GoDefy Overview
GoDefy's mission is to bring the world's internet marketing products and services into one location, and organize it so that marketers can find the perfect solution, get user support, and industry news, when they want it, in the least amount of time and effort.
To achieve the first part of the mission, GoDefy's founder, Michael Wong, conceived and designed and built the world's first internet marketing comparison shopping search engine; an easy-to-use free service that returns relevant results within seconds. As a result, GoDefy is the first, and only, internet marketing comparison shopping search engine of its kind in the world.
The technology behind the search engine was created by Peter Cooper, using Ruby on Rails; an open-source web framework in Ruby for writing real-world applications.
GoDefy soft-launched in June 2005, and now attracts over 24,000 internet marketers every month.
The Meaning of GoDefy
"GoDefy" is made up of two words, "Go" and "Defy". The term was coined by GoDefy's founder, Michael Wong, to reflect the founder's mission to help people defy tradition and conventional wisdom, and escape the rat race to build a free, happy, loving, financially secure, and self-fulfilling life for oneself and their family - a goal Michael is well on the way to achieving.
GoDefy Features
The GoDefy comparison shopping search engine was designed for ease of use and exceptional service, and includes the following features:
- Basic search
- Advanced search
- Product comparisons
- Save items for later viewing
- Numerous sort and filter options
- 1-click comparison shopping options
- 1-click save product options
- FastFind codes
- Related / similar items
- Related / similar items by category
- Recently viewed items, categories, authors, and companies
- Most popular products, authors, companies, and categories
- RSS feeds so that users can monitor a page, product, category, author and company
- NewsFlash email announcements for products, authors, and companies
- and much more coming soon...
Our Philosophy
Our philosophy is "our customers are the most important asset in our business". Without our customers, GoDefy would not exist. It's not about technology. It's about people. Therefore, we treat every customer with the utmost mutual respect and integrity, and strive to exceed our valued customers' expectations.
Our Mission
To support our philosophy:
- GoDefy strives to exceed our valued customers' expectations
From the very beginning, GoDefy has focused on providing the very best customer service possible. By focusing on the customer, we hope our customers will recommend GoDefy to others through word of mouth, and by linking to our website.- GoDefy strives to only cover internet marketing products and services
GoDefy does not offer clothing, music, or travel goods. By exclusively focusing all our time, efforts, and resources on internet marketing, we can strive to cover every internet marketing product and service on the market, as well as new ones.- GoDefy strives to make money by treating others as we would like to be treated; with mutual respect and integrity
GoDefy is a business. We don't try to hide that fact. We do love our "jobs" and wish we could do it for fun, without having to worry about making a living. Alas, we have families to house, feed and clothe. The website is free to use, and will always be free. Our compensation comes from receiving a commission every time a customer clicks through to a merchant website, and buys a product or service. The process is transparent. Customers do not pay anymore than if they had found it by other means.
Technology Overview
GoDefy.com's primary systems are based on the Ruby on Rails framework, developed by David Heinemeier Hansson. Peter Cooper is currently the sole developer and systems administrator for GoDefy.com and manages the Redhat Enterprise Linux server, MySQL 4.1 server, and Apache 2 server that the app operates upon.
Business Overview
Much like traditional comparison shopping search engines, GoDefy receives compensation in the form of a commission every time a customer clicks through to a merchant website, and buys a product or service. In time, GoDefy will also offer additional marketing opportunities to merchants to boost the amount of exposure their products and services receive. This will bring in additional, ongoing revenues.
GoDefy strives to only cover internet marketing products and services. By exclusively focusing all our time, efforts, and resources on internet marketing, we can strive to cover every internet marketing product and service on the market, as well as new ones. Ultimately, GoDefy strives to cover not just the best selling products and services, but also the "long tail" of internet marketing products and services. This way, customers will be able to find the perfect solution at GoDefy for whatever marketing requirements they may have.
GoDefy also strives to provide the best service possible to our valued customers. We believe that by focusing on the customer - our most valuable asset - we hope our customers will recommend GoDefy to others through word of mouth, and by linking to our website. Ultimately, the combination of covering every product on the market and concentrating on the customer experience, GoDefy strives to be the first and only website that every internet marketing buyer goes to for research and advice on the best solutions for their needs.
GoDefy People
Michael Wong
Founding EditorSuffering from a need to secure his family's future, Michael Wong conceived and designed GoDefy; the world's first internet marketing comparison shopping search engine. In 1999, while running eBoz.com, Michael met Peter Cooper and together they have worked on numerous projects, including GoDefy.com, which was launched in June 2005.
A high school drop-out, Michael wandered through the entrepreneurial wilderness until he stumbled onto the Internet in 1997. Since then he has created over a dozen websites, and sold an internet company during the dotcom boom. Michael is the author of 3 search engine marketing ebooks, several internet marketing newsletters, and numerous articles on various internet topics.
Michael's love of computers began at age 13, when he discovered the ZX Spectrum 48k. While he initially played games on the Spectrum, he was soon programming games for it. After coming close to selling a game to Codemasters, he didn't touch a computer again until he discovered the Internet in 1997.
Michael is highly experienced in all areas of creating, managing, and marketing websites, but specializes in internet marketing, in particular search engine optimization and pay per click advertising. Prior to setting up GoDefy.com, Michael served in a variety of roles, including Editor-in-Chief, Search Engine Optimizer, and Media Planner for iBoost Technologies, Inc.
Peter Cooper
Systems EngineeringPeter Cooper is a British developer, writer, and entrepreneur with a passion for using open standards to achieve the same results as the 'big guys' on a hundreth of the budget.
Peter is currently the sole developer and systems administator for GoDefy.com and brings ten years of commercial development experience to the venture.
Michael Wong's Internet Timeline
1997
December 1997-August 1998
Michael's love of the Internet begins after reading about it in computer magazines. Quickly realizing the commercial possibilities of the Internet, and wanting to make a better life for himself and his future family, he dives head first into learning everything he could about the impending internet revolution.
1998
August-October 1998
Being an avid explorer of business opportunities, Michael purchases a guide to importing reproduction oil paintings of old masters, like Vincent Van Gogh, Claude Monet, and Edouard Manet, from the Far East. He sees the opportunity to sell oil paintings online. So in August 1998, Michael launches his first website, ArtDacor.com, offering reproduction oil paintings.After two months, and having only sold a handful of paintings, the dejected Michael decides the business model isn't working and shuts down the website.
November 1998
Looking around for the next opportunity, Michael decides there aren't any websites offering good internet marketing information and resources for internet novices. So he creates eBoz.com, a website offering an enticing recipe of internet marketing news, tips, articles, forums, newsletters, and monthly online chats.This time, Michael decides to concentrate full time on the project. So he takes out a bank loan and tells his friends and family that he's quitting his waitering slave job to strive for his dream of financial independence by building an online business. With much skepticism from everyone he knew, Michael gives himself 6 months to prove everyone wrong.
As luck would have it, word about eBoz! spreads quickly amongst webmasters and the website's popularity soars. Within 3 months eBoz! turns a profit. Within 6 months, Michael is making more money than his old job, and he starts dreaming about his new life.
1999
May 1999
During one of eBoz!'s monthly chat meetings Michael meets Peter Cooper; a person who will have profound effect on the future of Michael's life. With the help of a friend, Michael convinces Peter to quit his unhappy day job and go freelance. The next day, Peter informs a shocked Michael that he has quit his job. Luckily for Michael, Peter goes on to build a successful freelance internet business for himself, and becomes Michael's closest internet associate. Only years later does Michael realize that Peter is the first, real life example of his "Go Defy!" philosophy.
2000
January-May 2000
The buzz around eBoz! grows to the point that the founders of iBoost Technologies, Inc., a Californian-based start-up, funded by the venture capital group, Softbank comes knocking on Michael's door. The founders approach Michael about the possibility of working for them, plus a pot of gold for his websites. As part of the deal, iBoost Technologies, Inc., acquires eBoz.com and a number of associated websites, for undisclosed pieces of gold. Michael quickly packs his bags and leaves showery Surrey, England for sunny North Hollywood, California, which only rains a handful of days a year.May-August 2000
Michael slips effortlessly into the role of Editor-in-Chief of the iBoost.com website, managing a team of 5 content writers and editors. He successfully manages the creation of the iBoost.com internet marketing and ecommerce portal by merging a number of newly acquired web properties.September-November 2000
Realizing that the iBoost.com portal needed more traffic, Michael takes on the challenge of single-handedly optimizing over 2,000 webpages in the iBoost.com website. Within a month after completing the optimization process, iBoost.com gains over 2,000 top 30 search engine rankings across the major search engines, and a 33% jump in monthly unique visitors.
2001
January-March 2001
After a Christmas break in Japan and Hong Kong, where he meets his future wife, Michael takes on the role of Media Planner in the Sales and Marketing department. In the ensuing months, he manages over one million dollars in advertising for the department.March 2001
iBoost hires a new CEO, but unfortunately Michael doesn't see eye-to-eye with the new CEO's plans for the company. So he decides it's time to seek new challenges and leaves the sinking ship. Three months later, iBoost Titanic sinks without a trace.April-October 2001
Michael takes time off to recharge his batteries and decide on his next challenge.November 2001-February 2002
Batteries recharged, Michael spends several months researching and writing a search engine optimization guide, based on his hands-on experience of optimizing several thousand webpages.
2002
March 2002
After many months of work, Michael finally releases "Search Engine Optimization Strategies: Top 30 Search Engine Optimization & Submission Strategies For Dummies"; an easy-to-understand, 250-page guide for complete novices on how to optimize webpages for top rankings in major search engines, like Google, Yahoo!, and MSN.Michael also releases "Yahoo! Report"; a quick, easy-to-follow, step-by-step guide on how to optimize submissions for top rankings in the Yahoo! Web Directory.
March-August 2002
Michael's SEO ebooks quickly help establish him as a leading search engine optimization expert. Offers of SEO work flood in, and Michael gratefully accepts a number of websites as clients.September 2002
Michael releases "1-Hour Search Engine Optimization" ebook; a free, lite version of his "Search Engine Optimization Strategies: Top 30 Search Engine Optimization & Submission Strategies For Dummies" ebook. The ebook is an instant hit, and receives over 28,000 verifiable downloads over the next few years.October 2002
During one of his monthly visits to the "Secrets To Their Success" website, Michael is smacked by a flash of inspiration, and decides to create a website offering expert reviews on internet marketing products. After much soul searching, Michael settles on the unoriginal, self-effacing name of "Mike's Marketing Tools" for the new website.November 2002
Michael launches "Mike's Marketing Tools". By Christmas, the website turns a profit.December 2002
As a result of the success of "Mike's Marketing Tools", Michael decides to stop his SEO consultancy service in order to concentrate full time on the "Mike's Marketing Tools" website.
2003
July 2003
Michael adds "Marketing Forum Watch" - a free online service offering periodically updated headlines from over 65 popular internet marketing and search engine discussion forums and message boards - to the "Mike's Marketing Tools" website. The service is an instant success, catapulting Michael into every marketing forum owner's Christmas card list, and "Mike's Marketing Tools" into the top 5,000 ranked websites, according to Alexa.
2004
December 2004
Suffering from a need to secure his family's future, Michael conceives and designs GoDefy; the world's first internet marketing comparison shopping search engine.
2005
January-May 2005
Michael hires his long-time internet friend, Peter Cooper, to build the backend that powers GoDefy, using Rails; a rather new Web application framework based around the Ruby programming launguage.June 2005
GoDefy Beta finally gets a soft launch.
Michael Wong Trivia
- Born in London, England.
- Got his first kiss at 7.
- Parents separated when he was 8. He, and his 3 year old brother, moves in with their father.
- Attended Rainham Mark Grammar School in Rainham, Kent, England.
- Came close to selling a card game he programmed on the ZX Spectrum to CodeMasters in the mid eighties when he was about 16.
- Was expelled a month before graduating from high school, but managed to get himself back in.
- Has worked in McDonalds, as a grocery store assistant, waiter, cook, restaurant manager, financial consultant, and in several network marketing companies.
- Managed his father's Chinese restaurant after graduating from high school.
- Discovered his dad had passed away in his sleep when Michael was 23.
- Launched his first website in 1998 selling reproduction, impressionist oil paintings by the likes of Van Gogh, Monet and Renoir.
- Sold his 2nd website, eBoz.com, 18 months after launch, to iBoost Technologies, a start up funded by SoftBank, venture capitalists which also funded Yahoo! and eTrade.
- Written and self published 3 ebooks on search engine marketing.
- Racked up over 3,000 top 30 rankings in top search engines like Google, Yahoo! and MSN.
- Made a living on the internet in 4 continents; London (England), North Hollywood (USA), Hong Kong (China), and Sydney (Australia).
- Has dozens of articles published in numerous internet marketing and web development web sites and newsletters, uncluding MarketingProfs, SitePoint and Search Engine Guide.
- Got married in Phuket (Thailand) where over 50 friends and family members flew in from around the world.
Michael Wong's Secrets To Success & Lifelong Happiness
- Ask yourself, "What's the worst that can happen?", when faced with what appears to be an insurmountable obstacle.
- Avoid bad habits.
- Avoid materialism.
- Be generous.
- Be humble.
- Be patient with others.
- Be positive.
- Be yourself - be unique.
- Believe in yourself.
- Build assets - avoid liabilities.
- Commit yourself to giving your life partner lifelong happiness.
- Create passive incomes.
- Don't ask someone to do something you wouldn't do yourself.
- Don't burn your bridges.
- Don't trust anyone more than 99.99%.
- Don't waste leftover food.
- Don't worry about what others say or think about you.
- Expand your mind - read, learn something new every day.
- Focus.
- Get paid for your performance (no limits) - not for your time (limited).
- Give.
- If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
- Learn how to build and manage your wealth successfully.
- Learn how to build a happy, successful marriage.
- Learn how to raise happy, successful children.
- Learn how to read body language.
- Learn how to sell.
- Let others live their own lives.
- Listen.
- Live comfortably below your means.
- Live for today - tomorrow may never come.
- Love and enjoy your kids.
- Never give up.
- Pass on your wisdom to your kids.
- Plan.
- Practice good manners.
- Practice makes perfect.
- Respect the law.
- Respect your elders.
- Say sorry - admit your mistakes.
- See the world.
- Step out of your comfort zone once in a while.
- Surround yourself with close friends and family.
- Take risks - but don't put all your eggs in one basket.
- The grass isn't always greener on the other side.
- Think different - think outside the box.
- Treasure your time - it's limited.
- Treat customers like friends.
- Treat others as you wish to be treated.
GoDefy Images
Need a GoDefy photo for a news story? Please contact us using the online form.
Help Wanted
GoDefy occasionally has opportunities for freelancers, which are paid on a per project basis. We would like to hear from you, if you can:
- program small Windows applications
- create fun viral marketing products
- create Flash animations and ad banners with sound
- create original cartoon strips
- program in Ruby and Ruby on Rails
- program in Perl
- program in JavaScript
- get websites to link to our website without requiring a reciprocal link
- quickly gather data from hundreds, even thousands, of other websites
- ghost-write interesting articles and ebooklets on internet marketing topics
- create professional sales letters
- create original logos, icons, etc.
- critique websites
- proof-read webpages
- come up with original ideas
Experience not required, although preferred, but you will be expected to show examples of your work to prove you have the required skills. If you possess at least one of the above skills and are interested in working with GoDefy, please sign up as a GoDefy member and you will be notified of impending projects when they become available.
