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David on twitter- #plan SXSW Party with Eric Ries & Dave McClure... Mon, Mar 15, 2010, night http://plancast.com/a/1whb
- Malcolm Gladwell at Sundance, UT talking about joy, why work for yourself and 40+ years to work on cancer dru http://tweetphoto.com/14173489
- Thank you to Credit Sussie for a great conference and bringing Craig from Craigslist to close the event. http://tweetphoto.com/14172971
- Siamak on twitter
- RT @lancewalley: http://twitpic.com/18d640 - Chargify bull & matador at SXSW
- @MikeMcDerment Mike, can you DM me your email?
- @benmadden Damn. Missing Gang starr songs too... Above the clouds was his best. Have fun.
Founders Blog
Entrepreneurial Insights from Entrepreneurs. Get inside the minds of Grasshopper founders David Hauser and Siamak Taghaddos to find out what it takes to become a successful entrepreneur.
4.5 Videos Every Web Entrepreneur Needs to Watch
A piece of advice to web entrepreneurs just getting started: rather than becoming consumed with starting the next Google or Facebook, focus on creating a remarkable company with a niche target market that solves a problem that you yourself have had. Here are four and a half great videos from six entrepreneurs to help you focus, get inspired, and launch a successful startup.
1. Make Money – David Heinemeier Hannson, Co-founder of 37signals
David from 37Signals gives an uplifting, straightforward talk on creating a profitable company, charging money for your product, and to solve simple problems. David and I have similar views on growing a business: do it yourself without venture capital, focus on entrepreneurs (he calls them Fortune 5,000,000), and solve a problem you face yourself. What changes can you implement to either make or create an additional $1 million a year from your niche target?
Connect with David on Twitter: @dhh
How to Pitch an Investor in 90 seconds
You have 90 seconds to pitch an investor about your new, incredible business idea that’s going to change the world and make millions of dollars. How do you do it? Simply break your story into five parts using this guideline of how I’d want to be pitched:
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What is it, who’s your target and what’s the value? (20 seconds)
Get me excited. Focus on the value of your service rather than the features. Tell me quickly what it is, who your target market is, and tell me how it’s going to help them do something better, faster, or more easily. Focus on value and the void you’ll be filling.
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Pricing model? (10 seconds)
How much does it cost and how do you plan on making money? Recurring revenue or one-time fee?
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Why is it unique or buzzworthy? (20 seconds)
What makes your product or service unique? Why will anyone care? What are you going to do to get people talking about it?
How to Create a TiVo-Proof Ad
TiVo and DVRs have forever changed television advertising. With viewers now able to fast forward through commercials, companies need to create enticing ads that make us want to watch them. Personally, I only stop to watch a new Geico spot or something odd that makes me think “what was that?” as I fast forward through commercials.
So when we started creating our new TV commercial, we knew it needed to not only raise brand awareness, but also needed to give viewers a reason to stop, rewind, and watch it. And I’m not talking about gimmicks like intrusive ads as you fast forward or hidden/subliminal messages. I’m talking about real, good commercials that make you go “hmmm.”
Founders’ Letter: You Inspired Us In 2009
This letter was emailed to customers earlier today:
Dear Grasshopper Entrepreneurs,
Ah, what an eventful year it’s been. While large corporations received big bailouts, entrepreneurs like you used the unpredictable economic climate to create jobs, innovate, and help turn our economy around. Your passion for finding new solutions to old problems makes us want to find even more ways to help your businesses grow in 2010.
You inspired us
Since many of you sign up for Grasshopper shortly after starting your business, we’ve had the chance to see people joining our entrepreneur movement in droves. Many of you faced enormous adversity, perhaps after being laid off from a job or in attempting to find capital to get your business up and running. So many of the entrepreneurs we’ve spoken to have made the “big leap” this year after facing uncertain times, and have turned a less than ideal situation into an opportunity to pursue your passion. Your stories have been moving. Your resilience and commitment to making your dreams a reality has inspired us.
Want Inspiration? Get Out of the Office
Inspiration and creativity can be tough when you’re sitting in the office all day.
I recently talked with Under 30 CEO on how travel can fuel inspiration and creativity. Here’s an excerpt:
How do you find inspiration and creativity for your company?My best ideas don’t come from a clichéd “ideation session” or a set time of day; they happen when I’m outside the office. So I travel. A lot, if for no other reason than to get the creative juices flowing. There’s a reason why the top floors of a building are the most expensive to occupy, why top executives have the best views of the city, and why city planners and military generals create models to stare down at: When you have a bird’s eye view of the world, it’s a lot easier to put challenges into perspective and strategize your way around obstacles. Having a bird’s eye view of the world lets you see what’s both immediately in front of you as well as what’s on the horizon. Combine that with a plane moving 500 miles an hour and a good book, and you get the perfect storm for new ideas and creativity. For inspiration, I look at companies doing great things, reading stories about successful entrepreneurs, and how everyday challenges create opportunities.
Read the rest of the interview at Under 30 CEO
Top Entrepreneurs on Twitter: Who to Follow & Why
One of the best things about Twitter is getting great information from great people in real-time. As an entrepreneur it is extremely valuable to hear from and learn what other entrepreneurs are doing, what is working, what isn’t working and what tips they have for others.
The twelve people I have listed below are certainly not the only entrepreneurs out there offering valuable information but they are some of my favorites:
Ben Yoskovitz
- @byosko
- Who: “CEO/Founder Standout Jobs. Blogger. Entrepreneur. Father. Opportunity-seeker.”
- Why: Ben interacts with his followers and presents great information for start ups.
Mike McDerment
- @MikeMcDerment
- Who: “FreshBooks CEO”
- Why: Mike does a great job of answering questions about FreshBooks, interacting with his followers and keeping everyone updated on events and engagements.
MINDdrift: Nando Parrado Talks Survival and Success
Check out David’s latest blog post on MINDdrift:
“What would you do if the plane you were on crashed into the snow-covered Andes, you survived the crash with an injury, but then you had to figure out how to survive a night in horribly cold and treacherous conditions? Imagine what that would be like–not having food, enough clothing, perhaps even injured, and never having seen or felt cold snow before.Now imagine having to face those conditions for 72 days.”
Read the rest of “Nando Parrado Talks Survival and Success“
Ally: New Bank or Diet Pill for Women?
So GMAC decides to rebrand and move away from its association with General Motors and create a simple, straightforward online bank similar to ING Direct.
Great.
Their ad agency, BBH, creates hilarious commercials that couldn’t be more on point.
Perfect.
They name the new brand “Ally”, choose purple as the primary color, and go all minimalistic on us.
Wait, what?
Does GMAC not realize that their new brand identity is better suited for a diet pill or cleaning products targeted at women? That their minimilistic magazine ad designs miss very important concepts needed for an online bank called “trust” and “security”?
MINDdrift: Learn how to fund a web app startup from nothing to $170M acquisition
Check out David’s latest blog post on MINDdrift:
“If you’re in the web app startup space, no doubt you’ve heard the big news during TechCrunch50 that Mint was acquired for $170M. That’s a very high return on a company that did a great job visualizing data from Yodlee. What is Mint? It’s a great service that allows you to track all your accounts, expenses, budget and more. Many people, even ones that use the service, didn’t know that Mint actually gets their data from Yodlee, which preforms all the heavy lifting and connecting with financial institutions.”
Read the rest of “Learn how to fund a web app startup from nothing to $170M acquisition“
