[AMA] I founded OzBargain 13 years ago. Ask me (almost) anything, again

Hi everyone. I am scotty, and I created a website 13 years ago called "OzBargain" — surprisingly that it is still around today. I actually did an AMA 4.5 years ago, and I've been getting PMs asking for another one. So here we go. Ask me (almost) anything, again.

Rules:

  • Ask questions in the top-level comments. I might miss your questions if they are posted as replies to other comments.
  • Vote up good questions and vote down bad ones.
  • I'll try to keep the AMA open until Wednesday (27 Nov 2019).

Also some notes:

  • Good idea to check my previous AMA. Your questions might have already been answered there. For example, I'm still driving that old Kia 7-seater.
  • Bad commenters will get kicked out from the thread. I'm the admin on this site, after all.
  • Don't ask moderation related questions regarding to your account/store. Use TWAM instead.
  • Don't request features or send feature-related feedbacks. Use this thread instead.
  • Don't expect me to answer all questions. I reserve the right to refuse answer some questions without giving explanation.

Fire away the questions! I'm getting off for dinners for now and will be back in 1/2 hour to answer the questions. Just in case someone asks "what are you having for dinner?" The answer would be: wife's cooking (rice + tofu with pork fillings + vegs).

closed Comments

    • +33

      Not really. If someone asked me what do I do, I usually just reply "I do something on the Internet", or "I run a website". Interestingly there are still many people who have no idea what OzBargain is, so I need to make sure I'm not full of myself.

      • +1

        I remember talkung to a customer. of mine i hadn't seen in a while. I asked him if he was still mowing lawns and he saps he was writing websites. Just jokingly I said how many are adult sites. He replied 'all of them'.

      • Interestingly there are still many people who have no idea what OzBargain is

        Lol on a couple of levels

      • Interestingly there are still many people who have no idea what OzBargain is

        Heathens!

  • If you didn't get into ozbargain. What do you think you would be doing now?

    • +4

      Work-wise, probably still writing code in a big corporate somewhere.

  • +120

    Are you happy that your bargain website has turned into Australia's foremost accident/parking ticket/legal advice forum?

    • +42

      Judging from the number of posts, I seriously reckon it's a missed business opportunity.

      • +2

        You could add an Australian version of this to the Ozbargain empire:

        https://donotpay.com/

    • +29

      Better Call Scotty

    • +53

      It puts pressure on Microsoft to keep supporting MS Paint.

      • I know one of the computer departments in a small hn store used ms paint for the floor plan.

  • -8

    How is Ozbargain funded?

  • +4

    How does one become an Ozbargain staff member? What is your vision for this site in the future - do you see it changing much from it's current format?

    Also… I'd love to see a more female-oriented version of Ozbargain. My wife is a real bargain hunter, but deals for clothes and cosmetics etc that she's interested in rarely get traction here. SSDs on the other hand…

    • +6

      How does one become an Ozbargain staff member?

      Apply for the position when we put out a job ad. We aren't looking for anyone at the moment though.

      What is your vision for this site in the future?

      I don't really have a vision :) It just needs to continue to be useful for shoppers in Australia, a platform & a community for bargain hunters. It does not need to be the next big thing. I am happy with the way it is. Maybe more female users? Which leads to…

      I'd love to see a more female-oriented version of Ozbargain

      Yeah me too. Actually I know many use the site but few post deals and comments.

    • -6

      Could you imagine the backlash? If he did something to encourage more female engagement he’d get a barrage of ‘what about us blokes’ and ‘it’s reverse discrimination’

      See here

      • +2

        I'm not so sure.. I think reverse discrimination is real… it's about if it were exclusive or not…

        • -3

          Right on cue

          • +2

            @Vote for Pedro: I literally suggested that ozbagain become more female-friendly lol

            • +2

              @The Wololo Wombat: Got that. Was commenting on the reverse discrimination being real. It’s not big enough a thing to be a thing used to justify why proactive affirmative action shouldn’t be a thing.

    • +5

      I'm a middle-aged chick and while I love clothes and makeup bargains I'm still here for the techy ones as well but I see what you mean. OzB page never closes on my computer. It sits and gets refreshed many times a day. I also love the advice when it comes to certain items I thought I wanted - has saved me buying a dud many times. Thank you to all contributors. :)

      • +2

        not sure, maybe I best google middle-aged? so not sure if that is me but 55 here, female who loves OzB and watches it daily. Not a girly girl so no need for frivolous girly stuff for me happy with tech, alcohol, clothes and misc. deals here!

        middle-aged
        /mɪdəlˈeɪdʒd/
        adjective
        (of a person) aged about 45 to 65.

        Guess that puts me right there!!!

        Thanks
        @scotty

        • haha - 55 here too! And like everyone else - I'm also here for the deals I didn't know I needed - no matter what category ;)

  • +1

    Why the orange?

    • +10

      One of the original header background image is an orange shopping cart from a stock image.

      • +6
        • Hehehe
          Awesome, that's before my time!
          I reckon I first started lurking in 2007 and by then the site looked different

          Edit: no, apparently I joined in June 2007, so it's just my shitty memory… 2008 design is vaguely familiar!

        • Wow that's hideous. Thank god for bootstrap!

    • +4

      Everytime I see orange, I see OzBargain
      ☝️

  • -4

    how much money do u make from ozbargain?

    Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar
    money?

  • +3

    What do you think makes OzBargain more popular than CheapChealLah? Deals sites in Singapore are mainly personal blogs or on HardwareZone. I'd love CheapCheapLah to be more like OzBargain in terms of breadth of deals etc. And having single login would be great too :)

    • +5

      What do you think makes OzBargain more popular than CheapChealLah?

      I would like to know that as well :) I guess I just haven't put enough resource in growing that site. We do not have anyone "on the ground" in Singapore to engage with the community. Also the competitors are not Singaporean personal blogs, but Facebook and Telegram groups.

      As of "Single login" — yeah that's something for me to think about.

  • -1

    Are you the sole shareholder?

    • +1

      Is it listed on the ASX?

      • MSY is about to list, surely Ozbargain can be next :P

      • +3

        Why would a private company want to get listed on ASX? It's usually

        • Another round of fund raising, and/or
        • Existing shareholders are able to liquidate their shares on a public exchange.

        We don't really need fund raising as I don't really have a plan for expansion at the moment. I also don't want other shareholders and have to sit through board meetings.

        By the way is there any online community that's on the ASX? HotCopper is the one that I can think of (if you can call that a community forum).

        • +1

          More shareholders and a bigger board aren't necessarily one and the same, but I'd personally be more worried about complying with listing rules on listing on ASX. Continuous disclosure is one of those things that keeps senior management of listed companies awake at night.

        • HotCopper is on the ASX? Do they pump and dump their own shares to their members?

  • +1

    Have you ever been using VC funding to run OzBargain?

    • +4

      No. It has always been self funded.

  • Have you seen Slickdeals in the US?
    It makes Ozbargain look like DOS, wouldn't you agree?

    • +10

      Respectfully disagree. I wish Slickdeals was more like OzBargain in terms of usability and UX in general.

    • +37

      You'll find Slickdeals' interface supports a very different kind of deal site — more focused on individual items, and it requires a big editorial team behind updating / making changes to posts. OzBargain on the other hand has more community-posted deals, in-store deals, site-wide offers, etc.

      And what's wrong with looking like DOS? :)

      • +3

        CLI rules! :) And do they even support markdown?

    • +3

      I actually prefer ozb to HUKD or slickdeals, maybe i'm just old fashioned lol

    • +8

      That website just game me anxiety.

    • +5

      Slickdeals is an ugly site.

    • +4

      I'd straight up stop using OzBargain if it looked and felt like SlickDeals.

      • 100%
        I had never heard of slickdeals, and I just had a peak - it's horrible.

    • Oh wow… that looks terrible. Like others have said, if OzB went down that path I'd disappear. OzB feels nostalgic and I love that fact.

  • Are you as sad as I am to discover the Rondo has been discontinued in Australia due to poor sales? I also drive a Rondo and love it.

    • Yeah I guess there isn't really a market in Australia for small 5+2 that's not an SUV. All the top 7-seaters voted by the community (Sorento, Santa Fe, Kluger) are just too big for me.

      • Hi scotty… Try the crv.. Thats probably tge smallest one after dualis+2 was discontinued

  • We are often told "there's no such thing as a stupid question". What's your view?
    .

    • +32

      If I get an Eneloop for each stupid question asked on OzBargain, we might be able to build a power plant that rivals Tesla battery in SA.

  • +2

    Which store was the first to start sockpuppeting and which store abused that so much that you had to make rules about sockpuppeting?

    • +1

      Sockpuppeting page was first created in 2010. However the forum post was created as early as 2008. It has really became an issue when OzBargain gained popularity (thus becoming a target for sockpuppets). Sorry can't remember exactly which store caused it as it would be more than 10 years ago,

  • What's your thoughts on Ozbargain being compatible with financial independence/FIRE? (e.g. are you strong and resist the urge, or do you buy now, decide if you need later when Bunnings sells drones?)

    • +5

      I do plan FIRE. My parents retired early and they enjoyed travelling the world. I am not that big on travel but I do look forward to not to work for money. I am on the side of resisting the urge, which might not represent the majority of ozbargainers.

      However I would be lying if I say I have never impulse purchased something. Cheap under $5 Steam game that I thought I might one day find time to play? Also recently it's the running shoes — I am working hard on 3-4 pairs maximum per year.

  • +1

    What challenges do you see in the future for Ozbargain?

    When was a time the community on Ozbargain really surprised you?

    • +10

      challenges

      OzBargain lives & dies with the community. Looking at Internet communities — they come and go. I was just watching a video on the Rise and Fall of Gaia Online, which was a huge community 10 years ago. The challenge would be how to keep the community of bargain hunters happy, so they'll stay at OzBargain. That might mean evolving the site slowly, looking after existing users, attracting new users, developing new features, moderating the discussions, etc.

      really surprised you?

      I was quite surprised at how far some ozbargainers would go to obtain a bargain. However after 13 years I guess I'm used to it.

      • OzBargain lives & dies with the community. Looking at Internet communities — they come and go

        It seems you've managed keep things right so far. To compare, Quorra is a recent example of how screw up things.

  • Would appreciate an advice on how to run a side business while stile working a full-time job. I imagine you'd have to work for 12+ hrs without weekend breaks etc.

    Have you heavily been relying upon your partner to run the household and take care of kids?

    Asking while I am myself considering quitting a full-time job to pursue a startup idea, only because I feel I won't be able to manage both sides without completely abandoning my family/parenting duties.

    • +28

      Yeah it's hard work. My wife is a full-time home maker, and I was a bit younger back then that can be easily fuelled by caffeine. I don't think I have the capacity to be in the startup game again.

      Not sure what kind of advice I can give. If you are good at the things you do — go for it! Do put priority on your family though. Your successful business might go for 13 years if lucky. You family is for life.

  • +1

    how much do you earn
    do you have an account on..
    whirlpool forums?

    • +4

      whirlpool forums?

      Yes.

      • +5

        My condolences.

        • +4

          I've gone off whirlpool completely.. it's way to over-moderated and PC these days.

  • Hi Scotty. Can you please let me know which platforms/frameworks/databases you have used to develop this website? And do you have plan to have an App version for OzBargain? Thank you.

  • +3

    What do you think of whirlpool forum?

    • Interestingly the same question was asked in my last AMA. I still hold the same view. I don't browse WP as often these days, but it's probably still the place to visit for broadband related issues.

  • +1

    How many hours a week do you spend, ozbargaining?

  • What Stack/Cloud/DevOps services would you go for if you were about to start OzBargain today, with sufficient funds to pay the bill for the infrastructure of your choice?

    • +3

      sufficient funds to pay the bill for the infrastructure of your choice

      That would never occur :) As an ozbargaining-developer, usually the first thing in my head is "what's the cheapest way to host this?"

      I will still use whatever stack I am familiar with though. Maybe a lot more JS or things that compile into JS.

  • +16

    Thanks for everying. Your site has cost me thousands! (and saved me)

  • +7

    Have you ever had a company threaten the site over bargain post?

    • That's a good question. Waiting for the answer after dinner.

    • +1

      Mc Donalds had/still sort of has a problem with Ozb i believe?

    • +5

      Have a read of Merchant Take-Down Requests. Off memory, there's a couple of good ones. ;)

    • +1

      Yes, that Merchant Take-Down thread is a good start. However you'll notice that we often do comply with merchants' requests. Sometimes there are deals that got leaked and not meant to be for public consumption. We'll suggest the merchants to just disable the offer on their end so we can mark the deals as expired.

      I also found many merchants have a good understanding on how OzBargain and "social media" works these days (comparing to 5-10 years ago). So they are willing to work on a solution rather than pulling out the threatening card straight away.

  • +1

    Where do you see the site in 5 years? Are there any major developments that you hope you'll have in place by then?

    • +2

      When OzBargain turns 18? We'll call a bigger party :)

      Hopefully we'll have an app by then :)

      • +6

        You don't need an app it works perfectly well on my mobile browsers.

        • +2

          thapps can attract a higher usage of the site if personalised notifications can be done

  • +4

    Did you ever expect it to diverge from sharing bargains to becoming Australia’s premier site to discuss traffic infringements?

    • +18

      You and Spackbace can work on this business idea together. Please share it in the forums once it's live. Don't forget to declare your association lest you want to get banned for sockpuppeting.

  • +1

    Continuing from those revenue and money questions, have you ever thought of selling Ozbargain and retiring?

    • +18

      Oh yeah. Someone show me the money please.

      Seriously, I do not envision running OzBargain forever. At this stage I might be the hindrance of OzBargain's growth as I am not really a business person, so maybe it's better for someone to take over OzBargain. Obviously there might be downsides if someone else acquired OzBargain. So for now, you guys have to put up with me, having very limited vision on running this community.

      • +23

        Thanks to your lack of vision we're also happy with not being blasted with ads left right and centre or getting our data "anal"ysed to the nth degree.

        • +18

          Awkward when you go to business meetings, where all the "excited" people expect you to reveal something revolutionary.

          "What's coming up at OzBargain? Where do you see your company in 5 years? Anything exciting happening?"
          "Huh. Pretty much the same? Bargain hunters sharing and discussing the latest deals (and occasionally traffic accidents), and simply enjoying the atmosphere of the community?"

        • And new owners could lack independence and hijack the site to promote sales at their affiliated businesses.

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