Sun, 22 February 2015
About: Pete Williams- Founder of Preneur Marketing- Entrepreneur, Author, and Marketer. Overview: Pete Williams, nicknamed the Richard Branson of Australia, takes us through his entrepreneurial journey that started in high school. He also takes us through the 7 Levers of Business, and how we can increase our business through simple steps.
Highlights:Background: Pete started his first business in high school, doing web design for local businesses. Then, he went onto school and received a commerce degree. It wasn't quite what he was expecting, but he learned a lot. His parents were actually teachers and not entrepreneurs, but he gained a desire through working with his friends. Selling MCG Stadium: Ok, so Pete didn't actually sell the stadium, but when it was torn down, and as a 21 year old, he took pieces of the demolished stadium (carpet, timber), created a memorabilia piece, and started selling these pieces to the public. He was able to structure his business model in a way that made the sales fast, efficient, and effective. He was profitable from day one. Telecommunications: After his success with selling the memorabilia pieces, he started working for a telecommunications company, selling phone systems. Consulting: Currently, Pete is consulting startup companies on their HR, marketing, and all around communications. 7 Levers of Business: Traffic, Opt-Ins, Conversions, Average Item Price, Transactions Per Client, and Margins. Pete shares that if you spend 2 weeks and just focus on one of these things, you can increase an aspect of your business by 10% in that area. So, if you then spend 14 weeks total, or 2 weeks per area on growing that part of your business by 10%, by the end of the 14 weeks, you will have doubled your business profits. Helping Entrepreneurs: Pete tells us that when you discover new tools, you need to determine which aspect of your business that tool is going to help grow. If it's not going to help your business grow at the time you need it to, than it's not relevant. End Game for Pete: He has a couple of ideas and a few other books coming out down the road. But he is just going to continue to focus on growing his businesses, and balancing his work/personal life. Take Away: Pete teaches us to open our minds, involve mentors and advisors, and make money with existing ideas. There is no need to reinvent the wheel. Connect With Pete:preneurmarketing.com| petewilliams.com.au | @preneur | Books If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsors:Flitch CreativeBuild your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER" |
Fri, 20 February 2015
About: David Ryan Polgar- Digital Lifestyle Expert & Tech Ethicist Overview: David Ryan Polgar shares his tactics on how we can become more balanced in our technology-overwhelmed world.
Highlights:What is a Digital Lifestyle Expert & Tech Ethicist: A tech ethicist looks at tech use from an ethical, legal, sociological, and emotional framework. It came about because a few years ago he kept reading articles about the major impact of social media and how it’s affecting us. David a former college professor, attorney, and now a writer and public speaker decided to use all those skills to help people achieve balance with their technology. Who Hires David: Corporations and startups hire David to analyze their tech companies from every angle. For example, he is currently helping a startup that focuses on parental controls called CoPilot Family. Trends in the Tech World for Entrepreneurs: David feels we are becoming a lot more nuanced about how we discuss technology. The startup community is all about efficiency and productivity. Tech balance is all about being creative, and becoming a critical thinker. People care more about your ideas, and not so much how many hours you put in. Sort of like the work smart, not hard mentality. How to have Tech Balance: You cannot rely solely on willpower to make a change in your life. You need to actually physically say that you’re not going to be available for a couple of hours, or go on a hike without your phone. David suggests replacing your phone alarm for an old school alarm clock. Side Effects from Our Technology: Some physical problems are eye problems, wrist strains, etc. David shares that our phones are interrupting creativity, critical thinking, and conversation. We need to step back and change our situation. It’s addicting to have a smart phone, and to hear that ding and feel loved. However, technology is neither good or bad, it’s all in how we use it. It has the potential to be very good, but it also has the potential to be very bad if we allow it to be. What is Mental Obesity: It is the phrase David likes to use when our brains feel full. It’s easy to know when you gain physical weight, but it’s not so easy to know when your brain is “overweight.” We start feeling so overwhelmed because of the constant pressure we feel from our technology. The way David sees things developing over the next 5 years is having some type of mental food plate to help us keep a balance. Our problem isn’t the amount of information that’s out there, it’s actually retaining that information in our minds. Deeper level thinking requires reflection, but how often do we reflect? Suggestions from David: He shares with us that it’s important to take time each day to be completely unplugged where you can reflect, and give your mind a technology break. You’re never going to be under-tech, so don’t feel like you’re missing out when you take that time each day. Future for David: It’s going to be 2-part. The first is seeing a massive growth with CoPilot Family. Also, David, is going to be doing a lot more speaking gigs about tech balance, and making that scalable. He’s thinking about doing a speaking series, doing more TV gigs, and possibly doing things overseas. He is also currently developing a book. Overall Goal of Being a Digital Lifestyle Expert: It’s about raising awareness for the need of having tech balance, and offering solutions to help people with this. Take Away: You cannot be an Outlier if you’re over plugged. You cannot be an Outlier if you’re constantly multi-tasking. You become an Outlier when you’re a creative thinker- when you’re digesting the material. It’s good to be bored every once and awhile to allow the mental space. Connect With David:Personal Website | Company Website |@TechEthicist |@CopilotFamily If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsors:Flitch CreativeBuild your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER" |
Thu, 19 February 2015
About: Ezra Winter- Writer and Social Media Professional Overview: Ezra is a social media and digital marketing professional who writes about his work and interviews interesting people in the field. He consults with companies and helps them boost their social media presence. His work has appeared in Complex Magazine and other popular outlets. Through this interview, Ezra shares with us how he maintains a work-life balance, and what a typical day in his life looks like. Highlights:What Ezra Does: Ezra helps companies with the social media strategy. For a few clients he does the actual posting, and also interacts with his client's followers. More frequently, he comes in to help train companies' staff, help set up accounts, and help share with those companies what works. End Goal: Ezra would like to get his personal brand off the ground and focus on doing more live events. He has a background in performing and working with audiences, and so with that he'd like to be more involved with speaking engagements. Typical Day: Ezra generally works out of his apartment and has the ability to set his own schedule. He never works 9-5. Typically, he might work really hard in the morning, then take a break during the day to eat, and go to the gym, and then he'll work hard again later in the afternoon. He definitely works more than 40 hours, but its on his own terms and so he really enjoys the flexibility. Marketing Workshop: If you'd like to sign up for one of Ezra's workshop, he will be focusing on Twitter. It will be teaching you how to get more followers and how to keep them engaged. Tips for Entrepreneurs using Twitter: For those personal accounts, don't post too often. Post things that are engaging and creative. Don't always be asking for things from your followers. Think of Twitter as a platform and not a broadcast. Building Your Brand: If you struggle in the witty department but have great content to offer, don't stress! Ezra says you don't absolutely need to be funny. If you are putting information out there that is useful and practical, people will read it and apply it. Work-Life Balance: Ezra shares that it's necessary to do a high quality of work but you have to know when to turn it off. First off, Ezra had to find the work-work balance and compromise between the writing and marketing aspects of his job. Right now, he is working about 60 hours a week, but takes time each day to create some balance in his personal life. Advice for Entrepreneurs: For those trying to get their first gig, don't quit your 9-5 just yet. Ezra worked with a marketing company for a few years, while doing some things on his own time on the side until he had established some great clients. He shares that it's important to do this before quitting your 9-5. Take Away: It's possible to come from a low place to living the lifestyle of your dreams. Although, it takes dedication, hard work, and actively applying your skills- it's worth the wait. Connect With Ezra:Website | Blog | @WinterEzra If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsors:Flitch CreativeBuild your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER" |
Wed, 18 February 2015
About: John Jenkins-Sr. IEM & Special Projects Manager for Intel The following interview was conducted at the StartSLC conference in SLC, Utah January 29 & 30, 2015 Overview: John Jenkins is a tech representative for Intel. He primarily focuses on the startup tech community. He is here to find ways to support the startup community through resources that Intel has to offer. Specifically, in the mobile market and the X86 Architecture program. If a developer needs some hardware to test on, Intel is happy to provide those developers with that and John is there to help. For Utah, the funding and talent is there but has it's struggles. John shares with us about the gap between brilliant engineers and their struggle to business/market their great ideas. One of the goals for Intel in Utah is to continue the support and building within the tech community of Utah. Eventually, they want to develop a plan that will bridge the gap for engineers and launching their ideas. John advises entrepreneurs to not be afraid to bootstrap as much as you possibly can. Although the entrepreneurial trend is all about gathering funding, don't feel like that's what you have to do. |
Tue, 17 February 2015
About: Emma Ponsonby- Founder of Emperia Ventures Overview: Emma shares with us about her drive for being a part of Emperia Ventures- an ecommerce business currently in Dubai.
Highlights:Dubai Community: When Emma came to Dubai 2 years ago, there was a very small startup community, but Emma feels more support has evolved for startups since being there- from the government, community, and other startups. About Emperia Ventures: Emma started her first business in school designing logos for small entities all over the world. From that experience she really learned how to fend for herself. From there she went to New Zealand and worked with another design company. Over the last 13 years, she’s been involved in design, marketing, and e-commerce type companies. She got frustrated with the corporate world, and decided to do something on her own. Emperia Venture's Intention: It is to help people build other startups and get them on their feet. All of these companies have a focus on lifestyle, or e-commerce. The people who come to Emperia Ventures have great ideas, but don’t necessarily have what they need to get started on their own. Emperia Ventures acts a bit like a VC, but not completely. They’re really focusing on bringing together creative industries with technology. Right now they’re building an e-commerce platform to create a unique experience for each and every customer. Team Background: Emperia Ventures has about 25 people working for them at the moment. They are based in 9 different countries, and 11 different cities. However, soon they are going to have an office based in Dubai. Business as a Woman in Dubai: Surprisingly, there is a lot of extra support for women in that area who are striving to make it in the business world in Dubai. Raising Funds: They are operating with investors in the US, the UK, Australia, and the Middle East. It’s quite a tight family with these investors. Emma feels that with finding investors she has to be very clear with what their company is about to attract the right kind of investors. Acquir.Me is the biggest project they are currently working on right now. Shop By Mood: A current project they’re working on that focuses on emotions and mood based information. Through various ways, they identify what mood the customer is in, and how a customer makes a decision in an emotional state of mind. With that, they then try to help that customer make a purchase that makes them feel more fulfilled and satisfied with their purchase. They are planning to launch this platform as soon as they can this year. Advice for Entrepreneurs in E-commerce: Be very clear with what you want to bring into whatever industry that you’re in. Research understanding what your customer needs and wants. You also really need to know who you are as an entrepreneur because when you’re sitting their with an investor, everything you haven’t dealt with is right in front of you at that meeting. Know your numbers, and know your company inside and out with these investors. These investors are investing in your just as much as they are with your business. End Game for Emperia Ventures: Although it’s quite a long way away, it’s something that Emma will be focusing for a long time. She will continue to help build businesses, sell businesses, and helping people fulfill their dreams. Take Away: Be confident in what you’re doing. Know yourself and your business well before you take your company to investors. Connect With Emma:Website | @EmmaPonsonby | AboutMe If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsors:Flitch CreativeBuild your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER"
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Mon, 16 February 2015
About: Bradley Joyce- Founder of Velocis , SocializerHQ, and Launch DFW Overview: Bradley Joyce is the true definition of being an Outlier. During this interview, he shares with us all about the different companies he started and what it’s like balancing so many responsibilities in the entrepreneurial world.
Highlights:Velocis: It is a company Bradley started in 2008 as a way to get into the web development world. It was the entity under which he did all of his work. He spent a lot of time helping small companies build their businesses, and eventually got into bigger build-up applications. It’s a team of 13 people- designers, developers, marketers, and sales people. They act as an incubator for a lot of the smaller companies. Up to this point, they have about 5 companies and have equity stake in most of them while helping them build their sites, and platforms. Application Process: If you’d like to become a partner, get on AngelList and set up your profile. For the equity base deals, they are looking for a few companies to work with later in the Spring. Feel free to reach out directly to Bradley as well. About Socializer: Is a spin out from Velocis. At the time, Bradley and his co-founder worked full-time on this company for about a year and a half. They raised some money, and really pounded the pavement building product. It’s been on the shelf for the past 12 months. It’s been through just about everything a startup can go through. What is Socializer: A predictive analytics for social media. They would use specific algorithms to help increase clicks and re-tweets. Why the Hold on Socializer: Money was the biggest reason. They needed a lot more investment for infrastructure. They had a hard time sustaining the monthly fees, and their customers at the time were not ready for the cost required to help pay for the business itself. Plans to Revive Socializer: Bradley and his team have been thinking about moving forward with Socializer- but are waiting on funds to come through. It’s not necessarily off the table, they may sell it, but they’re not quite sure yet. Apps Created: Previously, Bradley worked for a company, and during that time, the company built a product called Tweet Saver. It was back during the time when Twitter was open to companies building upon it. It essentially archived all of your tweets. Another app they created was called Quitter- and it tracked all of those who unfollowed you on Twitter. Bradley didn’t originate Quitter, but it was given to him by a client. He grew it from 50,000 users to 200,000 users. Quitter was somewhat profitable, but not something that made large amounts of money. Eventually, Bradley didn’t have the time to run all these apps, and so he listed the apps on a site and sold them to another Twitter app-like company. Learning Mistakes: Bradley admits that selling these apps were some of the biggest mistakes in his entrepreneurial career. Bradley feels that if he had the patience, he would have worked more on these apps, and grown them in different ways to get them into a niche area. What is Launch DFW: Bradley started the company in 2010. It’s an online community that started off as a very simple blog. From there it grew into hosting network events, happy hours, meetings, etc. The best way to think about what Launch DFW is a TechCrunch for the Dallas area. They try to aggregate as much information as possible for the Launch DFW community. Right now, they have about 20,000 visits a month. They have around 200 people at their events, and about a 100 people to their happy hour. It started out as a passion project, but within the last 6 months, they’ve really focused on making it a successful business because of its role of importance in helping the community. They have a lot of goals around making sure it’s a sustainable business for 2015. Unique about Bradley: He is really into sports, and played water polo from 3rd grade through college. And he shares that sports prepare you for business in so many ways: dedication, hard work, teamwork, etc. Advice for Entrepreneurs: From Bradley’s experience, the more you share your ideas, and the more you talk to other people to get feedback, the more you grow and become better. It’s so important to be open and honest with everyone around you. Being an entrepreneur is hard work, and you need that support. For those who are dipping their toes into the entrepreneurial world, talk to a lot of people about what you want to do. Try and get as much validation with potential customers that you can do up front to get a feel for what’s out there. Once you do it, be 100% committed. . Don’t straddle the line too long. Take Away: Bradley teaches us that the sky is the limit when it comes to starting a business. Although, there are many highs and lows to being involved with so many different companies, the rewards are worth the risk. Connect With Bradley:Website | @BradleyJoyce | @Velocis | @SocialyzerHQ | @LAUNCHDFW | AboutMe If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsors:Flitch CreativeBuild your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER"
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Sun, 15 February 2015
About: Andrew Dumont- Entrepreneur in Residence at Betaworks Overview: Andrew is a determined and intelligent young man who has a passion for building businesses. He shares his experiences with starting the company Stride, and what he is doing now at Betaworks to prepare for future entrepreneurial work.
Highlights:Background: Andrew is originally from Seattle, but now living in New York working at Betaworks. He came to NY to elevate his entrepreneurial game and be surrounded by people who are always on the go. Betaworks: It's essentially like a startup studio and is structured by 2 sides. The first side is an investment side. They are currently involved in about 15-20 seed investments with about $100-$250k per investment. Some of the companies Betaworks has invested in are: Kickstarter, Tumblr, and many others. Right now, they are investing in ProductTime. The other side of the company is the studio portion. Betaworks hires entrepreneurs to help with the media business and with what new media will look like. They build new products that will be compelling in that space. Some of those products include: Chart B, Dots (iPhone game), and Dig. It’s not a traditional type of company- they like to start their employees from scratch. They go out and find talent within the community they’ve built. They’re going to start a new program called “Hacker” where they work with a creator that builds a new thing within 3 months. This new program is very much like the film studios in Hollywood. Daily Workload: Andrew went out to New York because a good friend was an investor with Betaworks. Andrew was very interested in the business model. He was ready to do his own thing, and by coming to Betaworks, was given a good opportunity to do his own thing at a great company. When he started there, Andrew spent a lot of time on helping platforms like Insta Paper, Dig, and Pancho. His role was to solve some of the problems that those applications were experiencing. Andrew’s Goal: His next step is to determine if Betaworks will be the right fit for helping him start his own company. Previous Startup (Stride): Stride was a company/app that Andrew co-founded. It was built it in about 3 weeks. Andrew and his team built Stride as a light weight CRM application. The idea behind Stride is that salesforce was a really complicated tool, so they wanted an app that focused more on the simple- more about the stages of where the sales were at. Stride was a completely bootstrapped company. It made about $20k in revenue in about year and a half (side project). Once it started getting bigger, they were trying to determine if it was something they wanted to pursue, but Andrew felt like the market was completely capped, so they decided to sell the growing company to Neil Patel and Heaton Shaw. Andrew is good friends with Neil Patel, and he really trusted in their ability to scale and build products. It was a very smooth process selling it to them, which Andrew was grateful for, because they already had customers using their application. He wanted to make sure that those customers were taken care of and knew that Neil and Heaton would be the right fit. Andrew’s Passion: Out of all the things there is to do in the entrepreneurial world, Andrew really enjoys businesses over consumer products. He states, "They aren’t as sexy but they capture my interest." In the future he'd like to do something similar to Stride but a little more aggressive. Work-Life Balance: Andrew says that you have to understand that you’re sacrificing a lot of the work-life balance in the early stages. It takes more than 40 hours a week. You have to do certain things each week that make it so you don’t burn out. To keep a balance, Andrew tried to shut off and be unplugged on the weekends. Every year, he makes sure to do at least a week or two of being completely unplugged from the world. He says, "There’s no doubting the fact that it’s [being an entrepreneur] hard work, but it’s just part of the deal." Common Mistakes: Andrew has made plenty of mistakes through his own journey, but says that’s how you learn. "You need to fail to really understand things." Every single company he’s been apart of started small. Many of them failed, but some of them did grow into large, successful companies. Seismic was a great example of company that had too much cash, and pivoted too often. There’s a right time to pivot and a wrong time to pivot. When things aren’t working, a companies' natural inclination is to pivot, which can ultimately destroy what is trying to be built. Andrew shares that it's important to have a hunch as an entrepreneur. You have to believe in something that others may not. There’s a lot of reasons why a company can fail, and it’s usually more than just one element that causes the fall. Advice for Entrepreneurs After They Fail: It’s hard not to get down on yourself when things don’t work, but you have to understand that it’s part of the anomaly. You have to reclassify your definition of success. It’s a constant battle to readjust. Depression in startups is a real thing. So, a lot of it is making your mind stronger. For Andrew, preparing his mind means putting things in perspective and setting very clear goals. Don’t get distracted by what’s going on in other companies around you. Take Away: In order to be a successful entrepreneur, you have to be willing to put in overtime. 40 hours a week isn't going to cut it. Like Andrew, you may even have to start something on the side while working a mainstream job until you can launch. Even though it's not going to be easy, it's worth it. Connect With Andrew:Website | @AndrewDumont | AboutMe | Blog If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsors:Build your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER"
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Thu, 12 February 2015
About: Chris Brogan- CEO of Owner Media Group Overview: Chris Brogan is a successful and approachable entrepreneur. He has consulted for large firms all over the world, including Disney, Google, Microsoft, etc. Chris provides education and tools to help you make your life and your business thrive, by teaching you how to own the game you most want to win. Throughout this interview, we learn some great tips on how to be a powerful salesman, and how Chris has become successful.
Highlights:Why Meet with Outliers: We asked Chris why he was so willing to meet with us, and he responds by saying that he is always willing to help others, no matter what stage of work they are in and was excited to help you, Outliers. He states that everyone has started at some point and he was at the starting point at a stage in his life too. Chris wants to connect with others and see how he can help them. Newsletter Strategy: The easiest way that Chris explains it, is he’s always made it a point to talk to people the way he’d want someone to talk to him, and/or even to his mother. Chris is always trying to sell something- it’s business. But what he considers a sale is a transaction of value. 90% of the stuff he does is free, and the other 10% is where he creates his revenue. Sales: “If you don’t believe in all your heart and soul, that the thing you are offering, is the right thing, then it’s going to be hard for you to ever ask for the sale.” If you’re selling something that doesn’t work, then you’re not going to do so well. You have to believe that what you’re selling is truly going to help that person. When you are worried about making rent, or paying the bills, then you are selling with the wrong perspective and those that you are selling to will feel it as well.. Sell from love. It’s easier to sell value than anything else. Mistakes Outliers May Be Making: You cannot share, or sell something that you have not experienced. The secret sauce is that people want to know that you’re just like them. Chris hates the phrase “fake it ‘til you make it.” He says, “Don’t fake it ‘til you make it, believe until the world catches up to where you are.” Sometimes people don’t see it the way you do because they can’t see the vision that you do. Entrepreneurship and a lot of our journey can be tough, sometimes you have money and sometimes you have no money. The trick is to just be really good about where you are. What is Success: Chris believes that success is being able to say no to the things that he wants to say no to. He feels that he’s “made it,” according to the world, but he still has new goals and new heights he wants to reach. The people who fail the most in life are the people who let up on the gas petal once they reach a certain goal. Chris really admires people like Warren Buffet who work until the very end. Richard Branson is also a great example of continuing success. Richard has over 400 companies and still runs at full speed. He works hard and he plays hard. Biggest Challenge: Getting people to understand the story that he’s trying to tell. With all sales and marketing, Chris believes that he has something to offer to those around him and he truly wants to help them. Revenue: Since 2008, his company revenue has always fluctuated. In 2010, he lost $400,000 in investments. His goal for revenue this year is to beat the $1Million mark. Chris shares that when someone is thinking about their revenue goal, they need to think about what it’s going to take to achieve that and if it’s really worth it. Each goal depends on who you are and what works for you. End Game for Chris Brogan: He's not sure what it is, but he hopes that he’ll get that one idea that will allow him to create a company that will live on past him. He eventually wants to build a product he can sell that he won’t be the face of. About Chris’s latest book - The Freaks Shall Inherit the Earth: Chris considers himself a “freak.” He defines freak as someone who has almost a tattoo like obsession of doing the kind of business they want to do with the people they want to do it with, and doing it the way they most want to do it. Tony Hawk, Mark Echo, and Kate White are great examples of being “freaks” of their business. A freak is the people who are tired of trying to fit in, and are just trying to find out where they belong. You can definitely have a day job and be a freak. The whole concept doesn’t require that you set off on your own and do your own thing; it’s simply owning what you do. Take Away: Chris has an authentic approach to sales that teaches any of us entrepreneurs to be true believers in what we’re selling. Like his most recent book, Chris shares that we need to become “freaks” in whatever business we are doing and we will be successful. Connect With Hasan:OwnerMag.com | ChrisBrogan.com | @ChrisBrogan | Facebook If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsor: Build your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER" |
Wed, 28 January 2015
About: Hasan Mirjan- Founder of SpherePad, & SphereMail Overview: Hasan shares with us the struggles of immigrating from Iraq to America and the ups and downs of doing what you love. He had to be very patient along the way until he could create the company he was so passionate about. We learn all about SphereSpace and their sister companies, and how a co-working space can help any entrepreneur.
Highlights:Background: Hasan’s story goes back 25 years or so. He comes from a family of entrepreneurs. The first business that he started was a chicken farm located in Iraq. The chicken business didn’t do so well, so he opened up a stationary store, but due to circumstances in the country, it ended. When he came to America, he worked for a company in the tech industry, but wanted to start something of his own. Once he got residency in the country- he quit his day-to-day job to finally start his own company. The company was called capture.com that was related to artists and photographers. However the company soon failed. So, in 2010 Hasan launched SpherePad despite negative criticisms about the company being successful. Struggles: Throughout the 9 years of working at his tech job in the US, he wanted to leave and start his own company but he couldn’t quit do so because he didn’t have residency. Hasan shares how he had to be completely patient until he could start the company of his dreams. Despite his anxiousness, Hasan shares that his experience at his 9-5 job taught him about corporations, human management, and finances. What is SpherePad: A co-working space that provides startups with the type of connections and community that a new company needs. Hasan has met many different types of people through SpherePad that has provided him and others with assets at their disposal. It’s not about high revenue for SpherePad, it’s meant to be more like a compliment to a secondary company. Currently there are co-working spaces in the US, the UK, France, and Australia. Importance of Being Involved in a Co-working Space: You know a lot about the people around you and your community. When you see a company come to your space and become very successful, it’s good to know that they started in your co-working space. You maintain strong connections with many people all across the board. What is SphereMail: The space at SpherePad was being used, and people using the space wanted an email that they could use while there. It’s a white label application, that SpherePad gives a link to those using the co-space. SphereMail is not a flat monthly fee, it’s all free. They only take 10% of whatever the revenue is for that user in the co-working space. It has been up and running for 2 1/2 years now. It was completely bootstrapped by Hasan himself. Why is it All Worth It: Hassan shares that he loves building things and being responsible for something great. His passions have allowed him to push through the struggles. What’s Next: SphereTrack is a mail tracking application and expense reporting for companies. The Advantage of Being in San Francisco: It's all about having access to startups and funding. If you want to go fast, and be around the right kind of people, this is the place to be. There’s always room for more startups here. Based on his experience of opening their co-working space, they filled up fast. Advice for Entrepreneurs Immigrating to the US: Stick with it. Even though it is gut wrenching and can throw you for a loop, just stick with it. Don’t take negotiations personally. It’s important for you to understand the US system and how it works. Strive to learn the language, especially if you want to start a large-scale business. Take Away: Although being an entrepreneur can be a long road, it's worth the wait. Even if you have companies that fail, you are never a failure by continuing to pursue your dream. Connect With Hasan:Website SphereMail | Website SpherePad | @HMirjan If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsor:Build your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER" |
Tue, 27 January 2015
About: Melody McCloskey - Founder of StyleSeat Overview: Melody is a young, technology driven entrepreneur. She started StyleSeat to help provide hairstylists and salons a successful platform that will increase their business by 70%.
Highlights:Background: Starting in her early 20's, Melody has been involved in the tech for the past 10 years- which began on the product side. After working for a TV network started by Al Gore where she was brought on to focus on helping monetize the network online, she decided to start her own company. Melody felt that after being in the entrepreneurial world for so long, it was time for her to venture off and do something that she was extremely passionate about. Starting StyleSeat: Melody sat on the idea for a couple of years before launching because she felt that the platform she wanted to develop was almost too obvious of a need that there was sure to be some competition. Eventually, it got to the point that Melody was so obsessed with her idea, that her fears faded away. Finally, she didn't care if the idea didn't succeed, She just had to do it. Despite the hard times, she shares how rewarding it’s been for her to start this company. What is StyleSeat: The beauty industry is one of the fastest growing industries out there. StyleSeat is a business platform and tool for hairstylists and salons. StyleSeat grows their clients' revenue by about 70% in the first month just by helping things run smoother. It's a great resource to help discover, book, and pay for online beauty appointments. How is StyleSeat monetized: There is a premium package that StyleSeat offers that does more than just help with small tasks. Currently, StyleSeat has 3 Millions users. Loreal is now using StyleSeat as their preferred partner and is really excited about the free services they offer and the easiness of the platform. How it all got Started: The first thing Melody did was build a working prototype with an engineer she found on craigslist, based on designs that a good friend of her’s created for equity in the company. Melody then bootstrapped the company for the first year and a half. After that point, their numbers started to show that the business was becoming successful. Since then StyleSeat has received funding and has raised a total of $14 million. StyleSeat has now been in business for 3 ½ years. How StyleSeat Secures Users: Word of mouth is by far their most successful way of adding users to their platform. They made sure that the experience for each new user was one that they wouldn’t forget. They continually focus on better supporting their users, and expanding their platform. Future for StyleSeat: For the first couple years, StyleSeat spent their focus on being a valuable business tool for stylists and salons. Now, that they have created just that, they've launched their first consumer app that consumers will be able to use for booking their appointments, etc. In the coming months they are focusing on becoming a true marketplace for their clients and consumers. Success on the First Try: Melody states that even though this is her first startup, she had some great mentors that taught her life lessons that have shaped the way she’s created this company. She felt that by having such influential mentors, she had a leg up on what to do to create success. Each piece of advice she was given motivated her to keep going and take risks. She was taught to have the right kind of attitude and be positive. Advice for Startups: Don’t let what’s out there, or the rules; stop you from doing what you’re passionate about. Don’t be afraid to ask people for help, and seek out those who have the knowledge that will help you go further. Figure out your distribution as fast as you possibly can. When you can figure out how to speed up that wheel as it turns, you’ll be more successful. Having a co-founder that you have a great relationship with is also one of the most important things you can have when you’re starting a company. Melody and her partner have set long term and short term goals that have helped them come to where they are now. Melody also states that having good friends that you really trust and will support you no matter how many bad days you have has been helpful. She says it’s important to have an outlet outside of the company. Take Away: Melody teaches us to take action on our good ideas, even if we're afraid of the competition or what might already be out there. During the interview she said she knew that if she didn't start this company, and someone came out with her idea months later, she would have hated herself for it. Don't wait around- just start it now!
Connect With Melody:If you enjoy Outlier On Air, please Subscribe & Review on iTunes or StitcherSponsor:Build your brand identity with Flitch Creative's eXpress Packages. All eXpress Packages include free website and email hosting for 12 months. Use promo code "OUTLIER" |
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