DocSyncer
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
Document synchronization with Google Docs
DocSyncer provided a service for synchronizing documents stored on a user's computer with Google Docs.
02 / DocSyncer FAILURE REASONS
Failure factors supported by the current evidence
Opened TechCrunch (16 Jun 2008) quoted CEO Cliff Shaw that DocSyncer could not find a viable business model, was not scaling fast enough despite document-sync growth, faced the threat of Google building its own Google Docs sync, and chose to stop spending money and time on the service.
CEO said the company simply could not find a viable business model.
TechCrunch reported a looming threat of Google creating its own syncing service.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Launched
Serial SaaS entrepreneur Cliff Shaw launched DocSyncer, a desktop client that automatically synced local Microsoft documents (doc, xls) with Google Docs - the successor to his earlier ProtectMyPhotos sync engine.
- Shutdown
DocSyncer announced it would shut down on June 20, 2008, with the founder concluding it was 'a cool tool - but not a business': no viable business model, too few paying customers, and a hoped-for Google acquisition that never materialized.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN
How the factors connect
- 01
Cliff Shaw, a serial SaaS entrepreneur, launched DocSyncer as a desktop client that automatically backed up and synced local documents to Google Docs, reusing the sync engine from his earlier ProtectMyPhotos.
- 02
A pro account tier was announced in April 2008, but the service could not attract enough paying customers to form a viable business model.
- 03
On June 20, 2008, DocSyncer shut down with the founder's epitaph: 'a cool tool - but not a business'; the hoped-for acquisition by Google never materialized. No reliable loss figure was disclosed, so no loss amount is recorded.