Sat.Nov 26, 2016 - Fri.Dec 02, 2016

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7 Ways To Master The Art Of Running A One-Person Business

YoungUpstarts

By Greg Waldorf, CEO of Invoice2go. Being a one-man or woman-show is a tough gig, but for someone taking the leap of faith on a business idea, and taking control of your own destiny outside the 9 to 5, it can be extremely rewarding too. There are many solopreneur success stories out there. Some of these businesses are founded by people who are passionate about a cause, like Saha Global ’s mission to help with the world water crisis, others are entrepreneurs seeking to fill an underserved niche,

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3 Simple Ways To Improve Your Website’s Search Engine Rank

YFS Magazine

There’s no silver bullet with SEO, but start by making your website fundamentally sound and you’ll be on your way to improved search results.

Search 94
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How to Do Conversion Attribution Modeling

ConversionXL

Customers don’t usually see one ad and then click over to purchase. In reality, the path is much more complex, and usually includes various marketing channels – organic and paid search, referral, social media, television. But if you’re a rigorous and data-driven marketer, the question has to cross your mind: how much credit can I give each channel for this conversion?

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Top 4 Crowdsourced Logo Design Sites for Small Businesses

Up and Running

Bplans and Palo Alto Software are strong supporters of entrepreneurs and small business owners. We work with like-minded partners who also want to help your businesses succeed by providing the best tools and content for the job. If our readers choose to learn more or purchase from links to our partners, sometimes we earn affiliate commissions that support Bplans’ mission.

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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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Why Brand Consistency Is Key When Creating Your Website

YoungUpstarts

When done right, branding can be a powerful thing. There are hundreds of companies out there that most of us would instantly recognise by their logo alone, and this is something we should all aspire to achieve. One way to start is through the development of your website. In creating your website, you need clear communication throughout in what your company represents.

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Stop Hoping For Referrals – Build Your Referral Teams and Start Getting A Referral A Day

Duct Tape Marketing

Stop Hoping For Referrals – Build Your Referral Teams and Start Getting A Referral A Day written by Guest Post read more at Duct Tape Marketing. Most people believe that getting referrals is something that just happens, that all you need to do is just turn up to networking events, do a good job with your clients or customers and be part of a referral group.

More Trending

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Oracle-NetSuite win-win?

deal architect

After 15 years and countless deals, you would think integrating acquisitions would be an Oracle core competence. It’s inconsistently so if you talk to many “refugees” who have left after an Oracle acquisition. After listening yesterday (replay here) to Oracle.

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The 4 Best Cities In America For Startups

YoungUpstarts

So, you’ve got the bug to work for yourself? There is no doubt about it, the appeal of startup culture is inarguable. It represents our chance to get away from the nine to five grind, stop taking orders, and start working for yourself. Instead of completing one menial task after another, we’ll have the ability to make our dent in the world. With luck, we might even make some money doing it.

America 145
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For Startups, Where Does Brand Marketing Fit? [Traction #32: Nancy Go, Wayfair]

View from Seed

When you hear “brand marketing,” what do you think about? Maybe big brands, big budgets, or even big wastes of money and time as a startup, right? But what if brand marketing could help you get actual results, whether that’s user acquisition or raising a Series A? In this episode, we talk to the VP of Brand Marketing at ecommerce company Wayfair, Nancy Go.

Marketing 210
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5 Quotes From Business Founders Destined To Fail

Startup Professionals Musings

People with a victim mentality should never be entrepreneurs. We all know the role of starting and running a business is unpredictable, and has a high risk of failure. For people with a victim mentality, this fear of failure alone will almost certainly make it a self-fulfilling prophecy. I’m sure you all know someone who is the perennial victim. The problem is that most of these people aren’t likely to accept your assessment, so it’s hard to help them.

Founder 198
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Enterprise processes and systems in a world of growing automation

deal architect

In recent blog posts you have seen me combat what I consider alarmist scenarios about job losses from automation being painted by many analysts, academics and folks in Silicon Valley.

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Taking The Plunge – 5 Steps To Recruiting Your First Employees For Your Business

YoungUpstarts

by Maria Borg, director of Thinking Forward. One of the crucial steps in getting your business up and running is to hire your first employees. You have finally reached the point where juggling all roles, wearing all hats and being all things to all people is no longer sustainable. It’s time to recruit! You know you want someone who will be devoted to all aspects of your business – who will possess the same passion, dedication and drive that you demand of yourself every day… after all, isn’t that

Employee 135
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What the Harvard Business Review and The People’s Daily think about leadership succession

Steve Blank

I had to laugh when my post about what happens when innovative CEOs retire or die appeared in both the bastion of capitalism– the Harvard Business Review — and in the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party – The People’s Daily. Then I didn’t. A Story is Just a Story. Why the Harvard Business Review published the story has a pretty simple explanation.

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9 Transaction Models Shape Your Customer Experience

Startup Professionals Musings

Focus is everything in a business, whether it be a new startup or a large enterprise. In my role as a business advisor, I often see well-meaning entrepreneurs try to be everything to everyone, which results in many things done poorly, and few totally delighted customers. People are confused by multiple messages, and employees are frustrated trying to personalize customer experiences.

Customer 197
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The Comparative Advantage of Nations applied to technology

deal architect

As Washington, London and other world capitals debate and revisit classical global trade thinking, a remarkable change has been happening in the technology world. SaaS, PaaS and IaaS competencies are becoming increasingly pronounced and vendors are recognizing the sheer scale.

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The 4 Barriers To Starting A Business And How You Can Solve Them

YoungUpstarts

Some of us are simply born with the entrepreneurial mindset. There is nothing more appealing than having the ability to go out into the world, make our mark, and support ourselves while we’re doing it. It takes a certain kind of person to withstand all the pressures of self-employment, but the rewards are virtually unlimited. Unfortunately, most people are a force to give up before they start.

Finance 162
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What the Harvard Business Review and The People’s Daily think about leadership succession

Steve Blank

I had to laugh when my post about what happens when innovative CEOs retire or die appeared in both the bastion of capitalism– the Harvard Business Review — and in the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party – The People’s Daily. Then I didn’t. A Story is Just a Story. Why the Harvard Business Review published the story has a pretty simple explanation.

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Seek Support Organizations Based On Startup Stage

Startup Professionals Musings

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. That’s like trying to sell part of something to a stranger for big money when you haven’t fully defined it yet. It won’t work, it costs time and money, and hurts your credibility when you need them later. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy).

Incubator 196
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How One Entrepreneur Will Disrupt $4 Billion Dollar Electric Wheelchair Market

YFS Magazine

Your products are good. You’ve entered a mature market. You know how to hustle and launch your ideas. You’re nearly there. But the game isn’t won yet.

Marketing 129
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3 Ways To Resolve Business Conflicts Without Going To Court

YoungUpstarts

by Stephen McDonough, founder and lead attorney/mediator at Next Phase Legal. No matter the size or the industry, conflicts occur in every business. Whether internally with employees or externally with customers, lawsuits can take a hefty toll on a business’s finances. On average, litigation costs Fortune 500 companies roughly a third of their after-tax profits per year and small businesses can suffer just as hard of a hit to the bank account.

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Alexa, What’s Your Favorite Accelerator?

Feld Thoughts

I love Alexa. Of all the various tech things I’ve bought in 2016, Amazon’s Alexa has become the most consistently used new thing in my world. I’ve even had a breakthrough on the home front as Amy now regularly says “Alexa, play …” We’ve got them everywhere and the Echo Dot that showed up in October is centrally located on my office desk at Foundry Group.

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Pre-seed investments work best when there’s a clear plan for short term value creation

The Equity Kicker

Most VCs will say that to evaluate deals they look at the market size, the product and the quality of the team. Different investors place different weights on the three elements but as a rule earlier stage investors place more emphasis on the team and later stage investors place more emphasis on the market. That’s because early stage companies find it easier to change their market than their team whilst later stage companies find it easier to change their team than their market.

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Am I Meant To Be An Entrepreneur? 5 Questions To Find Out

YFS Magazine

Once you realize that you’re meant to do something more significant with your life an inner struggle presents itself.

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Budgeting For Life: Financial Tools To Help Small Business Owners Stick With It!

YoungUpstarts

When it comes to managing your financial life, not many get excited about the big, bad “B” word – budgeting, that is. The thought of budgeting feels like a massive burden on both your time and your energy, not only to create it but to maintain it, too. However, being able to stick with a budget based on your income and your expenses is paramount to your ongoing financial well-being.

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An Interview with Notation Capital about Starting VC Funds

Feld Thoughts

Last month I had dinner at Pizzeria Locale in Boulder and did a long interview with Nick Chirls and Alex Lines of Notation Capital for their podcast. Dinner was about them and as they learned, if you trek out to Boulder, dinner is on me. Their podcast series is called Origins and is unique among podcasts as they go deep into the formation history of venture funds, especially from an LP perspective.

LP 113
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How MAG created the ‘Good Times Factory’ and reached over 100 million players

The Next Web

In the lead-up to Tech5 2017 – the annual competition organized by TNW and Adyen which celebrates Europe’s fastest-growing tech companies – we’re launching a series of remarkable stories of businesses that experienced extreme growth. We asked these companies to tell us the data backed story on how key decisions were made, which growth hacks led to the much loved hockey stick curve, and how this impacted their company.

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4 Powerful Ways To Increase Sales Without Being Salesy

YFS Magazine

If you come from a place of being boldly curious about your clients and how you can passionately help them, you can never go wrong.

Sales 119
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10 Sales Interview Questions You Need To Be Asking

YoungUpstarts

by Andrew Armstrong. Hiring always comes with a degree of risk, but this is particularly true when it comes to sales positions. A company’s lifeblood is its revenue, so the stakes aren’t much higher than with these front-line jobs that put your business’ products or services into the hands of consumers. Whether you are hiring your first sales representative, seeking to staff an entire department, or simply making a replacement, the hiring process doesn’t come without a c

Sales 147
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John Lilly On The Role of Simplicity and Messaging

Feld Thoughts

Yesterday I talked briefly about taking a break from media. However, I wasn’t precise, as the one thing I read each week is the New York Times Sunday paper. When Amy and I lived in Boston we started reading it every Sunday morning and continued whenever we travelled. Several years ago I started having it delivered to our house on Sunday morning and it is a delightful Sunday morning ritual for us.

New York 112
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Who are the 30 fastest growing companies in Europe?

The Next Web

This is a question we ask ourselves. Every year we search for the answer and for 2016, we’re proud to announce it to you. Congrats to Lesara for claiming the number one spot! Download the full list of the 30 fastest growing companies But that’s not all. For the fourth year in a row, TNW and Adyen joined forces to organize the Tech5 competition in which we scour The Netherlands, the UK, Spain, France, Germany and Sweden for the fastest revenue-growing companies.

Europe 102
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How Direct Selling Is Winning The Millennial Generation

YFS Magazine

Direct selling, no longer the domain of door-to-door salesmen, is now enjoying a resurgence with its appeal to a whole new generation.

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Simple & Easy – Two Secrets Of A Remarkable Customer Experience

YoungUpstarts

by Noah Fleming, author of “ The Customer Loyalty Loop: The Science Behind Creating Great Experiences and Lasting Impressions “ Remember the terrible experience of renting a movie back in the day? My small town still has brick & mortar video stores and being in Canada; we still have severe winters! I’ve got to put my winter boots and coat on.

Customer 145
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@bfeld v51.0

Feld Thoughts

I turned 51 today. I’ve been telling people I’m 33 (since that’s my age in hex) and when I feel like having people say “whoa – you look a lot younger than that” I say I’m 63 (since that’s my age in octal). I like to look forward on my birthday instead of backwards, so when I woke up this morning I had a handful of things in my head for the next version of myself.

SMS 112
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How Indiegogo Grew its Business

Version One Ventures

This is the fourth and final post covering speakers’ insights from our marketplace meetup held in San Francisco on October 20. If you haven’t already, check out previous posts detailing Andrew Chen’s (Uber) fireside chat on growth strategies , Anthony Marino’s (ThredUp) talk on managed marketplaces , and B2B marketplace dynamics from Shippo’s Mikhail Ledvich.

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How to Launch an Awesome Kickstarter Campaign

Up and Running

If you’re looking for an easy way to propel your business forward, then Kickstarter isn’t the platform for you. While you may have heard the maxim “the best things in life are free,” you probably also know that few things in life are truly free. This is especially true when it comes to your business or career success. So, if you want to take advantage of Kickstarter to fund your brilliant idea, you’re going to have to work pretty hard at it.

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5 Habits To Turn Your Startup Dreams Into Reality

YoungUpstarts

Entrepreneurs are both doers and dreamers. In the spirit of entrepreneurship, we are reckoned to go above and beyond for our business no matter big and small. At times growth may not be as substantial as you may want it to be and you require more input or a different kind of information to add value to your business. Therefore in the light of becoming a more successful entrepreneur, the little changes are the most significant.