Being an online trendsetter for your industry isn’t cheap. Whether you’re a tech reviewer or a beauty blogger, you often have to try out a lot of new options to find the best products. But professional recommenders can make some money on their picks through things like referral programs, which let them earn a small percentage of a sale whenever they lead a customer to certain sites like Amazon, Nordstroms and Best Buy.
However, those referral programs can be extremely complex and may not be worth it for anyone who's not a full-time reviewer. Maven wants to change that, combining the profits of a referral program with the ease of a Pinterest board, allowing anyone who has a recommendation to earn something for their suggestions.
“Maven was built to encourage peer-to-peer recommendations and reward those who are good at it,” said CEO and co-founder Jess Waldeck.
Users can post products from more than 3,000 retailers, including high-end fashion stores, electronics warehouses and big-box stores like Target and Walmart.
“We try and create a large net of possibilities because we're not really focused on a certain industry,” Waldeck said. “What we want are people that are willing to use their network to share and willing to share their recommendations to earn.”
Users add items by searching for them on Maven or by using the “Mavlet,” a bookmarklet that grabs items from retailers' webpages.
For each item, Maven does the hard work of generating the custom referral link from its partner sites. The item can then be added to a "board" with similar items. When a reader clicks on the recommended item, they are taken to a store page like Amazon or Target and the recommender will get credit for generating that sale.
Maven’s users get a set percentage of every item bought through their links, with some retailers offering 20 percent or more of the sale. The company takes a small cut of each referral bonus.
Boards can be shared via links on social networks or embedded in articles and on websites, allowing trendsetters to easily monetize their recommendations.
For example, a fashion blogger could add their favorite bargain dress to a "Budget date night" board along with an upscale jacket from a high-end shop and pair the outfit with a specific lipstick. Then, the blogger can add that board to the end of a blog post detailing how to plan a date night on a budget.
Waldeck (above) makes his return to entrepreneurship after years in the consulting industry. Back before the dot com bubble burst, he co-founded a SaaS-style service for the e-commerce industry. However, when the bubble burst, he sold it to a San Francisco company and moved on to more stable employment.
“I always had that entrepreneurial itch though,” Waldeck said. “But it was a little tough to get back into that entrepreneurial thing when [my corporate job] was so stable and good.”
He teamed up with two friends from the consulting industry to start something, though the original idea was focused on brick-and-mortar stores. But investors were looking for high-growth opportunities, so the team pivoted.
Maven first launched in February as a test and went live to the public in July. The company is currently bootstrapped, but Waldeck plans to look for funding in the future as the product ramps up.
While Maven is based in Chicago, its founding leadership team is spread across the country, with COO and CFO Mike Kimmons in Seattle and CTO Marcus Tewksbury in Philadelphia. However, they all have roots in Chicago and plan to build the business here as it grows.
Images via Maven
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