Yelp & Foursquare: Bolstering the Consumer Decision-Making Process

I am a huge foodie and New York has only worsened my obsession with trying out new restaurants and coffee shops.

I’ve always had a structured routine when it comes to choosing restaurants. I usually scour blogs or magazines or reference back to my long google doc on referrals from friends and family (I told you I was obsessed!) After I pick 2-3 restaurants from the list (with little prior knowledge other than a friend’s name in brackets), I head on over to Yelp.

On Yelp, I’ve trained myself to focus on three main categories: 1) Ratings, 2) Quality of Reviews, and 3) Pictures of the Restaurant. After I make my decision (a time intensive process), I use Opentable to make my reservation. There have only been a number of restaurants that do not offer opentable integration via Yelp, which is a huge detriment to the booking workflow. The integration seems like a no-brainer to me and one that would hugely outweigh the costs of integration. 

So that is the process. Pretty simple, right?

There was nothing seriously wrong with my way of deciding where to eat - except, it took a lot of time and wasn’t entirely reliable. 

One day, Yelp was taking a long time to upload my search results so I opted for Foursquare. Foursquare was always a “nice to have” app on my iPhone that I used when I needed to pass time. I didn’t get much out of check-ins, other than the occasional special which I rarely redeemed. Facebook gave me the same functionality with more friend/network exposure. 

My sentiment changed after discovering Foursquare’s revamped explore functionality and heavy UX/UI focus on user-generated pictures. Foursquare has now become my default discovery engine — the prelude to my scattered referrals and over displacing my time spent on Yelp. 

Here’s why: 

Discovery - We all get suggestions for places to eat and drink. On any given day, we are given at least a dozen names (either through friends, twitter, or traditional marketing.) Given all of our hectic schedules, we process and record only one-third of these suggestions. Foursquare allows you to not only explore restaurants in advance (from other foodies), but also facilitates discovery when it is most needed (before a meeting, after a party, in transit.) Its user-generated pictures are much better quality than Yelp’s and it allows users to store information on to-do lists that will automatically pop up when we check-in to a location. It is in these “mobile periods” of time that we can’t reference our ten dozen post-its or scribbles in the back of our planners that Foursquare fulfills our need. 

Quality of Reviews - I’ve always liked an outsider’s perspective but Foursquare’s focus is on friends you “trust”. You also get feeds from people who have been to the same location in the past, but they are better because they can be consumed in bite-sized pieces, instead of long monologues a la Yelp. Don’t get me wrong - there are times I need that long review - but usually, I want to know the best dishes right before the order. Yelp’s reviews are an amalgamation of disgruntled customers on angry tirades or overly enthusiastic tourists who give too much detail. Foursquare is short and timely, offering just the exact amount of information I need. Foursquare also combines reviews from magazines and brands I follow (e.g. NYMag, Gilt Groupe) to become the digital/mobile version of my post-it scribbles. In short, Foursquare understands the modern-day social user better than Yelp does. Today, users are the sum of their information sources and a company that makes it easier to consume those sources will ultimately be the most successful. 

Location - Both Yelp and Foursquare offer location-based search, but Foursquare’s explore functionality is more robust. The map sits at the top of the app while Yelp’s is only accessible away from the main page. Foursquare also highlights where your friends have eaten in the recent past (augmenting the information you use to select your own eatery.) For foursquare, location is the focus while for Yelp, it is just supplementary (an obvious observation in the analysis of their design.) Yelp’s mobile app is buggy to say the least and doesn’t incorporate design features that enhance usability. 

Design: Look at the difference between the two landing pages below. Foursquare has much better design. You want to spend time on the page and would gladly scroll down to go through your options while in the Yelp app, you want to get out as fast as possible. Yelp’s strong focus on assigning “stars” to a restaurant (reminiscent of old-school NYT reviews) distracts the user from learning more about the restaurant. I wouldn’t spend time on a three-start restaurant on Yelp but on Foursquare, without the focus on the number of stars, I’d spend time getting suggestions on a few good dishes found in the mix. 

Competitive Advantage: In terms of bolstering their competitive advantage, Foursquare should factor in reservations into their functionality to counter Yelp. Yelp has introduced check-ins to enter Facebook’s and Foursquare’s territory, as an example. I understand their focus is on location, but the overlap into Yelp’s “pre-destination” market may help to expand their user base. I’d also focus on foursquare’s web functionality (an experience that the team has recently put time into.) 

I don’t think one company will win the war, but both companies can do much to improve their feature set in order to become placeholders in the consumer decision-making process.

A) Foursquare 

B) Yelp 

Five Things {June 4th - June 8th}

{I spent Tuesday afternoon at the WeWork Labs office with teams of entrepreneurs. We talked about everything from equity/cash splits for developers to sales cycles. WeWork is an incredible asset to the NYC startup community.}

{Free coffee in this fabulous WeWork mug. Clever isn’t it?}

{One of my favorite parts of the week was catching up with my college roommate and best friend who was visiting from law school. Caught up over burgers at my favorite SoHo spot “SoHo on the Park.”}

{Spent a lot of time listening to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s music this week. Made me miss Pakistan.}

{The big design moment of the week was Foursquare’s re-design. Seems like they are taking a page out of Facebook’s timeline with a focus on uploading pictures. I am a big fan.}

Decoded Fashion Forum // Lincoln Center

Yesterday was the launch of the Decoded Fashion Forum at the Lincoln Center - a conference platform bringing together the worlds of tech and fashion. It was incredible to see a visible push to innovate within the fashion vertical, using the tools and capabilities that tech provides. The panels were professional and very informative (shocking, I know!)



Below you will find 7 of my favorite ideas/questions spurred by the day’s events: 

Social Media as the Antithesis: You wouldn’t expect to hear this tidbit at a conference that is working to merge the tech and fashion world but when you think of social media as omnipresent, you remember that high fashion is the opposite. High fashion is supposed to be almost unattainable, secretive and rare. But as luxury brands are thrust into the social media world, they have all been forced to adopt a different strategy. Technology has begun to shape our own social interactions and thus the interactions of the products/brands we create.  Deborah Lloyd, of Kate Spade, says there is no point fighting the beast. Social media is the new wave and to be relevant one must be a part of it. Kate Spade has integrated almost seamlessly with the world of social media. Their twitter brand ((@katespadeny) has a life of its own with approx 244k followers and is by far my favorite brand to follow. Although the brand understands the importance of product, the majority of their posts are not product related. Instead, they tell a story…a brand narrative.What do you love, what do you notice, what do you admire if you are a ‘Kate Spade Girl”? Images include everything from the bright yellow sunflowers at the flower shop on Broome Street to swimsuit launches for their poolside collection. Alice + Olivia, Nicole Miller and DKNY build out their brands in a similar way (DKNY actually just launched their new tumblr site.) If you can live the life of an A+O girl or a Kate Spade girl, you will be more likely to buy their products. Its a inverse channel which is story based, even if it errs on the side of too much information. From an investor’s point of view, the bottom line is: The incorporation of social media in a space that is all about its “closed doors” is incredibly positive. The concept of a social network has been truly validated. 

Location? What Location?: When given an option between Instagram and Twitter, I wasn’t surprised to hear most designers went with Instagram. I’m not sure if the answer would have been the same prior to the Facebook acquisition. The $1 B tag may falsely be driving up the perceived value of the app. However, the shocking realization I had in the midst of the conference was when a moderator asked designers about the use of Foursquare in the larger scope of social media use. There was complete silence on stage. It occurred to me that location features are not as important in the fashion world. The statement seems contradictory because one would think retail is ALL about location. You want the customer to see your advertisement at the point of decision (at a retail location!) But for high fashion, retail locations are limited. Your product isn’t mass produced and the decision making process (from ad to purchase) is a longer sales funnel (one that must be supplemented by visuals and brand promotion). Location, as a result, becomes less important. 

The Resurrection of Brick and Mortar: One of the most impressive presentations at the conference was by Bonobos Founder and CEO Andy Dunn. We are used to seeing a trend of traditional businesses move into online channels for the purpose of efficiency and lowered costs. Bonobos is doing the opposite. They built their brand online with three components in mind: 1) Fit, 2) Customer Service, 3) Fun. The Bonobos Team perfected these three elements and hit the business out of the park. Big, traditional companies like Nordstrom noticed and got involved, leading a $16.4 mm investment in the company in April and opening the Bonobos product to 100 stores worldwide. With their investment, Bonobos is not only going offline but also using Nordstrom expertise to open up their first retail location in Boston on Newbury Street. Andy referred to these locations as “e-commerce showrooms” or “guide shops” - modeled around a 45-appointment period for each customer. He remarked: “Convenience is crucial but people still want to touch and feel their clothing…Why shouldn’t we give them two channels?” What I like most about Andy’s concept of an “e-commerce showroom” is the idea that tech doesn’t always have to “eliminate” what came before it. The past has value and tech serves to advance that value. Traditional retail isn’t dead but it can sure as hell get better. 

Core Business vs. Industry: Charlie O’Donnell of Brooklyn Bridge Ventures made an interesting point on the Investor Panel. As an early stage investor, he said industry verticals are less important than core business principles. “All companies have the same problems in the first 6-8 months.” Citing Birchbox as an example, Charlie went on to say, “We shouldn’t need to know about the industry when we think about the company as a core business.” He remarked that VC’s were asking their girlfriends or wives for advice on the Birchbox product because they couldn’t wrap their heads around a female-oriented concept. I understand where he is coming from but do not entirely agree with his point. Core business principles are important, yes, they are - but you can’t separate industry from business. The two are fundamentally related. The reason more investments haven’t been made in the fashion space is because there aren’t enough female investors. It is that simple. For such a large, desperate-to-be-disrupted industry, the lack of investment only proves my point. It can’t just be that these businesses haven’t understood “core business principles” - there is a lack in knowledge sharing that needs to be supplemented by those who understand it best. 

The Elimination of Size: There were several startups at the conference that were building technology that highlighted “fit” as the main driver of a customer’s purchase decision. This technology ranged from software widgets that you could access from any device that saved your body measurements to entire body scanning kiosks placed in malls that told you what item of clothing fit you best. Size was rarely mentioned. In fact, one CEO I spoke to said the whole concept of size was going to disappear as adherence to “personal fit” became popular. His hope was that in 2-5 years, we wouldn’t talk about dress sizes in 2’s or 4’s but instead as “custom-made” for the average person. I loved the idea since it ties in with my investment thesis supporting companies bringing previously unattainable luxury habits to the masses (Uber is an example - “everyone’s private driver.”) 

Augmented Reality: Augmented Reality was another commonly addressed theme. A conference attendee asked a great question: Is augmented reality the vehicle or the destination? I think he hit the nail on the head. Retailers who will ultimately use augmented reality as a technology platform need to ask themselves whether they want it to drive sales or whether they want it to BECOME another sales channel. Even though Augmented Reality of the Mission Impossible variety is not yet available, major retailers and department stores are making inroads. For example, The Bloomingdale’s window display on 59th allows customers to get a digital picture taken (while standing outside) of themselves in order to try on designer sunglasses virtually. It has been driving a lot of customers into the store and I’d be interested in analyzing the ROI.

Platform/Network vs. Device: Most of the companies that presented at the conference were what I would call “soft tech” or “network-based.” That means they were not based on a hard entity through which an operation was conducted. The evolution of tech today is moving away from tangible technology to platform-based or network-based tech (softer tech.) For the fashion industry in particular, tech is allowing companies to do what they already did, better. Charlie O’Donnell said it best: “There is nothing tech based that makes fab.com, fab.com.” Of course, it’s an online platform that aggregates good design and is accessible to millions of users but the real value proposition is the utilization of a core fashion skill set – a great eye for curation. This skill set, when positioned on a platform has built a successful, money-making network.

Making the iPad “Artist-Friendly”

Spent the weekend amazed by the new “Paper” App by FiftyThree inc. - a development company of multiple former Microsoft engineers. 

Think of it like your very own sketchbook, except on the iPad. It is amazing how natural the experience feels. Download the app here and see my first attempt below (no laughing, I will get better with time.) 

iWedding

I spent the holiday season in Lahore, Pakistan for my cousin’s wedding. If you have ever been to a South Asian wedding, you know how incredibly crazy and fun they can be. To begin, its not a one-day affair. South Asian families prolong the celebration as much as possible till there are back-to-back events that can run up to ten days. Having spent time at a startup and in the Silicon Valley bubble, I noticed ways technology could eliminate repetitive pain points. 

Arranged Marriages: Only a South Asian can tell you the science behind an arranged marriage. Its a long and often painful process that begins with awkward introductions, family-engendered stalking, and chaperoned visits. Parents play as much of a role in the courting process as the two individuals getting married. Bharat Matrimony, a BVP portfolio company, uses a web platform to streamline the process. It personalizes the entire process by arranging in-person meetings with families to dilute the impersonal web process. Pakistan has a similar website “Pakistan Matrimony” but there is room for more competition/innovation in the market. Weddings have also become a great “rishta scouting” platform. A rishta, in Urdu, means a proposal. Mothers go to weddings to find pretty girls or handsome boys for their own children. Often they see someone they don’t recognize and they have to go through the embarrassing process of going up to them to ask them their name/background. Sometimes, they proceed to take out their feature phones and physically type in the name in order to save it for later use. (I wish I was kidding.) There has to be a social app that could service this scarily large population. A quick photo with an easy-to-use note interface would do wonders for the awkward 10-minute rishta hunt. 

Testing Hair & Makeup: I visited a lot of salons during the wedding and realized there was a real need for visual examples of hair style offerings and makeup selections. For brides, this is even more important. Brides have trial appointments beforehand but visual examples are a much better use of time and money. There was only one salon I visited that used an iPad to show customers the different makeup and hairstyle options it offered. I thought it was a great investment - much better than the tattered magazines in the corner that were years old with makeup smudges on the corner. I digress, but you get the point. 

Mehndhi: We take “getting our hands dirty” very literally here in the subcontinent. Henna, as it is often referred to outside of the Middle East, looks beautiful when it is fully dried but the process is long and very messy. Henna has a very strong smell and when used out of a traditional henna cone can take a long time to produce intricate designs. Henna takes at least one hour to dry and if you touch anything by mistake for the next three hours (inevitable, really) it will have a dirty orange stain for life. Exciting. This winter, we refused to go through the dreaded mehndhi process and tried something new- mehndhi application via a syringe. Henna artists break off the tip of a syringe for precise henna application which is much more effective than a flimsy plastic-wrap henna cone. Artists have also stopped using organic henna. Hennotannic acid (the dye in henna) is hydrophobic which means that water is not the best way to darken henna. Instead, terpineol, a type of monoterpene alcohol is infused with the henna. Terpineol is found in Tea Tree and Cajeput oils. The infusion of this oil allows the henna to darken quickly and dry within 5 minutes. No flakes, no smell - just beautiful, intricate, wedding-ready designs. Source: The Henna Page 

Service Professionals: The best season for hair salons and spas in Pakistan is wedding season (December-February) but the number of salons to customers is disproportionate. Pakistan’s population is approximately 180 mm - people need jobs that are sustainable. The salon skill set is a fun/relatively easy skill set to acquire for young women seeking upward fiscal mobility. Women would make a lot more offering their services individually, at the homes of clients, rather than at a salon. The salon offers structure and limited training but the freedom and high price range of serving high-end clients at their homes may provide higher fiscal incentive in the long run. This is obviously something that needs to be modeled out but it could be an interesting idea to explore. 

A Staged Wedding: One of the things I’ve always hated about South Asian weddings is the limited movement of the bride and groom. The bride and her groom are expected to be ornaments on a stage in one corner of the wedding hall. People take turns to come and greet the new couple. Women in saris have trouble climbing up the stage - there are long lines all the way to the buffet table of people waiting to say hello and get their picture taken with the couple. It just seems incredibly inefficient. I am not exaggerating when I say the new couple is expected to sit on a sofa for 3+ hours, smile for the camera and pretend to know relatives they have only met 1-2 times in their entire life. Its no fun. The easy answer would be: go against the norm, walk around, dance - who cares about tradition. This is true but what if we change the whole idea of a stage? What if the bride and groom sit on a rotating platform in the middle of the hall? No one would come up to get pictures taken - pictures of the bride and groom could be taken before or after the ceremony. Instead, the bride and groom would be equally close to all guests and able to walk around and greet friends and family. 

An App World: The wedding industry in Pakistan is a rapidly evolving, high margin industry with remarkable potential -  but a successful wedding has little to do with effective management or precedent in Pakistan. Everything is done in a very haphazard, last minute way. Event managers in Pakistan should use the web to streamline the planning process in a solidified way: registries should be utilized, wedding portfolios should be shared online, ideas should be exchanged with the planner via the web. This would not only limit meeting/transportation costs but would also allow an increased flow of information exchange (increasing the potential for success/fulfillment.) 

A Long Time Coming - I Am Officially Obsessed

If you have talked to me in the last month, you have definitely heard me talk about Pinterest (actually, more like rave about Pinterest.) It is by far my favorite new product. Here are a few of my reasons (in random order): 

1) Discovery over Search: Pinterest came out of nowhere and is actually solving a huge problem: the dependence of marketers and large CPG brands on search data for advertising and retargeting purposes. Touted as the most valuable form of data, search data has trumped other forms of data in the world of advertising as the clearest picture of customer behavior and purchase intent. In reality, when we parse out what we actually buy, a lot of it has to do with spontaneous buys - not directly linked to what we search with in the first place. It’s like the phrase, “going into the supermarket to buy milk but leaving with a pack of gum near the cash register.” Pinterest is aiming to disrupt this market by moving customers away from search and towards “discovery.” Why would you need to search on Google to get thrown into a mess of search results when you can search on Pinterest and discover as you browse the boards and pins of friends or industry experts. 

2) Redefining Advertising: Pinterest really is a bunch of cool advertisements. Of course they are driven by “interest” but it is really a collection of images that can drive to a website or “purchase decision”. But the way Pinterest has structured itself - you would never think of it as “just” ads. That’s the brilliance of the product. You “ooh” and you “aah” and you have no idea that what you’ve been doing for the past hour is being “advertised to.” It is obvious that Pinterest has put a lot of time and effort into its product (a technical success made clear by the Andreesen Horowitz investment) - but I believe Pinterest’s success will come from the interplay of user psychology and product. The only other company that does this as well is Apple. I think we have a star in the making. 

3) Organizing Inspiration: When you first join Pinterest, you instantly own your own board. You don’t have to get into the nitty gritty details of filling out a lengthy profile. You are able to dive in before understanding what exactly you are doing. Very quickly, the inspiration concept takes over - you see friends posting all sorts of random things - from expensive art to kate spade shoes, holiday recipe ideas to pictures of your next spring break destination.

The tsunami of inspiration then leads to Pinterest’s second big win: Boards. Each image you attempt to pin or “re-pin” has to be organized into a category. After spending even 15 minutes on the site, you automatically CRAVE this sort of organization - a type of organization that isn’t as easy on an actual pin board. You start viewing inspiration in buckets which gives the Pinterest team pure gold in terms of consumer data. In online and mobile advertising, most data analysts have to parse through hordes of behavioral information to figure out a consumer’s identity and purchase preferences; with Pinterest, the user has done the job for you. Not only do you know what I want to buy, you know what inspires me. Jackpot. 

4) The Real You: I believe Pinterest data will say more about an average user than social data because of the fierce independence it cultivates. “This is MY inspiration board, these are MY pins.” There exists very little showmanship. Why would you pretend to be inspired by something that bores you? On Facebook and Twitter, we share articles and photos that inspire us, but to a lesser extent. It is more about a personal brand or image we are trying to project. Pinterest is less about that. It functions more as a list we want to come back to, a storyboard that serves as inspiration or simply things we hope to accomplish (the design of a house, a daunting craft project or a bridal shower for a friend.) Pinterest lets you be you. 

5) For the Women: This point is actually bittersweet in a lot of ways (especially for the Pinterest engineers.) I’ve rarely seen a consumer product or app that is as intensely gendered as Pinterest. Its user base right now is mostly women, even though it was founded by Ben Silbermann who was a collector as a kid. From a business model perspective, Pinterest should find ways to appeal to men - but from the perspective of helping women’s adoption rates to any early consumer product, I think the gender variation is great and I am so happy it has gained traction so quickly. We have finally started to build products (intentionally or unintentionally) that appeal to the double X chromosome first and second to the Y. I love it.

But why does Pinterest seem like a female-oriented product? If the foundation of Pinterest was around “collections” - the act of collecting as a hobby is as much a masculine trait as a feminine one. Here’s what I think. The foundation of Pinterest is a compelling one. Men are inspired as often as women. I really don’t think it has anything to do with our propensity to shop more than men. The core of the problem is man’s inability to project this inspiration. Collections are usually private until they have gained significant traction and can be “shown off.” Pinterest is a collection in motion, one that is displayed everyday. Is that as appealing to men? Men are more private about what inspires them. Talking out loud about these things is “feminine”, like a gossip session at a slumber party, magazines and nailpolish in tow. Men make lists; they have plans - but they talk about them in bars after a few beers, not on a social networking site. I am interested to see how the Pinterest team will shape its product to appeal to men the same way it is appealing to women. 

Visit my Pinterest but beware, you won’t be able to leave the site for a few hours. 

The Virgin Brand

When you think of user experience and good design, few brands come to mind: Apple, Square, and The Virgin Group are sure to be included in the list. This holiday weekend, long hours of travel inspired an homage to good design impacting positive user experience. On Thursday, after a long hiatus, I flew Virgin Atlantic – the brainchild of famous entrepreneur Richard Branson and the inspiration for Virgin America (which actually is not a subsidiary of Virgin Atlantic and legally exists as a separate airline.) 

I’ve only ever seen Virgin America associated with good press in the last few years and am in awe of their PR/branding strategies. Even now, despite a lapse in their online customer registration portal – few can complain about the overall Virgin experience. 

Customer Service: The Virgin Group doesn’t take customer service lightly. Good user experience starts the moment you step into the airport. Both airlines easily dominate the airport lobby with their bright red floor carpets and smiling agents in red skirt suits. They are so eager to help that you almost feel bad saying you have things under control. When juxtaposed with an aged British Airways brand or Jet Blue’s perpetually “out of order” kiosks – the simple “we are ready to serve you” mentality is an automatic first win for Virgin. Despite reporting a $270 mm loss from August 2007 (when it first began) to the first two quarters of 2010, Virgin America’s unrelenting belief in the sustainability of good customer service helped them boast a $7.5 mm profit in the third quarter of 2010. Good customer service/user experience almost always results in success. 

Photo #1: Virgin America’s Check-in Stations at SFO, Terminal 2 

Photo #2: A Virgin Atlantic Stewardess in head-to-toe red 

The Cool Factor: Either Virgin branding is saturated with 20-somethings or they have the best branding analysts in the world. Virgin’s value proposition was always its “hip factor.” Everything from their business class lounges to their economy cabins scream millennium generation.  In Virgin Atlantic planes, premium economy passengers are invited to sit at a 6-person bar at any point during the flight. The bar is in tones of purple and red with blue lights emanating from the floor to add a “club-like” effect.

All Virgin America flights are known for their “mood-lighting” - cabins lined with purple/blue lighting, a stark differentiator from the harsh white fluorescent lighting in most airline cabins. They even spend money on making their cutlery fit into the “purple” color theme.

A good use of color schemes isn’t the only way Virgin gets the attention of their customers. They invest in good copy as well. Virgin Atlantic is also known for its its “tongue-in-cheek” slogans all the way from “Still Red Hot for 25 Years” to “Your Airline’s Either Got it, Or It Hasn’t.” In an archaic industry, rife with “safe” branding – the virgin brand is sure to get your attention. 

Photo #3: The Virgin Atlantic In-flight Bar 

Photo #4: Mood lighting in Virgin America 

Technology: Virgin America boasts a touch screen GUI for each passenger in economy as well as a Panasonic IFE (in flight entertainment) system. My favorite feature is the on-demand ordering system. Every passenger can order from the menu built into their IFE systems. A picture and price for each item is clearly identified (there is also a separate section for free items.) If a passenger wants to pay extra for an item, they can swipe their credit card in the back of the seat (Yes! It is really that easy.)

Virgin America was also the first airline to offer wireless inflight internet and include power ports for each seat. The best airlines in the world (like Emirates and Singapore Airlines) only offer power ports to their business and first class passengers (they still don’t offer internet.) Unfortunately, Virgin Atlantic didn’t embrace internet and power ports in the same way. It might have something to do with the clients they were servicing (are Americans more dependent and demanding of technology than their European counterparts?) Would be an interesting point to research further. 

Photo #5: My all-time favorite feature: on-demand ordering via touch screen in Virgin America

The Little Details: Both Virgin Atlantic and Virgin America pride themselves in good design. The font utilized on all items at first glance seems like a cross between Helvetica and Arial. In reality, it is a font customized specifically for the Virgin Group, called “Virgin Galactic.” Clearly, they don’t take these things very lightly.

For long-haul flights, Virgin Atlantic gives each passenger in economy an amenity kit with bright red socks, a pen, a sleeping eye mask and a purple map of everywhere Virgin flies.

The introductory security video that plays before each Virgin America flight is also a testament to the little details they pay attention to. Virgin’s videos are very different from any other video in the airline market. They play upbeat music and make light of certain safety precautions through the development of a funny storyboard with sketch cartoon characters instead of boring airline models. One particular part in the video that always makes me laugh is how they preface the seatbelt portion: “If you are of the 0.0001% of people who have never seen a seatbelt, this is how you’re supposed to buckle up.” It is the most obvious little detail and so true but no other airline thinks this way! We all hate security videos but airlines must show them due to regulations and liabilities. Virgin understands. Why not take the chance to be funny or sarcastic and make a passenger laugh? Like I said, its the little details. 

Photo #6: Salt and Pepper Packets 

Photo #7: High Tea Snack Box in a Number of Languages 

The “New” Woman in the Valley

As a young woman in the technology space, Brit Morin’s launch of a new lifestyle brand is just what the Valley needed. When we think of female role models, few women come to mind. Sheryl Sandberg is of course the paramount force - leading the Valley’s most successful company with effortless ease. Thousands of young women across the world have heard her famous TED talk and Barnard College Commencement Speech, labeling her a force within the Valley ecosystem. “Don’t leave before you leave” has become a mantra for Sandberg’s female foot soldiers. 

Marissa Mayer is also a role model but in a different sense. Mayer taught the world that being a total nerd could be “chic.” She redefined the concept of a female engineer with her Oscar de la Renta and cupcake addiction, leading Google’s product strategy from its infancy to its current, roaring success. 

But I often wonder how much of Mayer’s and Sandberg’s success had to do with luck. Did Sandberg have the right mentors at the right time? Did Mayer simply pick the right team? I don’t mean to downplay the importance of identifying the right market, mentors or team but for me it strays away from the inventiveness I so often value in the Valley. Sandberg is running a tight ship but it was a pimple-faced Zuckerbeg that came up with the idea. Mayer drove Google’s innovation, but it was Sergey and Larry who decided they would disrupt the search market. Being the “first” to say “hey, let’s do it another way” is often the hardest and most rewarding decision to make. 

Brit Morin is taking such a risk. A lifestyle brand is almost antithetical to the key pillars of the Valley. Lifestyle brands are to a certain extent about the “splurge”. They are girly, catered to the housewife, and non-geeky. Morin flips this idea on its head and brings the two concepts together. Why can’t the lifestyle market be disrupted the same way the advertising or music market was? Why can’t successful (and geeky) girls be effective and efficient with their household chores? Good design is good design, in the office, on the app store, or in the home. 

The more we stress science, engineering and math in schools, especially for young girls - the more we need to stress that you don’t need to be “masculine” to be successful. The days of the pantsuit are long gone. Embrace the apron! Make it geeky. Make it fun. 

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