COVER STORY
GINEERSNOW:
A KICKASS STORY
T here’ s a new information portal whose following is snowballing as we speak. Earlier this year, GineersNow, a professed news platform for badass engineers, was publicly launched with relatively conservative expectations. Venturing into a sea of seemingly endless stream of online information, driven by a small team of budding engineer writers and designers, and armed with almost nothing but innovation, passion and vision, GineersNow sailed in January, treading slowly and steadily, but training its sight on never going back to shore.
The impact that GineersNow has made astounded its audience, and even, admittedly, the team behind it. Spurred by creative content, engaging stories, gripping open debates and innovative interaction platforms, GineersNow’ s following on Facebook alone has grown to more than 140,000 in a little over a month, with its popularity rippling through other social media platforms, as well as its proprietary website, www. GineersNow. com, which now enjoys almost 30,000 page views. Amidst fierce competition in the digital publishing sphere, GineersNow was able to immediately carve a niche for itself, and command an engaged following.
Though utterly pleased with the initial success of GineersNow, its Founder and Chief Giving Officer, Robert Bagatsing, does not plan on resting on its laurels. He recognizes that the key to continued success is constant re-invention, consistent differentiation, and loyalty to one’ s avowed purpose.
In this exclusive interview, Robert lets us into the story of GineersNow, and into how he, together with his team and community of“ engineers with a social purpose”, plans to write its successive chapters.
7
The Inspiration
Robert, the brains behind GineersNow, fondly describes himself as a man learned in Manila, formed in Dubai, fortified in Boston and inspired by the world.
Using his expertise in Marketing and his belief in the power of CSR, Robert headed the formation of Lincoln Martin Strategic Marketing( LMSM), a purpose-driven strategic marketing agency.“ I started LMSM to teach my five-year-old son, Lincoln, the golden values in life,” said Robert. He envisioned that LMSM would help the poor, especially young students, by being a vehicle through which companies could contribute and provide financial support to poor areas in Asia and Africa.“ We created LMSM to be able to provide classrooms and scholarships to those who deserve it. It’ s truly a social innovation.”
LMSM gave Robert and his team a consistent stream of revenue and emotional profit, which he described as overwhelming.“ I wanted to replicate the success of LMSM in a more targeted environment,” said Robert, explaining that one way he thought of carrying this out was by creating a dedicated online platform for a“ marginalized” sector.
Backed by a team of young and passionate engineer writers, social media experts and designers, and supported by his family and friends, Robert thus embarked on creating GineersNow.