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Magic+

getmagicnow.com

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Re: Magic+

#111

Post by newman314 »

cmikec wrote: post #78
joslin01 wrote: post #34

Looks like the reception isn't doing too well. I remember when Magic launched here on HN and it BLEW up. I was one of the people who tried it out. I live in NYC and actually had a poor experience. The first two times, I said "hey I want a sandwich with [x]" and I got it but it took a lot longer than if I just clicked the necessary buttons on Seamless. Then I kept getting random calls from time to time from pizza deli…

I'm really sorry that your initial experience with Magic last year wasn't ideal. We have come a long way since those initial days. Believe it or not, we actually did not plan that original launch -- rather, we released the website and number to a few people and it went viral practically overnight. We set up a waitlist as quickly as we could, but there definitely were some people in the beginning who did not have a go…

I just noticed something strange in the screenshot. It seems to imply that Magic will work over iMessage. As far as I know, there is no publicly available API for iMessage so I'd be curious to know how this works.

Re: Magic+

#112

Post by jmtulloss »

TranquilMarmot wrote: post #82
cryptoz wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They claim to have fulfilled 100% of requests. Seems like a lie, though.

I find it hard to believe Amy Poehler or Tina Fey would meet with some random guy who has some service calling them up...

It probably wasn't a random guy.

Re: Magic+

#113

Post by gcr »

TranquilMarmot wrote: post #77
relaxatorium wrote: post #29

The example they're trying to use to show you that prices aren't crazy quotes a $30+ surcharge for having groceries delivered.

I really loved the $3,750 helicopter ride to the airport, like your average joe has that much money to blow so they don't have to sit in traffic. I guess I'm just not in their target demographic?

I like that copy. It signals who they expect their customers to be.

Re: Magic+

#114

Post by cscharenberg »

tghw wrote: post #80

I just signed up to see if they could renegotiate my Comcast price for me. It turns out you have to buy either 10 hours at $100/hour or 40 hours at $75/hour to get started. That's way too steep to try something out.

I was just reading about a company started by 2 brothers that does exactly this. If I can remember the name, I'll post back. Maybe I saw it in Bloomberg? Anyone?

Re: Magic+

#116

Post by tempestn »

jameshart wrote: post #96
cmikec wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

These are all real requests that our users have actually used Magic+ for. We obviously cant divulge their identities, or show photographs, etc. (since these are personal things), but it's important to convey how people really use the service. I'd love ideas on how we can communicate this point better. Part of what our users love about Magic+ is that you truly can do some pretty amazing things with it.

If that conveys how people really use the service, then, to many people, it also conveys that the people who use the service are, on average, lazy rich douchebags. If that isn't what you want to portray about your brand, you might want to reconsider your examples.

It conveys that the users are rich, yes. What about it makes them lazy or douchebags? Assuming you're rich, is it a logical use of your time to, for instance, go through the process of tracking down and renting a bunch of cars for some event online? Or would it make more sense to pay someone else $100/hour (considerably less than the opportunity cost of doing it yourself) to do it for you?

Does wanting to meet a celebrity make you a lazy douchebag? Or is it the presumption that it might actually be possible? Renting a venue last minute? Perhaps they lazily left it until the last minute, but perhaps there's another explanation?

The Jason Bourne one is eccentric at least, but surely wanting to engage in that kind of extreme training is anything but lazy.

Re: Magic+

#117

Post by sparky_z »

duaneb wrote: post #97
Someone1234 wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why did you think it was satire? They're just trying to offer a personal assistant service over the air, nothing that beyond imagination. Likely costs less than actually employing someone.

You wanna know what's great about actually employing someone? They can actually devote their full attention to you. They'll also get the door for you; can Magic+ do that?

That person you hire can't split themselves into 10 people on demand, nor are they easily replaced if they go on vacation or get sick. This seems to me the PA equivalent of using AWS rather than owning and maintaining your own servers. There are some potential drawbacks, yes, but there are also a lot of potential upsides, depending on your needs.

Re: Magic+

#118

Post by [deleted] »

SwellJoe wrote: post #95

I predict a few things for the future of this service (and this kind of service): 1. A lot of frustration from customers and a lot of churn. An effective personal assistant, or office manager, or whatever, effectively begins to read the mind of their employer. Lack of face-to-face, and what I imagine will be a lot of assistant churn, will result in very poor "mind reading" abilities. Cost of training a new assistant…

[deleted]

Re: Magic+

#119

Post by tempestn »

TranquilMarmot wrote: post #82
cryptoz wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They claim to have fulfilled 100% of requests. Seems like a lie, though.

I find it hard to believe Amy Poehler or Tina Fey would meet with some random guy who has some service calling them up...

They wouldn't necessarily have to. I'm sure there are events they attend that a sufficiently wealthy person could get a ticket or invite to. Then it would just be a matter of introducing yourself.

Re: Magic+

#120

Post by rootedbox »

paul wrote: post #106

A lot of skepticism here, which is understandable given the somewhat unbelievable scope of what they are promising. I'm a very active user of Magic+, so I'll give my perspective. (and of course I've been working with them from the beginning at YC, so you're also free to discard my opinion as biased) For me, Magic+ is basically the impossibly good personal assistant, kind of like Jarvis in Iron Man, or Emily in The De…

Wouldn't it be more price effective for you to hire a personal assistant; through one of your companies?
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