Attending the Affiliate Summit in Boston
by Gideon Rubin
Recently I traveled to Boston for the Affiliate Summit. Between the networking and the parties I ran out to Davis Square to spend some time with an old college friend of mine. One of the first questions he asked me was, “what are you working on?” He knows me well enough to realize that I always have something new on the hopper. I told him about a new website Simply Ideas launched in Beta called www.collegematchingservice.com. Of course the next question was, why? Well there are a lot of reasons including the fact that education is one of the hottest verticals on the Internet and I have years of experience in the Education marketing space both on and off the Internet. But with all of SI’s ventures’ there is a BIGGER reason. Our company is built around a set of core values that are greater than just making money. We are a sustainable business with a very flexible work structure for our people and we believe in doing good in the world. So the main reason I decided to launch this new venture is simple; I love to learn and I believe that education is the best way for people to succeed in life. Helping people get an education is all about helping people lift themselves up and improve their situation no matter what stage they are at in their lives.
We are working hard to make education web sites that provide people interested in going to college the tools they need to figure out what they want to study and which school is right for them, whether an online school or campus based. My past experience starting one of the leading education portals on the Internet has taught me a lot about what works and what doesn’t, but it really provided the motivation to “build it better.” Basically when I looked at all the education web sites on the Internet it appeared to me that they missed the opportunity to take advantage of some of the newest web 2.0 technologies, and more importantly, provide a very relevant and valuable service to potential students. So for now take a look at www.collegematchingservice.com where our mission is to become a leading destination site for individuals across the US looking for their perfect college. Utilizing our proprietary matching algorithm and advanced technologies as well as research and input from hundreds of schools, CMS knows what colleges fit individuals’ needs and profiles, and thus provides a highly refined matching service.
Over the coming months we will be launching several sites and services to address what we see as this market opportunity in the education space. As we continue down this path and further this social and technological experiment I will continue to share my own thoughts and ideas related to education on and off the Internet as well as more general information about the challenges and developments in Performance Marketing. I will invite people from the Simply Ideas Network, which includes partners, clients, and friends to provide their insights and I invite you to help us build on the knowledge and experiences in the Performance Marketing community.
