It’s been 591 days since our Geek Estate 4.0 release. I’m excited to say, that Geek Estate 5.0 is here.

Special thanks to Darian Woolley for tackling all the design updates Jessica Wright and I asked for, Jeff Ognita for the base 4.0 design work (and some parts of 5.0), plus to Dustin DeVries and his team at Caffeine Interactive to coding/deploying the final designs.

The majority of the design refresh focused on the GEM landing page:

Notes and goals impacting the redesign strategy:

  • We went dark. When Mighty Networks delivered design mock-ups for the iOS/Android apps, we fell in love with the straight black splash screen. So much so that we hard pivoted the GEM web designs already close to final to match the splash screen design-wise.
  • As a result of feedback sessions with GEMineers, we centered in on “Where Proptech Leaders Belong” as GEM’s primary tag line.
  • Went back to “GEM 1500,” ditching the Crystal/Diamond tiers entirely. The goal is to remove the “what’s the right GEM tier for me?” question we still get. If you want community, support, events, fundraising help, and connections…GEM is the answer. If all you care about is content, sign up for Crystal.
  • Highlight the iOS and Android apps in the header.
  • Lean in to the focus on chapter markets (Bay Area/NorCal, NYC, Denver, and Seattle) where we have local ambassadors (thanks Heather Harmon, Pierre Calzadilla, and Mark Choey).
  • Highlight GEM Ventures and branded apps as core pillars of GEM membership.

The Geek Estate home page was also re-designed:

Notes and goals:

  • Swapped the bottom portion about GEM to black, without making the entire page dark, to maintain some separation between Geek Estate and GEM.
  • Highlight local ambassadors to put a larger emphasis on the people curating relationships and events.

From a business perspective, we also revamped GEM’s new member pricing structure as part of this release. We’ve been due for a price increase for several years, but have held off because…well, the reality is that the macro proptech market is not favorable (difficult fundraising environment for startups and increased financial controls at larger organizations). However, over and over, I’ve heard from those who show up to events and engage regularly that we’re undercharging. Increasing prices is one way to increase the chances members prioritize engagement. New membership pricing is now $1,250 per year in chapter markets (Seattle, Bay Area, NYC, and Denver), and $750 in all other markets. Those living in formal chapter markets, are pre-paying for two dinners per year and an increase in local networking events. Finally, there’s also a professional services tier at $1,500 per year, and a lifetime membership available for $15,000.

While we always want these launch days to come sooner than they do, at least it didn’t take us over 2,000 days between releases (the span between 3.0 and 4.0). I’ll chalk that up as a win. Onward and upward.

Would love to hear whether the website gives an accurate first impression of overall value, analysis, and networking to the membership base. Any feedback or suggested improvements would be welcome.

My personal ask: GEM is primarily driven by referrals, you can enable us to invest more in the membership experience by helping us grow. Please send the GEM website on to a founder, executive, VC, or tech-forward practitioner who you believe will value the community.