Are you crazy???
That is the typical response I've received from friends and colleagues after I announced my resignation as Online Marketing Director at Vertrue, Inc., a large and very successful Internet company about 4 weeks ago.
After working three years building up a strong and profitable business marketing "free credit reports" (I know you have seen the ubiquitous banners everywhere for Freescore.com or Privacymatters.com), I left a stable situation to join a tiny, but "up-and-coming" online education start-up called Knewton.com.
This shift may seem unnoteworthy to those unfamilar with the credit reporting space (i.e. Experian, Transunion, Exquifax). But for those in the field, the mass hysteria induced by the recession has proven great fodder for online conversion rates. And good conversion rates are backbone of any successful online marketing campaign. So this would be the equivalent exiting the Lycra business during the dawn of the Disco era -- hence the multiple "are you crazy?" declarations.
While the answer may be yes, there is some evidence out there to suggest that e-learning may be a good bet for future growth (see: http://elearningtech.blogspot.com/2009/01/12-elearning-predictions-for-2009.html). And while start-ups are risky, the entrepreneurial experience I received so far has been tremendous. I now set my own marketing destiny - for good or bad. So if I want to test video ad Rockyou! or start my own affiliate program from scratch, that's is on my terms (see a recent PR from my company).
So wish me luck, I'm going to need it!
And the good news is that while I'm working out all the kinks, I have this unique opportunity to learn from this class and to share my experiences.
Plus, I get to post a nice keyword laden link to my website for online test prep for the GMAT and LSAT to improve SEO. I do love to multi-task!
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