Re: Toward A Positive Marketing Approach.

On Thu, May 18, 2006 at 01:32:51PM -0700, Michael Dean wrote:
> Greetings Guys
>
> As a newbie person moving away from my technical background to
> marketing, I think a refreshed course for pg is needed! So far I have
> read all 5000 or so of this month's emails and want to make a few
> remarks IMHO:
>
> 1. We should treat all marketing efforts by hackers/programmers as
> social bugs. Get some marketing pros (debuggers) in on this, or the
> popularity of postgresql will continue to pale in the real world.

Note that the push for postgresql at any given site is likely to be pushed
up from the technical staff. Find us some marketing pros who understand
the postgresql project and we'll let them have at it.

>
> 2. Reward ISP's who newly support postgresql. Give them free links,
> somehow give them free expertise, give them focused help so that
> offering postgresql to their customers will not end up in disaster as in
> the past. Less than 4% of ISP's worldwide support postgrsql. WHY?, if
> pg is SO GOOD, and SO MUCH BETTER???

Links are free. Support for PostgreSQL is free via the mailing lists
and IRC. This free support is better than most call centers.

>
> 3. Reward existing FOSS projects that make sensible provision to
> accomodate postgresql in preference to other more "commercial" db's.
> Free links, mention in newsletter, listing on websites, whatever it
> takes to start pulling other open source communities behind postgresql.
> A good example is bitweaver.org, a great integration project, very
> professional, helpful to small businesses, but needs some promotional help.

This is already happening on the postgresql.org page and in the
PostgreSQL Weekly News.

>
> 4. Stop being too cheap. Money Talks! Offer to PAY premiums to major
> OSS aps who don't do pg, or don't do it well enough. Like Compierre,
> like Drupal. Ask me if i would contribute $1000 to pg.org if the money
> (guaranteed) went to get MY chosen favorite programs totally in
> postgresql, even if forks were necessary? How many others DON'T
> contribute because they fail to see a coherent, systematic program of
> promotion, just more of the same, free linuxworld booths and bof's year
> after year, no affinity to the commercial realities out there.

You can already do this. Kick in money for a developer or consultant
and the program in question can be converted.

>
> 5. Make it easy, NOT hard, to come to postgresql. Provide a
> decision-tree selection software for ALL databases which is vendor neutral.

Ahh, Stonebraker's 4x4 matrix.

>
> 6. Offer to assist nerwly popular university based applications around
> the world, such that they authomatically choose postgresql to base their
> software on. A good example, the educators who wrote LAMS, adopted a
> sensible database approach, but then went solely with mysql.

This is being done with the Google Summer of Code.

>
> 7. Provide marketing based brochure models licensed in the creative
> commons which is something more than a mere enumeration of pg features.
> Something decision makers in companies can sink their teeth into, not
> the programmers who work for them that do what they are told. These
> must speak to TCO and ROI over time.

Feel free to rewrite any brochures we have. People will be happy
to use them.

>
> 8. Stop mentioning mysql in every breath. It serves them, not pg.
> After all, mysql must be better, or why would these folks at pg be so
> specifically, vociferously and universally concerned! talk only about
> pg, make comparisons to the whole field of db's, don't single anyone out!

I actually agree with this.

>
> I would be willing to bet that a bounty of just $50 would be enough to
> influence major and minor FOSS projects to give pg major support.
>
> Anyway, this is from the heart, I know many persons will be outraged at
> this upstart coming out and saying these things, but then again, I like
> to live dangerously and I am not required to attend Java100.
>
> Michael

Overall, I suggest you come to understand more about how open source
projects, and postgresql, specifically work. Discuss with others
*specific* items and how they can be implemented. Action always speaks
more loudly than words. For the most part Josh Berkus has been leading
the marketing effort. It would behoove you to discuss how you can help
him in that effort.

Carry on!

Elein
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