Group Story Blog

Passion is undeniable.

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 11:24:00 -0400

“Nothing great in this world has ever been accomplished without passion.”

Meet Dave and Mike, Co-Founders of Camp Leadership. They realized there was a problem in the camping industry. Whether working for the Y, a private camp, or a camp associated with a church or town, there was an information void.

So, Dave and Mike decided to bring something different to the camping world. Their website is an amazing resource for camp directors to learn new camp songs, games, ideas, and more. They didn’t create this website to make a million dollars; they created it because they love camp.

Think about a camp for a moment. What kind of people work there? What experience are they trying to create for their campers? Sometimes reading pages of data doesn’t help. Lyrics for a camp song are meaningless if I don’t know the tune; if it’s a participatory song, lyrics are meaningless if I don’t know the movements. (In fact, whether you’re in the camping world or not, start your day with any of these videos. It’ll make you smile.)

Camp Leadership is a site that grows to fill the community’s needs - and as fast as Dave and Mike can create it. It’s more than songs. There is an unbelievable video about bullying at camp. There is plenty of written advice too. Think of it as “curated” - people who are experts, who love what they do, are sifting through all the data out there and selecting the information and tools that people need.

Many people tell you they love what they do, but when someone can’t even hold back that natural grin when talking about their product’s benefits to other people… well, you can’t fake that. That type of selfless caring about creating a product to help your customers - that’s authenticity. And you can’t fake that either.

People like Dave and Mike inspire me. They challenge me. Challenge me by serving as a role model; to ask myself am I doing the best I can to move my company forward. Group Story “headquarters” is definitely not a passion free zone - but we all need a booster shot every now and then. Do you have people in your life like Dave and Mike? You will be amazed how surrounding yourself with people like that can improve your own business.

Dave, Mike, and Geoff at Owen’s Bagel & Deli in Charlotte. Excellent bagel sandwiches with Boar’s Head cold cuts (is there anything else a food obsessed deli would use?)

The YMCA is the oldest community service organization in the...

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 15:21:51 -0400

The YMCA is the oldest community service organization in the United States. We had no idea how applicable Group Story is to their programs, until we heard from the Directors. Enjoy the video! If your organization would be interested in this program, please contact us.

Introducing Beautiful Backgrounds

Tue, 06 Jul 2010 14:40:00 -0400

When a photo book is made, it should be made with passion and creativity. The photos and the stories are the only essential elements to creating a photo book. What would you say the next most important thing would be?

Backgrounds can make a book look like a work of art. Backgrounds can make the photos pop. Backgrounds can even help you express mood or personality within your book. We have a different approach. If one page looks good with an orange polka dotted background, and the next one needs a purple grunge effect background, they will be coordinated! We have professionally designed, one-of-a kind backgrounds that will look even better in your printed books than they do on the screen.

The four images below are examples of what we now offer in our application:

Stripes Sample

Distressed Sample

Polka Dots Sample

We will be adding more backgrounds throughout July, so be on the lookout for new concepts such as paisley, grunge, and more!

George and Geoff, Co-Founders of Group Story are in NYC...

Sun, 27 Jun 2010 20:30:03 -0400

George and Geoff, Co-Founders of Group Story are in NYC introducing their high end product at the Association of Luxury Suites Directors. And the party this evening is at Yankee Stadium.

Is 30,000 feet dangerous?

Mon, 17 May 2010 18:05:00 -0400

Business owners spend a lot of time thinking about their business. Sometimes this causes them to become myopic and miss the big picture. That’s where the phrase, “Let’s look at this from 30,000 feet” comes from. Usually a company does this when they feel they’re getting too close to their business.

I think the view from 30,000 feet can be dangerous too.
Unless you change your seat.

Here’s a way to imagine it. You are on a plane flying from North Carolina to Florida headed to Miami. The plane hugs the coast. You’re thinking about Miami. Out the window, from 30,000 feet, you see an amazing coastline. You then stay focused on Miami and think that’s all that Florida has to offer.

But suppose you changed your seat on that flight? You just moved 15 feet to the right and took a seat on the opposite side of the plane. You wouldn’t see a coastline at all. And your understanding of Florida would be completely different.

Want a concrete example? Cristal champagne started to become THE champagne of the rap and hip hop community. Jay-Z carried it in his clubs and the community fully supported Cristal. When the President of the company was asked what he thought about the adoption of his product by this new community, he responded:

That’s a good question, but what can we do? We can’t forbid people from buying it. I’m sure Dom Perignon or Krug would be delighted to have their business.

Cristal, because of their view from their seat of the type of people who used their product, missed out on a huge opportunity to expand their market. Had they changed their seat, they would have gained a better understanding of the opportunities for their product.

So what’s the point?

I’m suggesting on your climb up to 30,000 feet to analyze your business, you ascend without a preconceived idea of your business. Take another seat. Move around the plane. That’s where the opportunities can be found.

It’s your plane.

You are the captain of this plane, with your hands on the controls. And the navigator, determining where it should go. And the flight attendant, making sure your customers are happy. But don’t forget to change your seat, it’s your plane. See what the view looks like from another perspective.

Amazing FREE Program for Summer Camps

Fri, 07 May 2010 14:04:00 -0400

We like to say, “If you have a group, you have a Group Story”. One of the best examples of a group that I can think of is kids at a Summer Camp. As a camper, you know that your time at camp is like a completely different world, and so different from your day to day life. That week, those memories, should be with you forever. With Group Story, they can be. You can hear and see the voices of your friends in the stories and memories they share.

As a camp director, you want to offer kids and their parents a tangible way to extend the experience of camp. With Group Story’s low cost, high-quality photo books, as well as its collaborative nature, we are a very attractive option for camps and campers. Here is what we are creating for camps:

1. FREE set up of a customized webpage about your organization. (Sample image below.)

2. In every book that is ordered your organization receives two pages in the back of the book. Use it to tell the reader, and everyone they show the book to, what’s special about your camp. Your mission statement, accomplishments, things that make you special. Here’s your chance to tell your camps story.

3. Fundraising! Your organization receives 10%-20% of all the sales of the books to use as a source of revenue.

4. A way for your campers to share their story for years to come - starting at only $12.99 for a professionally bound and printed book.

Camp Directors,

and let us help you create a memory that will last forever.

Thanks,

Geoff and George, Co-Founders

When Worlds CollideMarketing meets Development Retreat 4/9/10 In...

Sun, 18 Apr 2010 22:04:00 -0400

When Worlds Collide
Marketing meets Development Retreat 4/9/10

In the startup world it’s not uncommon for people to wear more than one hat, for people to be involved in every area of the business. But if everyone has their area of expertise, how can it work effectively?

Respect. Openness. Focus on the end goal.

Here’s some, we think, great footage of our recent brainstorming session. It is a very transparent view of Group Story as a company. We hope you enjoy it. Please share this with anyone you think can relate to it.

Welcome to the next generation of photo books. We hope you enjoy...

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 18:23:14 -0400

[Flash 10 is required to watch video.]

Welcome to the next generation of photo books. We hope you enjoy this short demonstration.

"Startup Life"

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 05:35:20 -0500

Our work day started before sunrise today. Well, one of us started working before sunrise. The other (not saying names) unofficially clocked in at 742AM …but who’s counting. It was the typical super busy day with extra emails, planning, and responsibility. At 1030AM we walked right by the pool at the resort in Palm Springs (70 degrees and sunny- old guys sipping pina coladas), directly into a taxi to take us to the California Parks and Rec trade show. For hours we networked, created relationships and shared our passion of Group Story as we always do at trade shows. Because our company is so photo oriented, I will let photos tell the rest of the story.

Landed in Austin at 1130PM

HARD CODING LAYOUTS! (above and below)

Managing Bug Fixes at crunch time AHHHHHH!!!!!!! (below)

“Well, this used to be part of my Mac adapter” (below)

Hi at 429AM! (below)

Someone crashed at 430AM… (below)

It’s okay he gets a free pass. I admit it. He was the one that was awake before sunrise. I slept until 730AM. It all works itself out.

See everyone at SXSW 2010 at 9AM!

Which do you have: 12 Characteristics of Successful Internet Entrepreneurs

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 12:46:00 -0500

1. Determination

2. Innovation

3. Frugality

4. Experimentation

5. Eccentricity

6. Simplicity

7. Consumer-focused

8. Iconoclastic

9. Ambition

10. Focus

11. Opportunism

12. Flexibility

Great article:

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2EJNwt/www.focus.com/fyi/small-business/12-characteristics-successful-internet-entrepreneurs/

The American Camping Association Conference turned out to be a...

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:02:45 -0500

The American Camping Association Conference turned out to be a great show for Group Story. We are very excited to help Summer Camps across the country remember their experience in a brand new way.

Build for the beginner - then rebuild for the beginner.

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:54:00 -0500

There comes a point in time when you have been designing your application for so long that the littlest things slip by. It’s not your fault. When you are working on something so often, thinking about it day in, and day out, you are attached. Not just emotionally attached, your eyes and brain are attached too. When you are testing your own application, you know what every icon means, where every button is, and your brain is programmed to the specific type of experience someone is meant to have. But if you put your application in front of an 11 year old boy, or a grandpa, they will make you do two things. One, pull your hair out. Two, realize there is no way you can design your application for a beginner in the first try. From the first day you start doing mockups, and writing out wireframes, you are already steps ahead of anyone when it comes to understanding, and using your product.

The image above is based on a true story. We were user-testing an elder, and he asked why he had to “pick a state” (when “Georgia” was the default font). On one hand, that seems like a ridiculous question. On the other hand, it makes perfect sense in it’s simplicity. Why not change it? Really, think about it, if a user is confused by something that small… don’t be stubborn, just change it.

Design your application for beginners, let the beginners test it, and then rebuild for the beginners. And guess what, experts will still use it!

“In the face of change, the competent are helpless.” – Seth Godin

Thu, 11 Feb 2010 13:54:53 -0500

Seth Godin, who always proves thought provoking to me, wrote this article in 1999 for Fast Company magazine. ( Change Agent – Issue 31 ). This was almost ten years ago and I think his argument made sense then and it makes sense now.

Seth writes:

Oh, there’s one other thing: As we’ve turned human beings into competent components of the giant network known as American business, we’ve also erected huge barriers to change.

In fact, competence is the enemy of change!

Competent people resist change. Why? Because change threatens to make them less competent. And competent people like being competent. That’s who they are, and sometimes that’s all they’ve got. No wonder they’re not in a hurry to rock the boat.

People used to say that large, bureaucratic organizations were like slow moving dinosaurs. The argument went that this is why leaner, swifter companies were able to take business away from them – that, in essence, they could anticipate change and adapt to it at a much quicker pace. I still believe this. But I think what ultimately gives them the advantage to behave that way is the culture that fosters the ability to make mistakes, take risks, to in essence, be incompetent.

Meet John Long

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 11:25:00 -0500

Like many startups, the “get to know each other” and planning meetings happen in a coffee shop. On Monday, we met with John Long, who specializes in graphic design, Ruby, and JavaScript. John has recently worked on another local, group-based startup, MemberHub. We are excited to have John help put the finishing touches on our version 1 app, to launch in February.

Click here for John’s website, or follow him on twitter.

Athletic Business Conference

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 09:13:25 -0500

In early December, Group Story attended our most successful trade show ever - the Athletic Business Conference in Orlando, FL. We were able to bring the Group Story “story” to athletic directors of schools, community centers, military bases and leagues. But we also found “Group Story Evangelists” among keynote speakers and guests who have some great plans for the technology.

How do you create evangelists for your product? Shared passion. If you are passionate about what you are doing, and are a straight up authentic person, you will run into other people that believe in your idea, and also become passionate. Those people are almost as excited about your product as you are - and their insight and referrals are priceless. Although there is no financial gain for them, they want to see your success because they believe in you, your product and can see it working in their lives.

Athletic Business Conference 2009

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 08:46:00 -0500

Athletic Business Conference 2009

Are you direction challenged?

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 02:28:00 -0500

If you find yourself on a detour, at least enjoy the scenery.

The journey is as important as the destination.

Those quotes seem to be written by people who are “direction challenged” and are trying to make the best of a bad situation. Trying to stay calm as it finally dawns on them that they made a wrong turn two hours ago. Yes, I have made a wrong turn or two, staying on what I thought would lead me to my destination. And I did get there. Eventually.

But I have a new way of looking at those sayings now. All too often in business people adapt the attitude of “stay the course”, “never, never, never, give up.”

But maybe the first quotes about the journey and the scenery aren’t simply mantras to keep your stress levels down. Instead they are an opportunity to reflect, reconsider, re-evaluate. That’s certainly been our experience.

Anytime you start a business, you go in with certain assumptions about your product and your market. Many of the assumptions and decisions are based on research, others are based on gut feelings. But you never have all the answers. Your customers do. And if you go in thinking you only have one customer, if you “stay the course”, you may miss other customers who are begging for your product.

We started Group Story to give people a way to remember a time in their lives, a time that involved other people. Finally, there was a way for everyone involved to share an experience in photos and story, picking and choosing what they wanted in their own customized book. We had our eyes on some very specific markets - and still do. They have been overwhelmingly supportive of our product.

But we were unprepared for the other directions Group Story is taking. Unprepared, but open, to honestly listening to people describe how they wanted to use Group Story. Surprised, and humbled, by the generosity of new found friends who are helping to spread the use of Group Story to other areas by reaching out into their own circle of friends.

So, how did this happen? How did we learn to listen? We believe these things happen because of passion and authenticity. I don’t know if it’s because it’s remarkable to be passionate in business, but that is the word that is used constantly to describe us and our approach to our company. It’s infectious. Authenticity is equally important. People that we meet know that we are honestly and sincerely interested in listening to them. They sense that there is no difference between us as company owners and them as customers. They can tell that we love our product for what it can do for them and what it can do for us.

If we had stayed on the same road, ignoring details, oblivious to the scenery, we would not have noticed the other options. And we would have missed a lot of opportunity, some of which were on the side roads of our journey. Opportunity to meet new friends and to give Group Story a chance to work in other people’s lives.

Besides passion and authenticity, is there another reason this seemed to have worked so well for us? Some might credit The Secret. Others might think it’s just luck that has helped us become successful. However, we think Joseph Campbell said it best:

“Follow your bliss and don’t be afraid,
and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.
If you follow your bliss,
doors will open for you that wouldn’t have opened for anyone else.”

S.I.M.P.L.E. = startup success.

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:29:00 -0500

Save…time and money by building a minimum viable product.

Improve…features through user feedback.

Master…the operation and usability of tools that are completely necessary to your mission.

Prioritize…the features that are most important, and only add more features as you realize users can handle them.

Limit…a user’s freedom. If they don’t need it, don’t give it to them in version one.

Easy…for everyone to use. People using your site was the point of creating it, right?

Simple works. Just ask the guys who thought it would be cool to make a running RSS feed with a 140-character limit. Follow us on Twitter: @groupstory.

Focused on the finish line.

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:33:00 -0500

In the startup world there isn’t much that is black and white. A lot of times, entrepreneurs will find themselves in uncharted territory, but still working frantically to accomplish as many tasks as possible in a given day in order to push their product or service along. It seems every time a to-do list gets its’ final check mark, another list just as big (or bigger) is being compiled.

At Group Story, the white board gets filled up, the list is attacked with passion one by one, it’s erased, and it is filled up once again. This is what it will take to get our product out to the world.

We have brought on a development team to take the software to completion before 2010. That is our goal. LAUNCH BY JANUARY 1, 2010. Is that a guarantee? Of course not, there are too many unknowns to promise that. But here’s a fact: working hard, and finding talent where talent is needed gives us a real good chance to achieve any goal we set for ourselves. We are focused on the finish line and excited for Group Story version 1 to be launched.

TJ Stankus (@tjstankus), a talented Ruby on Rails programmer, now has the baton.

Hard work gets noticed. (It's not a myth!)

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:20:00 -0500

Publicity is great. It’s one of those things that deep down everyone wants. From my experience, publicity rarely falls into your lap… unless you work your tail off.

Hard work may be defined differently from person to person. We have found ourselves working hard in a lot of different ways. Our equation to recent success:

“Pumping out content about the journey of our start-up, and what we have learned”

“Traveling to trade shows to spread the word passionately to our target markets”

“Constantly analyzing/developing our soon to launch application (while avoiding perfection paralysis)”

“Always thinking Group Story 24/7”

Great article from TechJournal South.

Hard work gets noticed.