Spencer is an inspiring young entrepreneur who co-founded a website called Carbonmade, a place where artists and designers get professional assistance for displaying their portfolio online. He also runs a website called Burstoid, an online design magazine for art. Not only this, he writes thought provoking articles as well on SpencerFry.com.
There is so much that one can learn from him, and precisely the reason why we contacted him to spare some time for a small interview with us. Read further to learn from the expert himself:
Spencer, please introduce yourself to E-junkies.
My name is Spencer and I live in New York City. I’m the Co-Founder and CEO of Carbonmade. Carbonmade is an online portfolio for artists and designers to display their work online. My business partners and I started it a little over five years ago and have been working on it ever since. Outside of work, I play the racket sport squash, enjoy food, love music, and enjoy exploring New York with my friends.
You own Burstoid. What this website is all about?
Burstoid is a small side project that I’ve been running for over two years now. While I’m not someone who creates art, I love viewing and experiencing it. Burstoid is what I created to log what I like.
How did it all start and how did you come up with creating Burstoid?
There’s not much of a story behind it. It was July, 2008 and I was bored one weekend sitting in my apartment in New York City, so I decided to start gathering great art and design that I found around the Web. That led to creating a simple website that really just shows off the stuff I find interesting. I'm the sole curator of Burstoid.
Carbonmade is a beautiful site, tell us more about it.
I co-founded Carbonmade with Dave and Jason. I run a lot of the day-to-day activities. I’ve written two articles on the topic of what I do at Carbonmade. The first is “What’s a Non Programmer To Do?” and the second is “What’s a Non Programmer To Do (advanced)?” My job shifts a lot as our company grows and changes.
How would you rate Social Media as a promotional tool on a scale of 10?
I think social media when used right can be a great tool for self-promotion. Although, I do have my qualms with it that I wrote about in an article entitled "Down With Social" that got a lot of buzz. When someone posts interesting stuff about them or neat things they do then everything is peachy. But if you abuse it by being too self-promotonal or by posting so much that you become annoying then you’ll naturally turn people off. You need to find a balance.
What's next? Do you have any dream project?
Carbonmade is my dream project. You only get a few (if lucky) opportunities in your life to create something really special and I think we’re doing that with Carbonmade. We’re now eight people, which means we can work on a lot of rad stuff that we couldn’t do before when it was just Dave, Jason, and myself. We've got a lot of surprises coming later this year.
Is there anything you want share with our readers? Any advice for other business owners like you?
The best piece of advice I can give is to dive in headfirst. The more time you spend on something, the better understanding you’ll get over time and with a better understanding comes a better chance of succeeding. Too many people hesitate to start. You won't know if your idea is any good unless you try it.
Thanks Spencer for a wonderful interview, we wish you all the success in the future.
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"We've got a lot of surprises coming later this year." I can't wait! What are they? When are they coming? Any hints?
"We've got a lot of surprises coming later this year." I can't wait! What are they? When are they coming? Any hints?