I want to run a startup. I've got a pretty good idea that I'm sitting on, one that I think could gain some traction and make some money.

But I realized that I have basically no experience in launching a product.

Sure, I could step up to home plate, try to hit one out of the park (or at least get on base!), but I thought that it might be a good idea to take a couple of practice swings first.

So I want to use a a simple but somewhat reasonable practice idea for a product.

But am I wasting my time? You can't win any games when you spend your whole day in the batting cages.

Exactly.

The idea is to move fast, learn quickly, and pick up some tips from coaches along the way.

The Practice Idea

Twitter in reverse.

Twitter consists of user posting short messages on their personal feeds with topics marked in hashtags.

Shoutta will consist of users posting short messages on topic feeds.

Shoutta is short conversations around topics.

Shoutta is Twitter in reverse.

Motivation Behind the Idea

#whoneedsspacesanyway

#orpunctuation

I think that the hashtag serves a purpose, and in general it works.

However, I think that the hashtag is outdated and it is time we move beyond it.

Perhaps the hashtag is like the original default html hyperlink. The one that is blue if you haven't clicked it or purple if you have, and it is always underlined. It is very utilitarian and practical, but as websites and web design grew and matured, it was no longer the ideal choice forevery link.

Hashtag Issues

1. Punctation and Brands

For companies that have brands and images to protect a hashtag may not be the ideal way to communicate their brand or slogan or product.

Compare "#imlovinit" to "I'm Lovin' It"

Compare "#transformersdarkofthemoon" to "Transformers: Dark of the Moon"

This may seem like a trivial issue to some, but when you consider the time and money and effort that goes into building a particular brand it seems kind of silly to remove all of the spacing and tack a # to the front.

2. Misread Hashtags

Apparently some Cher fans mistakenly believed that Cher had passed away when the tag #nowthatchersdead appeared on twitter. Instead it related to Margaret Thatcher's passing away. When you are talking about a situation as serious as death it is probably best to avoid creating confusion.

I also saw a blog post recounting a story of how they used the hashtag #peoplewhoreadmyblog only to later understand that one word incorrectly jumped out to many followers on first glance.

3. Complicated Rules

There are some rules when it comes to using hashtags correctly, and they can be difficult to interpret. There are official twitter pages describing the rules and several blog posts on the internet explaining tips and correct usage.

This may seem trivial to some users, but for those less tech savvy it may seem more akin to complex math or learning how to program.

4. Non-intuitive Use

Say that I'm watching Lebron James and the Miami Heat in an NBA playoff game and King James just made a Sportscenter top 10 worthy dunk, and now I want to talk about it on twitter.

Do I use the hashtag #lebronjames or #lebronjamesdunk or #lebronjamesjam or #kingjames?

If I go to King James Twitter feed, I'm not going to find any information about his great play--it is his feed.

Why can't I just go to a topic page on "Lebron James" and post

"Awesome Dunk!"

Shoutta aims to do just that--let you type in a topic and talk about it.

#BeyondTheHashtag - Potential to Make Money

I've often wondered how Twitter makes money. Through selling data and promoted tweets are the most likely answers.

I believe that Shouttaa would have more potential to make money.

Since topics aren't "owned" by anyone, advertises would be free to bid for background and header imagery.

Iron Man 3 could plaster their movie poster all over the "Iron Man 3" and "Iron Man" topics. They could even pay to temporarily hold the top message location on the "Movies" topic. The price for bidding on the movies topic would presumably be higher as there would be more potential interested advertisers and Iron Man 3 could be bidding against Die Hard 5 (or 6 or 7).

Summary of Shoutta

Shoutta solves the problem of making short communications around topics easier and has a clear potential for revenue by providing true value to advertisers.

What about Competition

Twitter and Facebook really seem to dominate this "short message" field already, and they are some pretty big players. I'm not too worried about competition because I'm interested in practicing launching a product.

The Brief History of Shoutta

The idea for Shoutta came a small while ago. I don't remember the exact inspiration for it, but I remember wishing I had the product while watching the 2010 World Cup. I wanted to shout "Thanks" to the English goalkeeper who let a US shot bounce off his hands and roll slowly into the goal.

I discussed the idea with a couple of friends one night over beer in Madison Wisconsin. We were all kind of excited about it, but we never really started working. Those friends are good friends, but unfortunately not the right crew to launch a startup with. I registered shoutta.comand that's all that ever happened.

Flash forward three years.

I now find myself out in the Bay Area, the hub of the startup world. I currently have a dayjob at a rather large corporation, but am very interested in running a startup with the right people and the right backing. I am hoping to use this blog to make some connections. Please feel free to get in touch with me.

Thanks for reading, and make sure to follow the blog to get all the updates.

Coming the next post->Logo and Mockups.