John Chow’s love for technology sparked something he couldn’t have imagined. Back in 1999, he started The TechZone.com (TTZ), a repository for reviews on upcoming technologies. What started off as six pages is now, eight years later, “over 10,000 pages and welcomes over 600,000 unique readers each month”. The surprising growth of TTZ has spurred the creation of TTZ Media Inc., a provider of comparison shopping technology, that, even with over two dozen affiliates, has a reach of 30 million page views each month and continues to grow. Find out how this hobby-turned-business, with its foot in the door of cutting edge advancements, took off and where it’s going in this week’s Young & Professional Profile.
TheTechZone.com, Founder & Chief Editor, 1999 to present
Ontime Printing & Copying, Cofounder, 1995 – 1999
Made In-a Minute Printers, Partner, 1987-1995
Ethnicity
Chinese
About the company
TTZ Media Network offers a comparison-shopping search engine for its affiliated sites. Using our partnership with Shopping.com and our custom coded engine, affiliates are able to serve real time pricing information in their technology reviews and articles. The company serves over two dozen affiliates with a combined traffic of over 30 million page views per month.
TheTechZone.com offers the latest in computer hardware news and reviews. We empower the consumer with information so they can make an intelligent buying decision. The site was started as a hobby because I had a love for computers. Back then the entire site was just six pages long. Today, The TechZone has over 10,000 pages and welcomes over 600,000 unique readers each month.
John Chow dot Com is my personal blog where I post my “miscellaneous ramblings.” I started the blog a little over a year ago to talk about topics that I wouldn’t be able to talk about on The TechZone. Today, John Chow dot Com is one of the most read personal blogs on the Internet, with over 200,000 people checking it out each month.
What are your day-to-day responsibilities?
Mostly I just make sure everything is working. My company is virtual. I run it out of my house (or wherever there is an Internet connection) and employees and associates are scattered all over the world. We communicate via IM and the only time we will meet face to face is at a major trade show like CES in Las Vegas or Computex in Taipei. I normally use about 2 hours a day to update my blog. The rest of time is spent between The TechZone and TTZ Media.
What’s the niche?
TTZ Media deals with technology based sites only. By specializing in our field of expertise, we can offer much better service to our affiliates than a big network like Google. It’s all about building the relationship. It’s what we work on the most.
What’s the biggest challenge?
The biggest challenge is handing the growth of the blog. I never intended, nor expected it to get this big and it’s producing its own set of challenges. The other big challenge right now is the rewriting of the engine that powers the TTZ Media Network.
What’s in store for the future?
My short-term goal is to add 100 affiliates to TTZ Media. My long-term goal is to offer affiliates more solutions than just comparison-shopping. While it was completely unintentional, the blog has turn into it own brand, so expect to see a completely revamped John Chow dot Com soon.
Who would you like to be contacted by?
I would say Bill Gates, but I’ve already met him.
Change is inevitable and businesses need to evolve to keep up. How is the TechZone innovating and dealing with change?
The TechZone deals with innovative technologies all the time so we’re no stranger to change. We embrace because it’s part of our business. We get to see the latest and greatest technical wonders long before the public does.
We are a virtual company. The laptop is my office. We can operate anywhere in the world. Our overhead is next to nothing compared to a traditional business. We’re as bleeding edge as you can get.
Stay up-to-date on your industry and maintain communications with your customers at all times.
Guiding principle in life
You succeed when you help other people succeed.
Yardstick of success
My yardstick of success is measured by how many people I help improve themselves. Success comes from what you give, not what you take.
Goal yet to be achieved
Billionaire status. 🙂
Best practical advice
If you don’t enjoy what you are doing right now, then why do you do it?
Supportive words from a family member or friend on your venture
My company started out as a hobby. It was never a venture that I planned for or intended to spend a ton of money on it. So I never actually received any supportive words from family or friend. When the hobby turned into a moneymaker, the words were more like, “How can I do this?”
What motivated you to get started?
No motivation was required since I did it for fun. Even today, this is still a hobby for me. If I wasn’t making any money at it, I would still be doing it. It’s the best feeling in the world.
Like best about what you do?
I get to play with the latest and greatest tech gadgets.
Like least about what you do?
Dealing with spam!
How do you select which perspectives/voices to include in your blog? To what degree do you influence the content?
I like my guest bloggers to think along the lines I do. However, they have a free voice when it comes to making posts on my blog. When I’m reading over a guest blog post, I will do it for fact checking only. I will never edit an opinion. Having said that, I would also say the chances of someone with completely different views from me may have trouble getting a guest blogging spot.
The blog content is influence greatly by reader input. John Chow dot Com has a very vibrant reader community and they speak their mind. Since starting the blog, there has been 834 posts and 15,031 reader comments.
Why do you think you’ve been so successful?
I believe the biggest factor in my success is my openness and transparency. The internet allows people to hide behind a screen. When you’re reading my blog, what you’re reading is the real me.
At age 10, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A car stylist. I wanted to design cars for the GM.
What was your first job?
Cleaning tables at McDonald’s
Biggest pastime outside of work
Work, play, it’s all the same thing.
Person most interested in meeting and why?
President Clinton. That man can convince us that the world is flat!
Leader in business most interested in meeting and why?
Michael Dell of Dell Computers. I have met him before but it was at a party and I wasn’t really able to pick his brain. However, I would love to do a sit-down with him and hear his view on the future of technology.
Three interesting facts about yourself
I am a 6’2″ Asian dude.
I started a rock fight in China.
I write with my right hand and throw with my left.
Three characteristics that describe you
Funny
Passionate
Man of my word
Three greatest passions
Family
Friends
Partying
Favorite book
The last book I read was “Rich Dad Poor Dad” by Robert Kiyosaki. I hated it. Before that, I read “Men Are From Mars, Women are from Venus” by Dr. John Gray. I hated that too. Now I just read everything online. 🙂
Favorite cause
I donate to several charities that help in the promoting the family unit and the well-being of our children. I believe much of the problems facing America today has to do with the falling apart of the family unit.
Top of Page
