Remember Gmail Ten Years Ago?

Before we jump into 2014, I'd like to take a step back in time, around a decade or so to recap a landscape-changing (at that time) event. Any business entity, even FingerTec Authorized Resellers, can benefit from reading this story. This is no fairytale, nor is it reality TV. This happened in 2004, back when USB flash drives had less than 100 MB capacity, Miley Cyrus had just turned into Hannah Montana, and email storages were still a paltry 5-20 MBs. This is a story of how an online service successfully launched its product before there were others to follow. Read more for a quick recap of Gmail's semi-historic online launch. 

Credit to http://www.people.com/people/gallery/0,,20242076_20546121,00.html#20546121
10 years ago, Miley Cyrus looked like this.
10 years is a long time. 
Picking the Right Date

It is one thing to properly plan a product's launch with the inner workings of a company (i.e.: product development, logistic issues, etc.) but it is a whole other thing to place a launch date that can attract attention from potential customers. Gmail's launch was slated for the 1st of April, 2004 which wasn't just easy to remember but also had a mystical aura surrounding it - as people were not sure if Gmail was real or just another April's fool prank. This has a lot to do with what they were offering, which seemed almost impossible to believe. That was how they differentiated themselves, and ran with it

Gmail
Gmail saw an opportunity to be different and
went for it
Differentiating Yourself and Running With It

As Gmail realized that they were going up against giant mainstays like Yahoo! Mail and Hotmail, they banked on one aspect of their product to differentiate themselves. They chose storage space, and blew their competitors away with ONE GIGABYTE storage! Of course, the number seems small now, but please keep in mind that this took place roughly a decade ago. As opposed to the 5-20MBs offered by other providers at the time, Gmail stood tall with their big package. It left many users baffled at how the service could be provided for free. Of course, this wasn't the only thing that made them seem special (or mystical, even), as there was also their 'exclusivity' factor. 


Gmail Invite: Like having superpowers
When Exclusivity Meant Getting a Gmail Invite

Let's get this clear: If you had a Gmail account in the year 2004, you're either an important IT person in Silicone Valley or somebody willing to spend upwards of USD60 on a free email service. This was due to the fact that Gmail limited its service to a select few, sending out 'invites' to only certain people in the industry. In fact, it wasn't until 2007 that Gmail became open to the public. But up until that point, there was a consensus among email users that having a Gmail account (with that huuuge  storage space) was like having superpowers. And having a Gmail invite to give out to other people, is like having superpowers, fame AND fortune. Yes, Gmail was indeed that special. 

Credit to https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEityx-oawc8LcdWeOVzMD9YYZXxawdg89Sta4WDXDAKxi4vCSJ4PpKATUmdD8hVTmK9W5nOTIeB2cf3id0YeQu5vLKvDTcroriGFePIaExlWF_HQYKWzbAYmCgUwrACLdKQC-J6ylHFu4s/s640/gmail-home-2004.png
Gmail's homepage from 2004
Conclusion

Though Internet marketers have tried hard to replicate the success of Gmail's launch, it's no easy feat. A strong marketing campaign will ultimately only be as strong as its product, as Gmail's success was not only tied to its launching strategies. You can tell by reading the key features in the image on the right. Back in 2004, those features were revolutionary. With these things in mind, I'm hoping for good things this 14th January, 2014 as FingerTec Worldwide will be launching TimeTec Cloud on that day with sales and promotional activities. 

Pulling Pushing For A Good Launch
By Afiq Jauhari, Marketing Executive, FingerTec HQ

Before we jump into 2014, I'd like to take a step back in time, around a decade or so to recap a landscape-changing ( at that time)  e...

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