Playing with Groups for SpringStage
August 31, 2008
We are still working out the details of where we will create ‘groups’ for SpringStage events and activities. In the meantime, I am experimenting with groups on:
Feel free to join, over time we will figure out which ‘group’ works the best. Anyone have any ideas? LinkedIn is really beefing up their ‘group’ pages. Anyway enjoy!
Facebook movie and book coming!
August 29, 2008
Earlier this week I mentioned anything that Ben Mezrich writes is ‘made for Hollywood‘ and it would seem that I was right. According to Caroline McCarthy, Ben Mezrich is writing a book about the origins of Facebook. I suspect it will be juicy as Ben has been getting the inside scoop from early and disgruntled co-founder Eduardo Saverin. Mark and Eduardo were undergraduates at Harvard and as the book proposal described, “Zuckerberg and Saverin getting caught up in Silicon Valley excess, partying like celebrities all over the world, until a showdown between them turned ugly.”
GeekBrief is Big in Dallas!
Cali and Neal Lewis, the duo behind the very popular GeekBrief, found their way to our offices earlier this week. With Cali in front of the camera and Neal behind the camera the couple produces 3-5 minute video podcast released four days a week. I stumbled across GeekBrief while I was looking for someone to help SpringStage develop a uStream strategy. Little did I know that here in our own backyard worked one of the webs most popular shows! With more than 1.4 million downloads each week (350,000 per episode) the program is not only the most popular video podcast in North Texas, but ranks favorably among the most popular in the world. Originally inspired by Dawn and Drew, the Dallas-area natives started producing the show in 2005. Within six months of starting Geekbrief the husband and wife team were able to quit their day jobs and focused 100% of their time on the program. With all of the stuff going on with Google I didn’t get to spend as much time with them as I had hoped. Check out their program.
Where did the VCs Go?
That is what an article in the Dallas Business Journal asked earlier this month. Jeff Bounds reported that, “Venture capitalists were AWOL during the second quarter of 2008″ explaining that only $17.3MM was invested by Venture Capital firms in North Texas companies during the second quarter of 2008! Really? Only $17.3MM? Jeff continues by suggesting there were NO first round venture investments in the second quarter.
To be honest, I don’t really believe the numbers. I suspect there was more than $17.3MM invested in local startups because several startups who I KNOW raised venture capital weren’t included on the list. Additionally, several active venture capital folks (i.e. relative to market) weren’t even included in the survey. So what is the real number? Did anyone raise first round capital for their startup in the 2nd quarter? If you know the answers, please post!
Big in Japan’s GoCart Android Application Wins!
August 28, 2008
I am pleased and proud to announce that Big in Japan Inc. won Google’s Android Developers Challenge with it’s GoCart™ application. Of course, the credit really should go to Rylan Barnes, GoCart’s developer. Here is the release from Google and the post explaining the contest here. GoCart was built specifically for Google’s Android mobile phone platform. GoCart users can easily scan the barcode of any product using their phone’s built-in camera. Once scanned, GoCart will search the inventories of nearby, local stores using data from the phone’s built-in GPS. Soon we will port GoCart to the iPhone and enable mobile payments.
Over the past year the Big in Japan team has become more and more involved with mobile applications. Our initial focus was the iPhone (applications like iPhoneVote), but quickly we began working on Google’s Android mobile phone building a fun application called SocialTones. Recently we decided to reinvent Big in Japan to focus exclusively on the development of mobile applications. GoCart is our first serious mobile application with a real business model behind it. The newly incorporated company has three co-founders (including me):
Rylan Barnes co-founded Big in Japan and is the developer of GoCart™, one of 50 winners of Google’s Android challenge. Rylan started his career at HP where his work on XML-based frameworks was widely acclaimed. Since then he has worked as a software developer for Vertical Alliance and Software Architects working with AJAX, C# and .NET.
Jason Hudgins co-founded Big in Japan and was on the team that developed Tunewiki, one of the 50 winners of Google’s Android Challenge. Jason has spent the last eight years developing software for companies including Idearc Media, DeviantART and Ariesnet.
Alexander Muse co-founded Big in Japan. Alexander is a serial entrepreneur with more than a decade of startup experience. He served as CEO of Architel, a provider of outsourced information technology services. Previously, he was founder and CEO of LayerOne, a ventured backed telecommunications infrastructure company he started in the late 1990’s.
Learn more about GoCart:
Google’s Android Market Annouced!
On the heels our Big in Japan’s release of GoCart fot the Google’s Android phone, Eric Chu has announced the details of Android Market, “an open content distribution system that will help end users find, purchase, download and install various types of content on their Android-powered devices. The concept is simple: leverage Google’s expertise in infrastructure, search and relevance to connect users with content created by developers like you.”
The market will initially support free applications on the first Android handsets and soon after that paid applications will be possible. This is great news. Eric explained, “We chose the term “market” rather than “store” because we feel that developers should have an open and unobstructed environment to make their content available. Similar to YouTube, content can debut in the marketplace after only three simple steps: register as a merchant, upload and describe your content and publish it. We also intend to provide developers with a useful dashboard and analytics to help drive their business and ultimately improve their offerings.”
Huge Big in Japan Announcement!
Part one of the Big in Japan annoucement I promised you HERE. Part two to follow this evening as soon as I am given the green light (no hints).
Denton’s first Jelly: September 4th
August 27, 2008
In the spirit of coworking, Denton is hosting it’s first Jelly (Jellys are semi-regular ‘work-togethers’.) Stormy Shippy is hosting the Jelly in Denton in the loft above First People’s Jewelry at 117A North Elm Street. RSVP on Facebook here.
Description from the Facebook event page: Jelly is casual coworking. And a first of more to come for Denton. We invite people to work from our home for the day. We provide chairs, tables, and sofas, wireless internet, and interesting people to talk to, collaborate with, and bounce ideas off of. You bring a laptop (or whatever you need to get work done) and a friendly disposition. There will be developers, designers, musicians, and more from both Denton and the DFW area. Drop in as needed throughout the day to work. When things wind down those left will stick around Downtown to eat, drink, listen to Jazz, and dance to the 80’s. Please spread the word to any friends that may also be interested.
If you are interested you can give Stormy a call at 940-293-3626 or email him at stormyshippy (at) gmail.
Startup Happy Hour: Meet Entrepreneurs from Peru!
August 26, 2008
***DATE CHANGE*** We are moving the date of the next Startup Happy Hour from September 1st to September 8th to be able to host a group of entrepreneurs from Peru. Please RSVP HERE.
The U.S. Department of State and the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth has asked if we would be willing to host a delegation of entrepreneurs from Peru at our Startup Happy Hour on the 8th. Nancy Tourk, the Director of the International Visitor Program for the World Affairs Council, attended the last startup happy hour and thought it would be a great event for the delegation to attend. Here is an explanation of the program:
The World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth in collaboration with the World Learning Visitor Exchange Program will implement a practical and stimulating training and exchange program with Peru to educate 30 emerging young entrepreneurs in entrepreneurial thinking and business leadership skills to empower them to engage in business development. This program is designed to increase the participants’ understanding of how individual entrepreneurs create economic growth, strengthen professional ties between U.S. and Peruvian business organizations and provide an appreciation of American business practices and the rich diversity of American society.
To achieve these objectives, the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth will work with its many member organizations and existing business relationships to match participants with companies that meet their interests and will expose them to professional training and networking opportunities that will enhance the development and completion of their action plans. In addition to a challenging professional program, the WAC will offer the participants many cultural opportunities to learn more about the region and to interact with American citizens. Finally, to complement the entrepreneurs’ professional and cultural program, each participant will be hosted by an American family for their duration of their time in the Metroplex.
The Dallas Startup Happy Hour is the talk of the startup community in Dallas. As a result of the events, several startups have found a) employees, b) co-founders, c) angel investors and d) had a few free drinks. We are moving the September 1st event to September 8th to be able to host a delegation of entrepreneurs from Peru. Are you interested in connecting with the local startup community? We are working to build a vibrant startup community here in Dallas every bit as interesting and dynamic as San Francisco, Boulder, Boston or Austin. The first step is engagement. This week we are excited to be able to potentially help make a few international connections possible thanks to the U.S. Department of State of the World Affairs Council. Come meet a delegation of entrepreneurs from Peru as well as a host of local entrepreneurs who live in your backyard.
Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, the World Affairs Council and of course SpringStage - you are invited to attend, but please RSVP on upcoming.
What: Startup Happy Hour
When: Monday, September 8th, 5PM-8PM
Where: High Tech bar at the INFOMART (corner of Oak Lawn and I35)
Why: To meet entrepreneurs like you
Cost: FREE
The Startup Lawyer - Ryan Roberts
August 25, 2008
Ryan Roberts and I became acquainted this summer at our Startup Happy Hour events. He writes a top notch blog titled, “The Startup Lawyer”. Ryan is helping out with our Angel/Entrepreneur efforts (ironically I only found his blog when he wrote a post titled, ‘Making Dallas the City of Angels‘). After several conversations it became clear that we both shared a similar view of the startup world. I have referred a few entrepreneurs his way, but I figured I better get some first hand experience so this weekend I engaged him to do some securties work for a new startup we are organizing. I’ll keep you posted on a) the quality, b) the speed, and c) the affordability of his legal work. In the meantime, I will be subscribing to his blog - you should too.
Made for Hollywood: Ben Mezrich
Lots of you ask, “What are you reading these days?” Yesterday I managed to finish Rigged, by Ben Mezrich. Ben has been a favorite ’summer’ author of mine for quite some time. He wrote ‘Bringing Down the House’ also called ‘Busting Vegas: The MIT Whiz Kid Who Brought the Casinos to Their Knees’ in 2005. The book was turned into a movie called 21. Around the same time as ‘Busting Vegas or Breaking Vegas (as it was known in paperback) was released he wrote ‘Ugly Americans: A True Story of High Stakes, Dirty Deals and One Man’s $500 Million Gamble.’ His books are interesting on a number of levels. First, they don’t take much attention to read (i.e. you don’t have to concentrate very hard to enjoy them). Second, they are ALWAYS ‘high concept’ involving youth, money and risk - BUT you get a payoff in that you learn something. Ben’s latest book is called ‘Rigged: The True Story of an Ivy League Kid Who Changed the World of Oil, from Wall Street to Dubai‘.
Rigged was a fun little book from start to finish. Ben’s description of the New York Merchantile Exchange was facinating. Amazon explains it better than I would, “After conquering the hallowed halls of Harvard Business School, he enters the testosterone-laced warrens of the Merc Exchange, the asylumlike oil exchange located in lower Manhattan. A place where billions of dollars trade hands every week, the Merc is like a casino on crack, where former garbagemen become millionaires overnight and where fistfights break out on the trading floor. This ordinary kid has traded Brooklyn for the gold-lined hotel palaces of Dubai. He keeps company on the decks of private yachts in Monte Carlo—teeming with half-naked girls flown in by Saudi sheiks—and makes deals in the dangerous back alleys of Beijing. But the Merc is just a starting place. Taken under the wing of another young gun and partnering with a mysterious young Muslim, the kid embarks on a dangerous adventure to revolutionize the oil trading industry—and, along with it, the world. Rigged is the explicit, exclusive, true story behind the headlines that dominate the world stage.”
Fun, light reading that will surely find its way onto a theater screen near you next summer!
83 Beers on the wall!
August 23, 2008
Wired magazine has a hit piece on Dallas-based Stampede beer. Now that Jessica Simpson owns the vitamin-enhanced beer it would seem the company is now the target of ridicule ~ undeserved in my opinion. According to Wired you could drink an infinite amount of Stampede beer and NOT get your daily allowance of vitamin A, C or E. But, in what I suspect is a shrewed business strategy on the part of Jessica, you CAN get your daily allowance of vitamin B by drinking 83 light Stampede beers. Sort of like the old shampoo trick, “apply, rinse, repeat” ~ if Stampede can get their customers to drink 83 light beers each day, imagine the return on Jessica’s investment! And they say Jessica isn’t that smart…
Developer with business, needs business partner!
August 22, 2008
Devon Cannon had been running a family community website called FamilyLobby for the past couple of years. Devon, a reader of the blog, called me the other day and stopped by the office earlier today. The site is generating about $120,000 a year in revenue (90% from subscriptions) and he feels that with a little outside funding he can easily grow revenues signficantly. He has over a million page views per month so I suspect he could generate even more with a little targeting sponsorship dollars from someone like Geni.
My first thought was that he needs a partner. Someone with business, marketing and advertising experience. Basically a new set of experienced eyes to help look at the business and position it for the growth investment capital could help drive. Are you looking for a startup to join? Are you a non-technical business expert looking for a technical business partner with a business? Give Devon a call at 972.741.6125 or email him at davon (at) familylobby.com.
Services Startup Cash Flow Trick!
Is your startup in the services business? Having a hard time supporting your existing clients, much less new clients you want to bring on? Need to hire a few more employees to make it happen? We had this experience at one of our companies a while back. We were having a hard time finding people we wanted to hire. Lots of applicants, but none of them were a perfect fit. So instead of hiring people we didn’t like or losing our existing clients (offering a reduced service level) we increased our prices 30% across the board. We lost a few clients, but in the end the additional margin from the existing clients more than offset for the client losses. The real upside was we had a reduced workload ~ fewer clients generating the same revenue at a higher margin! (oh and fewer employees to manage makes life exponentially easier)
My two favorite marketing strategies in the services business are scarcity and exclusivity. By keeping headcount lean, you reduce your ability to add new clients. This is not a bad thing assuming you are not funded by a venture capital firm with deep pockets who wants hockey stick top line growth. In a bootstrapped services startup, this scaricity will work to your advantage. Imagine sitting with a potential client who wants to hire your firm and trying to explain that your service is so popular and sought after the first available turnup slot is three months from now. Further imagine having three clients all ready to hire you, but you can only pick one. Guess what, you get to raise your prices. Raise your prices to the point that you only have one client begging you to start. This scarcity and relative price advantage will make your service exclusive. Not everyone can a) get your service and b) afford your service. Of course your service needs to be better ~ you can’t offer subpar service for more for very long.
Jason Calacanis is DEAD wrong!
Last week in a post titled, ‘Startup PR - the don’ts‘ I asked for advice on how to get PR for a startup. Jason Calacanis was nice enought to respond in a post yesterday titled, “How to Get PR for your Startup: Fire Your PR Company“. I reviewed his post in detail and found his advice to be VERY useful. The only problem with his post is the title, ‘Fire your PR Company‘. Asumming, of course, that your PR folks are ‘doing no harm’ nothing about Jason’s advice is mutual exclusive to having PR professionals on your team. PR folks, instead of spamming people, could easily help many CEOs implement Jason’s advice. Assuming he didn’t ‘lift‘ this advice from DEMO I highly recommend taking his advice to heart: “be amazing, be everywhere, be real” in ten easy steps:
- Be the brand
- Be everywhere
- Always pick up the check-always
- Be a human being
- Bond with journalist
- How to email a journalist
- How to speak to a journalist
- Invite people to ’swing by’ your office
- Attach your brand to a movement
- Embrace small media outlets
Not every CEO is great at say, ‘being a human being’, a savvy PR professional can help turn a nasty Klingon into a loveable Vulcan in no time. Seriously, PR people can help you execute on Jason’s advice. So fire your PR company if they suck, but keep them around if they ‘get it’ and can help you execute on a PR strategy that works. Oh and I don’t really think Jason is DEAD wrong, actually I think he is mainly right.
