Yesterday Copyblogger Media announced the release of New Rainmaker, a comprehensive platform designed for content marketers and entrepreneurial sorts. The beta period now over, Rainmaker is officially available to the public at an introductory price of $95/month. It’s an all-in-one service that makes it easy for people to set up a business site by offering up a suite of built-in tools for search engine optimization, conversion analytics, product sales, and even an affiliate program.
This thing is on steroids.
The question on my mind is: if customers can affordably buy into Rainmaker, do they still need you and me?
There’s a growing number of people (like me) who self-identify as Genesis developers or designers, people who offer business consulting services primarily using the Genesis Framework as a solution. Though our prices vary widely depending on specialization or level of skill, the fact is there’s a significant segment of WordPress people making their living using Genesis.
Forgive me for asking an imprudent question, but if Rainmaker is something that could take customer dollars out of my pocket, why should I be excited about it?
Should “we”, as the larger Genesis community, care about it?
Short story: I think so. Long story, keep reading.
Our Markets Aren’t the Same
On the surface, it seems like we’re all selling to the same audience. After all, our customers want websites and they can get one themselves on Rainmaker or hire you and me.
But that’s the surface. If we look deeper, I think it’s obvious our “ideal customer” is not the same. I’m working my way through Michael Port’s Book Yourself Solid and part of the “homework” of that book (there’s a LOT of homework) is to work through who my ideal customer is (aside: Jennifer Bourn also wrote a great post on how to profile your ideal client). I have a list of qualities my ideal customer possesses and — guess what — I’ll bet you dollars to donuts that my customer profile is not the same as Rainmakers’.
For instance, a customer that doesn’t ever want to log in to a dashboard and create a piece of content is not an ideal customer for Rainmaker, but they might be for you and me.
There’s room in the market for all of us who’re willing to work hard.
Leverage Rainmaker for Our Business
Always curious, I signed up for the free 30-day trial to take Rainmaker for a spin (it’s a monthly “software as a service” model). While it’s built on top of WordPress, the dashboard looks nothing like WordPress. It’s beautiful.
Can I gather up and replicate every piece of functionality that’s built into Rainmaker? Yes. Can I do it less expensively using Rainmaker than I could individually paying for all the tools available in Rainmaker? Probably not.
I’m testing this theory now on my store (warning: not on Rainmaker yet). Current monthly cost of running my store is just shy of $100 (hosting + SSL + LeadPages). If I can convert it to Rainmaker for the same money (and presumably increase my sales via better tracking and conversion), that’s a win. Look for a follow-up post to update on this adventure.
Bottom line, there’s no reason we can’t leverage Rainmaker to grow our businesses.
Be Creative
Do I love Genesis? Absolutely. Do I know if StudioPress will still be cranking out themes in 5 years? I have no idea. Businesses evolve and adapt – we need to do the same. Whatever comes down the pipeline, we have a choice to embrace it and leverage it for our business (or move to other, more suitable tools).
My point? Figure out how to leverage Rainmaker for your business by learning how (or if) it can fit into your services offering. Jason Hobbs of Genesis Goodies is a great example of just this. He’s taking his expertise in marketing (and his entrepreneurial spirit) and offering a monthly consulting service layered on top of Rainmaker. Fantastic!
Or how about developing custom themes for your customers to use on Rainmaker?
@cdils I would add that Genesis freelancers will be in demand to create custom child themes for RM owners, or customise existing themes 
— Chris Garrett (@chrisgarrett) September 23, 2014
Go Forth and Make it Rain
Whether you use Rainmaker on a site for yourself or merge it into your service offerings, find a way to piggy back on Copyblogger Media’s success by making your own rain. Know what I mean, jelly bean?
I’ll have Copyblogger Media’s CEO, Brian Clark, on this week’s episode of Genesis Office Hours. Join us live with questions or just to listen in.
What are your thoughts? Are you excited about Rainmaker or concerned for how it impacts your business? Discuss!