Issue 6 by The Alabama Business Source Magazine

MAGAZINE THE ALABAMA BUSINESS SOURCE MAGAZINE

ISSUE 6

‘s

YOU’RE NEVER TOO YOUNG OR OLD

TO FOLLOW YOUR

DREAMS

DEREK LOVETT

PG. 25

BE BOLD PG. 18

PG. 9 THE 13 YEAR OLD CEO OF MO’S BOWS A RESEARCH ARTICLE

MAGAZINE THE ALABAMA BUSINESS SOURCE MAGAZINE

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STOP EXPECTING YOUR JOB TO TO FUND YOUR VISION. YOUR VISION IS PROBABLY BIGGER THAN YOUR PAYCHECK.

-T.D JAKES

FRESH LOOK. FRESH FEEL. FRESH PRINTS BUSINESS CARDS - FLYERS - BROCHURES - BANNERS - SIGNS - POST CARDS T-SHIRTS - CORPORATE ITEMS - DESIGN SERVICES - DECALS

WWW.FRESHPRINTSPP.COM

find any d I couldn’t n a grandma – n a m r e dapp ws. “So my g e n N u o x y o F a s ld a “I really w y like,” he to years, or g bow ties.” s that I reall for over 80 e g ti in w w o e b s iness makin r s n e u e b e oth b n ’s w e o h y s randma – d to start m my lovely g t, so I wante a th ke li zy cra something

GES

MOZIAH BRID

The 11-Year-Old Fashion Entrepreneur Behind 'Mo's Bows' When you look at the short but potential-packed career of Moziah Bridges, one gets the impression that this is a young man in a hurry. The Memphis, Tennessee-based youth is carving himself a place in the fashion world one bow tie at a time. Young Master Bridges – Mo, for short – has been designing and sewing his own ties since his grandmother taught him how when he was nine years old. Like all innovators (yeah, I said “innovators,” let’s give it to him) his product ideas arose out of a lack he saw on the market. “I really was a young dapper man and I couldn’t find any other bow ties that I really like,” he told Fox News. “So my grandma – my lovely grandma – she’s been sewing for over 80 years, or something crazy like that, so I wanted to start my own business making bow ties.” “You don’t have to wait until you’re older,” his mother Tramica Morris said. “If you have a dream and you have a passion, we say go for it.” Bridges chooses the fabrics for his creations himself and is quite particular about the styles. His pieces range from relatively traditional polka-dots and stripes to multi-colored paisley and sports team-themed ties. He has earned over $30,000 thus far with his one-man (one-boy) business, selling on his own Etsy page accessible from his website.

But Bridges is also attracting the attention of retail stores. According to his site, his wares are available in boutiques in Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina and Arkansas. He recently got a shout-out from Oprah Winfrey’s O Magazine.

Moziah Bridges & Mother at Shark Tank September 2013, "Shark Tank" investor Daymond John flew his mentee Moziah Bridges, the then 12-year-old founder and CEO of bow tie company Mo's Bows, to New York City for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. Besides taking him to events and making introductions to power players in the industry, John accompanied Bridges on a morning taping of CNBC's "Squawk Box." Later that day, John got a call from Karen Katz, CEO and president of the Neiman Marcus Group. He assumed the call was for him, he tells Business Insider, but it was for Bridges. "I've never been in Neiman Marcus with any of my brands, and it takes the 12-year-old child to get Neiman Marcus to call me!" John says, laughing. "So that's the student teaching the teacher, you know?" Today, the precocious CEO is 13. With the help of his mother Tramica Morris ("Mo is the CEO of the company, but I'm the CEO of Mo," she says), he's sold about $200,000 of his handmade bow ties and other men's fashion accessories. He has seven employees â&#x20AC;&#x201D; including his mom and grandmother. John became Bridges' mentor in 2013 after he and his mom appeared on "Shark Tank" in its fifth season. The mother-son entrepreneur duo from Memphis sought $50,000 in exchange for 20% equity in the company. Kevin O'Leary offered a deal for the $50,000 in exchange for a $3 royalty per tie sold, which Mark Cuban and John advised Bridges not to take.

Moziah Bridges &

Moâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bows Team

YEARS OLD OR YOUNGER

WRITE DOWN 21 GOALS & PLANS YOU HAVE FOR YOURSELF AS A YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR. 10: WRITE 10 GOALS 5: LIST 5 CHALLENGES YOU FACE ACHIEVING THEM 5: LIST HOW YOU PLAN TO OVERCOME THEM 1: WHAT ARE YOU DOING TODAY TO ACHIEVE THESE GOALS

10 GOALS 1. ______________________________________ 2. ______________________________________ 3. ______________________________________ 4. ______________________________________ 5. ______________________________________ 6. ______________________________________ 7. ______________________________________ 8. ______________________________________ 9. ______________________________________ 10. _____________________________________ 5 CHALLENGES 1. ______________________________________ 2. ______________________________________ 3. ______________________________________ 4. ______________________________________ 5. ______________________________________ OVERCOME PLAN 1. ______________________________________ 2. ______________________________________ 3. ______________________________________ 4. ______________________________________ 5. ______________________________________ ARE STARTING TODAY? 1. ______________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________ ________________________________________

How to Use the Power of 'Social Proof' to Attract Customers Social proof can be a great way to help push your online visitors toward a conversion.

Research Article by By AJ Agrwal

ocial proof can be a great way to help push your visitors towards a conversion. It doesn't matter what your conversion is, it might be a purchase, it could be a PDF download, or it could be a newsletter signup.

If you can show visitors that there are other people out there, just like them, taking advantage of your offer and really enjoying the results--they're likely to want to take advantage too! So what is social proof? The definition of social proof according to Wikipedia is: "Social proof, also known as informational social influence, is a psychological phenomenon where people assume the actions of others in an attempt to reflect correct behavior for a given situation." In simple terms, this means that when people see other people taking an action and benefiting from it, they'll tend to take the same action. It's the concept behind virality on social media, those trending kids' toys that there are always a couple of every year, and the power of online review sites like Tripadvisor.

PG. 00

In simple terms, by showing visitors to your website or social media posts that other normal people, just like them, really enjoy your product or service, you're giving them social proof that you're providing a good service or selling a good product. The same applies to newsletter signups. If you show new visitors text and images of people who have already signed up to your newsletter and loved it, it encourages the new users to take the same action. Think about Amazon reviews: Why do you think the products with the highest reviews perform the best? The reviews that appear on Amazon give the shopper social proof that the product they're looking at is right for them, so they buy it. There are a lot of different ways to provide social proof. After you've read through this article, keep an eye open for it in the future. I can guarantee that you'll start seeing elements of social proof right across the Internet.

1. Reviews for Social Proof. It's been well documented that reviews are one of the most powerful forms of social proof. That's precisely the reason why every ecommerce CMS worth using will have review functionality. The ability to show prospective customers the rating of a product is a great way to increase conversions. The first thing to do is make sure you have this functionality. CEO, Ryan Sasser from CurrencyLiquidator knows the "tricks" very well because his business it's based on such angle. As an entrepreneur Ryan admits that no business now days can resist without some ongoing social media optimization and solid marketing strategies. Even if you're not running an ecommerce business, you should always allow clients to submit their views on your product or service. Not only will this help provide social proof for new clients or customers, but you can also gain some really valuable insight into the issues that people may have with your products. You can attract reviews in a number of different ways but I've included the most popular processes below: 1.) Follow up email a few days after delivery to invite the user to review the product. 2.) Provide a discount code when a review is successfully submitted.

2. As Seen On Logos. This is another form of social proof that you'll commonly see on websites. If your business has been featured on a nationally (or even locally) recognized media outlet, it's a good idea to draw attention to that fact. The majority of consumers really trust these big brands. "A Logo can change the future of the company", that's what CEO, Todd Ehrlich from KillCliff said. If they see that the BBC, or New York Times, or Mashable, or Wired, or any publisher like that, has featured you're business, their first thought will be: "Oh it must be good if they're covering it!" That simple thought process makes the user more likely to convert. So when you're lucky enough to be covered by a huge media outlet, make sure you notify users on your website.

3. Social Media Mentions. The power of social media has been discussed over and over again. One of the reasons it can be so powerful is that it allows real people the chance to interact with brands in a public forum. You should already be monitoring brand mentions on social media--it's invaluable data. But beyond finding posts where people mention to you and responding to all queries, what else can you do to leverage this social media attention? By posting positive (or even embedding) positive social media reaction on your website you're showing new visitors that other people, just like them, have enjoyed your product or service. Not only will this help social media users become more familiar with your brand and begin to trust your products even more, but you can also give that same impression to users on your website. On top of that, it comes at no cost to you whatsoever. As you grow you'll get more and more of these brand mentions. Don't forget to utilize them to help convince other prospects that you're a trustworthy brand! Now that you've understood what social proof is and you've got a few examples of how to utilize it, you'll be able to find lots of different ways of leveraging this powerful social phenomenon.

3.) Add a prominent review button whenever a visitor returns to the site. 4.) Periodically email your customer base to ask for reviews of your business.

PG. 00

FIVE STAR

BAIL ONDS YOUR MOST TRUSTED BAIL AGENTS

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JEREMEY GOLDMAN

4 Remarkable Insights to Inspire Social Media Success Some of the many insights derived from previous Social Fresh conferences. Are you attending this year's event? This September, some of the social media marketing world's elite will gather in Tampa Bay, Florida for the 2015 Social Fresh Conference. Social Fresh, if you're not familiar with it, brings together a single track of speakers who really know their stuff; people like Jay Baer, Adrian Parker, Justin Kistner, and Paula Berg.

Parker was prescient in saying that departments as disparate as human resources, public relations, marketing, customer services, and communications would all want "a piece of the social media pie." In fact, three years later, plenty of well-respected organizations are still duking it out over who controls their social media strategy.

I've had the pleasure of attending previous Social Fresh Conferences and always really enjoyed the experience. Here are some of the insights I've derived from Social Fresh speakers, both in person and via Social Fresh's blogs and podcasts:

Parker's talk crystalized the difference between organizational leadership and vision.

#1: Podcasting beats cold calling.

"Our podcast shines a spotlight on the people who actually do work in the industry," said best-selling author Jay Baer at Social Fresh West 2014. "The biggest benefit of doing an interview podcast is the relationships you build." â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you have a podcast, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s so much easier to cold email someone about being a guest on your industry podcast than it is to email them about hiring you," explained Baer. "You have something to offer them." You can see Jay's full interview with Social Fresh founder Jason Keath here.

#2 Internal alignment and vision are key.

"Without an audience there is no brand. With no alignment, there is no business. Internal alignment is just as important as getting the wins outside the organization," said Adrian Parker, then of Intuit, now VP of Digital Marketing at Patrn, at Social Fresh East 2012.

"Leadership is plural. You can have many leaders. Vision is singular. You need to own your vision." That differentiation is key: too many organizations don't explicitly attempt to get all their leaders on the same page with respect to their vision for how social media sits within the firm's larger strategy.

#3: Facebook video ads will overtake YouTube "Facebook will overtake YouTube in the next 12 months as the leader in online video ads." So says Justin Kistner, VP of Marketing at Mixpo, a leading advertising campaign solution. The highly-regarded Social Fresh blog recently covered Mixpo's State of Video Ads report, which featured insights from Kistner.

"While video creative was not great at driving clicks to a landing page," says Kistner, "we found that retargeting people who watched a video did improve the click-through and conversion rates." Kistner and Mixpo uncovered that prospects who were "warmed up" with video "were more likely to take action on follow up campaigns."

"Content creation can be time-consuming and expensive, and many times you post content and miss promotion and distribution opportunities," says Berg, leading into HP's 50/25/25 content strategy: "50% of our approach is tried and true. Things we know are going to get us results. "25% of our approach are things that we're dabbling with and things we think have potential but we're still tweaking our formula." "Another 25% is spent on long shots and new channels. Sometimes we move those things into our bread and butter category and sometimes it's a total flop and we move on." Besides the standouts above, this year's Social Fresh looks to be the biggest ever, with marketing leaders from Priceline, Dannon, The Today Show, and American Eagle scheduled to appear, among many others.

TOP 10 BENEFITS OF SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING Because it appeared quickly, social media has developed a reputation by some for being a passing marketing interest, and therefore, an unprofitable one. The statistics, however, illustrate a different picture. According to Hubspot, 92% of marketers in 2014 claimed that social media marketing was important for their business, with 80% indicating their efforts increased traffic to their websites. And according to Social Media Examiner, 97% of marketers are currently participating in social media—but 85% of participants aren’t sure what social media tools are the best to use. This demonstrates a huge potential for social media marketing to increase sales, but a lack of understanding on how to achieve those results. Here’s a look at just some of the ways social media marketing can improve your business: 1.) Increased Brand Recognition. Every opportunity you have to syndicate your content and increase your visibility is valuable. Your social media networks are just new channels for your brand’s voice and content. 2.) Improved brand loyalty. According to a report published by Texas Tech University, brands who engage on social media channels enjoy higher loyalty from their customers. 3.) More Opportunities to Convert. Every post you make on a social media platform is an opportunity for customers to convert. 4.) Higher conversion rates. Social media marketing results in higher conversion rates in a few distinct ways. 5.) Higher Brand Authority. Interacting with your customers regularly is a show of good faith for other customers. 6.) Increased Inbound Traffic. Without social media, your inbound traffic is limited to people already familiar with your brand and individuals searching for keywords you currently rank for. 7.) Decreased Marketing Costs. According to Hubspot, 84% of marketers found as little as six hours of effort per week was enough to generate increased traffic. 8.) Better Search Engine Rankings. SEO is the best way to capture relevant traffic from search engines, but the requirements for success are always changing. 9.) Richer Customer Experiences. Social media, at its core, is a communication channel like email or phone calls. 10.) Improved Customer Insights. Social media also gives you an opportunity to gain valuable information about what your customers are interested in and how they behave, via social listening.

OLD YOU’RE NEVER TOO YOUNG OR OLD

TOO FOLLOW YOUR Following your dreams is not about age, it’s about being bold enough to put your thoughts into action. When in doubt, remember to BE BOLD! Brave: Being brave enough to question your path and follow your dreams, does not follow a specific timeline. Asking difficult questions and being strong enough and give words and action to your inner most desires and dreams, allows you to plant the seeds to follow any career dream. Expertise: You do not have to have 10 years of corporate experience before you are considered an expert. You do not need to be a recent grad or a millennial, to go after a career that fulfills you. Expertise does not come with age – in either direction, it comes with knowledge, skills, hard work, and the drive to make yourself into an expert in something that you enjoy. Believe: Believing in yourself and your dreams is the single most important step in the journey. If you do not believe that you are capable of your wild path, then why would anyone else? Great leaps in our society have always come from people whose ideas were doubted and ridiculed – but they believed in their idea and never gave up. You are not silly/crazy/ridiculous/unrealistic for wanting something different – believe in YOU, even if it feels like no one else does. You are not alone in your desire to change, and your belief in yourself will help you find others on the same journey. Own it: No more excuses – eliminate all of your excuses. Never again fall back on that crutch of your excuses: being too old; being too young; having a family (or not having one); starting over; not having enough/too much experience; not enough money saved up; not knowing where to start.

Own your dream, just like you would any other object. You have to put gas in your car and water your plants for both to work – treat your dream like something that needs to be nurtured, and do not let excuses get in your way – keep watering it. Learn: Learn everything you possibly can about your dream and then learn some more.Objections are more easily assuaged when we have facts to negate them. Learn about the facets of your dream, learn who the key players are and connect with them for advice, learn about the many paths to fulfillment, learn the skills needed to do your dream job. Turn your inner naysayer into a supporter through knowledge – and then apply your knowledge as part of your differentiation package. Determination: Never give up on your dream. I’m not going to lie to you – it’s hard to stay on track and keep at it when you are going against the “normal” path. Following your dream takes all of the things above, but without determination and perseverance, your dream will never turn into reality. This is the action step – this is the differentiator between people who are dreamers versus people who are doers. You don’t have to be the best, the smartest, the youngest, the oldest, the most creative – you have to be the most determined. You have to continue to focus on your dream and not lose sight that your dream is worth pursuing; your personal path is meant to have some bumps – or you wouldn’t appreciate it as much once you arrive.

Q & A TIMEOUT Would you quit your job to start a business or Have you quit your job to start your own business?

Latoya Stratford

Vicky Love

my dreams and haven't looked back since. I'm very happy with my decision. I had what most people would call a "good" job, making $80k a year but I was miserable because I knew I always wanted to be my own boss and build my own business. It's not easy but it's rewarding to know your able to support yourself and your family based on something YOU

Job. Working on building a reliable, professional team and creating products as well as completing the behind the scene pieces, then I'll be baaaaaaaacckkkkk (like Arnold said)

“I quit my job 3 years ago to pursue “Yes, got my feet wet but got another

control.

”

Natashia Griffin

“I was an outreach worker at a local

Mikail Muhammad

“

Haven't worked a "regular" job since 2011. There is no going back. Create a livelyhood with my talent

”

or die, there are no other options.

Gregory Hedgepeth II

“Did it before. It was hard but very

rewarding. Now that I'm working again, I just look at it as funneling money into my business. I can't wait to focus on it full time again

”

full force!

”

Charise Carter

“I would love to quit my job and fully pursue my dream, but I think about the time invested on my job and I am 8 years away from retirement. I think if I stay after I retire I will have a income to fall back on while pursuing

”

my dream.

Venessa Fleeton

healthcare center. That wore many hats; CPR instructor. I made clinic appt., signed families up for needed items like food clothes referrals for pantry, women for mammograms, children up for headstart & I went to a men's shelter on Mondays for clinic appts. and the list goes on. I like helping others. But I am happy I got out of my comfort zone and went for my dreams.

”

Dewong Lucas Sr.

“I quit my job back in 1989! Have

started and partnered in several businesses and helped others do the same.. It's only for those who truly know and understand "Why" and "How" they want to leave. It's simple but not easy.

”

Kimberly M. Armstrong

“I would if I had the financial support system and resources to focus on my business and not be overwhelmed about paying bills and taking care of my family. Hard to be done, but it can

”

happen.

“

I retired (not quit) my job last December and I don't regret a thing. It's a new lifestyle but I'm settling into it and I'm excited about the future.

”

Tiffany Thomas

“NO. HELL NO”

“She could just pack up and leave, but she does not visualize what's beyond ahead.” - Núria Añó

WOMEN OF REFINED GOLD, INC #ENDTHESILENCE TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

WWW.WOMENOFREFINEDGOLD.ORG

SHANNON KILONS

Quit Your Job, Start Your Business: 8 Smarter Ways To Make The Switch You’ve rehearsed your departure speech in your head 100 times, and dreamed of an amazing new boss—you . But there are some practicalities you could consider before you cut off that magical stream of paychecks and free office coffee to leap into the risk and reward that is your own business.

1. Finish financial transactions while you still look good on paper: Even if you’ll be able to meet obligations from savings, contracts and future income, lenders give you the stink eye when you don’t have that steady paycheck. Refinance (or buy a house), get the car loan (people who have low credit risks get better rates), apply for business loans, and complete any other transactions that might not go as well if you can’t produce proof of your earning power. Plus, that lower payment after a re-fi means more money for your savings, retirement, or business. 2. Get your health together: That tooth that sometimes sends you to the moon when you bite the wrong way on your Ben & Jerry’s? Take advantage of your company’s dental and medical plans while you can , and get it checked out. Once you’re paying for your own insurance, you might not have the luxury of free or inexpensive co-pays for office visits. (Getting a full check-up before you go is also a good move in case you discover you need a procedure or have a condition that requires medication that would be more expensive on a new health plan.)

3. Pay off big bills: In California, December means watching palm trees sway to the swingy holiday sounds of Nat King Cole. But it also means that the first chunk of property taxes is due. The thought of paying the taxes once I didn’t have a regular income scared me so much, I made sure they were paid early so I wouldn’t feel the panic of watching my savings plummet. Another way to do this is to automatically funnel money into an account that’s unlinked to your regular checking and savings so you won’t be tempted to pull from it. 4. Double-check your numbers. Do you have enough of a savings cushion in case plans A, B and C fall through? Are you able to put a third of your projected income away for taxes? Consult a certified financial planner who can help identify elements you may have missed or misunderstood, and who can help you strategize ways to save and spend what you earn. 5. Milk your other benefits: I once worked for a company that paid employees $400 a year to spend on wellness—things like gym memberships and smoking cessation.

Do you still have tuition reimbursement, or dependent and health-care savings balances available? How about company discounts on movie tickets, amusement parks, cell phone service and car dealerships? Not taking advantage of these benefits is basically like leaving a bag of money on the bus and watching it drive away . 6. Bag your bonus: Do you need to stay through the end of the year, or be currently employed to receive your bonus? A too-early departure could cost you thousands of dollars – is it worth sticking around a while longer ? 7. Line up new prospects: When I made the decision to freelance again, I opened up my LinkedIn LNKD +1.20% account and wrote to 20 people I’d worked with. I told them I was back in business for myself, and asked them to please let me know if they heard of work available. That day, I landed two reliable clients who helped ease my transition. I plan to make reaching out a regular practice. The flip side to this is that if nobody responds, there may not be the market you thought for your services. Perhaps you’ll need to alter your approach before you leave your job so your savings won’t drain away. 8. The most important thing you need to do: Is take this advice from entrepreneur Jay Papasan, who co-wrote the best-selling “The One Thing” with real estate mogul Gary Keller: “Ask yourself, ‘Why is it important to do this? What will it do for you? What will it do for your family? What will it do for the world?’” he said. A person who ventures out on her own will face hard times. Business will go up and down. There will be failures. What helps you ride through them is how you answer the question. Then, as Jay said, “Write it down. Tattoo it on your back. Don’t forget it.” Our conversation made me think about my own reasons for leaving the warm security blanket of a job, and heading into the sometimes stormy seas of solopreneurship. I’m happiest working at home, and being able to leave in the middle of the day for a yoga class. I know I’ll get the inevitable call from my mom that she needs help, and I’ll be able to get to her in a snap. Someday Grace and I can spend the summers with my family in the tiny speck of the town where we’re from on Hood Canal in Washington State, and she can run crazy with her cousins in the woods, throw rocks into the water, and become an oyster connoisseur by the time school starts. What else do you need to do before making the leap to your dream job? Write down below or on a piece of paper.

EARLY GROWTH FINANCIAL

How Your Startup Can Attract Angel Funding In order to attract angel funding, you have to think like investors do. First off, who are angel investors? They’re mostly self-made individuals who typically invest in early stage companies on a part-time basis. And what are they looking for? Mainly they’re in search of cool ideas that address a market gap and will return 5-10 times their initial investment.

So how can you be successful at scoring angel funding? First, mak e sure you can distill your idea into a 2 minute elevato r pitch. Next, work on getting exposure. Think of it as a funnel. Le verage your extended network to get introduction s to at least 100- 250 investors. If you meet with 50 -10 0 of those, you’ll likely be follo wing up with 25-75 , go through due diligence with 25-50; and in a po sition to be offered funds by 8-1 5. Whew! Clearly, this needs to be a full-time job (a good reason to have a cofounde r so one of you can stay focused on building tracti on and executing on your milestones). Speakin g of milestones, yo u should be setting these for 12 -18 months out. An d definitely build in a “fudge fac tor” as a contingen cy. Angel questions. W hile you’re working on funding, potential investors will be scrutinizing you to figure out what kind of commitment you and your cofounder(s) have shown. They’ll want to know how long you’ve been do ing this. And how much money you’ve raised from friends and family. Sa vvy ones will also want to know:

While everyone likes to think these are straight business decisions, of course intangibles like “do they identify with you?” or “is there chemistry?” always play a part. Making the Pitch. Once you’ve got meetings set up, make sure you’ve prepared answers to standard due diligence questions and you’ve done some dry runs with your pitch deck. To really nail it, your first page should tell a story in 30 to 60 seconds. Your goal is to get investors excited and emotionally connected. Your second page should provide a solution. Next outline your market size and explain how you are you going to make money, before going over the competition, your IP, and your team. You need to be able to do this in 10-12 slides max with supporting documents, e.g., financial projections, and other details in an appendix. Financial projections. Your best approach with financial projections is to combine top down with bottom up analysis. And really hone in on your addressable market and your business’ niche within it. Outline your overall spending picture including what you’ll do with the funding, cash burn, and your salary spend. Factor in reasonable salaries for yourself and any co-founders, but make sure to be open and upfront about them!

1. Do you and any co-founders like each other? 2. Can you sell: not just your product, but your idea? 3. How are you building your team? 4. Who else are you talking to? 5. And who are your competitors?

Valuations: Who sets them? What’s the range? And why do they differ between regions? Entrepreneurs can ask for the valuation they want (supported by comparables), but ultimately investors control this. Just as with VCs, talking to several angels gives you more options as to which number to go with. Keep in mind that hitting milestones makes a big impact — and can give you a step change in valuation for the next round. In the Bay Area, $3 million tends to be the norm for early stage valuations. But this does differ across geographical locations mainly because, as with real estate, valuations mostly reflect local supply and demand. Investors still tend to invest locally, use local comparables, and base valuations on prior investments. Think you’re finished once the funds hit your bank account? You aren’t! Investors’ biggest complaint is writing checks, then not hearing from the entrepreneur again until he or she is trying to raise the next round. Think long-term: keep your investors updated and always follow-up (even with those who turned you down initially).

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6 Qs BREAK Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead end. Failure is something we can avoid only by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being

DENIS WALTLEY

“

DEREK LOV

I have been a resident of Montgomery for just over 8 years now. I was born and raised in Birmingham and attended Tennessee State University in Nashville, Tennessee, where I received a B.S. in Civil Engineering. I began work at the Alabama Department of Transportation in 2007 of which I resigned earlier this year. Throughout college I found myself very passionate about connecting with people. Once I graduated that passion grew as my perspective of the world was broadened and it became clear that I wanted to work at a grassroots level with communities. Since 2008 I have found numerous ways to connect with the Montgomery community, from theatrical productions to coaching youth sports. Ultimately I want to continue to impact communities through entrepreneurship. I recently launched a mobile app called Bitty - Rediscover Small Business. It is in its first version, so I am just getting a feel for the response it gets. Consumers can download the app from the App Store (Android is coming soon), but businesses actually log on through the website at www.thebittyapp.com to access the business interface. The app helps independent business owners achieve closer engagement with existing customers and facilitate referral marketing through the pipeline these customers make to their friends. 1. What encouraged you to become an entrepreneur? The funny thing is I never set out to be an entrepreneur. After I finished college and moved to Montgomery I started telling people I was an entrepreneur because whenever me and a friend of mine would go out he would always introduce me as an engineer, and that really bothered me because I felt like that title didn't represent everything I was. Meanwhile, I knew that I wanted to go into high schools and speak to students about the importance of individuality and following their passions and I just felt like it would be much easier to get into schools if I was the owner of a high-tech startup company. Nonetheless, it was 6 years later (2014) that I began honing in on Bitty, which is actually a byproduct of a much larger vision I had been working on for probably a year and a half beforehand that focused on community empowerment through social activism.

VETT

2. What major risk did you take in order to get started? Hhmmm...let's see. Honestly, the real risk for me was deciding that I would pursue entrepreneurship instead of film. After arriving in Montgomery after college it didn't take me long to get immersed in the community theater culture. After enjoying a couple years of success, and with the encouragement of some accomplished talent scouts, I felt like I could really have success on a professional level. However, I wasn't too keen on the rigorous lifestyle that many starting actors encountered. With that in mind, along with the fact that I had become somewhat discouraged that I had not turned some of my ideas into profitable ventures, I decided to seriously pursue developing my ideas so that I could create a financial cushion for myself first. This was around 2012 sometime, I worked on business ideas for about 3 years until I quit my job in 2015. When I left my job I wasn't just making a blind leap of faith. I had some money in reserve, had a great plan, and also knew that with my skill set I could easily work for myself if need be. Nonetheless, my reason for leaving was based on the faith that I believed that my idea was at the place where I needed to work on it full-time. 3. Along the process, what were or have been the advantages and disadvantages of your entrepreneurial journey? The real disadvantage I see is just not knowing what resources to use and how to go about each step. While information is good, you don't want to overdo it until you are a nervous wreck. With entrepreneurship it can sometimes seem like you are marching blindly since you don't know exactly what's going to work or when you are going to be sustainable. On the other hand, the advantages are obvious and exactly as advertised: The freedom to set your own schedule, do what you love, and if you are fortunate, make money while doing it. The best part to me is that you get to enjoy a journey that is both challenging and rewarding.. 4. From when you first started to where you are now, what would you do different and what have been some valuable lessons you've learned? Great question. Probably the number one thing I would do is get a mentor first. While it important to act on ideas, I believe taking the time to find a mentor is worth whatever time that lapses. I suggest searching online, asking friends and associates, and searching LinkedIn. A dedicated, proficient mentor can be hard to find, but if you can find one then it will be priceless. They can really keep you stay focused and keep you from wasting time. Most importantly, they will keep you balanced. One of the main mistakes I made was throwing myself into developing my business until the point of neglecting a lot of the other important things in my life. This is so easy to do when you are doing something you love. Also, while a business mentor is excellent, a spiritual mentor such as a pastor, or even someone who can help you practically such as a psychologist or a level-headed friend, can be a good foundation for helping you stay on track in respect to balance, core values, and a strategic plan.

5. What are some of your habits you abide by to ensure a successful entrepreneurial journey? Foremost, I make sure I give myself breaks. No matter how well I feel like I am doing, I do not focus on my business on Sundays. This gives my brain a break and helps me not to be anxious. I don't think that a specific day of the week is important, but more so just a day of rest in general. I believe that doing this establishes poise and contributes to overall health, which is hugely important in business (just as in life) in order to avoid making rash decisions that are costly in many ways. It took some effort to hold myself to this standard but I had gotten to a point of desperation because I had been overdoing it for awhile and knew that I needed to find a way to pace myself. It especially helped me that I believed God would bless my work all the more since I was honoring his Biblical instruction to rest for a day. 6. What advice would you give startups looking to start in your field? I believe the most important thing for any startup is to not be in a rush. Oddly enough, our society teaches us that we have to beat the next person to the punch. However, the aspect that gets overlooked is that it is not so much about the greatness of the idea as it is the execution of it. So, don't be afraid to tell others about your idea to get their feedback. Developing your idea into a business is what will take the time, research, and trial and error. You can make money with your job or other side gigs, but your idea will take time to develop and therefore should probably not be something you bank on hitting a home run with right out of the gate. Hence, the best way to go about entrepreneurship is to continue focusing on personal and career development while considering business ideas along the way and eventually finding one that you are passionate about that fits your skill set and what you want to do with your life. It goes without saying that at some point you are going to have to do what is probably uncomfortable -such as facing a fear (e.g. public speaking) or learning something you have avoided (e.g. math) in order to take it to the next level. For those who want to build a mobile app, I have a simple checklist that you can use as a guide: Keep in mind that if you just want to make an app to make money then you don't have a business, you have a product.

1. Check App Store and Google Play Store to see what is already out there. 2. At the least, search online to see who could be potential competition, make a list and define how you will be different. 3. How will your app make money? If you can figure this out then you are really on your way. Ask your friends to get insight on how relevant your idea is and use that as a guide to evaluate if it will actually be able to make money. Also search "Making money with a mobile app" - there are really 3 standard methods for doing this that you will find to be consistent across the board.

4. You will want to begin sketching out a design for your app. Study the features of some other apps to see what kind of look and feel you might want and try drawing out some mockups of your app on paper or at www.balsamiq.com. 5. Read up on mobile app development and the different programming languages used for Apple and Android. Also,

research some average costs per market for development (i.e. how much it costs in Boston, San Francisco, Atlanta, etc.). You will need to at least remotely understand how this process works so that you can make a fair assessment of what you are facing in respect to cost and time.

6. Evaluate if you want to build it yourself or pay someone. There are websites like "Como" which allow you to build simple apps for cheap without having to do any programming. This may be ideal if you are building something just for yourself or for friends, or even if you are wanting to create a simple version of your idea to be used as a demo. Just search "Build a mobile app" online. Also, I encourage anyone to begin learning computer programming - Java is an ideal language to learn (Android uses it) and you can find inexpensive beginner courses at www.coursera.org. A good developer in the area that I know personally is Nerd Alchemy (www.nerdalchemy.com). They developed my app (Bitty) and have great vision for how to take ideas and make them into user-friendly mobile app experiences. You can email me at Derek.Lovett@gmail.com if you have any questions about entrepreneurship in general, want to know more about my journey, or want specific help with developing an app. Entrepreneurship is a delicate balance of innovation, will, and precision. It can be a wonderful experience or your worst nightmare, so approach it with caution. Be humble in knowing that you don't have the best idea ever because somebody has already thought of it in some capacity. Try to combine your passion with your skill set. There is no guarantee of success except that, if you are committed, you will learn more about yourself and the world than you ever would have if you hadn't tried. Move forward with a sense of focus and vigor, and remember, there are no shortcuts and there will be much trial and error. Your ideas have to be nurtured, so follow the signs of feedback from others. Sometimes you will need to leave your ideas alone for awhile and then come back to them. Don't rush. Adapt. Trust the process. You can email me at Derek.Lovett@gmail.com if you have any questions about entrepreneurship in general, want to know more about my journey, or want specific help with developing an app.

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