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You Really, Really Don't Get It!!

In an article for Business Week Online entitled Why Aren't Web Toy Stocks Playing Well with Investors? dated January 13, 2000, Margaret Popper a reporter covering e-biz wrote,

"If you consider the site's huge traffic, eToys' 90% success rate in fulfillment doesn't seem bad"

Do You Really Believe THAT?

Lets do the math.
2 Million Visitors An Impressive Number
We will assume that 10% of the visitors (200,000) ordered.
lets assume using Your figures, that 10% of these folks didn't get their toys.
20,000 mad customers and untold numbers of disappointed children just doesn't strike me as good business.
But you say it's Okay.

You are Wrong!

If the internet worked 90% of the time, You would not be reading this.
You sure as hell would not have a job writing about e-biz.
The Internet would have died.

I think that you have a real and dangerous lack of understanding of the internet and business.

Do the people who sign your check think that alienating 10% of Your Market is a good idea?

Then to further validate this idea,

"eToys will continue to garner a commanding share of the market both in the U.S. and internationally," says Wit Capital analyst Ryan Alexander. "The fulfillment infrastructure performed perfectly well over the holidays."

Ryan B. Alexander is actually a Vice President of Research
According to the Wit Capital Website

"Wit Capital, the world's first online investment banking firm was founded in 1996 with a mission: to empower investors and issuers alike by transforming the capital raising process through the use of the Internet."

I'm not real sure that the folks that write his check would agree that kissing-off 10% of their clients is a good idea. You can find out by e-mailing here and asking Zoe Adlersberg the PR Contact.
He doesn't understand the Internet very well either.

Etoys, Inc. has been called a poster-child for e-business.
It is. Bad Business.
Etoys is currently involved in litigation against a European art group called etoy. They are attempting to garner market share and control the internet through litigation. They are using a tactic called Reverse Domain Hijacking. In reverse domain name hijacking, the holder of a registered trademark,(such as etoys,Inc., Clue, Barbie,) tries to take advantage of the fact that a small business or individual cannot afford to litigate the issue of an alleged infringement.

The Internet Community of which you are a member having a website, is protesting this action across the world.
Currently, the Open Directory Project eToys links has 160 links to sites and articles regarding the domination through Litigation tactics of EToys, Inc.
My previous Opinions linked at the top of this page can bring you up to speed.

Lets talk about the facts of life on the web.

Anybody with a Computer and a Modem can access the 'net.

That's right, from the very young to the very old. Unless you look at a site closely, you have no clue what color we are, what our sexual orientation is, our religious beliefs, or any other information we choose not to share with you.

Anybody that can access the 'net can build webpages

There are literally hundreds of internet services that give you space to build a page or a site. A lot of them even tell you how to do it! Your being here proves that you are already beginning to be infected with the Information Superhighway.

Anybody that can access the web can make their own decisions.

In short, this means that we are not limited by editorial decisions made by people beholden to advertisers for the revenue to produce magazines, local news, or TV. We also have the benefits of immediacy, as my response time to your article shows. The internet is unlike print publications, old boy networks, or the evening news. The internet offers freedom of speech and community. (I know this sucks for marketing departments and advertising agencies that used to be able to say 'Demographics', and mean it. Tough!!)

Manners are extremely important

Just as you can't prosper in the Brick and Mortar world by being an ass, it is even more important on the web. You give a n y b o d y a bad experience, not only will they not be back, but they have the potential of emailing 200 people, far above the B & M average of 7.

Community

the Internet is the largest community on the planet. It has grown faster than any other group in history. It is delivering on the promise of making the world a Global Village. For Business it can be the ultimate return on investment or it's greatest nightmare.

Regarding your Question:

Why Aren't Web Toy Stocks Playing Well with Investors?
Answer:
It's the Internet. . .

Read our Press Release

Thank you for your time.

Alan Herrell
Member
Web Standards Project
Owner
LemurZone Design
1-602-995-2602

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