(June 2, 2002)
This week we chat with Murph of MurphGuide.com, a great resource for party people in New York. The concept is simple but effective: each day Murph highlights the best bar specials and promotions around town, and he sends out a weekly mailing list with events that warrant a little more advance notice.
Whether you're looking for a happy hour deal, a bar crawl or a golf outing, MurphGuide.com is the best online destination I have found.
In this interview, Murph sheds some light on how the site works for users and for his bank account.
Site: MurphGuide.com
Description: A website about NYC nightlife events. "Connecting the fun to the fun people".
Webmaster Name: Murph
Webmaster E-mail: murph@murphguide.com
Birth Date of Site: August 1997
Traffic Data: 5,000 unique per week
1. What were your expectations for MurphGuide.com when it first started, and have you exceeded them?
Back in '96, I pitched an idea for a book about NYC bars to a friend at Simon & Schuster. He said, "great idea, but who the hell are you? Why would someone buy your book? You have to make a name for yourself as an expert in the field."
So I started the website. That has taken up all my time, so the book is still on the back burner. I don't know if that's exceeding expectations, but the site has taken on a life of its own and has changed my life in the process. I even met my wife as a result of the site. (Just got married last month.)
2. What segments of people does MurphGuide.com cater to, and what sections of the site should they hit for their particular interests?
The site is geared towards fun New Yorkers looking for fun things to do in NYC nightlife. The most popular sections are the bar reviews, the party pictures and the upcoming events page. There are also niche pages, for special interests, such as dance clubs, Irish bars, live music, saloons, sports bars, etc.
3. What are some of the ways you generate income from the site (ads, placements, sponsorships, cover charges of patrons, etc.)?
MurphGuide.com is the promotional tool for my events marketing business, MurphGuide Entertainment. I run events for MurphGuide viewers, and also host, produce and/or promote events on behalf of clients.
I guess here is where I can stick in the plugs:
MurphGuide Summer Cruises
June 27, July 11, August 27
Happy Hour party at Coda
June 18
MurphGuide Golf Outing
June 21
MurphGuide Midtown Music
Every Saturday at McGee's
Visit the site for details on these and (the proverbial) "more!"
4. What are some of the more effective ways you have promoted your site?
Word of mouth and e-mail have been the most effective way of promoting the site. I tried various forms of print advertising, but it is way too expensive. But you have to keep trying new things, trying to reach new audiences. Getting interviewed on this site is an example of that. I'll let you know how it works.
5. Let's be hypothetical here and say that I choose what parties/events to attend based on the number of hot, horny broads that will be there. Assuming that was the case, which MurphGuide.com events should I attend?
OK, hypothetically, the summer cruises are teeming with h.h.b.'s. One year, it was 70 percent female. Unfortunately, we ended up with a lot of angry women on that boat, so now I try to keep the ratio 50-50.
My happy hour party at Coda on June 18 should be a good one, too. $5 Cosmos attracts the ladies.
6. Tell us a bit about your online staff and how much help you get producing the site.
The online staff consists of Kimberly Massengill (yes, like the douche), who writes a kick-ass weekly column call "Music for that Not-so-Fresh Feeling." She loves music, NYC and the Simpsons. That's why I hired her.
Jim Murphy writes a bi-weekly sports column, and my viewers write in the bar reviews.
I do all the rest. That's why my site is primitive as far as websites go. I have been working on a re-design for over a year now. I just need to add the searchable database of bars, but it is a ton of data entry, so I never get around to it. I need an intern!
7. You have an online shop shopping page filled with banners and links to affiliate programs of retailers. You don't make shit off that page, do you?
I can't get people to shop there without begging. However, I recently got a commission check from BN.com
It came out to pennies a day. Woo-hoo!
8. After you comped me tickets to the Upper East Side bar crawl, I proceeded to get ass wasted and puked like a freshman at a frat party. Should I take you to court, or are you willing to settle for, say, a free ticket to the next bar crawl?
I connect fun people with fun events. I am not, however, responsible for what you put in your mouth. How's that for a legal disclaimer?
9. You helped get the word out for (sadly) countless 9/11 benefit events. Thank you for that. How did they go?
Everyone has to do his part. New Yorkers are so generous. I tried to volunteer and tried to donate blood and clothes, but got turned away because they had too much of everything, so I turned my efforts to promoting the grassroots benefits that were being held virtually every night last fall in some NYC bar.
It was like in the movie "It's a Wonderful Life." When a friend is in trouble, everybody pitches in. Only this time, we had over 3,000 friends in trouble all at the same time.
Everyone knows that last September was a tough time for all New Yorkers, but what is not as widely known was that the bar scene played a major role in getting people together, to raise money for needy families, and for friends to get together to console one another.
Some bars got so packed they spilled out onto the sidewalk. Then the cops came and instead of busting up the party, they blocked off the street and let it spill out onto the street. (Things got back to normal real quick, because you can't get away with that anymore.)
10. PaulKatcher.com is updated every Sunday night. How often do you visit?
I am usually online updating my site when you are updating yours, so I hit it once on Sunday and usually once or twice during the week to read what I missed. Did I say read? Oh, I also like to look at the pictures.
11. What are some of your favorite websites?
allmovie.com (great for finding out who was that actress?)
allmusic.com
baseball-reference.com
and, of course, nycbp.com
12. What does the future hold for MurphGuide.com?
If I can survive this economy, I hope for MurphGuide to grow into a major events marketing company in New York and beyond.
Oct. 6, 2002 — TracyLines.com — Model/actress Tracy Lines
Sept. 17, 2002 — JumpTheShark.com — Jon Hein on his popular site and new book
Sept. 17, 2002 — idreamofkerri.com — Atlanta model Kerri
Sept. 2, 2002 — LisaMenuto.com — Model Lisa Menuto
July 21, 2002 — Kelli Graham.com — Model/actress Kelli Graham
July 14, 2002 — YourDreamModel.com — Detroit babe Chrissy
July 14, 2002 — WhosNYC.com — The craziest bar on Manhattan's Upper East Side
June 30, 2002 — RoundCardGirlz.com — Boxing and babes. We like the babes better
June 16, 2002 — SomeIdiot.com — A longtime leader in the e/n scene
June 9, 2002 — SportsByBrooks.com — Sports, beer and babes in Los Angeles
June 2, 2002 — MurphGuide.com — Connecting fun people through parties and events in NYC
May 26, 2002 — Honeygirlx.com — Blonde bombshell makes your fantasies come true on posters
May 19, 2002 — MirandaRox.com — Michigan model and Playboy hopeful Miranda
May 12, 2002 — CamGirlDirectory.com — A directory for camgirl sites, sortable by popluarity and location
May 5, 2002 — GoShannon.com — Model/actress/entrepreneur and overall hot babe
April 28, 2002 — NYCBP.com — Pictures and stories of New York city bartenders and patrons whooping it up
April 21, 2002 — GuyCritical.com — Where women ask men anything and have it answered anonymously
April 14, 2002 — Networkinggirl.com — A singles-event planner in New York City
Want to be interviewed? E-mail Paul.
