Go ahead and pick on the Big Guy

Another typical Drag Race move, this time from the bottom up. Saleforce.com made much of its name by attacking the big guy in the category, Siebel.

This put them on the map, and given their target and thier offering it was very hard for Siebel to respond, just when things were getting hard for them. How could they without just validating Salesforce.com in the process.

Now that they are going public (see Jason Calacanis' and Steve Gillmor's comments) things may get tougher for them. Especially, as reported in the NYT, Marc Benioff continues to have trouble keeping his mouth shut during the quiet period.