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Joe Procopio, Kevin Sonney, Jake Finkelstein, Ian Meyer, Ryan Rand. Brought to you by Intrepid Company
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Silicon Valley's Dark Secret: It's All About Age
Posted by ExitEvent - Source: Vivek Wadhwa
Topic: Technology: General
9.2.10
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A friend who works at a Fortune 50 company was discussing the fact that he is currently at a crossroads. While he has a great job in the technology sector and gets paid very well, it's tough, it's very demanding, and he feels the younger set nipping at his heels (and he's not yet 40). He's applying to MBA school, on advice from senior management, to get into that club. My attitude is if you're going to take that kind of time and money dent, you might think about ditching the corporate world and coming over to the light side of the startup world.
Vivek Wadhwa makes some great points about aging in the tech sector. And techies, like running backs, need to read this if they're anywhere in the 30-35 year old range.
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TEDCO invests more than $1M in 15 Maryland startups
Posted by ExitEvent - Source: TechJournal South
Topic: News: General
9.1.10
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The Maryland Technology Development Corp. (TEDCO) has invested $1.12 million in 15 Maryland startups, each receiving $75,000.
To date, 134 companies have received funding from MTTCF and completed their projects. With an investment of more than $9.3 million, these companies have gone on to receive downstream funding from angel and venture investors, federal awards and other resources exceeding $394.8 million. This is a leverage of the state's investment through TEDCO of $42.4 to $1.
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Rocket Scientists Are Made, Not Born
Necessity is the Mother of All Startups
Posted by Joe Procopio
Topic: StartUp: HowTo
8.31.10
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I ran into a friend recently who told me that they hated their job. I mean, HATED, their job, with the white hot intensity of the heat of 1000 suns. They were doing menial tasks, well below their skill level, making up for the work that had until recently been done by the workers in the last round of layoffs. They were getting abused (abused was their term, and I always consider it kind of harsh) by overzealous management in an employer's market. And there was a cloud over every head -- everyone wondering from the moment they got in until the moment they went home, who would be in the next batch to go. My response was pretty much common sense: "Dude. Quit. Now."
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PR Lessons from the Tweetstream
What you can learn from tweets (if you follow the right people)
Posted by Margot Carmichael Lester
Topic: Marketing: HowTo
8.26.10
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There's more to learn from Twitter than your friends' latest Foursquare updates. There's some gold in them thar tweets. Here's a look at five lessons from the Tweetstream.
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PocketGear calls up $15M B round for mobile apps store
Posted by ExitEvent - Source: TechJournal South
Topic: News: General
8.23.10
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PocketGear, which says it is the world's largest open app and content marketplace, has raised a $15 million B round led by Trident Capital. BlackBerry Partners Fund also participated.
PocketGear will use the funding to scale technical operations, build out its sales and marketing team and expand its global reach to capitalize on the growing mobile application market, which is forecasted to exceed $20 Billion by 2013 according to multiple industry analysts.
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From Student to Entrepreneur
Why recent graduates can make great entrepreneurs
Posted by Jon Reifschneider
Topic: StartUp: General
8.20.10
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Despite the stereotype of the young, starving entrepreneur working out of his garage and living off ramen, recent studies have shown that the average age of entrepreneurs is somewhere in the late 30s and that entrepreneurs above 50 tend to be more successful than those 20-somethings in the garage. That being said, there is definitely a case to be made for starting young. Students have a couple of great advantages which older entrepreneurs do not: they're used to working 24/7 for absolutely no financial return, they know how to live incredibly cheaply, and they generally deal pretty well with high degrees of uncertainty.
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New projects from iContact co-founder aimed at startups
It's Science!
Posted by Joe Procopio - Source: TechJournal South
Topic: StartUp: HowTo
8.19.10
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I've known Aaron Houghton for a while now, a few years, which is eons in startup time. He's a solid guy who doesn't get caught up in the headiness of success and doesn't get distracted seven different ways trying to revolutionize… well, everything. And when you have a track record and means, it's not hard to try to do that.
We sat down recently after the big shindig to celebrate the launch of American Underground, kind of notable since iContact, a company he founded with Ryan Allis, is one of the success stories of the renaissance here that made the realization of something like American Underground possible.
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CED CAFE Event Tonight
Come Meet Everyone
Posted by ExitEvent
Topic: Events: General
8.19.10
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CED is holding a special CAFE event tonight, open to everyone, to meet the players involved in and around the American Underground move as well as support organizations throughout the Triangle. Focused on non-profit entrepreneurial support organizations, there will be more than 30 local players gathered at CED's current headquarters. Note that this isn't American Underground, but rather 12 Davis Drive in Durham.
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NC IDEA Grant Fall 2010 Cycle Now Open
Early Deadline is August 27th
Posted by ExitEvent
Topic: Investing: General
8.18.10
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NC Idea has opened its Fall cycle for grants up to $50,000 for North Carolina start-up companies. This is an excellent way to get your idea a boost into reality, and several well-known start-ups have gotten their initial funding through the program. Early deadline is August 27th, and the late deadline is September 10th.
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Doing More with Less
Virtualization Helps unless it Hurts
Posted by Kevin Eric Sonney
Topic: Technology: General
8.17.10
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Over the course of the last decade in tech, one buzzword keeps reappearing as the savior of your small business - virtualization. The idea being, you can do more with less hardware and infrastructure, thereby keeping costs down. Which is great in theory, and usually great in practice. I say "usually" because I've seen plenty of places where virtualization is either used improperly or isn't given the resources it needs to truly succeed.
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3 Reasons You're Not Winning Enough New Business
Posted by Jake Finkelstein
Topic: Marketing: General
8.12.10
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In my line of work I speak with many executives and business owners who are concerned about cash flow - especially over these last few years with the economy tightening and client budgets tightening along with it. While it is true that every organization faces a unique set of challenges and opportunities, I wanted to share with you 3 common reasons I see across a wide range of firms that cause the new business engine to stutter and stall.
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For a VC Firm's Differentiators, Ask their Entrepreneurs
Posted by Jason Caplain
Topic: Investing: General
8.10.10
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Every VC has their "pitch" about what makes them special. We do too. But I continue to think the most important way to find out a firm's differentiators is to directly ask the companies they have funded. And if an entrepreneur is in due diligence with a VC firm, the importance of speaking with other entrepreneurs they have funded becomes a must.
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It's official: I'm an entrepreneur
Posted by Robbie Allen
Topic: Company News: General
8.6.10
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The last few months have been a whirlwind. I left a job I had been working at for 13 years, I raised money from a group of large and small investors, I moved into an office, and hired a team of 9 people. And I'm having a blast doing it.
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A Beginner's Guide to Marketing Strategy
Posted by Jake Finkelstein
Topic: Marketing: HowTo
8.5.10
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There's no short cuts when it comes to marketing. However taking a strategic approach to your efforts will save you money while generating better results.
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You don't need a news release
Try pitching instead
Posted by Margot Carmichael Lester
Topic: Marketing: HowTo
8.3.10
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Save time, effort and money. Don't send a news release when a pitch will do.
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NEWS | |
8.17.10: Launchbox 2010 Kickoff
The folks at Launchbox will kick off their semester on 9/7/10 with a meet and greet (hear the pitches from the winners!) in Durham. Come meet the companies, LaunchBox investors & partners, your peers, and various dignitaries.
Register here.
SPOTLIGHT | |
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Joystick Labs
Joystick Labs is a first-of-its-kind game incubator, whose mission is to identify the next generation of best and brightest digitally distributed interactive entertainment software entrepreneurs, and to seed and accelerate the development and commercial launch of their companies.
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CALENDAR | |
CED CAFE Event
8.19.10 :: Durham, NC
LaunchBox 2010 Kickoff
9.7.10 :: Durham, NC
Digital East
10.18.10 :: Tyson's Corner, VA
Internet Summit
11.17 - 11.18.10 :: Raleigh, NC
STATUS UPDATES | |
Follow us on twitter @exitevent.
Analysis and a good piece from Vivek Wadhwa on aging in the tech sector: http://www.exitevent.com/column.asp?id=101
9/2/2010 7:28:17 AM
Rocket Scientists Are Made, Not Born: http://www.exitevent.com/column.asp?id=91
8/31/2010 6:37:28 AM
Chapel Hill Startup and mobile app incubator @Appubator in the Daily Tar Heel: http://bit.ly/cg7Tki
8/26/2010 6:59:24 AM
Word Factory's margot_lester with 5 PR lessons for startups as told thru Twitter: http://www.exitevent.com/column.asp?id=90
8/26/2010 6:59:06 AM
Spoke with both Chris from @launchboxdig and Juan from @joysticklabs. Both will announce acceptances very shortly.
8/20/2010 7:20:08 AM
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