Local Voice talks to David Webber. David is the founder of simplData and is on a mission to help people understand technology in a way that makes sense to them.
What is your business?
At the core, simplData does two things: we develop custom web applications to help our customers organize their data and we take designers’ sketches and make their website ideas work.
In the end though, we handle a plethora of web-related tasks from server setup and maintenance to Wordpress installs to helping organizations think through their purpose on the web. Our goal is to really help organizations accomplish what they need to do in a simple manner on the web and do it in a way they can understand.
Is social media a “four letter word” when it comes to your business?
Social Media means different things to different people, but in the end it is a new way to make connections with the people around you. Is it a four letter word to my company? Absolutely not. In fact, use of social media tools is very much encouraged. Oddly enough though, I am not specifically using social media tools like Twitter and Facebook to make business connections. I am using those tools to make personal connections.
One thing I have noticed is that making personal connections on a tool like Twitter has the potential to lead to some incredible business connections. In fact, I would not have a business today without the connections I have made through social media tools like Twitter. I’ve been looking for an official source for this statistic, but from what I understand 75% of jobs come from word of mouth. This has been more than true for me: 95% of my business has come from the connections I have made through Twitter specifically.
Have you found the “competition wall” has fallen down as result of the social web, or are companies still very much competitive with each other?
There is certainly an aspect of competition on social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, however in my experience other small business owners are more than happy to help each other out. Like any business, web development companies have waves of work. I’ve found that partnering with a few other web development companies helps make those waves less of an issue. It’s all about developing a good rapport with your “competition” and then sharing the workload among each other. We are all in this together and there is plenty of work for all of us to succeed.
Have your traditional marketing tactics changed as a result of the social web?
I have no plans on using formal marketing. I’m not opposed to it and it may happen one day. I really have found that word of mouth connections are incredibly valuable AND it doesn’t cost anything.
What does being a “little guy” mean to you?
Running your own company can be incredibly rewarding. It takes a lot of hard work, a lot of learning new things and certainly a lot of risk. It is totally worth it! There are some incredible opportunities you will have to interact with new people, build/see new products and work in an environment totally of YOUR choosing. I mean, really, who can argue with a shorts and flip-flop dress code?
What advice would you share to other small business owners or people thinking of starting their own business?
You absolutely have to go for it. If you don’t make the move now you never will. I heard that phrase from so many places before I started my company and I told myself that I would make the leap as soon as I was ready, but I took my time. I look at it now and wish I had taken the leap years ago. Seriously–take the leap now, start your company and start changing the world!
Tags: david webber, smal business, technology, web development