Lessons from My Mom about Entrepreneurship
January 25, 2007
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Today’s my mom, Start Up Princess Christine King of Little Jeanyus’s b
irthday, so in honor of her…I wanted to share a few magic wands my mom’s taught me about being an entrepreneur. She and my brother, Justin King have been in business for the last six years creating baby surf wear and sell their goods in California, Florida, Hawaii, and Colorado.
1. Hard work pays off
2. Always exceed your customer’s expectations
3. See your vendors in person when possible, ask them what they like, want, how you can improve, keep them happy
4. Attend trade shows, stay ahead of what is going on in your industry
5. Be constantly aware of your margins
Thanks Mom for being a great example and for always supporting my dreams and helping them to evolve. Happy Birthday.
Career Comeback: UBS Fellowship Program for Professional Women Reentering the Workforce
January 25, 2007
Today Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) in conjunction with UBS (one of the world’s largest financial firms) announces that they are offering an exciting fellowship opportunity for women who have a master’s degree and have taken a break from their career and desire to re-enter the workforce. 60 women will be selected to participate and particpate in the “Career Comeback”, a 3 day business training and networking event March 3-5 at Wharton and at UBS in NYC (travel from Wharton is included). This highly-selective program is offered at no charge to qualified applicants through funding from UBS. Sounds like a once in a life time opportunity.
Here is the press release: Read more
Do You Hate Junk Mail?
January 25, 2007
Me too. Here’s a possible solution so you can attend to the mail you WANT to read:
Today’s Magic Wand: 41pounds.org is an innovative company combining a mission to help reduce paper waste (estimated 41 pounds per person per year!) and help you “reclaim your mailbox.” The cost? $41, but half of it goes to a non-profit of your choice! What a brilliant idea. And you can even do it as a fundraiser for your non-profit or school…check it out. Sounds like something Start Up Princess Natalie Goddard should do or Start Up Princess Deborah Gardner should look at.
Enterprising Women 2007 Awards Announced
January 24, 2007
Who does Enterprising Women consider as the country’s most amazing women entrepreneurs for 2007?
Here is the link to see this year’s winners.
Who would you vote for?
Clever Marketing by eeBoo
January 24, 2007
One of my very favorite children’s brands is eeBoo. Everything from their postcard reminders to their emails about upcoming events at a tradeshow represent their brand and strong illustrative style. This marketing piece took effort, time, thought…it’s not a thrown together at the last minute email to future vendors. It’s clever and remarkable! It’s the Purple Cow that Seth Godin talks about…they’re thinking “How will our vendors remember to find us?” They’re thinking about their fun brand and the message of their products…it’s a game, it’s informative/educational, it’s beautifully designed.
Pitch with Passion
January 23, 2007
Tonight there was eight companies who pitched in the competition and only a couple of them really had a lot of enthusiasm and passion for what they were doing. Maybe it’s my theatre side coming through here, but if you aren’t excited, why should I be?
One of the companies that had passion was Mobile O/X. They have a very unique concept where you personalize a URL such as “DaveLovesMusic.com”; they own 4,000 of such personalized URLs so you can have a memorable website name. I think it will be popular, they are still in development of their site, but you can check it out…not sure what it costs, but if they can be more clear about what they are selling and how they are selling it, I would bet they do well in future competitions and on the web because they definitely have passion–they are excited about what they do and know it will succeed.
Today’s Magic Wand: No matter if you are seeking funding or networking, you need to be able to tell your business concept in 2 minutes or less. Can you do it clearly and with passion? If you haven’t already written down your pitch, at least outline the who, what, where, why of it and then pitch to yourself in the mirror a couple of times…then if you’re brave enough, enlist your kids to listen to you or other family members or friends. Ask for feedback and you’re on your way to having a great pitch. Good luck!
Defining a Winning Elevator Pitch
January 23, 2007
Today I’m one of the judges at the BYU Elevator Pitch competition here in Utah. I’m honored to have been asked for a second time. Three years ago I won 3rd place at that competition and then refined my pitch and won 2nd place nationally at the Wake Forest Competition in North Carolina. Developing a winning pitch is vital for anyone looking for funding–in a competition or for real. So what will I be looking for?
Today’s Magic Wand: A winning 2 minute pitch includes:
- Confidence & Passion
- A reason to believe!
- Who are they?–why are they qualified?
- What–what are they selling? what is the business model?
- Who are they selling it to? Why should they/we buy it?
- How will they execute?
- Significant partnerships/clients/established vendors
- Do they have a qualified board?
- Do they have a proven track record?
- What are they seeking in funding?
- Do they convince me???? Do I want to invest in them (my time, money, energy?)
Oprah Wants Mom Entrepreneurs on her Show!
January 22, 2007
Today’s Magic Wand: Here’s your chance to tell your inspiring story about how life is as a mom entrepreneur! Apply to be considered as a guest on Oprah. Here is the link.
Interviewing Podcaster Greg Galant of Venture Voice
January 19, 2007
This afternoon I had the pleasure of interviewing Greg Galant, producer of www.venturevoice.com podcasts about entrepreneurs. Greg is also the CEO/Founder of www.radiotail.com. For a while I’ve wanted to chat with Greg about how he got started as a podcaster (he used to be with CNN.com) and how he’s been so successful at interviewing top entrepreneurs (such as Guy Kawasaki) as well as up and coming ones. Since I would like to do more podcasts for Start Up Princess, I wanted to go to the top and ask one of the best podcasters for some advice and “Fairy Godfathering.”
I interviewed Greg via SKYPE and used a mic and headset–kinda ghetto. In general it worked, but it was a bit frustrating because SKYPE dropped the call a few times so editing the show will be a bit challenging since the interview had stops and starts, but Greg was very kind about it and patient. If I do a lot more of these, I will have to get some better equipment!
Greg said his favorite interviews were with people who were “authentic”, who weren’t afraid to say that they failed, that stumbled…that they were human. Greg also said that to be a good podcaster/interviewer that you should be curious, prepared (google them, read what you can about them) be informed, but still ask more basic questions because your audience might not be as informed about the guest or their technology or product. That you should always test and try their product and he believes that when you can, you should interview them in person…it makes a difference. He said his average podcast takes about 10 hours to put together because of the quality and usually there is travel involved.
I’ll make you wait for the rest of the details of the show…however here’s Greg’s Magic Wand tip: He said that to be a successful entrepreneur you need to be bold. That’s certainly true of Greg! How else would you be able to interview busy entrepreneurs? Thanks, Greg!
Pay Day
January 19, 2007
Fairy Godmothers Carrie and Danielle write:
Pay day.
Reciprocity, noun:
§ given or felt by each toward the other; mutual: reciprocal respect.
§ mutual or cooperative interchange of favors or privileges.
§ benefit, consideration, earnings, honorarium, payment, payoff, premium, profit, reward, salt, satisfaction
We’re all for selfless giving – it’s a beautiful and transformative force of nature. But today, we’re encouraging you to be out rightly, gleefully self-centered. Play Chief Operating Officer of your life and take score.
Today’s Magic Wand:
1. FUNCTION: Consider the value of what you create for others. An organized social calendar for your family. Peace of mind or direction for clients and coworkers. A profitable business that benefits many. A lovely home vibe. Sage advice. Punctuality. Tenderness and laughter.
2. FORM: What form of payment would you like to receive: greater revenue, public recognition, constructive feedback, a hug when you come home? Or perhaps some quiet time, a love note, or a simple but sincerely spoken ‘thank you’ would fill your boots.
3. SOURCE: Where do you want that reciprocity to come from? Your friends, family, boss, customers…or your self?
