Wed.Jul 24, 2013

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How I Got My First Customer: I Created A Fake Customer

Up and Running

'This story is part of Bplans’ “How I Did It” series—true stories of real businesses getting started, solving problems and finding success. Read the previous story here. Christian at Big Step Consulting : . “When my wife and I launched our consulting firm, it was a highly competitive market with projects usually awarded based on feedback and a portfolio—neither of which we had.

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SAP: Run Like Before

deal architect

'I was watching the new SAP commercials with the theme "Run Like Never Before" and reminiscing on the annual pilgrimage Gartner colleagues would make to Waldorf in the late 90s. It is striking how much the company has changed in.

Software 271
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Don’t Turn Your Business Dream Into a Nightmare

Startup Professionals Musings

'I’ve noticed a great tendency among startup founders to ignore the essentials of business accounting in the early stages of their startup. Just because you are not profitable yet, doesn’t mean you can skip the record keeping. In fact, just the opposite is true. When you anticipate losses for the first year or two, it is more important to properly document all expenses, including tricky ones like business travel, business meals, and your home office.

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[Infographic] That (Annoying PR) Thing You Do

YoungUpstarts

'If you’re a public relations or media professional you’re probably acutely aware of the love-hate but symbiotic relationship between the two camps. You know, that “Can’t live with you, can’t live without you” feeling. Well, the newly released Brands and Media Engagement Survey Report 2013 sheds more light on this sometimes tenuous relationship.

PR 172
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Building Healthy Innovation Ecosystems for Your Projects

Speaker: Nick Noreña, Innovation Coach and Advisor, Kromatic

Every startup and innovation project exists within an ecosystem that either helps or hurts that project. As innovation managers, we need to keep a pulse of that ecosystem and make sure we're helping those innovation projects we're managing every step of the way. In this webinar, Nick Noreña will walk through an Innovation Ecosystem Model that he and his team at Kromatic have developed to help investors, heads of product, teachers, and executives understand how they can best support innovation in

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$200,000 For Colorado Startup Community Activities and Events

Feld Thoughts

'I’m excited to announce the launch of the Colorado Startup Community Fund. This is a $200,000 fund for providing financing to support activities, events, and organizations in the Colorado startup community. It’s part of the Startup Colorado initiative and is going to make the first round of grants at the end of Q3. The Startup Colorado Community Fund from Startup Colorado on Vimeo.

Colorado 172
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[Malaysia] National Instruments Opens NI-AIN Lab In Technology Park

YoungUpstarts

'NI Managing Director for Southeast Asia, Mr. Chandran Nair (fifth from left), presented a token of appreciation to the Minister in PM Department and CEO of PEMANDU, Senator Dato’ Seri Idris Jala (fourth from right). Automated test equipment and virtual instrumentation software provider National Instruments has announced the opening of National Instruments Academy & Innovation Nucleus (NI-AIN), a shared services lab facility in Technology Park Malaysia comprising over RM20 million (~US$6.25

Malaysia 153

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Stephen Fry is tickled by Ticckle’s online video debate platform

The Next Web

'Stephen Fry is a British institution, and if you don’t live in the UK there’s still a pretty good chance you’ve heard or seen him somewhere. As such, when Fry gets uses and invests in your fledgling startup, you know you’re off to a good start but London-based Ticckle can boast just that. Xan Blacker, co-founder of Ticckle, explained to The Next Web that Ticckle’s main aim was to “tickle your brain” through discussion of ideas – he actually doesn’t really like the word debate, he explained.

Video 131
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Don’t Play Pricing Tricks With Customers

Mike Michalowicz

'I arrived at the car rental desk after a long flight. I just wanted to get to my hotel room as soon as possible, so I could crash. Anything that would make the process of getting to the hotel faster was good. While signing, initialing, and thumb stamping the one hundred different spots on the rental form, the agent asks me if I want to have them refuel the vehicle upon my return.

Customer 153
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How to make the most of an accelerator Office Hours

This is going to be BIG.

'At accelerators like Techstars, the "Office Hours" is a standard part of the program. A mentor comes in and a whole slate of companies are scheduled to meet with them for around 20 minutes or so. It''s more than an elevator pitch, but not enough time for a full pitch. So what are you supposed to get accomplished in that time? First of all, get it out of your head that Office Hours is time to pitch.

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6th Womensphere Global Summit & Awards 2013

David Teten

'I hope you’ll join me at the 6th Womensphere Global Summit & Awards 2013 , September 30-October 2 at Columbia University. ”The event aims to build an international community that promotes women’s innovation and leadership, and collectively works to improve global society.” Here are the deadlines to keep in mind if you’re thinking of delaying…. - Until 11:55PM, Wednesday, July 31: 50 places available for Discounted Early Registration .

Global 114
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3 Things I Want Most From My Employees

Up and Running

'Somebody asked me the other day what I look for in employees. Of course, that could be a long, drawn-out topic—I’ve dealt with hundreds of employees over more than 20 years of running my own business, and I have a lot to say on the subject. However, as I think about it, I can boil what I’m looking for in an employee down to these three things: 1.

Employee 102
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6th Womensphere Global Summit & Awards 2013

David Teten

'I hope you’ll join me at the 6th Womensphere Global Summit & Awards 2013 , September 30-October 2 at Columbia University. ”The event aims to build an international community that promotes women’s innovation and leadership, and collectively works to improve global society.” Here are the deadlines to keep in mind if you’re thinking of delaying…. - Until 11:55PM, Wednesday, July 31: 50 places available for Discounted Early Registration .

Global 114
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Resignation Media Moves to Austin and Plans to Hire 40

SiliconHills

'Resignation Media, which runs theCHIVE.com, announced its moving its corporate headquarters to Austin from Los Angeles. The company plans to move by the end of August and is renovating the 12,000 square foot building downtown, that once served as the Shoreline Grill. Resignation Media plans to spend $8 million during the next five years to [.] The post Resignation Media Moves to Austin and Plans to Hire 40 appeared first on SiliconHills.

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Moving? 5 Keys To Establishing Your Business In A New Location

Up and Running

'Starting or relocating a business in a new community can be daunting. Preparing your new offices or facilities, moving employees and acclimating to a new environment all require detailed planning. However, the enthusiasm, economic growth and identity you bring to a new community can reward your efforts almost immediately. To succeed in a new location, you must embrace and invest in it.

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Q2ebanking Expands in Austin and Plans to Hire 60 New Employees

SiliconHills

'A fast-growing online banking company, Q2ebanking announced Wednesday plans to hire 60 new employees and expand into a new headquarters and downtown. The Austin-based company is moving into an 85,000 square foot space and three floors in the new Aspen Lake One business center. The space can accommodate up to 500 people. The company has [.] The post Q2ebanking Expands in Austin and Plans to Hire 60 New Employees appeared first on SiliconHills.

Austin 67
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TechCrunch Visits MuckerLab

Mucker Lab

'Erik happened to be on vaca so they ended up having to interview the looser canon on the team. I hope I didn’t say anything stupid More on Inside MuckerLab on TechCrunch.

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Spectrum Kicks Off to Assist Startup Entrepreneurs

SiliconHills

'By SUSAN LAHEY Reporter with Silicon Hills News Texas State University’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is launching a free or lower-cost program to help startup and mid-stage tech companies, offering mentoring, education and helping them collaborate with key elements of the Austin startup ecosystem. The new program, called Spectrum, allows companies to engage at [.

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Will GMail Tabs Hurt Email Marketers?

Duct Tape Marketing

'Will GMail Tabs Hurt Email Marketers? written by John Jantsch read more at Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing Over the last few days you’ve likely received urgent messages from email marketers warning of the recent GMail addition of tabs. The idea is that Google wants to help sort your email for you into what they deem Primary, Social and Promotions.

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Michael Dell Issues Letter to Shareholders on Taking Dell Private

SiliconHills

'The deal to take Dell private just got a little more lucrative. Today, Michael Dell, the company’s founder, issued a letter to shareholders asking them to the approve the deal when they meet on August 2 to vote on the buyout. “I believe that taking Dell private is the right thing to do for the [.] The post Michael Dell Issues Letter to Shareholders on Taking Dell Private appeared first on SiliconHills.

Austin 54
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Is New Social Media Internet Marketing Better Than Direct Response Internet Marketing

Entrepreneurs-Journey.com by Yaro Starak

'A Gmail Warning, Plus A Reader Asks Which Is Better – Old Or New Media Internet Marketing? If you are a Gmail user you have may have noticed that Google updated the interface to include some new tabs.

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Turning off Comments

Venture Chronicles

'I have turned off comments for the time being… 2 reasons: 1) Spam: I am getting inundated with spam comments masquerading as legitimate comments. The better ones are hard to detect at first glance, only when I see the link in either the commenter ID or in the comment itself is it then evident that someone is looking for a free ride on my SEO juice. 2) Alternative Channels: I actually don’t get that many comments, most people that I interact with are doing so via Twitter, Facebook, a

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There Is No Subprime Model for VC

Agile VC

'I was having breakfast this morning from someone I know from the LP world. We were talking about what’s “working” in the broader VC ecosystem and this person expressed their enthusiasm that today there are a range of different models that are producing attractive returns for LPs. Historically there was just one model… VCs had to invest in the Series A or B round of a startup, own 20%+ of the company, and be one of the primary capital supporters of it through exit.

Valuation 200
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[Review] The Art Of Thinking Clearly

YoungUpstarts

'You’ve heard the saying “to err is human and forgive divine” What you may not know, however, is that us Homo sapiens have been hardwired over the millenia to be illogical, distorted in our perception of reality, and inaccurate in our judgements. In other words, to err repeatedly is human. Also known as cognitive biases , these simple errors can occasionally be highly costly.

Forecast 159
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The Opposite of Boredom is…

Life Beyond Code

'If you guess, it is entertained , you are wrong. The opposite of boredom is growth | Tweet this. If you are a Manager and your employees seem to be bored, don’t buy an entertainment system or a pinball machine. This will help only in the short-term. Create an environment where people grow every single day. If you are an employee, don’t wait for your Manager to create an environment for growth.