links
Who’s Minding the Mind – An interesting article from the New York Times about the role our subconscious plays in decision-making. The article reminded me of Malcolm Gladwell’s book Blink (excepted at that link) in which he describes these instantaneous and imperceptible decisions across a range of scenarios.
Craigslist as Business Model – The interview in the preceding link is Craigslist’s CEO Jim Buckmaster answering reader submitted questions. You may read it and think “Another CEO that knows what his customers wants to hear”. But if you watch this interview with Craig Newmark (the Craig of craigslist) on Charlie Rose, you’ll see a non-cynical business leader that pretty convincingly believes what he says. As part of the discussion, Craig Newmark has some interesting commentary on craigslist’s suspected effect on the shrinking newspaper business.
I admire the way Craigslist is managed, not guided solely by financial considerations, but also by what makes it’s principal owner happy or proud. CL is an advertising site that doesn’t blind you with unrelated ads, it is a user-based content site that removes content only on user-suggestion and even then relatively rarely, and it is an online marketplace not interested in (a cut of) the financial transaction. The space for online advertising sites may be full, but the business strategy behind craigslist seems rewarding and endlessly renewable.
links posted by: dan @ 02 Aug 2007 9:47