Have you heard of Blue Mountain Cards? Back in the 90s there was a huge rush of companies trying to provide online ecard services. It seemed like everyone thought somehow giving away ecards was going to be a business model. What you must remember is that advertising revenue models were seen as very acceptable back then. This is a difference with todays focus on real revenue. However, with web 2.0, you could argue that its started all over again.



Ecards are a difficult business space for me to understand. This is the space that is eating the lunch from the old paper greeting card space thats been around forever and a day. It seems like the classic case of doing something through technology that was previously manual. But I dont think its that simple. eCards are not exactly the same product as paper greeting cards. Paper cards come from a store and require you to mail them. Electronic cards are bought online and never touch paper. In this way, its a real product transition. So in essence, the technology is really impacted the very product. You see this also in pcs, telephones, tvs and other electronic products.

How exactly did blue mountain cards dig out of this hole? First, Blue Mountain Cards had a big lead going into the game. They planned well.. It seems like the executives at Blue Mountain Cards new they were onto something big, but that it wouldnt last. So the company was sold while things were still really really hot in the dot com sector. An amazingly well-timed move. Looking back, there are many things I wish I had done differently.

How is that in 2008 Blue Mountain Cards is still a going concern? One view is that the original builders of the business picked an once-in-a-lifetime period to exit the business and made an unprecedented amount of money.. I often wonder if management teams like that are really lucky or create luck due to their experience. This is not a small business. Regardless of their underlying financials, this business made a name for itself in a multi billion dollar business space. I think this accounts for why they are here today. Its a textbook case of building a brand in a new market. The part that is not text book is how Blue Mountain Cards got out at the top of the market. I guess thats where a little luck goes a long way.