Sharing Data with Unlikely Partners Proves Vital for ParkMe
Interview with ParkMe CEO, Sam Friedman
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Discussing, sharing and gauging interest in an idea should be at the core of every startup: “People not willing to discuss their ideas are making a huge mistake; I say stealth mode is useless - always talk,” says Sam Friedman, CEO of real-time parking app, ParkMe.
Talking – and quite a bit of execution -- is exactly how ParkMe developed from Friedman and COO Alex Israel’s idea one Friday night “We fully missed a movie because we couldn’t find a parking space; so instead of watching Bruce Willis shoot people, we were stuck driving around,” Friedman said. This led to the creation of ParkMe, which is position today as the world’s most comprehensive parking databases. The app’s ability to track real-time parking congestion via “heat maps” and compare parking rates is unrivaled.
Without exchanging their ideas and data with partners, Friedman and Israel would probably still be documenting parking lots’ prices and hours manually as they did back in 2011 to create their database. But through partnership with mapping devices like TomTom, integration with T2 systems to enhance its real-time data and collaboration with Amano McGann for off-street parking information, ParkMe built up its data empire early on.
“It’s a relationship game,” Friedman said. “Make sure you have the right partners that share your vision.”
Most recently, the ParkMe team has been building relationships and providing parking data for some remarkable companies such as Audi: now every Audi model comes equipped with ParkMe!
“When you’re driving, you can have that application built into your navigation system so that you can have real-time parking information,” Friedman said. “This proves useful beyond just parking reservations. With ParkMe integrated into your car you now have an ITS - Intelligent Transportation System. This proves quite useful for effectively getting around.”
Ford Motors thinks so too. Bill Ford, founder of Fontinalis Partners, is a direct investor in ParkMe: “Ford is actually very interested in this whole concept of mobility, smart parking, real time traffic, etc. They are very bullish about the ITS” Friedman said.
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With initial backing from Fontenelis and IDG Ventures, ParkMe was also able to bring the Angeleno Group, which focuses on clean-tech startups, on board as an investor in early 2013 because of the app’s ability to reduce traffic congestion, amount of gas used and ultimately carbon emissions. Although this investment may have seemed unlikely two years ago (ParkMe is the firm’s first mobile app investment), Friedman and Israel’s true passions for their idea and willingness to share their vision has fostered these perfect matches.
“You get so much more value out of discussing your ideas with others and getting feedback on it, than you do by keeping it a secret in hope that no one will copy it,” Friedman said. “Whenever I mentor entrepreneurs I tell them to talk, talk, talk. Half of the startup phase is getting your pitch down. It’s not a sleazy one-liner sales pitch; it’s the way you discuss it with others in a conversation to get them interested. It’s radiating with your passion and your knowledge.”
And thanks to Friedman and Israel’s relentless pitches and their passion for parking, Santa Monicans (and the rest of the world) can stop circling parking lots and actually go watch that Bruce Willis movie.
