Hi everyone:
"Off topic technology, but WOW! Think of the possibilities and where this will take us!"
Yes, the possibilities are endless. We have been asking this question since the Stone Age after each discovery. Wow, we could use stone as weapon! Wow, we could start a fire with a stick and a stone, think of all the possibilities!
But with each discovery, it took someone with a bold vision to reach out for the possibilities:
As noted by ztect, Xerox PARC's team was the one who developed the GUI interface- the ability to use a mouse to point and click. But it was Steve Job who possessed the bold vision to bring that technology into the Macintosh computer in 1984 and changed the direction of the computer revolution.
When Yahoo became popular among the internet surfers with its website directory during the earlier day, it took someone (Timothy Koogle, CEO) with a bold vision to turn it into a major portal. Here is a quote from the September 7, 1998 issue of BusinessWeek that described this bold vision better, "In just three years, Yahoo has morphed from an ordinary search service into the be-all, do-all of the Net, offering a dizzying array of services and information. Need a daily fix of news, stock quotes, weather, and E-mail? Head to Yahoo. Want to house-hunt, figure out a retirement plan, or research the Ebola virus? Yep- Yahoo. It's even a Web hangout for those craving a little R&R of, say, online blackjack, shopping for premium handmade cigars, or Koi pond supplies."
How about Amazon.com? It started off with a bold statement on its website in the early days: "The World's Largest Bookstore"
Nevertheless, with each bold vision, a focused business plan is required to be successful. In the world of Internet, the historical tendency is that if you are the first to come out with a bold vision and a focused business plan, your chance of success is very high. The ability to adapt to customers' demands and feedback early in the game help you to build up a loyal base of customers that will not go away. And if your loyal base of customers is a good representative of the general population, then everyone who log into your website will find it homely and comfortable to use. Human nature has a tendency to stay with a satisfied product as long as the product continues to evolve with the change of times. For if you don't evolve with the change of times, your loyal base of customers will be frustrated and move on to the new website that offer the new values and changes.
People who bought Yahoo stock in the early day saw the possibilities before anyone even realize the significance of the Internet phenomenon. And after that, these 'enlightened' group of investors probably bought into Amazon.com as well in the early days. However, these group of investors have to deal with all the bashers and naysayers in the beginning also. Because all bold visions require us to change our old way of doing thing, a riot from bashers and naysayers are inevitable.
To me and IMHO, ProNetLink has a bold vision. It is not just a business yellow page for the whole world to have access to, but also a webtool that will help you seek finance, arrange shipping, download international forms, plan your electronic printing and many more. If PNL management can keep their focus on this bold vision and adapt their website to serve their customers in this early part of the game, I believe it will have a good chance of succeeding.
Any subscription number that may come out by the end of this month or later will be the first core group of business customers. If PNL are constantly interacting with this core group of customers and continue to modify the website with the aim to please and serve. Then any new customers who may join later will find the website a useful site to stay on. This evolving PNL's website will be an ongoing process that will never end.
Therefore, IMHO, I am not looking for any fancy number coming out later this month or next. As long as the customer base is enough to allow PNL's website to continue to evolve, it will bring in more customers as time passed.
From the above, Yahoo has morphed into a giant in just 3 years, ebay has been around for 3 years before its IPO. Amazon has been around for how long? About 3 years? Well, isn't it fair that we give PNL at least 3 years to build up its business? As for me, I am not selling my shares for the next 3 years as long as PNL stay focus on their business plan.
For those long-term investors who are thinking of selling to pick up some more shares as lower prices, I can only wish you Good Luck. As for myself, I will never mix long-term trading strategy with short-term strategy, it can be very confusing sometimes.
Prosperity to ALL!
BTW, thank to Todd Jensen for your DD. |
