Hello

Contact Information

You can reach me at either of these locations (mail and calls get forwarded).

about balsamiq

Founded in March 2008, Balsamiq Studios creates rich, elegant, high quality plugins for Web Office applications.

Balsamiq is for the moment a Micro-ISV, which in English means "a software company of one person".

Hello, thats me in the picture there, Giacomo Guilizzoni (people call me Peldi).

Prior to founding Balsamiq I was a Senior Software Engineering Lead at Adobe. I worked on many products in my 6 years there, but what I'm most proud of was leading the design and development of Adobe ConnectNow, which Eric Rice called "the greatest thing I've ever seen".

I know, it sounds iffy: how can a single person create, test, maintain, market, sell and support a software company with no help?

Well, that remains to be seen. Here's how I am attempting to do it:

Focus, Focus, Focus

I maintain a laser-like focus on solving a single problem at the time, and solving it really well. Thats why I chose to builds plugins, not platforms. A plugin doesn't try to do everything, it simply adds one feature to the platform it lives in. Focus.

Keeping my expenses low

I moved to Italy from San Francisco because life is much cheaper here for my family, and I don't have any employees: cheap!

Surrounding myself with outstanding advisers

I am extremely lucky to be associated with some outstanding professionals who guide me along the way in this entrepreneurship journey. See my full Board of Advisers list.

Web 2.0 really does make you hyper-productive

By leveraging web native, usable software for everything from this website to my back-office infrastructure, I am able to get a lot done. Also, I'm not the first person to attempt this! Read this article or this one for more examples.

Giving it all I've got

I am truly passionate about building great software that solves real problems in an elegant, unobtrusive way. I have a proven track record of doing so at Macromedia and Adobe Systems.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's your business model?

It's simple. I build and sell plugins for Web Office applications. I plan on building two or three new plugins a year, and to deliver each one as a plugin to as many Web Office platforms as it makes sense. I will also release updates to all my plugins for "updates & support" revenue. Each plugin will be sold with the same pricing model as the Web Office platform it enhances, for an easy buying experience.

What if you go belly-up next year?

I realize that you are taking a risk by buying software from me, and I thank you for considering it in the first place.

Know this:

• you can start with a small license and see how you feel
• My current customers aren’t worried, so why should you be? :)
• I am well funded, have low expenses, I became profitable 3 weeks after launching, reached $10,000 in revenue in less than six weeks and $50,000 in three months.

How can you provide great customer support?

If there’s one thing I hate it is bad customer support. I take pride in providing personal, dedicated customer support. So far, with over 500 customers, I seem to be doing ok. I always have my trusty Skypephone with me, so that you can call me for free, from your computer, whenever you need.

I am also experimenting with a new kind of customer service, one that's more open and collaborative. Check out Balsamiq's profile on Get Satisfaction and join the conversation!

What are your "green" credentials?

I am doing everything I can to reduce Balsamiq's environmental impact. Here's a small sample:

• I work from home (no polluting commute for me)
• I don't own a car, I either bike, walk or car-share.
• All my light bulbs are CFL (low energy).
• I try to only buy eBooks (PDF, not paper).
• I hold most of my meetings online, reducing polluting travel.
• I give free licenses to non-profits and other do-gooders, many of which are doing good things for the environment. Here's a list.

Why "balsamiq"?

Balsamic vinegar, the high-end, aged for 25+ year kind, has a lot in common with what I want my software to be: rich, smooth, plesurable, expensive. Ok my software is actually pretty affordable but I still want it to feel like a treat! :)

Like a fine balsamic vinegar, my software adds flavor to something else (in my case Web Office apps), requires craftmanship and is made in Italy!

I want to blog about Balsamiq, can I get some assets?

Here's a logo you can use (click for bigger size):

Here's a bunch of screenshots of sample mockups created with Balsamiq Mockups, and here's my low-budget 5-minute demo video on YouTube. I also made a little OPML file for my feeds (blog and Twitter).

Thanks so much, your help is much appreciated.