Hachi: The Roadmap to Your Social Graph
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post our co-founder wrote for Hachi. The original post can be seen here.
Very rarely does a startup come along that I fall so madly in love with that it becomes a need-to-have staple in my life. Spotify did it for music, Mint did it for my personal finances, but Hachi has now done the same for the way I conduct business.
For those of you that are stumbling across this blog post before you’ve checked out Hachi, I’ll give you the quick pitch: Hachi is the roadmap to your social graph. It allows you to do a search for a particular person, someone with a certain title, someone at a specific company, etc. and find your path of connection to that person. It does exactly what LinkedIn should do rather than showing that I’m vaguely connected via someonein a person’s connections.
To give an example, I wanted to talk to someone at a company about a partnership. Let’s call them Acme Inc. I searched by company on Hachi and found that I could connect to about 5 or 6 different people at Acme, and that my shortest path of connection was to a business development person who was Facebook friends with a friend of mine from Startup Weekend. I shot that friend a message asking for an intro, and boom — I’ve got my foot in the door at Acme.
If you’re like me, sometimes you just want to network for the sake of knowing well-connected people. So I did a search on someone big and found that I was in his third degree and that a founder friend of mine was connected to someone connected to him. I emailed her with a request for an intro to the intermediary (with a legitimate reason, not just hi can we be friends?), and then got to know the intermediary. Now I’m one degree away from someone very cool!
I have no shame in sending cold emails to connect with people, but my success rate skyrocketed as soon as I started using Hachi to connect more intelligently and really leverage my network. This has been an absolute god-send for fundraising since investors will typically only talk to you if you can find a warm introduction. I can’t even remember the last time I had to think “how do I find someone at X firm or company?”
Also, their founder Rachna Singh is amazing. I’ve always found that entrepreneurs tend to manifest themselves in the startups they build, and Hachi is no exception. Rachna is one of the most helpful, well-connected people I’ve known, and it’s no wonder she built a company that helps people connect more efficiently!
Alex Schiff is the co-founder and CEO of Fetchnotes. He can be reached at alex(at)fetchnotes(dot)com or you can follow him on Twitter @alexschiff.
For Mother’s Day: How The CEO’s Mom Uses Fetchnotes
Note from the CEO: Last time I visited home in Florida, I walked my mom through Fetchnotes, and ever since she’s been texting me every day about how much she uses it. For Mother’s Day, she wanted to share her experience with the product. Thanks Mom, and I wish I could be with you on Mother’s Day!
I am a mom who went to college when computers were the size of a room. I am a mom who used typewriters with whiteout. Paper=my friend…PowerPoint and Excel=scary. Fast forward to 2012, and now I have a son who grew up with computers and started a company called Fetchnotes.
Paper is no longer my friend. I’m no longer scrounging around the house looking for scraps of paper with names and phone numbers and lists — and then not having them with me when I’m running errands and need to refer to it. That’s because Fetchnotes has consolidated all of this activity on to my phone.
Grocery shopping? I just text the Fetchnotes phone number with “fetch #groceries” and the list is available in a split second while I am at the store. Client info (I’m a social worker)…I fetch #clients and remember to have them sign that Authorization Form that is due. I use the Android app too, but something about text messaging just feels natural and easy. My brain no longer has to strain to remember that my Drivers License needs to be renewed, and now I need only refer to my #fixit tag when my handyman arrives.
The possibilities are endless. I am now happily dependent upon this program. I’ve tried tons of other apps to solve this problem, but I’ve always fallen back to my sticky notes, until my son got me set up on Fetchnotes. Try it…it is free, it is simple, it is a lifesaver.
Marlynn Schiff is the proud mother of Fetchnotes co-founder and CEO Alex Schiff.
How Olark Saved Our Startup…Twice
Imagine that you just accidentally sent out an email to 2,500 of your users that said “this is my test bitches.” That’s the situation Fetchnotes found itself in during what some of our friends have started calling “Bitchgate.” In our moment of panic, we thought we were on an all-but-certain path toward destruction and failure. As all 2,500 people started tweeting about our snafu, things went viral and thousands of people were hitting our website at once.
Enter Olark, the customer support and engagement tool sent from the heavens. As I feverishly handled the flurry of tweets and inbound email, my co-founder Chase Lee manned our Olark chatline. Tons of people were either seeing Fetchnotes for the first time (having only heard we swore at our users) or coming back to check us out after forgetting we existed. They were chatting us at a rapid rate, and this gave us a unique opportunity to engage with people on our site in real-time, one-on-one conversation.
To our amazement, this interaction was overwhelmingly positive. Most of them were along the lines of “sup bitches!” or “holy crap a company run by real people that swear like I do!” But not all of them were happy, and we did have some real fires to put out (not to mention volume). Because we were able to talk to these people individually, we were able to further show the “real-ness” of our company and express how sorry we were. It was a great opportunity to learn about our users too — why some had stopped using it, what features they really wanted to see, etc.
Fast forward three months to 12AM on April 13 — we just opened up sign up and our article in TechCrunch just went live. Our Android app isn’t showing up in the Google Play store because of a last-minute delay, and we’re not sure how long it’s going to take to pop in. Less than 100 people hit our site before we got everything squared away, but we still had a fair amount of incoming queries about why the app wasn’t in the store. We needed to assure them that it would be up shortly or we might lose them forever.
Luckily, the app showed up around 12:15AM, and then the real volume started coming in. Before we knew it we were being bombarded with inbound messages and questions about the app, the company, feature suggestions, etc. I was managing at least 5 different conversations at one point (and we had three operators). Weeks later, some of those people have since become major evangelists of our product.
Now, Olark has become a staple of our customer service offering. You’ll probably get better service from us via live chat than any other channel, and there’s hardly an hour of the day where someone isn’t online ready to help. Sometimes people chat us to get support, sometimes it’s to share ideas, and sometimes it’s just because they’re lonely and haven’t had any human contact all day (seriously, it happens). No matter what it is, that real-time nature creates a level of customer satisfaction that cannot be paralleled by email or help desk systems. Conversations typically end with something like, “Your service rocks. I’m going to tell everyone I know about Fetchnotes now!”
So, to my fellow entrepreneurs that care about delighting their customers, get on Olark. Now. It’s probably added many multiples to our company valuation.
Oh, and to whoever keeps chatting us and saying “O’Doyle Rules”, I’ve got a feeling your whole family is about to go down.
Team Spotlight: Loui Vongphrachanh
Loui is our visual designer here at Fetchnotes. She has worked on delivering most of the graphic assets across all of our platforms. One of her biggest achievements here at Fetchnotes was learning how to use Illustrator to create our dog Notes. Here is our interview with Loui.
What was your favorite childhood cartoon show?
I have really strong memories watching the cartoon Rugrats. On the show, there are twin characters Phil and Lil, and since I’m also a fraternal twin, I thought they were the coolest people ever.
Would you characterize yourself as a hipster?
No, I’m too mainstream.
What is your optimal human-to-machine cyborg ratio and why?
Probably 99% machine and I would keep my eyes. If I’m designing for humans, I need human eyes.
If you had to give up an appendage for missing a Fetchnotes deadline, what would it be?
My legs. My dad was handicapped so I have a lot of passion for people who are disabled. Life wouldn’t be that bad without legs!
What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?
Raisin bran – but they need to add more raisins. (Evan was very appalled with this answer. “It’s just too simple — it’s just raisin and bran!” This sparked a debate about raisins internally).
What’s your favorite restaurant?
Haifa Falafel. I love middle eastern food and fresh salads.
What was your favorite Fetchnotes moment?
When everyone got their official Fetchnotes emails, and the first time our web app launched. That was a bonding moment at old TechArb.
What is your favorite dessert?
If cheesecake and lemon bars could have a secret love child, that would be my favorite dessert.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
I’ve always wanted to work at home. I want to be really involved with my children but have a legitimate career. Luckily with what I want to do, I can freelance from home and do that. I want to be a great mother and designer at the same time.
Where do you place Chicago Blackhawk fans?
Right up there with Internet Explorer users.
What is your favorite Notes character?
I originally said it was Alex Horak’s German notes, but I’m going to have to change my mind and say that my favorite is the unreleased Starwars Notes. It has two things I love, all in one.
Using Fetchnotes with Dragon Dictation
This guest post was written by Fetchnotes user James Burdine, and it was originally published on his blog here. Thanks James!
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Big Impact: In my opinion, the killer feature of Fetchnotes is quick-capture of notes and ideas. I’ve found that my #1 usage of Fetchnotes is while I’m out (working, meetings, meals, wherever). It has pretty well replaced my need to carry a pocket notebook for quick scribbles. Great for capturing everything - quick ideas, phone numbers, tasks, errands, shopping lists - and sending those notes via text message to my Fetchnotes account.
Features & Insights
- Tags and Organization. Hash-tags that include symbols only hold the character(s) that precede the symbol. In my case, I was making a list of calls and todos for a given date. I entered the events as “#call Joe re Strategic Plan Meeting on 3/16
- GTD. Fetchnotes seems a great fit for followers of the GTD (David Allen) movement. Their organizational philosophy is based around the notion of 43 folders (1 for each of 12 months plus 1 for each of 31 days). One of the tenants of that system is the notion of being loyal to one capture device for all types of notes. I think, as those users become evermore digital, that Fetchnotes would really meet their needs
- UI. I like that Note Categories disappear when there are no longer any notes that use those hashtags. It was a little disconcerting to my eye when I noticed that the number of items in the note categories column was fewer than earlier. I figured out what was happening pretty quickly, but don’t let it surprise you
- Future Usability: I can’t wait to see future development of this platform - especially with regard to integration of Fetchnotes with Outlook, Google Calendar and Tasks, ifttt, and apps like Evernote
- Usability. I was pleased to get a confirmation text back from Fetchnotes when I texted my first todo. After awhile though, once my trust of the system was established, I found these messages to be an annoyance. I was glad to see this feature disabled earlier this month; and I’m glad to see the Fetchnotes Team focusing on all aspects of the user experience
Capture 2.0: Sheer Awesome Fun Usability: I downloaded Dragon Dictation (Nuance) on my iPhone last month to test it with Fetchnotes. The dictation software’s database is solid and the app’s overall usability is good. The app lets the user dictate text which can then be ported directly to a text message without leaving the app. Once I figured out how to create “#” through dictation (the user needs to say “pound sign”), Dragon Dictation made for a fantastic partner app with Fetchnotes. I’ve found it to be a really great way to use fetchnotes. Utilizing a dictation app would also open Fetchnotes to promote a safe way to promote the product to daily car commuters.
Forgive the mundane nature of the note below. Dragon Dictation did a great job with it - in particular there were no errors with transcription of my take-out order.
As an iPhone 4 user (no Siri), it strikes me that Dragon Dictation opens note transcription to iPad and iPhone 4, 3GS & 3 users
Final Thought. Fetchnotes quickly found a place in my workflow and I find that I’m using it increasingly as the weeks go by. Fetchnotes is currently in closed beta and new features are being developed every week. Open beta in late February/early March 2012.
A special thanks to the Honorable Alexandra Jones, Mayor of Goof City, for sending us this photo today.
Chris McDowell: What do YOU think of Fetchnotes?
This is a guest post by one of Fetchnotes’ users, Chris McDowell. Are you using Fetchnotes in a unique way or just want to talk about your experience? Shoot us an email at founders(at)fetchnotes(dot)com.
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As the line between work-life and social-life continues to blur, the demand for a platform that can help to manage the two has never been greater. What I have found while attempting to find something to help manage a non-stop inflow and outflow of information (notes, e-mails, random thoughts, to-dos) is that the majority of the solutions out there require you to invest a fair amount of time to learn how to use the service. This typically requires a user to filter through an abundant amount of features, of which only a few are relevant. What really made it easy to commit to Fetchnotes was that, instead of building out an overly complicated platform, they took an approach that allowed users to simply enhance the ways they already communicate information - e-mail and text messages, among others. They truly understand that what people are really looking for is simplicity rather than an overload of undesired features.
Prior to coming across Fetchnotes, I was constantly sending myself messages on the fly to keep track of a variety of items that would come up through out the day. Unfortunately, this created a situation where I was constantly searching e-mails and text messages to find my note, if I even remembered it, and asking “Did I write ‘company idea’ or ‘business idea’ in the e-mail?” It is obvious to see the inefficiency in this method and I was thrilled to have a more effective solution.
Like most of us, I work in a position where I am in front of a computer 99% of the day. However, the benefit of this is that I have non-stop access to e-mail. What Fetchnotes allows me to do is seamlessly create a #note or #thought as soon as one comes about. For example, if I get a question about a project I am currently working on, but don’t have the time to respond right away, I can easily forward it to my Fetchnotes account and add #ToDo #ProjectCrimson; this allows me to quickly get back to what I was working on. At the end of the workday I have a consolidated list of the questions I need to respond to before I leave the office. This makes it incredibly easy to keep track of all of the tasks on my plate with a minimal amount of hassle and interruption.
Similarly, when I’m out with friends and someone is talking about a great book he just read, all I have to do is text “#Books Do More Faster” to Fetchnotes and I can remember it later when I am looking for a new download on my Kindle. Before finding Fetchnotes, I would have had two options: send a text or e-mail to myself with the same information or just tell myself I would remember it later without writing it down. Being able to send a simple text or e-mail to a service that can accumulate and categorize these types of notes with no additional work from my end is an extremely valuable tool in terms of efficiency. Even more so, it has eliminated the problem of saying “Oh yeah, I will remember that.” No more lost thoughts or notes.
The bottom-line of Fetchnotes is: simplicity and efficiency. There is no learning curve, no need to adapt to a new app, and the ability to quickly make a note without being sidetracked from what you’re currently doing. Having spoken to both Alex and Chase (founders), I have no doubt that they will continue to integrate Fetchnotes in to the services that everyone uses on a day-to-day basis.
-Chris McDowell
What Happens When You Swear At Your Users
Okay, so meth-heads didn’t throw a rager in one of our users’ homes. But as some of you may have experienced on January 23, we had a bit of a communication crisis of our own. That evening, we set out to announce our pricing plans, new features and our public launch — not exactly the type of thing you want to screw up. It was also the first time we were using our new email server “live,” so we were already nervous. After working out a few technical kinks and several botched emails, thanks to missing line breaks, we sent out a final test email to ourselves. Unfortunately, it went out to every user, and looked like this:
Needless to say, we were using far worse language as we began running around our office screaming and panicking like chickens with our heads cut off (this sums up our initial reaction). I think we hit 100 inbound emails within the first 5 minutes. Crisis mode set in and Chase traded off between manning Olark (live-chatting users on our website) and dealing with delete account/unsubscribe requests while I feverishly responded to incoming messages.
But we noticed something weird in the responses. Out of 500+ emails, tweets, Olark chats, Facebook comments, etc., 95% of them weren’t negative. Sure, we had some people that were offended (to whom we apologized profusely, just as we did to everyone else), but these were pretty typical (and allowed us to use their name):
Lee Middleton: Stop apologising please. You made me smile.
Lori Paul: I found the email extremely comical and a well needed laugh for the day. No apology needed. :)
Ed Farrell: I liked it. You are building a brand that stands for something. ; ) Keep your customers in their place.
DGW: I actually find it amusing when something like that gets out. Shows that there really are people behind all those domain names.
Some people even poked fun at us back:
Todd Merritt No problem, bitches.
Vinko Pehar - who u calling a bitch, biatch!
But our favorite theme to emerge was that this was actually driving people who had forgotten about us (as is often the case with software products) to return and give us another shot:
webuser23.89996@im.olark.com: Hey, if it wasn’t for the “bitches” email I would have forgotten about your product. Now I’m reconsidering using it
Rich Hohne - another good thing…i actually forgot about fetchnotes and now I am going to give it a whirl! sometimes weird stuff works. Good luck, Alex.
And the data is supporting this. Here’s a graph of “engagement” (we track notes added, deleted, edited and Olark chats on our website) in the month of January.
It’s a definitive trend upward starting after the email was sent, and this doesn’t even include notes added via texting, calling or emailing! A ton of people who had previously signed up and forgot about us began to use the product again, and a week later that trend is still strong — and increasing. We’re not even sure what “normal” usage is anymore because a new plateau hasn’t been fully established yet.
Now, none of this excuses the fact that we used profanity in an email that went out to all of our users or means that we don’t feel a need to apologize. In addition to sending out an apology entitled “We Really Screwed Up,” we (the co-founders, not just any old support people), responded to every. single. person. I even skipped my morning class the next day to stay up until everyone got a personal response. We made it an absolute priority to ensure that between Chase and I every single Olark chat, email, tweet or Facebook post was accounted for and responded to in the manner it needed to be.
But the ordeal does point to some interesting lessons, beyond the obvious one that we’ll be more careful about the content of our test messages. People appreciate knowing the personalities behind the companies and products they use. We won’t be throwing around profanity in our emails, but we’re definitely going to try to take a more “real” tone rather than the false formality that pervades most company communications.
Lastly, we have an absolutely amazing group of users. Not only did you forgive us for our screw-up, but you encouraged us to not beat ourselves up about it and out of all those interactions there were only a few people who were actually upset with us (despite having every right to be). On top of that, we’ve gotten several job applications and offers from people to help us with everything from development to copy-writing for our landing page. Seriously, you guys rock!
-Alex Schiff, Fetchnotes Co-founder and CEO
Team Spotlight: Max Corman
Max Corman is a developer for Fetchnotes, currently working on the Android platform. When Max isn’t busy saving the world one line of code at a time, he likes to spend his time playing, living, and breathing everything Pokemon.
In your opinion, what is the ideal number of Pokemon in the Pokemon universe?
There can always be more. Infinity of integers, over the set of natural numbers.
How many times have you seen the Pokemon movie?
Not many.
Why did you join Fetchnotes?
I liked the idea.
How do you handle your responsible abilities as an Alpha Jew?
My hair takes care of itself.
Warrior or wizard?
Wizard, I would like to shoot lightning out of my hands. A warrior is slower and yet hits harder. I’d rather summon lightning storms. Lightning is definitely a key.
Favorite Fetchnotes moment?
My favorite moment was when I received a picture of myself in tree.
livin' the dream: We Believe We Can Change the World: Together, We Made a Dent Today
Most of us entrepreneurs do what we do because we believe we can change the world.
Yesterday, we united together in a GoDaddy boycott based on their public support for SOPA.
I quickly created a step-by-step tutorial to remove your domains from GoDaddy, as a way for people to vote with…
