Outlined below are common components of an online venture and a recommended product to fulfill those needs quickly, reliably, and inexpensively.

Content Management
WordPress - WordPress is an open source blog tool and publishing platform powered by PHP and MySQL. It’s often customized into a Content Management System (CMS). It has many features including a plug-in architecture and a template system.

Analytics
Google Analytics – Google Analytics is a free service offered by Google that generates detailed statistics about the visitors to a website. The product is aimed at marketers as opposed to webmasters and technologists from which the industry of web analytics originally grew. It is the most widely used website statistics service, currently in use at around 57% of the 10,000 most popular websites. Another market share analysis claims that Google Analytics is used at around 49.95% of the top 1,000,000 websites

Testing
Google Website Optimizer – Google Website Optimizer is a free website optimization tool that helps online marketers and webmasters increase visitor conversion rates and overall visitor satisfaction by continually testing different combinations of website content. Google Website Optimizer can test any element that exists as HTML code on a page including calls to action, fonts, headlines, point of action assurances, product copy, product images, product reviews, and forms. It can be used at multiple stage in the conversion funnel. Google Website Optimizer allows webmasters to test entire pages, known as A/B testing or page elements, known as Multivariate testing such as Headings, images or body copy. This tool is part of Google Analytics, though accessed through a different user interface.

Prototyping
Google Docs – Google Docs is a free, Web-based word processor, spreadsheet, slide show, form, and data storage service offered by Google. It allows users to create and edit documents online while collaborating in real-time with other users. Google Docs combines the features of Writely and Spreadsheets with a presentation program incorporating technology designed by Tonic Systems.

Email
Mailchimp - MailChimp is an email marketing service with over 500,000 users. They provide an easy way for users to send email newsletters, manage subscriber lists, and track campaign performance. MailChimp takes a variety of basic and advanced features (like templates, list segmentation, a/b testing, geo-targeting and ROI tracking) and makes them accessible to the everyday user through automation and a competitive price point.

CRM
Sugarcrm - SugarCRM is a software company based in Cupertino, California. They produce the web application Sugar, also known as SugarCRM, which is a customer relationship management (CRM) system that is available in both open source and proprietary, non-free versions. Sugar’s functionality includes sales-force automation, marketing campaigns, customer support, collaboration and reporting. The company operates a number of websites, including its commercial website SugarCRM.com, a development website (SugarForge.org), Sugar Exchange (for third-party extensions), and user forums.

Ecommerce
Amazon and Paypal both offer simple and more advanced integration of ecommerce capabilities via an API. Additionally, both of these companies offer a form of subscription ecommerce which in increasingly popular.

Please provide your feedback and insight into your own lean startup stack in the comments below.
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Kickstarter is brilliant because it facilitates creativity where typically money was a barrier. Additionally, it is another example of social commerce and funding that is disrupting the offline world. The true brilliance is that the average person cannot legally invest in a company as you have to be an accredited investor; only a small percentage of the population qualifies. The irony is that I feel that the qualifications of an accredited investor are flawed. Just because someone has a certain income over time and a certain amount of assets, does not mean that they are savvy. What if an accredited investor makes millions but spends millions and lives as if they made $100,000? Kickstarter circumvents the accredited investor laws by providing the people that fund the ideas with tangible products instead of equity.

If Kickstarter were able to scale and move beyond just creative projects, and Google were to adjust the commission I could see this becoming a billion dollar business that has an altruistic component to it.

Why should Google acquire Kickstarter?

• It would increase adoption of Google Checkout, replacing Amazon payments currently used by Kickstarter
• Notable funding includes ipod Nano Watch $624k, and Diaspora $200k
• If Google doesn’t acquire Kickstarter, someone else will such as Amazon
• It is a business that thrives on the network effect and margins are high
• May parlay Google is evil movement and add human element to Google’s products

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Why Google should purchase Groupon?

• Spend some of the billions of dollars sitting idle
• Establish a stronghold on the CPA/local/social commerce
• Create a commerce graph combined with social graph
• Raise the acquisition bar above the financial reach of competitors

Spend some of the billions of dollars sitting idle
Every quarter, Google adds to its acquisition war chest based on profits that roll in. Increasingly, shareholders are going to begin and wonder what the company intends to do with the all of the money sitting idle and would probably prefer that the money not be used to fend off Facebook in a talent war.

Establish a stronghold on the CPA/local/social commerce
Predominantly, Google earns its revenues via search and a CPC (cost per click) business model aided by an advanced auctioning process of the respective keywords. The long term trend in media buying is pressuring companies to charge based on a CPA (cost per action) where actions in the case of ecommerce would be purchases. The CPA model puts the pressure on Google to deliver relevant ads to users with high intent for a given term or phrase. If the user clicks through and does not purchase or complete the desired action, Google would not get paid. Compared to Google’s current practices, every time someone clicks on an ad amidst the search results or text ads on the millions of sites, Google earns money.

Create a commerce graph combined with social graph
Google has some products that have social components including gmail, google voice, YouTube along with some commerce components but they are rather siloed and lack the polish of an integrated product offering. Similarly, Google entered the commerce space years ago via Google checkout but adoption has been lackluster.

Raise the acquisition bar above the financial reach of competitors
With an outright acquisition or investment by Google in Groupon, Google could raise the bar for any competitor to enter the social commerce/local deal space. In this case, the billions that Google would potentially spend would be strategically used to make a similar move by Amazon or Ebay cost prohibitive. Ebay and Amazon have started to make strategic moves at what seem to be relatively low price points.

Why Groupon should not purchase Groupon?

• Repeat business is questionable amidst merchant complaints
• Google could build a Groupon clone and leverage its own platform for targeting/marketing
• Merchants are not prepared to analyze ROI for Groupon type deals before signing up
• Google already has data to generate the social and commerce graphs

Repeat business is questionable amidst merchant complaints
Merchants are often ill prepared to determine if a Groupon is financially worth conducting through Groupon. Many have even blogged about the trials and tribulations associated with a Groupon deal. This is not restricted to just the financial aspects as businesses are often overwhelmed by the volume of customers the deals drive. Repeat business is already strong for Google via its current online advertising offering and I am not sure Google would want to disrupt it. Additionally, poor experiences online or with a participating merchant could also start to erode Google’s search market share.

Google could build a Groupon clone and leverage its own platform for targeting/marketing
Fact of the matter is that from a technology perspective building a Groupon clone is not difficult. There are hundreds of clones, some of which were even acquired by Groupon in International markets. Google has a far better staff of engineers and product managers that could build a platform with richer analytics, targeting, and scalability. A prime example is that even though I am a male, Groupon still sends me waxing offers with creative targeting women. I am not about to buy that for my wife nor for someone else as a gift, sorry!

Merchants are not prepared to analyze ROI for Groupon type deals before signing up
Regardless of the business, owners typically do not have a firm grasp of the business model of Groupon nor do they realize the negative impact it could have on their business. Groupon has many past deals that they probably leverage to show prospective businesses the amount of customers and money that a deal could drive. However, business owners must realize that it is not only about the net present value of money, rather how many of those coupon chasers will actually come back to their store/restaurant etc and pay full price.

Google already has data to generate the social and commerce graphs
One of Google’s biggest critiques is that they missed out on the social networking trend. If you think about the reach of Google and the amount of content that they have indexed, they are absolutely able and aware of a user’s social graph in addition to the commerce graph. Think of what Google can do by combining toolbar, google analytics data, gmail data, and real-time search data indexed from the wealth of social sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace among others.

If I were Eric Schmidt, I would opt to pass on the Groupon acquisition and set the next trend in social commerce that would disrupt the online and offline World.

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We are excited to introduce writers, filmmakers and movie lovers to Amazon Studios,” said Roy Price, Director of Digital Product Development. “Full-length test movies will show stories up on their feet and attract helpful feedback at an early stage. We hope that Amazon Studios will help filmmakers experiment and collaborate and we look forward to developing hit movies.

The goal of Amazon Studios to produce new movies based on the best submissions while providing Warner Brothers first right of refusal to the most promising ones. Under the Amazon Studios development agreement, if a filmmaker or screenwriter creates a project with an original script and it is released by Amazon Studios as a theatrical feature film, the submitter will receive a rights payment of $200,000; if the movie makes over $60 million at the U.S. box office, the original filmmaker or screenwriter will receive a $400,000 bonus. If Warner Bros. Pictures is not inclined to develop a particular project, Amazon Studios can then produce the project in cooperation with another studio.

Amazon already has a significant reach and distribution, along with two movie related assets IMDB and a VOD service. Furthermore, with increased sales and progress on the Kindle platform, Amazon may wind up with a significant contender vs. Apple, Google, and Facebook. Will Amazon wind up with the next Avatar, probably not, due to its rather low payout. Referencing the payout information above, an applicant whose movie winds up making $60MM at the box office would only receive $0.6MM or 1%. Tweet

Key Reasons For Potential Acquisition:
Technology. Amazon always refers to itself as a technology company first and foremost and rarely as an ecommerce conglomerate. Quidsi and its holdings have been able to grow so quickly by implementing Kiva’s robots that power the warehouse. This enables Soap.com to offer next day delivery for free throughout the entire United States. The video embedded below reveals how these robots provide a competitive advantage.

Metrics Driven. Analytics and metrics are driving these businesses. Quidsi has employed analysts and statisticians to combat many challenges including the optimal number and location of warehouses, container sizes and historial orders to minimize cost and maximize efficiency in distribution.

Determination. Quidsi started out of the founders’ Long Island, NY home where they would scour the area purchasing diapers with their own money because the manufacturers would not initially sell wholesale to them until they had volume.

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The relationship between the two companies started in 2001, when Target was an online shop that existed within Amazon.com. The relationship progressed to a more stand-alone presence online powered by Amazon.com which included order fulfillment, processing, checkout and other typical ecommerce functionality.

Even though the partnership between the two companies was deemed a success by both parties, Target is severing ties with Amazon where Target will take on the design and maintenance of the site. Target is not the first retailer to sever ties with Amazon over the past couple years. Toys ‘R Us and Borders also left the Amazon ecommerce platform.

According to Target President Steve Eastman,

“In order to deliver “a customized multi-channel experience for Target’s guests, we believe it is in Target’s best interest going forward to assume full control over the design and management of Target’s e-commerce technology platform, fulfillment and guest services operations” .

Personally, I have purchased quite frequently from Amazon and Target online and found it quite nice to not have to use yet another username and password to login. But beyond that issue, Target may be taking on more than they can handle, such as what happens to purchasing history when the companies were working together and whether Target could draw that info from their own data warehouse.

Image: Courtesy of MediaPost

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Founding Factors
Amazon was initially built to be the source for books and has since expanded to almost every retail category and beyond. Endless.com was built by Amazon.com in response to customers’ desires to shop a destination dedicated to shoes and handbags. The original idea behind Zappos.com was to create a web site that offered the absolute best selection in shoes in terms of brands, styles, colors, sizes, and widths. This was really driven by the founder’s desire to find the right pair of shoes, in the right size and color.

Amazon had an agile offering through endless.com with aggressive free overnight shipping and free overnight returns. Early on, endless.com used to offer negative shipping where they would back out the $5 shipping fee from the retail price. I imagine that Zappos will remain a separate brand and Amazon will slowly try to leverage its purchasing clout, logistical and technical infrastructure to reduce costs. I do feel that Amazon will be inheriting slimmer margins than they are accustomed to seeing and shareholders may not be too pleased. The question remains whether Amazon will still maintain endless.com alongside zappos.com.

See and hear Jeff Bezos talk about the acquisition and the reasons behind it.

Read about Zappos earnings here: $11MM in Earnings