Ecommerce Blog

Domain names can be a bit like babies, you may think your son/daughter is the most beautiful baby in the world, when others just see a hairless chimpanzee.You may think your nice semi generic domain is the best thing in the world and worth £500k easily. Others will offer you £10.

But really, I mean really what were people thinking when they register domain names with a hyphen after every single letter in them? Take b-u-s-i-n-e-s-s.com as a perfect example. Who is going to type that into a browser? Yes people may type business.com into a browser but not with all the hyphens. Will it be any good for SEO purposes? Or course not. So why oh why do I still see these domains for sale. I mean here and now in 2008 people actually still think there is a market for these stupid domains with hyphens in. Just last week I saw some for sale on a couple of forums.

And what about those domains with the “www” as part of the domain, i.e. wwwbusiness.com. Again, who is going to type in www.wwwbusiness.com anywhere? If it was 1998 again and I saw these domains for sale I would half forgive the registrants for trying to flog them on, as it’s still a relatively new emerging market. But here and now, 10 years later what’s the excuse for trying to sell them on? Does anybody know?

What I’m listening to right now: Robin Thicke - “Something Else”

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog Here.org.uk

Stupid domain names

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Original post by Kieron

I got back yesterday afternoon absolutely shattered from the 2nd annual A4U Expo at the Excel in Docklands, London. It is only now a day later that I feel mentally fit enough to switch on the PC and write down my thoughts. It wasn’t the 3 parties over 3 nights that has left me exhausted, but rather the 2 solid days of networking, meetings, panels and presentations that has me worn out. Well OK, maybe the parties didn’t help either

So what were the highlights for me?

One thing that stood out this year was the number of SEO people who were involved in the panel sessions. People like Becky and Dave Naylor, Mel Carson, Dixon Jones and Joost De Valk to name but a few. Sure, they’re an odd bunch but our sectors are so closely linked that it made perfect sense to have a few more SEO sessions this year.

One panel that I particularly enjoyed was the “Effective Voucher Code Implementation” session with Frostie, Duncan, J Lil and Richard from Comet the DSG group. Hero did a grand job of presenting an overview of the sector but unfortunately we only had 10 minutes to ask the panel questions. With voucher codes being such a hot topic at the moment we could have done with a 15 minute overview and 45 minutes of questions and answers. Maybe next year.

I missed Al’s presentation on “Million Dollar Blogging Strategies for Affiliates” which I was gutted about. Happily I heard nothing but good feedback about his session though, which is great considering I was the one who twisted his arm and suggested he be involved in the Expo in the first place.

I was also delighted to hear loads of positive stuff about the new sunPress tool from Chris and the gang at Sunshine.co.uk. It’s certainly a fantastic tool for my favourite blogging programme WordPress.

Then there was my “Meet the Super Affiliates” session with Jamie, Doug and superbly moderated by Shak. We were in one of the biggest rooms and the session was packed, however as we were the very last session of the last day I think that this took it’s toll on the audience. When we opened up the floor for questions we got a few but nowhere near the volume of questions that we had on the same panel last year (which was on in an earlier time slot). Speaking to a few people after the session, they said they enjoyed it and would have liked to have asked some questions but were a bit daunted as nobody else was. If I had been prepared, I should have brought some of the great questions asked by my blog readers in this post. But as ever, I wasn’t but will answer them in a separate and upcoming post. Thankfully the session went OK and we didn’t have to revert to Doug’s questions that he had hastily prepared just before the presentation on his notepad. Thank goodness!

I was also pleasantly surprised to meet up with Carrie from the Google Affiliate Network. She made the trip from Chicago to do a bit of fact-finding before a full blown launch of the Google beast into the UK. Should make for an interesting time ahead.

Finally I’d just like to thank everybody who took the time out to come and say hello to me and shoot the breeze about affiliate marketing, ContentNow.co.uk or white cars Great to talk to you all and meet so many new people. While the exhibition and the sessions themselves were great, for me it was the networking and the drinking with friends old and new in the parties afterwards that proved really invaluable. This is where deals are struck, domains and sites are sold, joint ventures are born and new opportunities created. Roll on A4U Expo 2009.

Here are some other people’s experiences of the 2 days…

Awesome A4U Expo 2008
Doug’s A4U Photos
A4U Expo Day 1 - by Fraser
A4U Expo Day 1 - by Jason
A4U Expo Day 1 - by Pete
Best ʎU Expo Event Ever! - by Jason
Didn’t we have a lovely time
Day 1 photos
A4U Expo was great, yet again
SEO Dinner at ʎU Expo
ʎU Expo presentation online now
WordPress SEO tips
Was the A4U Expo any good? My review
My A4U Expo Roundup
A4U Expo - Conversion rate experts reveal conversion is all a matter of persuasion
Can I got to bed now please? A review of the ʎU Expo 2008

What I’m listening to right now: Ne-Yo ft Jadakiss - “By My Side”

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog Here.org.uk

The big bad A4U Expo wrapup post

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Original post by Kieron

I’ve noticed a few domain names selling for way below their market value lately, well I certainly think they were good purchases. For example:

Competitions.co.uk - £5.5k
Directors.co.uk - £3k
Promotions.co.uk - £2650
Pcs.co.uk - £5k

All of the above were absolute bargains I believe, especially competitions.co.uk which will make a return staright away based purely in type-in traffic.

Anyway I spotted this auction the other day for CompareCameras.co.uk which is only at £300, with the reserve already met. While the name isn’t as generic as my examples above it’s perfect for capturing traffic from users typing “compare cameras” into Google. There are also tons of electronics and specialised digital camera merchants offering decent commissions so no problem monetising it.

What I’m listening to right now: Robin Thicke – “Everybody’s A Star”

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog Here.org.uk

Grab a bargain - CompareCameras.co.uk

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Original post by Kieron

Has anyone seen the TV ads, billboards and press ads stating that “Cold Is The New Hot”? That’s pretty much all the ads say apart from telling us to visit ColdIsTheNewHot.com on October 1st and all will be revealed

At the time of writing, the site is just a landing page with a countdown clock - 1 hour to go! - However I was intrigued enough to do some research to see what it was all about. So, some serious googling later I found that the ads are for Proctor and Gamble’s new Ariel Excel Gel. Which apparently is a new washing gel that enables consumers to wash clothes at 15 degrees. Riveting.

However I must say I was impressed enough with the advertising campaign to go and visit the website, and to write this blog post, so hats off to their advertising agency for a job well done. What’s the betting from tomorrow if you type 15 degrees into Google, you’ll see some sponsored ads?

What I’m listening to right now: Omarion Ft Missy Elliott – “Boogie Police” - what a title for a song

Post from: Affiliate Marketing Blog Here.org.uk

Cold Is The New Hot

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Original post by Kieron

I sold a .uk domain name for the first time in a while last week and I was very pleasantly surprised at how easy Nominet have now made it to transfer domains away.

In the “old” days you had to complete a paper transfer form and write a covering letter and send a cheque in order to initiate a transfer, it could take up to 4 weeks. But now, wow what a transformation! Now you log into Nominet - and if you don’t know your log-in details just ring them up, speak to a very intelligent customer service advisor (based in the UK) who really knows what they are talking about and are very helpful - and then al you need do is fill in the buyers email address and pay £11.75 via credit/debit card! It is ridiculously easy and takes at most 2 minutes.

So credit where it’s due, well done Nominet for making .uk domain name transfers so very simple.

What I’m listening ro right now: Ne-Yo - “Year Of The Gentleman”

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Nice one Nominet!

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Original post by Kieron

I got this email yeterday from Chris Applegate at London based “digital agency” OutsideLine.co.uk.

Chris Applegate wrote:
My name is Chris and I work for Outside Line, a London-based digital agency, and I’m contacting you today on behalf of Berocca, the fizzy orange vitamin and mineral supplement.

There’s been a lot of press recently about how blogging can be potentially stressful and tiring so to do their bit to help Berocca have launched a free Bloggers’ Relief Pack, which you might have seen mentioned on some other blogs already. It contains a stress ball, USB “stress” button, bubble wrap keyring, pen holder and a pack of Berocca and is designed to help Britain’s bloggers be at their best, both physically and mentally.

I’m just dropping you a line to find out if you’re interested in getting a free pack to try out - you can do so at the special microsite at:
www.berocca.co.uk/bloggerrelief - we link back to every blogger we send a pack out to as a way of saying thanks for giving Berocca a go. You can also check out what other bloggers have thought about it via Technorati:
http://www.technorati.com/search/www.berocca.co.uk

And of course, if you want to share it with your readers we’d be delighted. If you have any questions then don’t hesitate to get back to me. If you’re not interested, then apologies for taking up your time, and I won’t bother you again.

Yours,

Chris Applegate

Now if you were sending this email to prospective bloggers wouldn’t you at the very least do some very basic research like trying to find out if bloggers had already blogged about this promotion from Berocca? I’m going to offer Outside Line some free consultancy here, as they are obviously in need of it. If you’re reading this Chris here are 4 steps to make sure you don’t make the same silly mistake for future clients.

1. Read my blog!! Yes you could have done some real hard core research and searched for the term “Berocca” in my blog. If you did you would have seen that I blogged about this in June of this year at http://www.here.org.uk/2008/06/free-blogger-relief-pack-from-berocca.html

2. You could have actually clicked on the link in YOUR OWN EMAIL that clicks through to the Technorati search for Berocca. Because yep, my blog is listed there too.

3. You could have checked the Berocca link in YOUR OWN EMAIL as my website URL is on rotation with some others at the top of the Berocca micro site.

4. You could have asked your client Berocca, for a list of blogs that have already blogged about the promotion. They do have such a list as they feature these blogs on their site (see point 3). That would have saved you emailing and annoying bloggers who have already blogged about this.

I hope the above helps you, and that you don’t receive an email from these guys.

What I’m listening to right now: Noel Gourdin – “Better Man”

P.S. Not all digital agencies are rubbish, but some do make me wonder how they are in business and how they can justify some of their high charges to clients.

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Berocca’s Digital Agency needs to do better

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Original post by Kieron

I got this email yeterday from Chris Applegate at London based “digital agency” OutsideLine.co.uk.

Chris Applegate wrote:
My name is Chris and I work for Outside Line, a London-based digital agency, and I’m contacting you today on behalf of Berocca, the fizzy orange vitamin and mineral supplement.

There’s been a lot of press recently about how blogging can be potentially stressful and tiring so to do their bit to help Berocca have launched a free Bloggers’ Relief Pack, which you might have seen mentioned on some other blogs already. It contains a stress ball, USB “stress” button, bubble wrap keyring, pen holder and a pack of Berocca and is designed to help Britain’s bloggers be at their best, both physically and mentally.

I’m just dropping you a line to find out if you’re interested in getting a free pack to try out - you can do so at the special microsite at:
www.berocca.co.uk/bloggerrelief - we link back to every blogger we send a pack out to as a way of saying thanks for giving Berocca a go. You can also check out what other bloggers have thought about it via Technorati:
http://www.technorati.com/search/www.berocca.co.uk

And of course, if you want to share it with your readers we’d be delighted. If you have any questions then don’t hesitate to get back to me. If you’re not interested, then apologies for taking up your time, and I won’t bother you again.

Yours,

Chris Applegate

Now if you were sending this email to prospective bloggers wouldn’t you at the very least do some very basic research like trying to find out if bloggers had already blogged about this promotion from Berocca? I’m going to offer Outside Line some free consultancy here, as they are obviously in need of it. If you’re reading this Chris here are 4 steps to make sure you don’t make the same silly mistake for future clients.

1. Read my blog!! Yes you could have done some real hard core research and searched for the term “Berocca” in my blog. If you did you would have seen that I blogged about this in June of this year at http://www.here.org.uk/2008/06/free-blogger-relief-pack-from-berocca.html

2. You could have actually clicked on the link in YOUR OWN EMAIL that clicks through to the Technorati search for Berocca. Because yep, my blog is listed there too.

3. You could have checked the Berocca link in YOUR OWN EMAIL as my website URL is on rotation with some others at the top of the Berocca micro site.

4. You could have asked your client Berocca, for a list of blogs that have already blogged about the promotion. They do have such a list as they feature these blogs on their site (see point 3). That would have saved you emailing and annoying bloggers who have already blogged about this.

I hope the above helps you, and that you don’t receive an email from these guys.

What I’m listening to right now: Noel Gourdin – “Better Man”

P.S. Not all digital agencies are rubbish, but some do make me wonder how they are in business and how they can justify some of their high charges to clients.

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Berocca’s Digital Agency needs to do better

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Original post by Kieron

After using Microsoft Internet Explorer for all my life I’ve just made the change and switched to Mozilla Firefox.

Why? Well I finally got sick of IE crashing, locking up and generally misbehaving. As I make my living online my web browser gets a lot of use and IE just wasn’t up to the job. It got to the point that every half hour or hour I would have to close it down and restart it. For no apparent reason it would just freeze, new tabs wouldn’t open or it would just become generally unresponsive. So much so that it really got in the way of my productivity, so last week I binned it once and for all.

So far I have to say that Firefox has been superb. It allowed me to import all my IE bookmarks in a matter of seconds and more importantly hasn’t crashed once, yay! Not only that but it seems to run faster and smoother.

My next step is to explore all of the add-ons available. Can anybody recommend any useful ones?

What I’m listening to right now: LKP – “I’m Ready Part 2″ hello Newcastle!!!

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Goodbye IE, hello Firefox

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Original post by Kieron

I’ve just watched Dragon’s Den, Series 6, episode 2 and my jaw dropped. Why? More on that later, but for now here is how to easily impress the Dragon’s and gain some serious funding.

1. Tell them the turnover (not profit) of the biggest website that currently occupies the same niche as yourself. Obviously the bigger the better.

2.“Impress” them with some slightly average search engine results for a couple of key search terms. Judging by this weeks’ episode, position 9 and position 12 will get you over a quarter of million pounds investment.

That’s it!

On last night’s episode a website did exactly this. The site concerned is DiamondGeezer.com who last year had a turnover of £1.6 million but a profit of only £3,243.

However because the guy who was pitching said that the biggest site in this sector (BlueNile.com) had an annual turnover of $330 million - and that DiamondGeezer.com held position 12 on Google for “diamond” and position 9 for “diamond engagement ring” they actually made him an offer.

To top it all the offer was the highest ever in Dragon’s Den, it was £255,000 for 40% of the business. In fact so keen were the Dragons to invest that 3 of them (Theo, Peter and James) all wanted to be part of the investment. However the owner of the company - can you believe this - actually turned them down!! Apparently he thought that £255k for a 40% investment of his company, which made £3,243 profit last year remember, was actually too high!

I honestly can’t decide who made the worst decisions in tonight’s episode. Was it the Dragon’s for wanting to invest such a large amount of cash into such a small business, with slightly-above-average search engine rankings? Or was it the owner of the business who turned them down?

We all know that last year Theo made a similar mistake and blew £200k on another online business, but you would think he would have learned by now wouldn’t you? Obviously not.

Now I know a lot of affiliates who have much better rankings (positions 1 to 5 for example) for sites in much bigger sectors than online jewellery. The majority of which would probably call it a day if they didn’t make £3,243 profit in a week or less, never mind a year. So it makes you think what kind of funding we could all secure if we ever entered the Den with a real web business that was making good money, in a profitable sector and had good search engine results? Anyone up for it?

If you haven’t seen the pitch then please click here to watch it. And just watch how the guy manages to get James, Theo and Peter to part with their money by telling them about a few average serps results. Amazing.

What I’m listening to right now: Joe – “God’s Work”

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How to get funding from the Dragons for your website (because they don’t understand the Internet - as proven by DiamondGeezer.com)

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Original post by Kieron

I’ve just watched Dragon’s Den, Series 6, episode 2 and my jaw dropped. Why? More on that later, but for now here is how to easily impress the Dragon’s and gain some serious funding.

1. Tell them the turnover (not profit) of the biggest website that currently occupies the same niche as yourself. Obviously the bigger the better.

2.“Impress” them with some slightly average search engine results for a couple of key search terms. Judging by this weeks’ episode, position 9 and position 12 will get you over a quarter of million pounds investment.

That’s it!

On last night’s episode a website did exactly this. The site concerned is DiamondGeezer.com who last year had a turnover of £1.6 million but a profit of only £3,243.

However because the guy who was pitching said that the biggest site in this sector (BlueNile.com) had an annual turnover of $330 million - and that DiamondGeezer.com held position 12 on Google for “diamond” and position 9 for “diamond engagement ring” they actually made him an offer.

To top it all the offer was the highest ever in Dragon’s Den, it was £255,000 for 40% of the business. In fact so keen were the Dragons to invest that 3 of them (Theo, Peter and James) all wanted to be part of the investment. However the owner of the company - can you believe this - actually turned them down!! Apparently he thought that £255k for a 40% investment of his company, which made £3,243 profit last year remember, was actually too high!

I honestly can’t decide who made the worst decisions in tonight’s episode. Was it the Dragon’s for wanting to invest such a large amount of cash into such a small business, with slightly-above-average search engine rankings? Or was it the owner of the business who turned them down?

We all know that last year Theo made a similar mistake and blew £200k on another online business, but you would think he would have learned by now wouldn’t you? Obviously not.

Now I know a lot of affiliates who have much better rankings (positions 1 to 5 for example) for sites in much bigger sectors than online jewellery. The majority of which would probably call it a day if they didn’t make £3,243 profit in a week or less, never mind a year. So it makes you think what kind of funding we could all secure if we ever entered the Den with a real web business that was making good money, in a profitable sector and had good search engine results? Anyone up for it?

If you haven’t seen the pitch then please click here to watch it. And just watch how the guy manages to get James, Theo and Peter to part with their money by telling them about a few average serps results. Amazing.

What I’m listening to right now: Joe – “God’s Work”

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How to get funding from the Dragons for your website (because they don’t understand the Internet - as proven by DiamondGeezer.com)

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Original post by Kieron

Great to see Dragon’s Den make a return to TV tonight with series 6. Congratulations to Hamfatter and Dance4MePromotions who both secured investments.

I have to say that the the decision to appear on a business reality show by indie band Hamfatter was a stroke of genius. Regardless of whether they got an investment or not, the 15 minutes of prime time TV would almost certainly open up a lot of doors for them. As it happened though, they had to choose between Peter Jones, Duncan and a combined offer from Theo and Deborah. Thankfully they dismissed Theo and Deborah, quite rightly too as their tinpot music download business wouldn’t benefit them at all. Instead they chose Peter who can open doors at Sony. Well done, I would have done exactly the same.

As for Air Oasis, well those guys need to stick with their door-to-door Multi Level Marketing strategy. Completely hopeless. Same applies to the Layline people, I mean come on, good comedy value but a real business? I don’t think so.

Finally. I thought the D4M girls were brilliant. Their business was quirky, fun and something different. Already healthy and earning decent profits it was easy to see how James and Duncan could easily, easily bring them shedloads of business from their contacts and existing businesses. For what it’s worth I would have chosen those two over Theo and Peter in this instance, as I just don’t see how D4M can fit into Red Letter Days. They are a corporate entertainment company, not an experience.

Anyway, great first show, roll on next week!

What I’m listening to right now: Joe - “All or Nothing”

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Dragons Den series 6 - well done to Hamfatter and ʬM

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Original post by Kieron

As many of you will know my various sites have been ripped-off more than once. So much so in fact that I’ve compiled this handy Top 10 list of excuses given by dodgepots who have no talent:

1. I’m new to this and didn’t know that it was wrong to copy.
2. My business partner/outsourced designer from India must have done this. I will sack them right now.
3. Sorry I thought your design was just a template and therefore free to copy.
4.It’s not a copy it’s just a coincidence that it looks…erm…identical to yours.
5. I’m so busy I can’t remember where I got the design inspiration from, I run a lot of sites you know.
6. I didn’t copy all of your site, just certain parts so that’s OK.
7. I can’t deal with this right now there’s been a death in the family.
8. I didn’t copy it from your site I got it from another site. So they must have been the ones copying your site, not me.
9. I don’t make much money so it’s cheaper for me to get “inspiration” from websites already out there.
10. I credited you on my site so that makes it OK.

What’s the best excuse you’ve heard from people either copying your design or your content?

Mariah Carey Feat TI – “I’ll Be Lovin’ You Long Time” (Remix)

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Top 10 excuses given by people who rip-off your site

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Original post by Kieron

I’m heading down to London today for the 2-day Online Bingo Summit starting tomorrow, it’s my second time to London in 2 weeks, will be getting a headache with all this travelling south soon.

Anyway if you’re attending please do come and say hello. I’ll be on the “Affiliate Management meet Affiliate innovation Panel” Tuesday afternoon at 3.30pm, here’s the blurb:

This 2 part panel delves into the business of managing affiliates for best results and then looks at the latest innovations in affiliate marketing to ensure your brand gets the best marketing reach online

Take away marketing best practice tips to help you increase ROI for your online bingo business
Tap into player referrals and WOM marketing by utilising social networking, online wikis and effective SEO
What’s next? Find out how affiliates are innovating to bring you even more players, ROI and profits!
Get real, get practical… Ensure your marketing strategy employs the most effective ways to spread the word without breaking the bank!
Part 1:
Nicky Senyard, Owner &amp CEO, Income Access
Vikki Taylor, Affiliate Manager, Crown Bingo
Part 2:
Raj Ramanandi, Affiliate, Bingo Base
Jason Dale, Affiliate, Loquax
Kieron Donoghue, Affiliate, Bingo.org.uk

Moderator: Chris Wesson, Affiliate, Little Star Media

See you there!

What I’m listening to right now: Lil Wayne feat Babyface – “Comfortable” - love this track!

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See you at the Online Bingo Summit

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Original post by Kieron

So, how on earth did Lee “That’s what I’m talking about!!” McQueen win The Apprentice last night??

The guy has never shown any talent in any of the tasks, and his leadership skills are non existent. He did an impression of a “reverse pterodactyl” in his interview for God’s sake, lied about his uni education on his CV and generally showed no business qualities at all throughout the whole 12 weeks.

Not to mention the fact that in last night’s final task he created a men’s fragrance called “Roulette” - I mean come on! Did you see the design of the bottle? probably not as it was hardly shown - which may have something to do with the fact that it was shaped like a roulette wheel and was the biggest piece of tat I ever saw. I mean who would buy that? But despite the cheesy 1970’s style tv ad, and the fact that the fragrance was criticised as being “bland” by experts, they won!!! Not to mention the fact that loads of the industry insiders expressed concern of its gambling connotations.

Whereas the other team created a fragrance that was critically acclaimed by the top perfume smelling fella in the world and the bottle had an innovative and unique design - they lost! The only (weak) argument was that their bottle would be expensive to make because it’s so unique. So what? The uplift in sales due to it’s uniqueness and novelty value would more than compensate.

Wrong wrong wrong!

What I’m listening to right now: Robin Thicke – “Magic” - you know the one from the Samsung Soul U900 mobile phone ad. Brilliant.

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Lee McQueen wins the Apprentice! Has the world gone mad?

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Original post by Kieron

Back in last November I wrote about online statup HungryHouse.co.uk appearing on the BBC TV show Dragon’s Den and securing a £100k investment from 2 of the Dragons for a 50% equity share. At the time I really couldn’t make my mind up if this was a good deal or not. It seems it wasn’t meant to be though, as James Caan got cold feet and backed out of the deal.

However due to the popularity of the TV show, some other investors expressed their interest with the result being that HungryHouse.co.uk have just announced a £150k investment for a lower equity stake. So it seems that appearing on Dragon’s Den does have its benefits after all!

Press Release:

DRAGONS’ DEN WINNERS FIND THEIR ANGELS

The deal is agreed, hands are shaken, and the cameras stop rolling. But what happens next for entrepreneurs that find success in the Dragons’ Den?

Hungryhouse.co.uk, the website that makes it easier than ever before to find a local restaurant and order takeaway online, was one of the successful pitches featured on the BBCs Dragons’ Den in autumn last year. They won a £100,000 offer of investment from multi-millionaires James Caan and Duncan Bannatyne, in exchange for an eye-watering 50% of the business.

But, as hungryhouse’s founders Shane Lake and Tony Charles were to find, the investment is far from secure when you shake hands. Four months after filming, post-show due diligence ground to a halt after Caan became unsure whether the business would take off.

Now, the hungryhouse.co.uk team have finally found their business angels. Bryan O’Connell and Andrew Fuller were among those watching that night, and liked the idea so much that they made immediate contact to explore the possibility of backing the duo themselves. Bryan asserts, “We have experience in investing in similar website models, and we immediately felt that this idea had legs. On meeting Shane and Tony, we were particularly impressed with their passion for the business. The team had achieved so much with so little that it was clear that our £150,000 would have a big impact on the growth. We didn’t get the equity deal obtained in the den, but then the business has grown significantly over the last 5 months and of course we aren’t the Dragons.”

Andy adds, “We felt strong empathy with the founders in terms of our technical and business backgrounds and the way that we started our first business. It was clear that we could make a contribution beyond the obvious financial help.”

Shane Lake comments: “After appearing on TV, we had literally thousands of people emailing us. It took about 2 weeks just to read through all the messages. We were so busy, we almost missed Bryan’s initial approach - which came right at the time we realised that the offer from James and Duncan wasn’t going to work out.”

Tony Charles continues: “It was great when we were offered the backing we so desperately needed by the Dragons. The exposure of being on TV was massive for us too. But when you go into the Den, aside from the positives, the one thing you can’t expect is a good equity deal! On reflection, we’re glad the negotiations with the dragons fell through – the new deal, £150,000 for a smaller equity stake - values the business at over 3 times what was agreed in the Den. It was a long process, but we finally have the money we need for our nationwide expansion.”

-About hungryhouse.co.uk-

Hungryhouse.co.uk was launched in Putney in 2006 by Australian entrepreneurs Shane Lake and Tony Charles. The website allows visitors to read customer reviews before ordering their takeaway online – helping them find their area’s favourite restaurant without the hassle of sifting through piles of unwanted junk mail.

Launched with 12 restaurants, they now partner with 400 and are beginning their expansion beyond the M25. The website shot into the spotlight in 2007, when it attracted an offer of investment from Duncan Bannatyne and James Caan in the Dragons’ Den (view the hungryhouse pitch). It has since been nominated by Yahoo! as one of 2007’s most innovative websites.

What I’m listening to right now: Ryan Leslie – “Rescue You”

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HungryHouse.co.uk Dragon’s Den investment falls through. The best thing that could happen to them?

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Original post by Kieron