WishList Member Transforms Your WordPress Blog into a Paying Membership Site
WishList Member is pretty amazing. It transforms your Wordpress blog into a full-blown membership site, allowing you to create free, trial and paid membership levels — or any combination of the three.
We were impressed from the start. WishList Member is a snap to install. Just download a typical Wordpress plugin and follow the instructions on their site. Within minutes, you’ll be able to start customizing your memberships. You can create “Silver”, “Gold”, “Platinum”, or any other “levels” you want. Then you can charge more for higher levels of access – all within the same blog.
Lean Startup’s Eric Ries on Building Accountability into the Production Flow
One of the big themes at this year’s Lean Startup Conference was ”innovative accounting” which Ries admits is not as popular as Lean Startups other bumper sticker-sized philosophies, but it’s still very important nonetheless.
This video and article was produced by David Spark, who was reporting for the New Relic Blog (http://blog.newrelic.com) at The Lean Startup Conference in San Francisco.
Steve Blank on Teaching and Practicing Entrepreneurship
Considered by many as the godfather of Lean Startup methodologies, Blank talked about how he’s scaling out the teaching and hands on lab process of starting a business.
This video and article was produced by David Spark, who was reporting for the New Relic Blog (http://blog.newrelic.com) at The Lean Startup Conference in San Francisco.
US CTO Todd Park on Embedding Lean Startup in Government
US CTO Todd Park on Embedding Lean Startup in Government – Interview with U.S. CTO, Todd Park (did you know we had a CTO?) about how the U.S. Government has successfully embedded Lean Startup methodologies.
This video and article was produced by David Spark, who was reporting for the New Relic Blog (http://blog.newrelic.com) at The Lean Startup Conference in San Francisco.
Best Advice on Starting a Business
Best Advice on Starting a Business – Entrepreneurs from The Lean StartupConference relay the best advice others gave them when they first set out to start a business.
This video and article was produced by David Spark, who was reporting for the New Relic Blog (http://blog.newrelic.com) at The Lean Startup Conference in San Francisco.
Techniques for Working Smarter Not Harder
We asked attendees at The Lean Startup Conference what they were going to do to work smarter not harder in 2013. There are some really good tips in here. Learn from them.
This video and article was produced by David Spark, who was reporting for the New Relic Blog (http://blog.newrelic.com) at The Lean Startup Conference in San Francisco.
5 Goals for Small Businesses in 2013
As the year winds down and there’s a natural break in your work flow to plan for next year, consider where you’d like to see your small business in 2013. Whether you’d like to better connect with your clients, expand to more employees or just revamp your office space, here are a few goals to get you started.
Startup Bash 2013
Join the AngelHack crew, investors, media, and a bunch of your friends, as we throw it down for the biggest startup party of the year. We’ll be inviting over 600 of our closest friends and this place only holds 300, so make sure to come early.
Friday, January 25, 2013 at 9:00 PM
http://angelhackparty.eventbrite.com/
I’m told fire dancers are a no go, but we’ll definitely be stretching the rules. So far, we’ve contacted paratroopers, a sherpa, and Avicii’s road manager (in no particular order). At the least we have a firepit, photographers, and a bad-ass DJ from EDC flying in.
3 Ways to Create a Marketing Plan on the Fly
Lyne Noella
by Lyne Noella, CEO, WavePlay
If you are a CEO managing your startup day to day, it’s time to stop putting out fires or jumping from one perceived opportunity to the next without results. To get organized and grow your business in 2013, create a strategic marketing plan to focus your team on gaining traction and attracting investors.
US Firms Watching & Waiting over Egypt Investments
Is Egypt open for business? Not really would be the answer if quick and easy access to online government information is anything to go by. Access to some government web portals is sometimes frustratingly slow and cumbersome, with information often out of date. The Mubarak era is over, yet you wouldn’t think so judging by some web pages which have yet to be updated to reflect the seismic changes which have taken place. Egypt, it’s time to get the online act together!
Developing a Customer Profile Helps with Selling
Karen Milde, CEO and Co-Founder, Reframe Marketing Inc.
To determine what the customer wants, needs and desires, most companies and business will develop a customer profile. It is also helpful when doing marketing analysis and advertising since you will have a list of targeted customers. There could be more than one customer profile as products are different and can be matched up with suitable customers. Below are some tips when developing a customer profile.
1. Collect a customer’s characteristics. They are the foundation of your customer profile. Consider the age, gender, marital status, household size, employment status, location, income, occupation, education level and country of birth of your potential customers.
The Hierarchy of Facebook vs. Google
by Ruby Claire of HierarchyStructure.com
Inspite of their similar origins, internet market giants Facebook and Google vary a lot in their purpose, beliefs and goals.
Google began in 1996 when Larry Page and Sergey Brin took their PHD project and started bringing it to life as a business. They brought into the market a new system of managing the webpage importance by a term called “PageRank”. This is determined by the number of pages that link to the website.
The High Price of a Bachelors Degree!
by Ruby Claire of EducationRequirements.org
To obtain a Bachelor’s degree from a top university is growing more expensive year after year. The reason seems to be the very simple: a Bachelor’s degree can improve the earning capabilities of an individual by a large degree — excuse the pun!
It is estimated that at least a million dollars more can be earned over a working lifetime (25-64) with a Bachelors degree compared to those who lack one.
Basic requirements, like food and medical costs, are now 3.5 and 7 times what they used to be 30 years ago, while the higher education costs rose to 12 times in the same time period.
Panel Event: “The Road to Success – The Yammer Story”
|
You’re invited to attend Orrick’s complimentary TOTAL ACCESSprogram in San Francisco highlighting the story of Orrick client Yammer and its path from a startup to one of the biggest players in the enterprise space. From Yammer’s launch as the winner of TechCrunch50 in 2008, to the $1.2 billion Microsoft acquisition in 2012, come hear from the individuals that played a critical role in the development of Yammer and learn from their success.
Topics: | ||||||||||
Appsfire: A Year In The App Store 2012
So much has happened in 2012 in the App Store. Tons of new apps, a new iTunes Store design on iOS6 and the Mac. We thought now would be a good time to get some perspective and look back at this very healthy and very busy app economy.
Before you dive into our insanely amazing and priceless infographic, here are some of the observations:
- The App Store is a very healthy ecosystem with well over 1 million apps ever created and approved by Apple
Tenancy Agreement Myths Busted
by Ruby Claire of Agreements.org
A tenancy agreement is a contract which binds the landlord and tenant regarding the terms and conditions of rental space. It is a legal document which specifies the responsibilities of both the parties involved.
The tenancy agreement can also be oral. Most people are not aware of the legal requirements when they enter into a contract. The letting agents take advantage of this and hoodwink their clients, so that their business continues to grow. It is necessary to know what statements are true according to law and what statements are myths when you sign a tenancy agreement. Find out the six myths related to tenancy agreements in this infographic.
Founders Space Special – 6 Months of Free Web Hosting
That’s right! Founders Space has just secured a special deal from WebFaction.
They offered to give any of our startups 6 months of totally FREE web hosting. All you have to do is mention Founders Space.
Just so that you know, we use WebFaction to host all of our business simulation games. If you want to see how they perform, just try out any of our games: Gazillionaire, Zapitalism and Profitania.
Peter Fenton and Jess Lee on becoming a CEO
Peter Fenton, Benchmark Capital, introduces rising star Jess Lee, 1st time CEO of Polyvore. Together they explore the defining characteristics of a successful CEO within the context of determining the potential of a 1st time CEO.
In this seminar, entrepreneurial leaders share lessons from real-world experiences across entrepreneurial settings. Speakers include entrepreneurs, leaders from global technology companies, venture capitalists, and best-selling authors. Half-hour talks are followed by a half hour of class interaction.
WavePlay’s International Founder ASK Party
What do you need? International founders, are you looking for talent, an introduction, funding, advice? Join WavePlay’s International Founder ASK Party for informal networking, drinks and appetizers with the international Silicon Valley community of investors, domestic and international founders, and experts. International founders, you will have the microphone for one minute to ask for what you need. Those present will hear you and provide ideas and advice. This event is open to the Bay Area/Silicon Valley international community.
View Event: http://wpinternationaljan2013.eventbrite.com
NOTE: International Founders who wish to participate in the ASK at this event must supply WavePlay with their name, company name, email address and one sentence describing their ASK by 24 January.
Dark Sides of Crowdfunding a Product
by Joe Donoghue of Leardon Solution
With the funding environment nearly revolutionized by crowdfunding, Leardon Solutions has had the opportunity to work closely with successfully crowdfunded entrepreneurs. In the process we’ve learned a lot. Luckily, we have had the chance to work with a smart group of folks that handled the challenges of successful crowdfunding campaigns with grace but it’s not always easy.
Here’s a list of things that we recommend entrepreneurs take into account as they partake in a crowdfunding campaign.
Venture Finance by Chuck Eesley (Part 1)
Chuck Eesley discusses venture financing and raising money. The three main topics covered are the amount of funding, the structure of the deal, and sources of capital.
Chuck Eesley — About Me:
My research focuses on the influence of the external environment on entrepreneurship. Specifically, I investigate the types of environments that encourage the founding of high growth, technology-based firms. Although I build on previous literature that explains why entrepreneurs are successful on the basis of individual characteristics, network ties, and strategy, my major contribution is to demonstrate that institutions matter. I show that effective institutional change influences who starts firms, not just how many firms are started.
Venture Finance by Chuck Eesley (Part 2)
Chuck Eesley discusses venture financing and raising money. In this video, pre and post-money valuation along with dilution are discussed with example calculations.
Chuck Eesley — About Me:
My research focuses on the influence of the external environment on entrepreneurship. Specifically, I investigate the types of environments that encourage the founding of high growth, technology-based firms. Although I build on previous literature that explains why entrepreneurs are successful on the basis of individual characteristics, network ties, and strategy, my major contribution is to demonstrate that institutions matter. I show that effective institutional change influences who starts firms, not just how many firms are started.
Venture Finance by Chuck Eesley (Part 3)
Chuck Eesley discusses fundraising. In this video, he talks about the economics, structure, and types of venture capital firms and the process of raising money from VC firms.
Chuck Eesley — About Me:
My research focuses on the influence of the external environment on entrepreneurship. Specifically, I investigate the types of environments that encourage the founding of high growth, technology-based firms. Although I build on previous literature that explains why entrepreneurs are successful on the basis of individual characteristics, network ties, and strategy, my major contribution is to demonstrate that institutions matter. I show that effective institutional change influences who starts firms, not just how many firms are started.
Office Etiquette
by Rick Walker at Official Space
Office etiquette in the UK
For decades now the world has worked on a 9 to 5 basis, with employees working out of offices around the globe. No matter what kind of industry you work within, you’ll quickly notice that there’s a lot of office etiquette you need to abide by in order to make it in the world of office work.
First of all, what’s etiquette?
Making Money With Your Mobile Apps: What’s Working, What Isn’t?
Competition is hot in mobile apps–are you? What does it take to shine a light on your technologies, engage users, attract top talent, and excite investors in the mobile app space? Our experts will share information and stories about the mobile app landscape and provide insight and ideas on the approaches, technologies, creativity and marketing that will help you take your mobile apps to new levels in 2013.
Presenters: David Rangel of Corona Labs, Ron Piovesan of Mozilla, and Zouhair Belkoura of KeepSafe.
PLEASE NOTE – The meeting location is in a secure building. Signups must be processed by Wednesday, December 5th.
How Many Times Should You Try?
ANSWER: “As many as it takes…”
- “Exceptional people take exceptional risks.” – S.S. Hoffman
- ”Nothing is impossible, the word itself says ‘I’m possible’!” – Audrey Hepburn
- “So many people can be responsible for your success, but only you are responsible for your failure.”
- “There are two types of pain in this world: pain that hurts you, and pain that changes you!
- Sometimes the wrong choices bring us to the right places.
- ”You are afraid to die, and you’re afraid to live. What a way to exist.” – Neale Donald Walsch
Need the Perfect Earphones for that Next Flight?
Founders are always travelling, and the worst part about travelling is flying. I’ve been searching for the perfect earphones to take with me on trips.
I hate hearing the airplane rumble. I can’t watch movies or listen to music or catch nap with that noise, unless I crank up the volume on my iPhone and that surely isn’t good for my eardrums. Thus, I went searching for the ideal pair of travel earphones.
Here were my top criteria:
- Must have great sound quality
- Must have have excellent noise-isolation
- Must be small enough to fit in my pocket
Tell Your Company Story: 5 Ideas for Content
Lyne Noella
by Lyne Noella, CEO, WavePlay
For a startup, as well as an established business, sharing a compelling story is the fastest way to secure funding and attract customers. There are several reasons why storytelling delivers a tremendous advantage. Competition for funding, media attention, partners and customers is fierce–storytelling can help you get noticed and gain visibility. When competitors are offering comparable products and services, the key perceivable difference often comes down to branding, and storytelling is an excellent tool for expressing your brand.
“Why Timing Matters” by Geoff Yang of Redpoint Ventures
Geoff Yang, founding partner of Redpoint Ventures, explores why timing matters in entrepreneurial ventures and shares insights into how Redpoint evaluates opportunties.
Geoff Yang is a Partner of Redpoint Ventures. Prior to founding Redpoint, Geoff was a general partner with IVP, a firm he joined in 1987.
Geoff emphasizes investments in consumer media and infrastructure. His media and advertising investments include Ask Jeeves, Clicker, Efficient Frontier,Excite, Machinima, MySpace and TiVo.
His networking investments includeCalix, Foundry Networks, Juniper Networks, MMC Networks and Wellfleet. He currently serves on the Board of Bluefin, Branchout, Findery,Formspring, Gaia Online, Gravity, Machinima, Oodle, Scribd and Tidemark.
Why Reinvesting in Your Business Could Hurt Your Retirement Future?
by Neil Jesani the CEO of BeamaLife
A recent Wall Street Journal study showed that more than half of the 799 small business owners surveyed, 56% considered their business as their retirement plan, or at least had their retirement plan tied to their business. And because of the economy, most of them are expected to retire after age 65.
This statistic disturbed me! How can anyone tie up all of their money and time into one retirement plan option?
Now don’t get me wrong.
