Infotech asked successful technopreneurs for some advice they could give to dotcom wannabes. Since the word "successful" is very relative in the new dotconomy, let's just say that these entrepreneurs were successful enough to have been backed by angel investors or venture capitalists. Tessa Salazar picks the brains of Dom Danao of Pinoymail, Nono Felipe of MP3Manila and Simon Sandoval of Colibria Philippines.

(1) Should aspiring technopreneurs still pursue their dotcom dreams after the US dotcoms have shown signs of slowdown?

Danao: Don't give up

Felipe: By all means pursue your dotcoms! Some will win, and some will lose. As mentioned in HatchCamp for Startups (an Internet start-up seminar held by HatchAsia, July 13-14), "You can't win if you don't play."

Sandoval: They should have an idea that is unique to them, have clear growth and revenue plans. It should be clear to them that they will not be an overnight success and that the journey itself should be reason enough to go with a start-up. However, they must believe that they will succeed. Otherwise, they will face nothing but worry and disappointment.

(2) Do you think Filipino Internet start-ups are prepared to face disappointing revenues, streamlining or layoffs and other adjustments that would come with a negative trend such as the one being experienced by US dotcoms? In your case, do you think you are prepared to experience this? What are your contingency plans?

Danao: Pinoymail has always been a conservative spender. We spend on upgrading our systems, developing better and better service, forming alliances with strong partners rather than putting out splashy advertisements and doling out huge cash prizes to "create a brand." We work quietly on signing up new subscribers and retaining them. We work hard on optimizing our advertising programs so ad agencies and corporations would see the value of our ad-delivery model. Streamlining and efficiency-these should be good for any company, whether dotcoms or not.

Felipe: I've seen a lot of business plans that people show to us for consultation before they actually show it to a VC/incubator. I've heard pitches from these people and frankly there are very, very few good ones. The problem is that a lot of people are just copying other models and making them adaptable to the Filipino culture without looking at the target market demographics, without even looking for the proper management team. We've asked some of these people "What do you want? How much do you need?" and they can't even give their answers. If this continues, then I think their failures are sure to come. I mean, they don't even know what they want!

Another myth that surrounds the aspiring start-up is that with e-commerce, business will be 100-percent successful. There is no market here in the Philippines big enough to sustain you, or at least there's none at the moment. That's why with mp3manila.com, we do have online revenue models and at the same time we have offline revenue models to compensate for the cashflows.

We're currently developing a storefront for MP3 hardware and digital downloads, and at the same time we're into concerts and parties that will also give us revenues.

Sandoval: Of course one must consider all possible scenarios and have contingency plans. For example, it has taken us almost nine months to secure our first customer. In any case, whether a success or not, the entire experience for both an employee and management of a start-up is an exciting educational experience.

The net worth of both management and employees can only increase with a start-up experience.

(3) Should dotcoms target the local, regional or global market? If dotcoms should target the global market, how come many Internet start-ups here are very Philippines-centric, like online guides to Manila events, local traffic reports and the like?

Sandoval: Go global. There are a lot of Pinoy-centric dotcoms because localization and personalization are the keys to securing loyal end-users. As a development company, one needs to decide if one's customers are end-users or intermediaries. If they are end-users, then the more localized the content can be, the more likely the success.

In our case, we are developing applications for GSM operators and mobile ISPs. We do not cater to the end-users. This customer focus allows us to have a global target market. At the same time, our applications are so designed that they can easily be localized and customized to the region they are installed in.

Felipe: That really depends on your business model. Some business models require global markets, while some require local markets. It's a case-to-case basis.

(4) How can dotcoms make money aside from the usual banner advertisements?

Sandoval: Our earnings will come from a software license fee and from a per registered user fee. Hence, we are not dependent on advertising for our revenue.