Brilliant Viral..."Museum of Me" by Intel

This is probably the best visualization of what is about to come and how the Internet is going to influence our life in the future...my dear girlfriend discovered it. Thanks hon!

Intel has launches a "Museum of Me" as a viral marketing campaign that highlights selected information based on your social pattern and habits. Sign up and check it out...impressive.

Since quite a time we have seen a lot of startups creating products based on your Facebook profile and account information - now this kind of stuff is used for viral marketing.

• Velveteenstories creates personalized comic cartoons based on your fotos
• Socialmemories creates a printout version of your Facenbook fotoalbums

Here is a nice video explaining Socialmemories...

And a lot more to come, lets see what the future brings, I can imagine a lot of applications for this model....

A new Dimension in Luxury-Yachting

Bored millionaires have a problem. A big problem. If you want to own an exclusive yacht, the choices to pick from have been boiled down to "the bigger the better" and some new designs that are revolutionary but somehow extremely expensive. This is over now, thank god (!)....

Amazing how obvious this business idea is... how difficult is it to own the most extravagant yacht on the 7 seas? Very difficult if you look at the market and try to spot big differences between all the Sunseekers out there...if even Russian billionaires are entering the boring race of "Eclipsing" the "Rising Suns" on this planet....wow. Here a list of the biggest private yachts on earth....spot the differences! It is embarrassing!!! We need a twist....

Yacht Island Design provides themed yachts. And I promise you something: by doing this they'll break the traditional market segmentation into bits and pieces of customized targets. Arabian, Chinese, European, or Tropical Island themes yachts are about to deliver the upper million on this planet a customized experience in owning a boat. Moreover, I see this as a potential product line of themed add-ons and details that assure modular up and cross sells...

...sorry I am getting overly marketing here but imagine approaching your customer after 1 year telling him that you launched an add-on island for your boat that comes with 5 jetskis and a fake beach you can anchor wherever you like. Modular sales follow-up, I love the idea...Think also about the interior options you can cross and up-sell on a yacht of this type...brilliant.

What about fashion?? Don't designers deliver customized jets, yachts and collections for catering the needs of the emerging markets? By launching new collections they achive repeats that are not known in yachting until now....it is a logical step towards the customers desires...

So the next time you see a yacht....shout "BORING"....and have a drink and thank my friend Deepak and "The daily mail" for digging this out...love it.

9 reasons to imitate - The late mover advantage

"A first-mover advantage is the position held by a firm for being first in a market or first to use a particular strategy," says Mundi. "A late-mover advantage is the position earned by firms that are late in entering a market, usually following the first movers and innovators."

I completely agree with the core idea of this statement taken from this article on INC.com, this is what I actually do all the time. It is never too late to replicate a working business model if it does not exist yet in a market. Being late nowadays often means being first. The article makes 9 points in favour of replicating existing business models and why you should actually do it. Here they are, and even if they do not all apply to all models, they are fairly well taken. I made some comments to give my point of view since it is an overly optimistic article...and you know I am a bean-counter:

1. Refining is easier - yep, obvious isn't it?

2. Benchmark your progress - think about the bizplan and the useful data for reference. Good point.

3. Spend you money better - so true, cut out non-value adding processes or activities!

4. Learn from their mistakes - same as point three for me...but true!

5. Remain nimble - depends...

6. Reserach better - depending on the hints you have you might, if you are transferring a service from one market to another you should never take things as researched by someone else.

7. Make yours better - yes, but I'd even say: If its worth it and more profitable, make it strip it to the core...

8. Learn marketing tips - yes absolutely, adds a lot of value and shortens the learning curve. But beware of the cultural differences in markets.

9. Get funded - yes definitively easier!

Related to this there are some good articles that are worth a read, I took them from the same magazine, Inc.com:

Does it pay to be late?

Should you be a copycat?

You see, there is another reason why I chose to operate in this way. You have to be an innovator or inventor in specific field to be successful and to hit the jackpot. I am an all-rounder and enjoy analysis of existing management organisms for replication in other markets, which requires a hell of a lot of marketing skills. That is a totally different type of entrepreneurship. No better not worse, just different. Cheers...

Your personal asssistant...Outsource it!

Being the boss is actually much easier than you think. Delegating is the key for success. Why don't you get your own personal assistant?

The other day I talked with one of my best friends about the topic and it came to my attention that this market is experiencing a hell of a lot demand. I bet that this is going to be a commonplace thing for enhancing your capacity to deliver in the work landscape. Here an article from 2005 that previewed the rise of the personal concierge...right on the money, but now we are going mass-market! Finally...

Check this video published by AskSunday to get a broad overview of the services.

AskSunday Virtual Assistance Service Overview from AskSunday on Vimeo.

I bet there are many people contracting these kind of services, but it may well be a hidden market. I bet nobody admits to be using it, especially within the corporate landscape. For as much as $180 you are able to add 20 hours to your productive hours. Each additional hour is $10...research, data entry, schedule tasks, appointments, telephone services. Whatever you want. Even your online shopping can be handled via India...get a flatrate and boost your productivity to reach that 4 hour work week you deserve...good book by the way!

More personal assistant services to come.... As it was logical for this kind of service we are starting to diversify into different niches. You'll be surprised how many biz models are potentially in there:

• GetFriday (160 hours a month for just $1120, that is a complete month....double your productivity!)...work related
• Lifes2short Lifestyle Management, more of a lifestyle service as it offers Vertu on its phones
• Guess what you can even outsource your online dating...just a nice example of where we are going. Pure specialization. I don't need it, but hey, what a fun business idea!

Problems and limitations: Language difficulties should not arise in languages like English or Spanish, however, if you try to contract such a service at such competitive rates in German you have no chance....Getfriday even had to shut down the service in German even though it generated money...here is a nice inside take on why they had to shut down operations in Germany. Good read! They could not find enough talent to cover the demand. Sad thing, or maybe another business startup will be covering that niche soon. I hope...

Have fun delegating.

Why you should abandon Smileys

Did you ever in your life receive a message with smileys?

If you are reading this here you are most probably somehow interested in business, as I am, and for sure that situation has happened to you:

"Hey could we postpone the meeting from 12.00 to 13.00h? SMILEY"

Not that I am lacking a certain flexibility towards nice intentions to cheer me up (even though I am German, 8 years in Spain soft-wash your judgement skills sometimes...) but honestly: I am at work, do you think it's fun? Do I look like I need some yellow dot with a face to do and love my job?

Anyways: What has a smiley to do in a business mail? For what the smiley, for good karma? For favouring a potential positive outcome? They want me to change opinion based on a little yellow round face? Want to introduce the "Like" button in business mails? What if my boss sees that I am a smiley-guy? Will I get to do the next important negotiation?

Don't misunderstand me, I believe communication between the lines is important, but do we have to drag the topic back to kindergarten?

"Please, please mom buy me some more candy, smiley!" will probably work for a misunderstood working relationship and kids below the age of 15, but one thing for sure: It should never be replied or influence decision making in business.

Ridiculous topic? not at all: Can you imagine that I evaluate business proposals and outsourcing decisions based on the amount of smileys I find in there? Hilarious, there are a rough 40% of companies in India, Pakistan, you name it for IT outsourcing, replying with fat round smileys in every 2nd sentence....Please do me a favour, do not work with these people...it's just like perfuming your CV and writing on your coverletter that you like people, but have no idea about business whatsoever . It's embarrassing.

Sorry for all of you who feel insulted, but these are my criteria and I am free to work by them. Especially men: Please don't, you lose credibility and fall into baby-talk category. Not only in business, I know no girl that would take you for serious if you use these things all over the place.

Please feel free to prove me wrong on this one...biz is biz, no hugging contest. It's fun like this, you don't need that stuff. Bye.

Nathan Myrvold of Intellectual Ventures - Modernist Cuisine

This guy is my cup of tea. Nathan Myhrvold left Microsoft after 14 years with some 100 Million USD in his pocket. So what do you do with an awful lot of money in your pocket? You start a Venture Hub.

Intellectual Ventures is an invention oriented Think Tank. However they do not focus on inventing with a certain commercial goal. They focus on scientific work and on inventing stuff that may or maybe not matter one day. The concept to problem solving the Myrvold-way is: dig out old patents, ideas, brilliant pieces of science and try to re-apply their use and functionality to modern life problems. Right, they are freaks, thats why Bill Gates pops by every now and then to see what is going on...Myhrvold used to be chief strategist and chief technology in Microsoft, so better keep in touch from time to time...

Lately they have come out with some stuff even I understand (better understand it completely rather than pulling the consultant, but understanding nothing about it...sorry I talk about 80% of all of you consultants out there, the later 20%: you rock!) and actually admire.

He published a book called "Modernist Cuisine" that features 2400 pages of modernist cuisine re-inventions, that in my opinion will become the next Larousse. A scientific bible for chefs all over the world. Check it out and watch the video of how he works on this years TED talk. It is fascinating how he uses non-conventional cooking gear like lasers, ultrasonic waves, or other rather to industrial production related tools to cook:

http://www.ted.com/talks/nathan_myhrvold_cut_your_food_in_half.html

You see, I post this because I honestly think that re-inventing existing processes can actually revolutionize an industry that is thought to be very traditional like this one. Nothing is impossible if you break the right rules (he got slapped by a spanish winemaker for pouring his best reserva wine into a mixer) and experiment with new models, the right ingredients and believe in change.

So sometimes it does make sense to dig some more and to be a freak....there are plenty of forgotten things out there, or rules that need to be broken in order to have massive success. Pick them up and start these projects, they pay off well....

Exit strategies...The Chatroulette disaster!

Unbelieveable to see how many people get overwhelmed by success and even frightened to cash in and exit a project.

Remember Chatroulette?

An unbelievably successful fad in my opinion. And guess what. The guy did not chash in and exit when it was about time to do so...

yes you are hearing right. How often did I talk with friends about it. We were imagining selling that thing off right after we saw the thing and the first naked freaks showing off body parts you did not expect to see.

A video filter would have fixed the stupid situation, but: with an awful lot of porn it was crystal clear that the unleashed beast would potentially scare investors (the good ones) off. And so it did.

So17 year old Andrey flew to New York, got offered millions, got scared and guess what. He did not sell, refused to take the offered bits and dimes and still runs it on his own. Ads cover costs he argues his wise strategy for growth. I just say, what a sad story...how can he feel ok with that?!

Andrey, you could have become a millionaire within a blink of an eye!

Maybe next time, the kid looks promising anyway. Lessons to be learned:

1. know your capabilities and potential to bring that thing to success.

2. Find the right people to make it fly.

3. If you see shit hitting the fan - run

Read the entire story on INC - How I did it. A good read for every once in while when you are getting bored of IT talk with Indians, or just need a good story to tell!

Please don't exit too late and enjoy or just start another project, there is so much interesting and promising stuff around nowadays...U have to LOVE browsing for other horses to bet on!

Cheers.

Incubators to Watch...

Hi, I have been shopping around. In theory, even if I can't afford that right now I think it is a pretty bright investment if you want to start up: A startup Incubator.

I am myself thinking about getting on board of one some time to give the biz the right boost and a good capital injection, but there are still some details about the whole concept here in Germany that make me wait a little longer.

Why should I look for investment and office space in an incubator if I can potentially negotiate a better deal for entering later when the beta version is on-line? I guess many start-ups are entering "the dragon" a little too early, maybe giving too much equity away in exchange for office space and "the right people"....depends on the project, of course...but think about it. If you don't need it to get beta going, don't do it... You need the right people from the beginning on: Yes, but if you cannot start it up to beta without help you are very likely to be useless for the project anyway s. I would not invest in you...

Here the Top 10 in the US to watch on Inc.com and some German/Austrian ones I dug out. Most specialize in certain areas regionally and more importantly in expertise to create better synergy effects...and most are run by some really high profile kids...check them out!

1.Rocket Internet

2.The Hub Berlin

3. Friends Factory

4. Backfabrik Berlin

5. 11 nets

6. Tech2b (Austria)

7. Nabru Ventures

8. Hack Fwd

9. Team Europe Ventures

10. Rheingau Ventures

11. 1st Mover

12. Beta Fabrik

13. You is Now

14. Hanse Ventures

Cheers, I'm off for weekend...or not...

The FB problem & Why Foursquare teams up with Daily Deal Sites

I have not been on Facebook for about 3 days now in order to focus on work. It is amazing how much more productive I am and that got me an idea of how important Facebook places is for Facebook. Makes no sense? Yes it does...

The Facebook Problem: Most of the time logging on to Facebook do not really bring an advantage to my life except of participating in the waste of time my friends are producing...sorry friends! The fact that I am still not experiencing a real disadvantage by not loggin on is a problem for Facebook and key to their success: God knows they are not profitable yet!

The key: They need to charge a fine for not logging on. Yes, I am talking about financial retaliation, a real disadvantage that arises for not logging on. You see, that is exactly what Foursquare does, its smart!

Foursquare is aiming to team up with Groupon in order to deliver customized offers to save money wherever you check in or are around... Imagine sitting in a cafe ordering one of these hilariously expensive coffees and the guy next to you pulls out his phone, checks in and buys a 50% coupon that he trades in with the cashier directly. Now it hurts eh?

There is also a nice Article about it on Wall Street Journal, check it out, its clear why Foursquare is valued 100 million, and maybe undervalued in my opinion....

Old things reinvented - The Panamore Example

Hi guys,

since I have been heavily surrounded by the topic food in the last time and all kinds of startups in that area here comes my big german newcomer favorite in online ordering.

What an easy idea that is, but highly disruptive, that is what I like...

Panamore delivers Pizza to your door. Sounds like old stuff, but has a little twist.

Its gourmet Pizza you assemble virtually online. Tell you more? Well, the stuff comes without cooking...even worse!

Stupid you say? Not at all, the service is over-booked and does not take orders since about 2 weeks. It is actually the best example of how very obvious things like Pizza delivery can still be innovated...many businesses are working like that and give tons of possibilities for new startups!

Here the key differentiatiors:

• More than 40 gourmet ingredients.
• Good for 21 days if cooled.
• Delivers B2B as well.
• DHL Shipping 5 € all over Germany in 24 H
• Pay via Paypal (a good idea for all these other home deliverers out there)

Copy this idea now in all variations and shades of complexity ! Looking forward to have it delivered!

Shopping the South Corean way: I love Tesco...

I love Tesco. Not only for their system for optimizing product rotation in the UK... they plan product distribution for certain products based on the weather forecast for each city: Think about it: barbecue-supply in sunny areas before the weekend starts....brilliant, this is the future.

Now they have hit another big one in South Corea: I really think that this is not only a funny way to do your shopping but also a great marketing tool in many ways...

1. Convert spare waiting time into shopping time
2. Boost sales by offering real-life touchpoints
3. A great marketing effort to promote your shop

The quote leavs no questions about the effect on sales: "During the campaign Home plus online sales increased by 130%, with over 10,000 customers trying the stores."


Here is a video that shows how it works:

Any imitators or other companies doing this? Yes, more than you think....Cheers.

Why so hard...

Hey, based on my experience: Blogging is a hard task, I'll add a mobile plug in to my phone so I keep this thing more updated than in the past. Best ideas actually come outside, that is so true....if it come to me, what about you?

See you soon!

Need a candle?

Hey,

found a 13 year old kid who produces candles that are targeted to the male market. Scents range from camp fire to Pizza..... Why do older guys like me not get across ideas that are that simple. For sure a great gift for fathers day.

http://www.man-cans.com

Maybe its just a bullshit idea, but why not taking this way of thinking towards a new stage of new products for men. Formerly known as a girl product men deserve more than candles targeted exclusively to the female market. Well done kiddo! You are a true entrepreneur! Work a little on the packaging and you could be king of this years x-mas. I'll get one!

Peter Thiel Foundation

This is brilliant move I came across. The co-founder of Paypal announced to give some money away...to students under 20 who are wiling to give up their college careers to start a business!

http://www.thielfoundation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=26&Itemid=19

Read also this article I found on Bloomberg, the guy is good and I share his opinion on risk taking. Nowadays, especially in Europe, people are way to risk averse and do not trust young entrepreneurs enough to help good biz-ideas fly.

"Facebook Inc. investor and board member Peter Thiel plans to make 20 grants of as much as $100,000 apiece to teenagers who have promising ideas for technology businesses.

The investor’s Thiel Foundation will award as many as 20 grants to individuals or small teams of entrepreneurs by the end of 2011, Thiel said today during a technology conference in San Francisco. Some partners at the Founders Fund, the venture capital firm co-founded by Thiel, will act as advisers and mentors to the grant winners.

The grants are aimed at removing some of the barriers, such as heavy course loads and high college costs, that young people face as they try to create businesses, Thiel said in an interview. He was one of the first investors in Facebook, which like Microsoft Corp. and Apple Inc., was founded by a person who hadn’t completed college.

“We need to encourage young Americans to take more risks,” Thiel said. Traditional education steers young people away from entrepreneurship and into steady jobs, he said. “While they are able to get certain types of jobs with it, the problem is they can’t actually do anything that pays less in the short term and may have more value in the long run.”

Thiel contributed to Facebook’s $500,000 first round of funding in 2004, when founder Mark Zuckerberg was 20. Zuckerberg hadn’t completed his undergraduate degree at Harvard University when he began Facebook."

The perfect gadget for men

Hello,

I just tell you what it is: The worlds first personal brewery in the world. No more words needed, the micro-brewery trend is a clear winner, now this one is about to make its way into every single male household.

Just watch the video, its amazing.

I actually remember the clumsy beer brewing kits being sold and moreover the disappointed guys who were invited to a tasting session. Usually we had to source some more from a the gas station around the corner in order to make it a successful evening. Enjoy.

DIY Hardware

Hey,

I came across this brilliant guy from Poland (now USA) who is running an opensource project on agricultural do-it-yourself starter kits. He calls them Global Village Construction sets. Amazing how simple his solution for a huge problem is...just do it attitude at its best. He gave an inspiring talk at TED 2011 and I encourage you to watch it.

Maybe check out his website as well, I think there is some serious business there especially because he builds the stuff on a modular base.. lego for grown ups.... Brilliant.

http://opensourceecology.org

Have fun.

E Menus

I have seen a lot of e menus until now, based on Ipads, normal touch screens etc...this by far is the most complete gadget on the market. I honestly thing there is some space in the market for this niche product, especially in places that are supposed to be quick turnover. One of my favorite restaurants in Munich (LaBarracca) offers that service since a year or so...the only shame is that they invested about 1 million€ in the development of the system and now the stuff goes mainstream without them making a buck on licensing or franchising....what a waste of time and money, they need a marketer I guess...for the website as well, its rudimentary.

Here the guys who do it right!

10% revenue boost per order up to 300.000 in extra profits sound teasing to me. You know by now that I am into good food and restaurant ops. I was even in contact some guys developing this kind of apps on touchscreen devices 9 months ago, but it turned out that his biz model was a spoiled little brat...

Check them out and watch the video at http://www.elacarte.com/

Back in Biz

Hey, it has been a longer time since my last post...you know how things are...busy times, I am actually struggling a little with my first indian outsourcing experience, but things turn out to be working now and I am really looking forward for some good starting up. As usual things delay and certain topics are chaotic and cost way more than you actually anticipated but hey, thats eship life....better get used to it.

I'll post a new idea soon, I've been busy these days!

Cheers

Crowdsourced Venture Funding

Here is some good entrepreneurial trends for you guys....

There is this obvious trend of crowd-sourcing all kinds of things and we can see more and more companies taking care of this concept. Finally we have reached a step of maturity in that trend, which in my opinion, did not reach business schools or any other entrepreneurial lecture yet. And I graduated in 2010. It should be included. For sure is that this idea is a clear part of the future of funding, more accessible, democratic and absolutely capable of moving the masses....remember the critical volume thing...?!

Crowdsourced Venture Funding.

Check this out, as of today you can become shareholder of the following projects by simply "buying into a a venture either by investing directly or indirectly by buying products. A clever way of raising capital ahead of production (of a crowd-sourced movie) or after production occurred (in case of a beer brand in Australia).

1. Iron Sky is a movie to be sourcing ~$900.000 in venture capital by offering stock for financing the last financing necessary to bring the movie to theatres. Later on, based on the crowd-sourced success of the movie in cinemas, DVD rentals, and so on shareholders will be paid out their dividends. The story is a smart viral marketing move with a story that sticks...war bonds are out to support the fictitious war against Nazis from out of space...remember the trend from an earlier post? Great move and storyline, maybe we'll see more Hollywood production companies converting into marketing agencies for creating stories that stick for blue chips...by the way, an old friend of mine is the main actress...I'm going to see it for sure! Trailers are out...check the site...

2. Broo Beer in Australia is a new locally produced beer company differentiated as the "first 10% Australian beer". Online buyers of 1-50 catons of the first production batches will receive 10 free shares in the beer brand until the 28th of February. A smart way to keep a beer brand local and owned by locals and at the same time to get preorders and the first volumes in production out there. I don't have to mention the brand affinity of the new customers....the more you drink, the better your return....brilliant idea with a sticky story: Live the dream and own your own beer company...., we'll see more of this type of funding coming up in IT and other sectors. For sure!

Cheers.

Snapgoods

Hi, I guess I have seen some 10 projects on renting high end handbags, shoes, and other things that really matter... now Snapgoods.com is the first one from my point of view doing it right.

They have basically everything. A funny local platform idea wit Amazon-ish elements. A one stop shop for people with the desire to have things they cannot or do not want to afford.

I like.

100 things to watch in 2011

Out again, JWT on trends...and my big favourites for the year 2011...have fun, there is some interesting year coming up...

Jwtintelligence.com - 100 things to watch in 2011

No. 4 Art.sy

No. 22 Decline of the Cash Register

No. 27 Digital Indoor Maps

No. 31 Electronic Profiling

No. 32 Entrepreneurial Journalism

No. 34 Fashion Fast-Forward

No. 37 Gay-Centric Hotels

No. 40 Group-Manipulated Pricing

No. 54 The Nail Polish Economy

No. 69 Pogo

No. 81 Social Browsers Go Mainstream

No. 85 Storied Products

The joy of stats...

I am sure this is inspiring in some way. Check also the TED.com talk on that guy, he is a genius.

Check also his website Wefeelfine.org. Brilliant piece of design in stats. State of the art...

By the way, hope you twitter positive stuff! I hope you dont think I am a complete nerd...

this one is great as well, welcome to fun in numbers:..Hans Rosling is always worth a look. The idea to compare university students and chimps answers to economic questions to prove preconceptions is amazing. NOT boring....

When games invade real life

Hi, you know by now that I am a fan of videos that I discover on the web. This one is a really entertaining one, but more than that it is related to a project I worked on a while ago. Have fun watching...

I also admire how consequently this professor in Indiana University created his Syllabus based on the "game theory". http://gamingtheclassroom.wordpress.com/syllabus/.

Enjoy, its a little different from other talks but I think they have a point there, there are thousands of untapped possibilities...

Update mobile social applications - Hot stuff

Hi,

you might want to check these two as well if you are into location based social networking application strategies:

Gowalla.com
Yelp.com

Both are really interesting concepts, we will see how and where future touch-points emerge. Other applications and websites will be competing fiercely and dependent on some considerable external funding to survive the crowding out, which obviously will happen some time in the future. Prove me wrong on that one!. I just hope the niches are as stable as expected by the tech-world and the contestants stick to a certain level of differentiation in between each other. Different animals require different strategies....as I realized today even Tuenti.com gets into it...hot stuff for entrepreneurs.

Gowalla

Yelp

The new travel world...2.0, Cool & Interactive

A close friend of mine and me got into the topic of travel guides not too long ago. Even though we had no clue about the industry at the beginning we quickly realized that it is one of the hottest start-up areas right now.

So check out part of our research or simply have fun travelling!

We think it will be one of the core markets for recommendation based social interaction applications (like the famous Foursquare.com) that will add to everybody's travel experiences. Additionally to that there is a strong trend to experience travel as an interactive experience or even as a game (see the famous Geocaching.com website, video below).

To keep a long story short: We love to play, hate to see churches, desperately seek the twists and cool stories behind the scenes and please get us a drink in the coolest secret bar nearby...we pay for that, mobile devices will drive this market niche and I bet you the conventional city map will be history in 5 years. Just look what Alacartemaps.com is doing...

Ladies and gentlemen, here are my personal winners so far and if you want to travel "the new way" are down there. Great business models, I bet bucks on that as the future of travel, not only leisure, but also professionally (develop that area, its more profitable I bet!). All operate on different business model and plan engineering axis. There is probably 100 more of them around, so please feel free to post it!

The winners are:

Whaiwhai.com

Gogobot.com

Geocaching.com

Have fun travelling or starting up...its worth it.

Crowdsourced Design Competitions

I) need a logo for a project.

After reviewing approximately 20 quotes from Germany or US design companies I came up with the idea, that whatever they offer is good but mostly overpriced for what you get.

A professional custom logo design in Europe or the US costs approximately 500-1500 €. Ok, if you want to spend that on 6 proposals and unlimited corrections you should go and visit a doctor I guess. They will most probably be out of business by 2030.

Here is the fix, that I think changes the game: Crowd-sourced Design Competitions, one of my best friends from business school came across and he had some great results!

99designs.com is a startup that hosts design competitions on logos, businesscards, etc. The platform links us to a pool of freelance designers who want to earn some extra bucks. Based on the amount you pay for you project, they compete for your project based on the description, customer info and requirements you post. 

Competitions last for up to 7 days (or even 3 days for quick designs), so expect some 30-200 design proposals depending on the amount you bid and some other factors. I have seen competitions with + 500 proposals.All you have to do is select the proposals that match your needs and dump the rest. Corrections to designs are possible. The more you bid, the more you proposals you get. Easy Adam Smith stuff right? 

I'll keep you posted on how my competition goes...Since I am a tight guy I'll spend some 300 US (250€) lets see what happens...after 2 hours I had 2 designers work on it already. If I am not happy with that I'll obviously bid more on the go. 

Cheers.

Unconventional ventures tell a story

Hi,

sometimes entrepreneurs have to give something back.

Granniesin.co.uk or Goldenhook.fr are of the special kind of ventures I really like to highlight, simply because they create a win-win situation, that benefits all involved parties not only economically but also from a social point of view. More on the customer side, for me as an ex-fashion marketer, it is a no-brainer that we are living the trend to demand more and more customized and unique DIY-products in the industry. Just look at all the fair trade, ecological and non-child labour must have best practices in fashion stores worldwide to see the trend.

What's the story? Well, its an easy concept, everybody is a born designer, but not everybody has a granny to produce some some of the basic items that we like to wear especially if we think about a pure urban-alternative target market. These companies provide it. The granny, the scarf and the special touch that only a customized scarf made by granny can provide. Overall: The story is key.

Sounds dodgy to rent a grandma to knit you new scarf, beanie, etc?! See a trend? Can this apply to other areas in which older people can contribute and receive recognition for their (barely forgotten) passion? I think yes. Think about it, its a beautiful project that has already found copycat examples in other countries:

Netgranny.ch from Switzerland.
Oma-strickt-es-dir.de from Germany

Business Plans & Networking

Hi there,

I came across something I find quite intriguing, since it is a simple thing to implement and ties in some networking trends online for entrepreneurs. Ever came across the problem that friends and family are not objective enough to give you an unbiased opinion on your business plan or you were struggling to find a qualified team member to start up? You may have a look at these projects:

1. Feedbackers.biz offers an objective look on your business ideas and plans, your marketing strategy, and some other details that need some objective criticism before launching. For just $99. Well, thats some well invested money if the guys lieve up to the expectations they creat. I just wonder how they assure quality, but I checked their profiles and they seem to be an interesting bunch of people. Just give it a shot, they even offer more tailored in-depth consulting on projects. Well, just give it a try and tell me how they work...or just send your stuff over to me, I actually enjoy doing this type of work!

2. Spanish business school EADA (Barcelona) gets more and more serious about entrepreneurship. The value  proposition is similar to the Venture Lab approach IE Business School is using, yet much more informal and maybe even more productive (anarchy and time pressure sometimes are a big plus). You get the chance to meet up to 40 professionals in short 2 minute speed dates ans basically pitch yourself, your idea, etc. According to a spanish newspaper article, the event has been a great success and outsiders are allowed. Maybe you just want to give it a try, its always worth it. I actually attended some courses with EADA staff, and the talks were always excellent, so I guess the people there are good. Maybe other business schools should pick up on that idea as well...

Awesome talk!

I barely forgot: This is the guy behind http://1000awesomethings.com. Its a brilliant and down to earth talk, that can be linked to the Trendwatching report in respect to marketing socially driven marketing campaigns. Maybe you think its bollocks, but I'd say its the pure essence of value generation 2011.

Consumer Trends 2011

Yesterday they released the new consumer trends for 2011 on Trendwatching.

Ok, I will admit that it takes me a horrible lot of time to write about this today. This is simply due tot the fact that I am disappointed to see the ever returning 2010 startups like Groupon, vente-privee.com, Jetsetter, Foursquare, Zipcar, P1international.com etc...come on please! A little turnoff are also the classic rent a fashion bag (http://www.bagborroworsteal.com) or even rent a calculator stuff (http://www.renac.ca). Clear mainstream no trendsetting.

For my part I would have divided more clearly the axis planned spontaneity and social-lites comparison to Made for China and Urbanomics. The The reason is quite simple: Local marketing and physical delivery is a clear driver for emerging markets and a repeating phenomenon. If you want to talk about trend-settting developments there is still a clear divide in between the two worlds. The generation G idea clearly is a link in between the two worlds, they do a nice job in mapping out the differences and cracks between the two worlds.I'd expect them to do that even more in the future.

However, it is worth a read, as usual they did a great job nailing down the driving forces behind marketing and entrepreneurship for 2010.

Here my favourites that will not bore you too much:

www.vouchercloud.com, www.swoopo.com, www.gogobot.com

Have fun!

Watch your health...

I little thought on a very basic thing even an MBA does not cover...get yourself a health insurance or rethink your sporting habits!

Just came back from skiing yesterday and I think I partially broke or at least twisted my right wrist to an extent I barely can type or sleep. How shall I keep on working on my projects if my right hand is ******?! Honestly, these were my first thoughts when that guy drove into me and I heard the sound of my wrist being bent in a quite unusual way and I am a good skier...

My girlfriend told me that her dad stopped skiing as soon as he set up his business, so well, I guess I learned the lesson by hard. Most of the times you smile at people taking it these type of things too serious, but there is obviously some thought behind that decision her father took back in the days. Shall I do the same?

Especially when you are starting up alone this kind of accident can be an essential danger to your business

Conclusion: I guess that's why successful people play golf...and by the way, never tell a banker that you ski. I would most definitely cut your credit line in half.

I'm off to the doc...

An idea for young moms & dads

I just talked with one of my best friends (congratulations, you are a mom!) about your first kids. There is an awful lot of stuff out there to read but nothing quite fits the need that young moms & dads have to understand what is going on, what is normal, what is not normal with the behavior of their kids. Its a nightmare, honestly.

I bumped into this one (http://momentgarden.com/) on Springwise the other day and think its a brilliant way to visualize things for young parents.

As usual I kept it in the back of my brain but did not quite realize until the moment that we talked about it, that the way to display and to visualize the steps and baby makes when it grows up. It is perfect but the content is way to passive! This is pure pull interaction, not more than a mere photoalbum to collect memories....useless, sorry. A nice idea, but quite passive. More important: Show me the money! Where are the profits to make the thing take off? I wouldn't put a dime on that project right now...sharing moments is a nice idea, if you can convert them into viral marketing that is something I would invest in.

What about matching it with useful information that is pushed to mom & dad?
What about timing things, matching marketing activity and adding some valuable information about babies?! Everybody knows that there is a huge checklist of things to be bought, that make or to be prepared etc...depending on the stage your kid is in. Why not push some marketing through this channel?

"Your kid should get the first teeth by now. Buy some "xyz" to make yours and your kids lif easier. I am not talking about earplugs here, but I bet Pampers would pay a fair amount of money to develop on this idea...imagine the problems sucha information platform your fix within an instant, while at the same time proposing solutions to problems every mom&dad face when kids grow up...I see some fair money in there.

I leave you alone with that idea....I think its an easy one....Maybe I'll pitch it to that website...

Mykea - customize your Ikea furniture

Yet another great example how startups hop on the back of bigger players to generate some extra profits for small businesses and freelance artists. How come Ikea did not come up with that for the poster and frames section? Brilliant and simple.

http://www.thisismykea.com/

The empathic civilization..

A great video that makes you connect the dots that matter....should be a must see for any marker. Unconventional point of view from my side but probably true, think about it.

One of my all time favorites....