The state of the Internet Startup Economy and How to Survive… Part Deux

Yep, economy still sucks… what are you doing about it?

When you are building your product, you need to be thinking about every piece of the business as it relates to sales, marketing, operations, and the internal business operation.

Now an important piece that can help you save money and be truly effective in the market place…

As we reflect on our marketing plans, I’ll share a little bit with you about my plan. In yesterdays blog post, I bragged a bit on how my partners and I have reduced our burn rate to all time lows, and that is an important point in that we dictate that no money be spent if at all possible. How is it that we can market our service with out money? Our strategy has been to integrate our marketing right into the actual product. Yes, thats right, our marketing is built right in and integrated through out. Now I’m not going to go into specfics as I feel we need to protect what we are doing for a short while, and I promise I’ll share once we go to market with the full service. What is important is that our product design, feature set, functionality, and even its cost structure are all built around a comprehensive marketing plan. Ultimately, we have employed a form of affiliate marketing, but the cool thing is that our affiliates are also our paying clients! Who better to market a product that those who are using it right! So, when you sit down with your team, it is important to stop and think “SO WHAT” about everything that your service does… Does your product really matter? Is it something that your clients will love so much that they will tell everyone about it? Your Job is to make your product or service so damn good that your client will no longer even care about your competitors. If you do that, your marketing, as you may or may not be aware, will cost less and be more effective.

More later… off to a quieter coffee shop!

Seeking Angels? Check out these awesome resources from Y-Combinator

Thanks to world renowned Startup Incubator Y-Combinator for releasing their “Series AA Equity Financing Documents”. As stated by Y-Combinator…

Y Combinator and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati are happy to announce the Series AA Equity Financing Documents. Their goal is to make angel funding rounds for startups easier for both sides.

These documents were originally created for YC-funded startups to use when raising angel rounds. They seem to have worked well in trial runs so far, so we’re open-sourcing them.

While they may not be suitable for all situations, the goal was to make the terms fairly neutral. So while we would of course advise both parties using these documents to have their lawyers look at them, they provide a starting point that we hope can be used in many situations without too many modifications.

Needless to say, neither YC nor WSGR assumes any responsibility for any consequence of using these documents.

• Series AA Termsheet
• Series AA Stock Purchase Agreement
• Series AA Board Consent
• Series AA Stockholder Consent
• Series AA Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation
• Series AA Investors’ Rights Agreement

These links are provided by Y-Combinator for your reference. Thanks again to the gang at Y-combinator for making these docs available to the masses.

Credit to @StartupCFO http://startupcfo.ca/ for linking them from his blog.

Entrepreneurs… To band together or go it alone?

One very common comment that you hear from those who’ve been successful as entrepreneurs is “Stay Focused”. Such a vague comment, so lets visit what it means. (this all relates to the topic, bear with me)

Defined: focus [foh-kuhs]- a central point, as of attraction, attention, or activity

Questions:

1. Does focus mean that we should avoid all distractions
2. Does focus mean that we should avoid giving input on others projects
3. Does focus mean that we should ignore what others are saying about our product or service

Answer:

NO

Focus means that we need to stick to our core competencies and seek those out who can support us in areas where we are not strong, while not letting those sought out to become a distraction. Each of us have broad areas of expertise that can help others in similar shoes. For example, one of the ways that I am supporting my entrepreneurial endeavors is that I consult with other web start ups in the area of Information Architecture / Usability and Operations which are my strong points. While I do charge a discounted rate, I always see to it that the client that I am working with can provide valuable input and feedback for the projects that are my central focus.

So, back to the original question… Entrepreneurs, should we band together or go it alone?

My opinion, and its a strong one, is to encourage entrepreneurs to band together and help each other. Lets face it, great minds think alike. When you get a bunch of great minds together in one place, it can be like watching the best fireworks you’ve ever seen. Be warned though, ALWAYS know your scope and what your needs are. Only give what you get and make sure there is a value to everything that you do.

Do you agree? Your comments are invited and very welcomed!

The Web 2.0 / “Next Top Business Model” Panel at NEF (New Enterprise Forum) in Ann Arbor, Mi

Yesterday I had the privilege of being a part of a very dynamic panel discussion on Web 2.0 and what is true merits are to Michigan and its investment community. The Panel was made up of Rick Warner- CEO of ParkingCarma.com, Howard Brown- CEO of Circlebuilder Software and Circlebuilder.com, Steve Schwartz- CEO of RateMyStudentRental.com, and myself Joe Minock- CEO of J.Edward Media Group and Project AccuGet.com and Moderator Ian Bund- Chairman of Plymouth Venture Partners.

The discussion started off with Mr. Bund playing a “Simon’esque” role as moderator asking traditional VC questions such as whats your business model, are you profitable,  whats your exit strategy and so on. His remarks were rather pointed, and he did a good job in helping the panel establish a good rapport with the audience. Upon the completion of Mr. Bund’s questions, the audience was provided the opportunity to ask more Web 2.0 questions and the energy in the room shot through the roof. The questions were phenomenal, and I’d confidently say that my fellow panelists and I provided well thought out answers to every question asked. Being a Web 2.0 Entrepreneur, its was very nice to engage the New Enterprise Forum with the conversation that came from the questions and to start a dialogue that has been needed for some time.

Special thanks go out to Barb Shoffner and Diane Durrance for making this panel possible and also to my fellow Digital Edge Mi members for making the panel such a success.

Look for more to come from Digital Edge Mi soon!

Web 2.0 Marketing… Going for impact?? No Budget? No Problem!

I often laugh when I hear of these crazy and extravagant marketing schemes that the big companies are coming up with today, they are multifaceted and cost hundreds of thousands, if not millions.

Then I recall a little marketing campaign for a comedy central show that went nationwide over a matter of hours when weird little “Litebrite” signs were misconstrued as potential explosive devices. Obviously, the intent was to raise curiosity, not scare the Bostonian’s into thinking their town was under siege.

My point is that you don’t always have to think big dollars to make a big impression. Get creative and get focused on what you really want. Most important of all, know who you are engaging and do good by them!

If you’re interested in learning more about marketing on a budget, wait for more here or visit MediaMEME , a great blog on smart web 2.0 marketing.

New Years Resolution Revisited…

This year has been interesting for me, and it all started off with a multifaceted resolution. As a business leader of a new enterprise, I am committed to lead my business with high energy and a focus on growth and success, ultimately benefiting my partners, clients, and end users of our service. Additionally, with that high energy, I will work hard to leverage my resources and become a recognized force in the digital community in Michigan.

To date, things are going well and I am keeping up with my resolutions. I will oversee the soft-launch of our new web service in the coming week, have plans of meeting with prospective new business partners in the following weeks and have been named to a few discussion panels related to my businesses new technology. The Digital Edge network that I chair has grown nearly double since I took over and we have set a goal of reaching 100+ members by years end.

The Life of a Serial Entrepreneur…

There are a great deal of us that have aspirations and dreams outside that of “the norm”, we’re often looked at as though we are crazy, and well, we are. It’s a drive and determination that will provide for an almost guaranteed experience of what it is like to be truly flat broke at some point in life or another. But for reasons beyond the comprehension of most, we go back for more time and time again, trusting that through our hard work and dedication, that we will see the fruits of our efforts, and also see the benefits provided to many as a result of our sheer will and determination.

I am a serial entrepreneur, and I seek to make a profound difference. I seek to make a great difference, not because I want my name in the paper, not because I’m an egotist, but I seek to make a difference for nothing more that to help others with the problem that I wish to solve. If I do a good job in solving that one thing that irks me most, then that product or solution that is created will see life of its own.  See, I am unique and different, and I care about nothing more than doing good by others.

I want you to share with me, my successes, and my failures, as that is the true value in being an entrepreneur. We get to live, and by that I mean, we get to experience emotions on a grand and prolific scale. And upon our successes, we can share the excitement and entertain you with our unspeakable tales of sheer craziness, risk, and will. And share with you how we went from the bottom to the top, and help you understand how it can be done again and again, by you.