I usually don’t do startup reviews here (because it is a personal blog) but today I will make an exception for my friend (on Hacker News): Patrick McKenzie. If, like me, you are also addicted to Hacker News you will probably know who Patrick is. He goes by his handle: patio11. Best known for his SEO, A/B testing and marketing automation advice, Patrick runs a niche business called Bingo Card Creator. The most exciting thing about his business is that finances are completely transparent! On his site, you can see all revenues, expenses, conversion rates and other interesting business metrics.
When Visual Website Optimizer (my startup) was in beta, Patrick gave loads and loads of feedback to improve the product. And when finally Visual Website Optimizer launched, he reviewed the tool in a post titled: Brining A/B Testing to Fortune 5 Million. That post alone brought hundreds of early adopters for the beta who then helped refine the product. In nutshell, my startup owes a lot to Patrick!
So, today I want to celebrate launching of Patrick’s second startup: Appointment Reminder. Quite obviously, his startup aims at simplifying the issue of clients forgetting the appointment which results in lost sales for a business. What I love about this business is that it solves a real business pain. With a plan of $79/month, even if Appointment Reminder is able to save one potential lost sale, it means the customer has got ROI out of investment. The service consists of an easy to use calender where businesses can enter their appointment with clients. Patrick’s service will then automatically call and sms the customer just before the appointment so s/he doesn’t forget to turn up. This surely is a simple yet immensely beautiful service that addresses real pain.
I wish Patrick best of luck for his new venture. He will be blogging extensively about Appointment Reminder on his blog. Make sure you follow his blog updates. I am sure it is going to be a fun (yet profitable) journey for him!