
complex advertising campaigns and hit-or-miss marketing blitz. In short,
Mr. Hoffman’s idea is to give clients access to his list.
A few products change hands. Opinions are shared. And that’s
about it.
But the idea is working so well that it helped one company take in
more than $1 million in new financing from a group of investors that includes outspoken technology leader and Dallas pro basketball franchise
owner Mark Cuban.
The Silicon Valley 100 is a hand-picked list created by the staff at the
Stonebrick Group, a San Francisco firm that helps companies build sales
relationships and boost business development. The list is comprised of
early adapters and opinion makers, those with the wit, personality, integrity and biggest address books. When they express an opinion, those
around them often follow suit. These individuals are the biggest influencers in the Bay Area, Hoffman believes.
Why focus on Silicon Valley?
“Really hot products, such as the iPod, TiVo or Netflix — all tipped
in Silicon Valley first,” Mr. Hoffman said. He’s referring to a theory espoused by author Malcolm Gladwell in the book “The Tipping Point,”
which says that shopping priorities are often heavily influenced by people known as connectors.
Wine, books and technology gadgets seem to find a strong hold in
Silicon Valley, Mr. Hoffman said, “and the companies who make these
solutions want to get, foremost, the mindshare of Silicon Valley people,”
he said. “Now, if you’re trying to get buzz on a hip pair of pants, I’m not
so sure this is the right market,” Mr. Hoffman said, laughing.
He seems to understand the business of leading-edge ideas, having
founded three Internet companies and selling each before he turned 30.
He is a contributor to the book “21st Century Selling,” and holds a bachelor of science in engineering from UC Berkeley.
Friends and colleagues point to Mr. Hoffman’s charm and accessibility as a key factor in his success of his two-year-old company, saying his
ambitious, adventurous and amiable personality has been a cornerstone
of his success.
“He’s one of the friendliest guys I know,” said Zaw Thet, a founder of
4INFO, a mobile search company, and a member of the Silicon Valley
100. “This has allowed him to talk to people in any situation and to build
a great network of friends and people that respect him.”
After personally inviting each of the 100 members to join the Silicon Valley 100, Mr. Hoffman acts as the middleman between this elite
group and the manufacturers who are clamoring to get their feedback. Companies bid to have their product sent to the list, and once
approved, their product is distributed to the list. A new product is
shipped out each month.
Called a trickle-up theory of marketing, the system is designed to
work like this: If you put a product in the right hands — like Netscape
co-founder Marc Andreessen or venture capitalist Tim Draper, both Silicon Valley 100 members — a larger market base may follow.
These individuals, and all the members of Hoffman’s list, posses several key characteristics. Foremost, they must know a lot of people, preferably in the thousands, Mr. Hoffman said; they must be willing to talk and
share their opinion about myriad things, be it the best wine to drink or
vacation spot to try; they must have friends and followers listen to them
WINTER 2006
and follow their advice; and they must have an overall sense of integrity
— “people who call it like they see it,” Mr. Hoffman said.
Individuals such as these have a surprising effect on the probability
of success of a new product, Mr. Hoffman said. A well-known connector
such as investor Ron Conway might test a new product, begin using it
with some regularity, and then start telling friends and colleagues about
it. Voila, the buzz begins to spread.
“For some time, people have been wondering: Would this really
work?” Mr. Hoffman said of this phenomenon known as influence marketing. “Although there was a lot of thinking behind this, there wasn’t a
lot of hard proof.”
The idea seems to be working. Take the little-known Swash, a combination bidet/toilet seat/blow dryer that few people had ever heard
of a year ago. The product is manufactured by Brondell Inc., a San
Francisco company that was trying to determine when and where to
market the product.
“We were just launching the Brondell Swash when Auren was launching the Silicon Valley 100, and the biggest issue facing Brondell was lack
of category awareness,” said Scott Pinizzotto, founder and CEO of BronCONTINUED ON PAGE 40