I have been working here at Grasshopper for a year now, and most of you probably either know me as “The Ambassador of Buzz” or @grasshopperbuzz. For those who don’t know me, my job consists of a lot of different things jam packed into one. One of these things is trying to get our customers (entrepreneurs) press & buzz.
Believe it or not, it’s actually encouraged for me to do this; our founders are equally happy if I get press for a customer or for Grasshopper. I have gotten customers featured in the Wall St. Journal, ABC news and most recently, I was able to land coverage for Grasshopper customer Lanorma Huggins-Hopes on CityFlight.com and Zak Normandin on Top Entrepreneur TV.
I really take pleasure in helping customers gain buzz and awareness as I understand how big of a hurdle this can be when starting up a business. That’s why I am always looking for new ways to promote customers and new relationships that might help me do so.
I was very fortunate to recently be introduced to MO.com, a site (run by entrepreneurs) that features entrepreneurs and highlights their business strategies, philosophies, and methodologies.
I would like to introduce you to Brian Null; he is the founder of MO.com, and an entrepreneur himself. After speaking with Brian for just a few minutes it was immediately clear to me that we both shared a similar passion for entrepreneurship and learning about people’s unique journeys.
Posted in Entrepreneurship, Marketing & Brands, Small Business | Tagged Featured Entrepreneur | Leave a comment
Nash Kabbara, co-founder of Motors On Wheels and ZipZoomAuto provides insight on building and sustaining a business.
About Me
When I was about 12 years old, mom would stop the car at the local bakery; I would jump out with a pocket full of change and buy a dozen pastries. It’s Sunday, family dinner day, and I knew what everyone’s favorite pastry was. I also
knew which uncles had the most money and which ones did not. As everyone was finishing up their dinners, I set up a table and marked each pastry with a price. Needless to say, the uncles who drove BMW’s had the highest markup!
I’ve always wanted to make a billion dollars by creating something that makes people better at what they do. At my last job I thought I was doing just that, but I was wrong. I cut my losses and quit with about $10,000 in the bank.
Sustainability
Ten thousand dollars might look like it has enough zeroes in it, but it doesn’t go very far. I needed a way to stay afloat while I waited for the billion dollar idea to come to me.
A friend of mine was in the car business. He suggested I buy a car from him at wholesale and resell it myself. I did. I made $1,300 in about 5 hours of actual work!
Posted in Customer Spotlights, Entrepreneurship, Small Business | Tagged Entrepreneurship, Featured Entrepreneur | 9 Comments
This week we are featuring Allan Branch. He’s the co-founder of LessAccounting and also a Grasshopper customer.
Could you explain the philosophy of Less?
We believe business software should easy. It should get out of your way, allowing you to get back to work and make money. Being a business owner is hard enough without having your software make it harder.
This week we are featuring Jared Taylor. Jared is the founder of RevitalArts, Sparklight Studios and is also a Grasshopper customer.
First off, you are a great example of a “Young Entrepreneur”. You’ve already been involved in founding how many companies? And are how old?
I’ve founded 2 companies. I started my first, Sparklight Studios, when I was 18 years old. Sparklight is a small creative company specializing in website development, video production and theatrical design. We’ve served nearly 20 clients since we started only 2 years ago, which has been quite an undertaking considering we’re college students. We just launched our new website – http://www.sparklight-studios.com. I also founded RevitalArts (formerly Youth in the Arts) in 2008 with a few friends.
Tell us a little bit about RevitalArts and what makes it so unique.
RevitalArts is an entirely student-run non-profit organization and we received our 501(c)(3) designation by the Federal government in mid-2009. Our mission is to provide young adults with positive, engaging and educational experiences in the arts and to revitalize the participation in and appreciation of the arts.
Posted in Entrepreneurship | Tagged Featured Entrepreneur, Small Business, tips, voice mail | 2 Comments
As part of a new series here at Grasshopper we are going to be featuring entrepreneurs from across the globe. We want to learn more about them, get inside their head and find out what it takes to make it in the world of business.
This week we are featuring Jonathan Mendez. Jon is extremely well known throughout the online marketing and advertising world, running several successful businesses, speaking at conferences and of course through his blog “Optimize & Prophesize“.
Jon, you have founded how many companies now?
A bunch. I’m in the process of starting my fourth Internet business but I’ve been a lifelong entrepreneur. My first business was in Elementary school. I Xeroxed a bunch of album sleeves and articles from sports magazines and stapled them together in a “magazine” that I sold for 5 cents on the playground. Of course my mother has the only surviving issue. In high school I made a connection with the local Champion sales rep and bought his quarterly sales samples of jerseys, jackets, sweatshirts, etc and resold them to kids in my high school. Eventually we started designing and ordering our own custom lines from Champion. My biggest regret as an entrepreneur is not taking that business with me to college.
Posted in Entrepreneurship | Tagged Featured Entrepreneur | Leave a comment
