AUGUST 2011
STARTUP NO 2
FASHION LABEL STARTUP P14
2019 UNTHINKABLES BY KEVIN KELLY
P32
SPACE TRAVELLING AGE STARTS
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH MICHIEL MOL
SHARE YOUR WHEELS P18
AUGUST 2011
EDITOR’S LETTER / EYLEM CULCULOGLU
03
SKY IS NO LONGER THE LIMIT ‘The sky is the limit’ is a very well know cliché… Whenever you ask a startup company about their future plans, they say ‘the sky is the limit’… This issue includes a special interview with Michiel Mol - the man behind the Dutch commercial space-travelling project. He believes that the sky is not the limit and he wants to change the way we see the future… We started this magazine with a similar approach. We believe in the future and we believe in the power of innovation. If one thing can change, everything can change. There are many barriers in this world. There are too many things that need to change. We still use the same cars that were being used in the 1920’s. We are still dependent on oil. We still use silicon for chips… This is because larger companies only care about maximizing their profits. 9 years ago, while I was working for IT Business Weekly magazine I interviewed an Intel Vice President. I was shocked by his views about nano-technology. He had told me there was no need for switching to nano materials. He proudly explained that silicon technology would last for at least 20 more years! When I asked why, his answer was long and full of marketing jargon. In simple words it was just the money! One CPU factory costs 3 billion dollars to establish, and giants like Intel and AMD only care about making their shareholders happy.
It is very nice to see that our very first issue brought such a great success. We reached over 20,000 readers in a very short time. Startup Magazine got featured on the Apple App Store more than 4 times and was showcased on Issuu.com – the world’s largest online publishing site. This issue we have packed in a lot of interesting articles for you. Our writers from the United States and Europe gathered a bunch of cool stuff for you to enjoy during the hot summer days. See you next issue!
Unlike those ‘established’ big giants, innovative companies are working to change things. That is why we started this magazine. We are a startup company too. We have a small team of young innovative people located in Holland. We look at the world from a different perspective than those ‘big boys’.
TEXT EYLEM CULCULOGLU
AUGUST 2011
INDEX / COLOFON
Index 06 NEWS
32 2019 Unthinkables
12 WHY YOU SHOULD Eliminate titels
35 LINKING THE WORLD TO THE WEB
14 Fashion label startup
38 5 lessons from the navy seals
18 SUCCESS BEHIND SNAPPCAR
42 GADGETS
22 INTERVIEW WITH TERRI LEVINE
47
7 QUESTIONS EVERY BUSINESS MUST ANSWER
24 APPS BY JONA DERKS 50 COLUMN by FRED WILSON 26 SPACE TRAVELLING STARtS
Colofon Content Editor in chief ManaginG editor editor Art director Designer Web editor
cast Eylem Culculoglu Joris Kruse Jordan Thomas Lisanne ter Bille Ayrton Spierts Douwe Trippenzee
Contributing Writers Kevin Kelly, Jason Mendelson, Fred Wilson, Jeffrey Bussgang, John Jantch, Evan Carmichael, Andrea Wiegman, Jona Derks, Edwin W. Kalischnig
Publisher
contact
Innovation Industries The Netherlands
Mail: Phone:
PR@STARTUPMAGAZINE.NET +31 (0) 365 238 480
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AUGUST 2011
NEWS
Cloud security firm cooperates with Amazon Dome9 Security, the cloud server security service provider delivering multi-platform security management-as-a-service for public and private clouds, announced it has joined the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Solution Providers Program. With Dome9, AWS customers can centrally manage security policies for Amazon’s multiple security groups, cloud servers, or a single server. Policies are applied dynamically to customers’ cloud infrastructure as they add servers and scale, and Dome9’s secure access lease technology further enhances security by delivering first-of-its-kind dynamic firewall controls for on-demand access.
Game changing HR Event in Amsterdam Marc Coleman, Director at HRN Europe - The Pan European HR Network has announced “the most Game Changing HR event ever produced in Europe”. Marc Coleman said: “We believe the evolution in work technology in parallel with new ways of working provides organizations with real game changing abilities, especially here in Europe, as business leaders continue to become increasingly frustrated with a slow recovery! Many Human Resources departments across Europe are grappling with HR Technology, combined with the critical issue of talent management there is real excitement in the marketplace at the moment for software and solutions that help transforming organizations become more agile and successful.” Event will be held at Amsterdam from the 2-3 November at the NH Grand on Dam Square. Event’s lead sponsor is Workday and co-sponsors are Oracle and SAP.
06
AUGUST 2011
NEWS
Zagg acquired iFrogz for $105M Zagg Inc. – Zagg.com announced today the acquisition of privately held iFrogz, Inc. ifrogz.com - a leading mobile device accessories company specializing in lifestyle audio products and protective cases, for approximately $105 million. “This transaction represents an exciting next step in ZAGG’s evolution, and gives us scale within the rapidly growing protective cases and audio products markets by allowing us to immediately broaden our product line and drive the growth of our retail footprint,” said Robert G. Pedersen II, co-founder, president and CEO of ZAGG. “iFrogz is highly complementary to ZAGG in terms of brand positioning, product lines and customer base.
Good news for small businesses: Get Shopkick and Citi Onboard for free! Shopkick, the location-based shopping app that rewards shoppers simply for walking into stores, welcomes small local stores and coffee shops into its retail program, which already includes Target, Best Buy, Macy’s and many other leading national retailers. Sponsored by Citi, Shopkick will install its small Shopkick Signal box for FREE at the first 1,000 selected stores to enable its beneficial walk-in rewards program. Interested stores in launch cities – Austin and Dallas/Fort Worth, TX; Chicago, Il; Detroit, MI; Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay Area, CA; New Orleans, LA; New York,
This acquisition is a natural extension of our strategy to build complementary brands and increase overall market share by growing product lines and expanding distribution.” iFrogz designs, manufactures and distributes protective cases, headphones and earbuds, and other accessories for smartphones, tablets and mobile devices under the iFrogz and EarPollution brands. The Company has built a reputation for selling high quality, fashionable products geared toward a youthful demographic at affordable price points. iFrogz products are sold worldwide through leading retailers such as AT&T, Best Buy and Walmart. The company is based in Logan, Utah.
NY; Seattle, WA; and Washington D.C. – should apply at www.Shopkick.com/local in the next 30 days. Shopkick is excited to have new retail stores, coffee shops, bakeries and yogurt shops join its growing coalition of partners. Shopkick, the first coalition rewards program in America, now works for both large and small retailers alike. Smaller local businesses with repeat customers, like coffee shops or cafes, can now reach and reward shoppers just for walking into their stores, with no out-of-pocket expense. Paper loyalty punch cards can be a thing of the past!
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AUGUST 2011
“We will do for small and medium-sized local stores what we have done for large, national chains: drive foot traffic. It’s the single, hardest problem to solve – and the most valuable driver of success – for both retail and service businesses,” said Cyriac Roeding, co-founder and CEO of Shopkick. “With Shopkick, stores also have the potential to increase basket size and margins, improve shopper engagement, and build customer frequency. Shopkick’s new program will help small and medium businesses in a big way.” Citi, through its Citi Ventures unit, was an early investor in Shopkick. “Our work with Shopkick demonstrates one of the ways we are working to drive growth for our clients and for our company,” said Christopher Kay, Head of Ventures, Citi Ventures. “We invest in cutting-edge companies and work with them to deliver new experiences for clients designed around their increasingly digital and mobile lives. Shopkick is the leading mobile shopping app and drives measurable foot traffic to its retail partners. We’re happy to help make that shopper engagement and customer retention available to smaller businesses.”
A hundred small and medium-sized businesses in three cities have already been involved in a pilot program for the past couple of months. “For years, we’ve relied on expensive, untargeted ads to try to attract new customers, and paper punch cards to reward our loyal buyers,” said Chris Whirlow, owner and proprietor of Yogurt My Way. “Now, we not only have a great way to let new customers know about us, but we can thank them for visiting -- and tie our loyalty and rewards points to loyalty programs like Best Buy, Target, Macy’s and Facebook Credits! It’s great!”
NEWS
08
AUGUST 2011
European business angels, wings startup finance More than 400 early-stage investment leaders from 37 countries took a significant step into the future at Europe’s annual startup financing summit, the 11th EBAN Business Angel Network Congress. The event, held in Warsaw, Poland, last month highlighted the rapid adoption of a multinational platform for coordinating early stage business angel investments. Over 35,000 professional early stage investors from over 650 business angel networks in 65 countries are now standardized on a single set of collaboration tools that are helping to fuel the growth of the vibrant European entrepreneurial economy. The Angelsoft platform, adopted by nearly a dozen national business angel federations was awarded the prize for ‘Breakthrough Service/Tool of the Year’ by EBAN, the European trade association for business angels, seed funds, and other early stage market players. The award noted that the widespread adoption of a single international platform has greatly simplified the process of connecting high-growth entrepreneurs with individual investors and venture capital seed funds. Startups seeking to become ‘the next Skype’ can complete a single profile form, which then serves as the basis for the funding applications used by most organized business angel networks.
NEWS
New Mars suite from NASA NASA might be working with a tight budget but they are still working on project Mars. Last month a NASA team tested a space suit in a setting with extreme conditions akin to some of those found on Mars -- an Argentine base in Antarctica -- for possible use on a visit to the Red Planet. The NDX-1 suit, designed by Argentine aerospace engineer Pablo de Leon, endured frigid temperatures and winds of more than 47 mph as researchers tried out techniques for collecting soil samples on Mars.
“This was the first time we took the suit to such an extreme, isolated environment so that if something went wrong we couldn’t just go to the store and buy a repair kit”, De Leon told Reuters after returning from the one week expedition.
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AUGUST 2011
The $100,000 prototype suit, funded by NASA, consists of more than 350 materials, including tough honeycomb Kevlar and carbon fibers to reduce its weight without losing resistance. During the “Mars in Marambio” mission, (named after the Argentine air force base), a team of NASA scientists went on simulated spacewalks, operated drills and collected samples while wearing the gear. De Leon himself wore the pressurized suit, which he said was bound to make anyone feel claustrophobic with its helmet and built-in headset for communicating with the outside world. The researchers chose Marambio because compared to other Antarctic bases, had easier access to permafrost, or soil that stays frozen most of the year. De Leon, who heads the space suit laboratory at the University of North Dakota in the United States, said Antarctica was ideal for sample collection as it is one of the least contaminated places on earth and will also give clues about the suit’s impact.
NEWS
10
Mars space suit at a glance: Costs $100,000 Made of more than 350 materials Expected to be used at mid-2030’s
“Mars is a mixture of many different environments: deserts, and extreme temperatures and winds like in Antarctica,” De Leon said. “So we try to take bits of different places and try to see if our systems can withstand the rigors of Mars if we go there.” President Barack Obama said last year that by the mid-2030s it would be possible to send astronauts to orbit Mars and return them safely to earth. A landing on Mars would follow, he said. However, given NASA’s tightening budget, a manned mission to the most earthlike planet in the solar system may be even more distant.
JEFFREY BUSSGANG / ELIMINATE TITLES 12
AUGUST 2011
Why You Should Eliminate
Titles
Recent buzz in the business world has been about “hacking the corporation” - creating novel approaches to building young companies, particularly when they are in their formative start-up stage and pre-product market phase. One of them, reinventing board meetings (or, “Why Board Meetings Suck”), has gotten some attention from leading thinkers like Steve Blank and Brad Feld. Text: Jeffrey
Bussgang
I’d like to submit another idea to add to the “hacking the corporation” list: eliminating titles.
AUGUST 2011
JEFFREY BUSSGANG / ELIMINATE TITLES
At business school, I learned all about titles and hierarchies and the importance of organizational structure. When I joined my first business start-up after graduation, ecommerce leader Open Market, I found the operating philosophy of the founder jarring. He declared no one would have titles in the first few years! If you needed a title for external reasons, our founder told us, we should feel free to make one up. But always avoided using labels internally. In other words, there would be no “vice president” or “director” or other such hierarchical denominations.
Startups are fluid Why are they fluid, you ask? Roles change, responsibilities evolve, and reporting structures move around fluidly. Simply put, titles cause friction, and the one thing you want to reduce in a start-up is friction. By avoiding titles, you avoid early employees getting fixated on their role, who they report to, and what their scope of responsibility is - all things that rapidly change in a company’s first year or two. In one of my early experiences, one of my first bosses in the company later became a peer, and eventually our roles reversed and he reported to me! Our headcount went from 0 to 200 in two years. Our revenue from 0 to $60m in 3 years. We went public only two years after the company was founded. We were moving way too fast to get slowed down by titles and rigid hierarchies. Over the course of my five-year tenure, I ran a range of departments - product management, marketing, business development, professional services - all amidst a very fluid environment. Around the time that we went public, we matured in such
Text: Jeffrey
Bussgang
a way that we began to settle into a more stable organizational structure and, yes, had formal titles. But during those formative first few years, avoiding titles provided a more flexible organization.
No titles at all! When I co-founded Upromise, I instituted a similar policy: no titles. We had an open office structure and functional teams, but a fluid organizational environment and rapid growth. One of our young team members changed jobs four times in her first year. It was only after the first year, as we settled into a more stable organizational structure and I recruited senior executives, that I began to give out titles (CTO, CMO, CFO, etc.). With the title policy, there was some early tension and discomfort (one young MBA kept referring to himself as a VP externally, although he was playing an individual contributor role and was soon layered). When starting a company, any titles at all can prove to be confusing because of the fluidity of employees’ profiles and shifting organization structure. I haven’t been able to institute this systematically in our portfolio, but whenever young start-ups are formed, it’s one of the first pieces of advice I give to the founder. Don’t let your founding team and early hires get too attached to titles and hierarchy. In fact, in that formative first year, see if you can avoid them all together.
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AUGUST 2011
INTERVIEW / IRIS VAN HERPEN
STARTED HER
OWN FASHION LABEL
Fashion designer Iris van Herpen (1984) started her own fashion label Iris van Herpen upon graduating from ARTEZ in Arnhem in 2007 with a degree in fashion design. In 2010 she opened the Amsterdam Fashion Week with a 3D prototyped dress, in 2011 she showed more 3D designs in Paris and at the end of this year there will be additional 3D designs on show at the New York Fashion Week.
> TEXT ANDREA WIEGMAN, SECOND SIGHT
www.irisvanherpen.com
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AUGUST 2011
CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCES IN 3D DESIGN? “It really is a new process with new materials, this appeals to me. When I was asked to take on this new technique, I did it. I was curious about this new type of production.” I am not technical myself and it involves quite a lot of software aptitude, which really requires the aid of a specialist. I collaborate with Daniel Wildrig, a 3D software architect.
INTERVIEW / IRIS VAN HERPEN
That took some getting used to: you speak different languages and you have to develop a common one.”“Compared to regular fashion design there’s a major difference in production time. Normally the manual labour, the design, goes quickly and the production takes a long time. Here, especially in the beginning, this was reversed. The design process took much longer. Daniel had never designed around a human body. It was a big surprise. It was exciting, we had little control.” At the academy they teach you to produce clothing, to ‘churn it out’. Iris never saw the merit in that. “So much clothing is produced, way too much, with little substance, little love and little innovation- it just bores me.” Iris doesn’t think about sales, she doesn’t work with a preconceived budget, without a thought about the targeted market segment, or even about the season. It’s her conviction that clothing will find its own market. Her work is totally free with few restrictions in the design process, which is why she welcomed this challenge. “Much of my work came about due to boredom. I love innovation, challenges and looking for new materials and new techniques. I enjoy exploring new terrain. So much is going on right now, also in the production process. New materials, new techniques. High-end fashion doesn’t revolve around the big Parisian houses any more. It’s about new ways of working, co-operating, helping and strengthening each other.”
>
TEXT ANDREA WIEGMAN, SECOND SIGHT
www.irisvanherpen.com
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AUGUST 2011
WHAT ARE YOUR NEXT STEPS? “I’m not done yet with this new technique of 3D prototyping. I applied the process to two collections and will continue with another software architect. I have learned a lot about materials. Also, I now look at materials in a completely different way. I want to delve into the combination of handmade and technology a little deeper. I want to try out new things, to put new ideas into practice. For the first time we are going to incorporate several different materials in one single design and I want to do more work on finishing. We work with a lot of constraints at the moment. I’m figuring out how to add more handwork to the machine. I hope that technology and craft will melt into one in the future. A further meeting of the two.” “Before I started on this project I didn’t like computers and technology. I have learned to appreciate it more, though, and ≠ now I see the possibilities for the future are enormous.
TEXT ANDREA WIEGMAN, SECOND SIGHT
INTERVIEW / IRIS VAN HERPEN
We live in great times with lots of change and lots of possibilities. There’s a lot of research going on, a lot of opportunities, also within technology there’s a lot going on and it’s happening fast. The inspiration doesn’t come from fashion itself necessarily. It is through co-operation and experimenting that vibes and inspiration materialize. For me, curiosity is a driving force. I love anything that’s new and hasn’t yet reached the masses.”=“Before I started on this project I didn’t like computers and technology. I have learned to appreciate it more, though, and now I see the possibilities for the future are enormous. We live in great times with lots of change and lots of possibilities. There’s a lot of research going on, a lot of opportunities, also within technology there’s a lot going on and it’s hap pening fast. The inspiration doesn’t come from fashion itself necessarily. It is through co-operation & experimenting that vibes and inspiration materialize. For me, curiosity is a driving force. I love anything that’s new and hasn’t yet reached the masses.”
>
www.irisvanherpen.com
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AUGUST 2011
INTERVIEW / IRIS VAN HERPEN
MORE INFO More information about the 3D printing mothods and Iris van Herpen see: i.materialise.com www.irisvanherpen.com
IRIS VAN HERPEN: ‘Much of my work came about due to boredom’ /
Combines fine handwork techniques with futuristic digital technology /
TEXT ANDREA WIEGMAN, SECOND SIGHT
www.irisvanherpen.com
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AUGUST 2011
SUCCESS STORY / SNAPPCAR
Say goodbye to avis
Say goodbye to high rental fees Snappcar comes to rescue Text: Eylem
Culculoglu
Would you rent your neighbor’s car? I know this sounds odd but if it was cheap and convenient… why not? A Dutch startup company called Peer 2 Peer Ventures is working on a new project named Snappcar. Basically, they plan to make a website that will allow neighbors to rent out their cars! Instead of renting a car from a major rental company like Avis, Hertz or Sixt you can rent from your lovely neighbor next door!
Page:
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AUGUST 2011
SUCCESS STORY / SNAPPCAR
When I first heard about the project at the Road to Silicon Valley Startup Competition, I thought to myself, “C’mon, are you guys naïve or what! This won’t work!” Many things came to mind while listening to their presentation: “Why should I rent my neighbor Joe’s car? Joe is a dirty bastard! What will happen if I smash his car… How the hell will I pay him for the damage? Etc...” After the presentation we did not have a time for interview but exchanged business cards. A few weeks later Jorg Kop – Partner of Peer2Peer Ventures gave me a call. I was hesitant at first to make the interview, but decided to give it a shot! I was invited to the Peer2Peer offices in Utrecht, where I interviewed Jorg. I was surprised how Jorg was able to convince me that their project is a killer idea! First of all, although they are a very small startup company, they have made a perfect business plan. Jorg told me about how they have convinced the ANWB (Royal Dutch Touring Club) to support this project and shared the secrets of their business plan.
In your own street
40 percent cheaper than AVIS First of all, their system has many clear advantages over regular car rentals. A typical car rental from Snappcar will be around 40 percent cheaper than Avis, Hertz etc. The main advantage is not the price, but the available cars. For example, let’s say you are planning to go on vacation. You need a caravan. You cannot find a cheap caravan from Hertz. Obviously, it is extremely expensive to buy a new one. In situations like these Snappcar comes to rescue. By searching Snappcar’s database you can easily find a caravan in your neighborhood. They plan to compile a huge database of vehicles from Mini Coopers to large trucks and more. One of the most important aspects of renting a car is insurance. Regular rental car companies charge exorbitant sums such peace of mind. Snappcar has made a special deal with insurance companies, so once you get your car from neighbor Joe, it will be fully covered at a reasonable cost. So even if you smash his car, Joe will not get mad at you!
mini coopers to large trucks Text: Eylem
Culculoglu
Page:
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AUGUST 2011
SUCCESS STORY / SNAPPCAR
Snappcar’s slogan is: “Share your wheels next door” Does it sound like couchsurfing.com – a 21st century hippie site? No! Jorg Kop says: “Courchsurfing.com is free, whereas our service is paid and will therefore be much similar to airbnb.com, a site that allows cheap accommodation worldwide.” Snappcar’s business model relies on sales commissions. They plan to take 15 percent of all deals made through their site. Car owners will list their cars for free; they will tag their price using the built-in price calculator. Car renters will look for available cars and once the deal is made, payment will be made to Snappcar .
Text: Eylem
Culculoglu
Once the deal is made and payment completed, the cars will be fully insured. The renter will go to the car owner and pick up the vehicle, then return it by the specified date. In 5 years time Snappcar plans to reach 20k users in The Netherlands and more than 100K car booking annually. They plan to have 15K cars registered in their database. I am very impressed with this project. If it works out it can be a killer idea with potential worldwide implementation. You can check out Snappcar’s website at www.snappcar.nl
Page:
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siness Mentoring AUGUST 2011
INTERVIEW / TERRI LEVINE
7 Questions Business with
Mentoring
Expert
Terri Levine
Business mentor Terri Levine specializes in helping entrepreneur-owned businesses achieve record-breaking growth. Based in Philadelphia, Terri is founder and CEO of Comprehensive Coaching U, Inc., The Professional’s Coach Training Program. She has been featured in more than 1,500 publications and on ABC, NBC, CNBC Terri is also a Platinum author on my website – you can check out her articles at www.evancarmichael.com Text: Evan Carmichael
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siness Mentoring AUGUST 2011
Why did you start your business? In my heart I had passion to help other people be successful in business. It is my way of giving back to a world that has been very good to me and given me many successful businesses. I knew I had a lot of business “secrets” and wanted to share them with others by mentoring them coaching them and consulting with them. I am taking my 30 plus years (lifetime of experience) and sharing everything I know with others. I get so much joy when people I help are successful in their business. Who was your first customer? I got two customers at once: A woman who I should not have taken (she serious issues and I had to fire her). It was hard but a great learning experience for me. The other one was a large health care facility working with the CEO, all C-Level managers and the rest of the team. This engagement was a blast and lasted for years with them raving about the results. We’re still in touch today and they are exuberant about our work together. I increased revenue, decreased expenses, and facilitated stand-up meetings and created an in-house coaching program. I also coached team members, C-Level managers
What was the hardest challenge you had to overcome with your business? Dissolving a partnership that I should not have entered into. Realizing I want to be in charge and could not have a partner. Again a great learning experience. If you were to open up a new business in a different category what would it be and why? I would not move into any other business because I have fallen in love with mentoring others in their businesses. I am at home doing what I do.
Text: Evan Carmichael
INTERVIEW / TERRI LEVINE
What is your philosophy about coaching and about achieving a successful business? I believe all coaches, consultants and mentors need to believe in what they do and “walk the talk”. I always have a business coach. It might seem odd, but it makes sense. Even though I know how to grow businesses that have created millions of dollars in revenues I need someone who is making billions – always have someone mentor you who is running faster or doing way more. It challenges you, it stretches you and grows you and it is THE reason for my success.
Do you feel there is a specific coaching process for business owners? And if so, could you explain the process? I do have a proprietary process I share with my clients so I can’t share it here. Parts of the program include: Put in place 2 ways to increase your leads Put in place 2 ways to increase your conversions Put in place 2 ways to increase the number of transactions/customer Put in place 3 ways to increase the amount of money each customer spend Decrease your expenses Increase your profits As a business coach, what is the best advice you can give to an entrepreneur? Don’t go it alone! You don’t know what you don’t know. Every business owner needs the advice of a mentor, coach and consultant who can wear all three hats. Get someone to teach you the mistakes they made so you don’t have to waste money and time making those same mistakes. You need to learn to earn. Make the investment and hire someone who can mentor, coach and consult with you who is really far ahead of you. Pick someone you aspire to be when you grow up and make the investment. It will give you the return on investment and grow your business.
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siness Mentoring AUGUST 2011
APPS / JONA DERKS
Bringing your smartphone on holiday, you can stay in touch with friends, find that secluded beach and you will never miss your flight. [SIGHS]... WHERE AM I? I’M TOTALLY LOST...
TEXT JONA DERKS
24
siness Mentoring AUGUST 2011
Smart Traveler With an abundance of websites offering travel information, it is hard to judge the validity of the information. This app, developed by the US Department of State provides travelers with official and trustworthy country information, travel alerts, maps and more. Trip Journal Travelers can document and share their vacation experiences with friends and family. Instead of updating your online blog in a shady internet cafe, it is possible to give updates on-thego. This popular travel app received a $100,000 prize by Google for innovative concept and design. Maplets With an assortment of more than 4,000 varying high-resolution maps, this app is a great alternative to Google maps. The option to download and store the maps can save a lot of data roaming costs while abroad. Doctalk for patients Explaining your medical problems to a foreign doctor can be quite a hassle. The direct translations of Google Translate can give awkward results. Developer Re-phrase has developed an app that offers click-though dialogues. Since the conversations required for a medical diagnosis usually follow the same pattern in every language, it is possible to create a dynamic dialogue. Word lens Getting lost due to incomprehensible street and traffic signs is a thing of the past with this app. Using the built-in camera of your phone, this app translates text in real time. The app can only translate Spanish and English text, but hopefully will be available for more languages in the future.
TEXT JONA DERKS
APPS / JONA DERKS
Warning! Using mobile internet while abroad can be quite an expensive ordeal. Quickly checking the weather, finding nearby restaurants or mailing family that you have arrived can be quite costly while on holiday. Although data usage is included in most mobile subscriptions, this usually doesn’t apply to using smartphones across borders. Getting access to the internet abroad, costing up to €10 a megabyte, can become quite an expensive ordeal. Even when not directly using apps, background data roaming can already cost a traveler up to €20 to €30 a day or more. Vodaphone has recently launched a much cheaper alternative. Their international data package offers mobile internet access in 42 countries for just €2 a day. Once purchased, it is automatically activated when abroad and deactivated when users are in their home country again. To prevent steep internet bills it is possible to block internet access while abroad: iOS phones (iPhone): Go to ‘Settings> General>Network’ and disable ‘data roaming’ and ‘mobile data’ Android phones (HTC, Sony Ericsson, etc.): Go to ‘Settings>Wireless & Networks>Mobile Networks’ and disable “data enabled’ and switch ‘data roaming’ to ‘national roaming, or just turn it off all together Symbian: Go to ‘Settings>Connectivit y>Network’ and change ‘select operator’ to ‘manual’ Windows Phone: You simply go to ‘Settings>Mobile Networks’ and select ‘don’t roam’ Blackberry: Go to ‘Manage Connections>Mobile Network Options’ and turn the ‘while roaming’ option off
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AUGUST 2011
COVER STORY / SPACE TRAVELLING STARTS
European startup company SXC plans to launch the first commercial flight to space in the year 2014. They have already sold over 500 tickets!
TEXT EYLEM CULCULOGLU
PAGE
26
AUGUST 2011
When Michiel Mol was a young boy, his biggest dream was to one day travel to space. He was an ordinary Dutch boy, sharing his dream with millions of others. Back in the 80’s, no one could imagine that Michiel would actually have the opportunity to go to space. Now, in 2011, Michiel’s dream is becoming a reality! This issue we have conducted a special interview with Michiel Mol – founding partner of Space Expedition Curacao (SXC). SXC is a startup company focusing on commercial space travel. They have partnered with KLM on this mission and plan to make the first commercial flight to space in 2014. The initiators of SXC are experienced aerospace and business professionals, with a passion for space travel. They are dedicated to the development of space travel as a commercial means of transport and are excited about participating in pioneering scientific research into space travel. Michiel Mol is one of the youngest and most passionate men on the team. He was very pleased to share his vision and dreams with Startup Magazine readers.
COVER STORY / SPACE TRAVELLING STARTS
Michiel continued to grow, and had a successful career but never forgot his childhood dreams. He became one of the most successful e-businessmen in Europe. Having graduated from Leiden University with a degree in Computer Science and Mathematics, he started his own company: Lost Boys International. LBi has since grown to become Europe’s largest digital agency and is listed on both the Dutch and Swedish exchanges. In addition he founded Media Republic and Guerilla Games. These successes weren’t enough for Michiel Mol. He wanted to go to space, which is why he decided to be a part of the SXC space travel project.
BETTER THAN VIRGIN’S OFFER? There are currently 2 commercial space programs in the world: SXC in Europe and Virgin Galactic in the USA. Michiel Mol says it is healthy to have Virgin as competition. He believes this is good for the whole business. He says competition brings more exposure in the press, which is beneficial for both parties.
According to Michiel, everything started when he got his first telescope at age 10. He used it to view the moon and the stars, and was overwhelmed by the amazing depths of the space above. Back then, thoughts of commercial flights to space was reserved for science fiction novels and comic books.
TEXT EYLEM CULCULOGLU
PAGE
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AUGUST 2011
Michiel Mol states SXC has some significant advantages over Virgin Galactic’s space program. One of the biggest is their technology. SXC uses a shuttle similar to modern day airplanes. It uses regular F16 jets and the shuttle takes off and lands just like a regular airplane. Meanwhile, Virgin uses a “mothership” to deliver the passengers to space, which makes the whole process more complicated.
COVER STORY / SPACE TRAVELLING STARTS
After the test flights period is complete the first commercial flight will be launched. It is currently unknown who will be the first passenger to go to space. SXC has a special program named the ‘Founder Astronaut Program” and the first passenger will be chosen at random from its ranks. Michiel Mol says they currently have 83 people in the list including well known celebrities like Victoria Secret model Doutzen Kroes and the World’s No. 1 DJ Armin van Buuren.
SXC will launch from Curacao a beautiful island in the Caribbean, while Virgin will be based out of New Mexico, USA. Michiel says their shuttle is bigger than Virgin’s and passengers will benefit from this extra space while enjoying the microgravity experience.
POWERED BY KLM One of the biggest concerns about civilian space travel is safety. Even NASA had severe accidents in the past. The Columbia and Challenger disasters are still remembered. Michiel Mol says that “Our biggest priority is safety and we take every measure that is possible to make a safe flight to space. Royal Dutch Airlines - KLM is our partner and they are the oldest air carrier in the world. KLM was founded in the year 1919. KLM was the first continental European airline to launch scheduled service to New York. We are confident about KLM’s security standards and advanced technology” SXC plans to make the first commercial flight to space by the year 2014. Test flights will begin as early as 2013.
TEXT EYLEM CULCULOGLU
Michiel Mol says their space ship has a larger cockpit than Virgin’s, which makes the non-gravity experience more fun.
SXC’s space ship is capable of making 5000 flights to space and the cost of a ticket is $95.000. Mol says they have the capability to make up to 4 flights a day. The space ship will have 1 pilot and 1 passenger. Because of this configuration, the passenger will also be the co-pilot of the ship. Passengers will get special training before the space mission. Michiel Mol states that SXC have already sold over 500 tickets and more tickets are being sold every day. If you are interested in going to space you can take a look at their website www.spacexc.com.
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COVER STORY / SPACE TRAVELLING STARTS
SXC offers two different astronaut programs to its customers. The first is the exclusive Founder Program. Only 100 customers will have the honor of being part of this program. They will make the very first space flights with SXC. Numerous people have already joined SXC. Recently, Victoria Secret model Doutzen Kroes and the World’s No1 DJ Armin van Buuren have signed up for the Founder Program.
Once all 100 places are filled, SXC will organize an event, whereby they will host a raffle draw. This raffle draw gives every Founder Astronaut the possibility to travel into space as SXC’s first passenger. A requirement for this program is to fulfill a direct payment of $95.000 (est. €65.000) within 7 days of signing the contract. The alternative to the Founder Astronaut Program of SXC is called the Future Astronaut Program. After all founder astronauts have been into space, future astronauts will follow. A slot number will be assigned after the customer has signed the contract. This program also includes a 3 night stay in a luxury hotel. SXC requires for this program a payment of $50.000 within 7 days of signing the contract. The remaining $45.000 can be paid in the months prior to the actual flight in 2014 or 2015. You can reserve your ticket at www.spacexc.com
It is still possible to be one of the 100 exclusive members and to experience the space flight as one of the first SXC astronauts. By signing up for the Founder Astronaut Program, customers will enjoy exclusive extras, such as a complementary training mission and a 3 night stay in a luxury hotel on Curacao.
SXC’S SPACE SHIP IS POWERED BY F16 JET ENGINES AND USES REGULAR JET FUEL THIS IS HOW YOU WILL SEE EARTH FROM SPACE.
TEXT EYLEM CULCULOGLU
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COVER STORY / SPACE TRAVELLING STARTS
SPACE FLIGHT IN 5 STEPS: 1)Pre-launch protocol Contrary to other spacecraft developed, including the Space Shuttle, the Lynx is equipped with four revolutionary rocket engines, which can be shut down and restarted at any time during flight. There are no disposable carrier rockets, carriers or landings at sea. The Lynx simply departs from the elongated track at Hato airport, Curacao, and lands there again after its flight. You will find yourself sitting next to the pilot, going over the take-off checklist. The four engines are started. Your space travel has begun.
TEXT EYLEM CULCULOGLU
2) Breaking the sound barrier You experience the powerful thrust that is familiar to jet pilots and Formula 1 drivers. Before you know it the Lynx is accelerating incredibly fast on the long track. The landscape on both sides turns into a big green-blue blur. Then you go up. Fast and steep‌ As you speed towards the sky, the enormous dome offers a spectacular view. Within one minute, you are breaking the sound barrier and you follow the footsteps of Chuck Yaeger.
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3) Going faster than a bullet! Take-off alone is an extremely rare experience, the magnificent acceleration, caused by the four engines, the view of the bright blue Caribbean bay, islands the size of the Netherlands turning into little dots… Then, you reach Mach 3. A rarity that not even F16 pilots experience.
4) Engine cut-off; Earth as only 500 people have seen here At an altitude of nearly 60 km, the pilot switches off the engines and the parabolic flight commences, during which the crew experiences weightlessness for a few minutes. Eventually, the Lynx reaches its maximum altitude of 100 km., the official frontier of space where it is completely black, despite the sunshine. The full curves of the Earth are clearly visible from here. The overview stretches from Florida to Brazil, with the dazzling Caribbean as a centre piece.
COVER STORY / SPACE TRAVELLING STARTS
5) Returning back to Earth From 100 km. the floating flight back to Earth begins. At an altitude of 60 km, the spaceship slowly turns into a glider. At around 10 km the spaceship beings a pull out maneuver to lose speed. During this maneuver you will experience about 4.5G’s for a few seconds, something that usually only fighter jet pilots experience. After about fifteen minutes of gliding flight (often referred to as floating ‘on the wings of an angel’), the Lynx lands at Spaceport Curacao like the space shuttle. The entire flight will have taken almost an hour.
INTERESTING NUMBERS: One “roundtrip” to space costs $95.000 Total journey takes 60 minutes Reaches 103KM above the earth surface 5 minutes of microgravity experience Max GForce: 4.5G More than 500 tickets already sold!
TEXT EYLEM CULCULOGLU
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siness Mentoring AUGUST 2011
KEVIN KELLY / 2019 UNTHINKABLES
2019 The futurist Herman Khan introduced the idea of “thinking the unthinkable� as a way to loosen up the imagination in trying to forecast the future. Most of the time we are unable to guess the future because we are inhibited by conventional wisdom - something that everyone knows is true. For instance everyone (including me) knew
UNTHINK ABLES
blabla that an encyclopedia written by amateurs that could be changed by anyone at anytime was simply a silly, impossible idea. That prevented anyone from forecasting wikipedia. Herman Khan stressed that we should assume what we know is wrong and begin to imagine how the unthinkable may be possible.
[2019] AARGH... COMPUTERS DO KILL!
TEXT KEVIN KELLY
WWW.KK.ORG
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siness Mentoring AUGUST 2011
In 1993 Brian Eno and I exchanged a bunch of “unthinkables” via email and later published them in the Whole Earth Review. A few examples of mine: BARBECUES OUTLAWED -- Because of high carcinogenic content, nothing barbecued or burnt may be sold, nor barbecue paraphernalia. Private barbecues (cannot be seen from street, etc.) become hip underground. DIRECTED TAXES -- Software gains allow a certain portion of taxes to fall to the discretion of the payer. John Public can assign X amount of his taxes toward one service, to the exclusion of another. It’s a second vote that politicians watch closely. Computer screens (both CRT and flat screens) are found to be dangerous to the health. Working at a computer is viewed as a toxic job.
KEVIN KELLY / 2019 UNTHINKABLES
Some of Brain Eno’s: People with lots of money give their children small companies as birthday and Christmas gifts. Manufacturers of underwear finally realize that men have different-sized balls. Everybody becomes so completely cynical about the election process that voter turnout drops to 2 percent (families and relatives of prospective politicians) until finally the “democratic process” is abandoned in favour of a lottery system. Everything immediately improves. It turns out that nearly all the conspiracy theories you ever heard were actually true -- that the world really is being run by 150 malevolent men with nasty prejudices. Smoking is proven to be good exercise for the lungs. Genetic research shows that it is possible to create gifted scientists, great artists, sublime linguists and supreme athletes. Everyone starves to death through lack of farmers, cooks and waiters.
TEXT KEVIN KELLY
WWW.KK.ORG
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siness Mentoring AUGUST 2011
KEVIN KELLY / 2019 UNTHINKABLES
In October 1999 I generated some “unthinkables” for the Global Business Network I thought might happen by the year 2019. I uncovered this submission recently, and since these all seem as unlikely now 12 years later, I thought I would put them out there in case the next eight years are really amazing.
A rash of new-age-techno cults sweep an exhausted Russia. The variety and zealotry of their beliefs (quantum power, northern light signals) and their remarkable influence in national politics make Californian new-age cults seem tame and Sunday-school straight. The fertility rate in China drops below the replacement level, and nothing the government can do can get Chinese couples to have more than 1.5 kids each. For the first time China encourages immigration to keep its huge economy going.
By the year 2019... The first irrefutable biological evidence of the only native North American ape is found – some hair and a bit of blood – which under DNA analysis proves the existence of a rare and ancient great ape known locally as Big Foot. This leads to a well-funded and concerted cryptozoological effort yielding scientifically documented encounters with tthe animal 2 years later.
At the present rate I think I will be wrong on all these… http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/archives/2011/06/2019_unthinkabl.php
Amazon builds its first bricks-andmortar superstore. Gotta keep those 75 million customers happy.
Polygamy is granted legal status in the US. Environmentalism is embraced by the conservative Christian right.
TEXT KEVIN KELLY
WWW.KK.ORG
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EDWIN W. KALISCHNIG / LINKING THE WORLD TO THE WEB
Linking the World to the Web The Internet is evolving.
Traditionally it allowed us to connect places. ‘Web 2.0’ connects people, anywhere, at any time. The introduction of Google Wallet may just be the tipping point for NFC-technology to ‘Cross the Chasm’ and make it the ubiquitous tool in the hands of consumers that allows us to connect to ... anything.
Text:
Edwin W. Kalischnig
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I
n May 2011 Google announced that it plans to offer a mobile payment system based on Near Field Communica tion, better known by its acronym ‘NFC’. The ‘Google Wallet’ will allow consumers to pay for goods and redeem coupons simply by touching a point-of-sale (POS) terminal with their NFC-enabled phone that run Google’s Android operating system. Many more NFC-enabled handsets will need to hit the market in order to make it a success and Sony Ericsson is one of the first to announce an NFC solution for their Androidbased smartphones. But also competitor Apple is rumored to be looking at NFC for their iPhone while RIM introduced its first NFC Phones - BlackBerry Bold 9900 & 9930 - and Nokia unveiled it’s N9 NFC phone.
So what is all the fuss about and why should we care ? NFC is an advanced type of Radio Frequency IDentification. RFID allows the wireless exchange of small amounts of data between a tag (chip with a small antenna) and a reader. There’s a good chance you already benefit from this technology in your daily life as it’s used in office access cards, car immobilizers, ‘smart’ passports, pets and in supply chain equipment. NFC technology is geared to be used in close proximity, typically up to about 2 inches or 5 cm.
Text:
Edwin W. Kalischnig
EDWIN W. KALISCHNIG / LINKING THE WORLD TO THE WEB
An NFC-enabled device can basically do 3 types of things: Emulate Cards
The NFC-chip can be programmed to ‘pretend’ to be your credit-card, debit-card and any other card for that matter, including a hotel key card, public transport card or loyalty card. This is also the mode that Google Wallet uses and which makes use of the existing infrastructures set up for contactless payments. With an NFC smart phone you don’t need your wallet anymore, the phone IS your wallet.. Talk to Peers
Two devices that are equipped with NFC and are close enough, can communicate with each other. Using this mode, you could make payments directly to another individual or a small business just by tapping the two phones together. Cash is no longer required. In the same way you can easily exchanging business cards, cinema tickets, set up multiplayer games or share applications on your smartphone. Read Tags
The NFC reader reads information from tags that others have put out in the real world. Tags on posters, stickers and other ‘things’ may contain data that the phone can use or which points to specific websites for more information. You could tap the phone on a movie poster and it would begin playing the movie trailer.
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The combination of these capabilities with the power and the security of a smartphone will allow an enormous amount of new applications. It enables businesses not only to connect to consumers in ways not previously possible, but also gather valuable market research data regarding those customers like demographics, location and interests. If a consumer scans the tag on a pair of jeans in a mall, he benefits from authentication of the product, searching for the lowest price in the area or finding more information about it. The brand-owner will receive data regarding the type of jeans in which customers are interested and can correlate that information with sales data to understand customer preferences by demographics, location and so forth. Very powerful real-time information, enabled by NFC technology. Applying NFC to public transportation ticketing for example, can allow a traveler to purchase tickets online and have them provisioned on an NFC phone over-the-air (OTA), thereby enabling the handset to function as a train or bus ticket. With knowledge of which train or route is being taken, the transit operator can then send related information to that individual. Meanwhile, coupons, promotions and advertisements for various products and services could be transmitted to the commuter’s phone, taking mobile marketing to a new level. Similarly, in a payment application, a bank or other financial institution could provide customers access to other banking services.
Text:
Edwin W. Kalischnig
EDWIN W. KALISCHNIG / LINKING THE WORLD TO THE WEB
NFC-enabled mobile phones have obvious advantages for both businesses and consumers. Mobile payments are just the tip of the NFC iceberg. StartUps as well as existing companies will jump on the endless opportunities for One-to-One Marketing, Mobile ticketing, Health monitoring, Hospitality and Banking services, In-Store coupons and other types of innovations. Linking the world to the web is the key here.
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JEFFREY BUSSGANG / 5 LESSONS
5 Lessons Entrepreneurs Can Learn From the Navy SEALs
Text: Jeffrey Bussgang
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JEFFREY BUSSGANG / 5 LESSONS
There has been a surge in interest with the world of the Navy SEALs since the Osama bin Laden action (this piece in the WSJ was a particularly good profile) and I confess to being caught up in it myself. One of my portfolio company CEOs, Will Tumulty of Ready Financial, is a former Navy SEAL (1990-1995). Will was kind enough to introduce me to a SEAL classmate of his, Brendan Rogers (SEAL 19902000), who joined me and 20 NYC CEOs/founders from the tech scene last night to talk about the SEALs - the training, the planning and the operations behind their combat operations - as well as draw out some relevant lessons for entrepreneurs. Brendan went on to HBS and McKinsey after the SEALs and then started his own hedge fund with a partner, so he had an interesting, multi-faceted perspective. The discussion was wide-ranging and entertaining. The five key lessons Brendan highlighted were as follows:
What’s hard is good. SEALs go through an intensive 6 month training program called Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training (BUD/S), which is designed to test a candidate’s physical and mental limits. Traditionally, by the time of SEAL graduation, the attrition rate is as high as 70%. SEALs quickly learn that the punishment and pain of training hardens their minds and bodies and adapt to embrace the tough environs. Brendan pointed out that start-up executives who go through hard times should learn to relish them, recognizing that the hard times will toughen the team and train them properly for “battle”.
Text: Jeffrey Bussgang
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JEFFREY BUSSGANG / 5 LESSONS
80% training, 20% execution. SEALs are incredibly well-trained and when they are not on actual combat deployments, they spend the vast majority of their time training for a number of different types of missions. In contrast, at start-ups, executives typically spend 100% of their time executing and 0% of their time training. Brendan emphasized the importance of training and practice in all areas - employee onboarding, management practices, etc. He commented on the importance of training for unexpected situations. The simultaneous shooting of three Somali pirates at sea as part of a hostage rescue two years ago was an example of the kind of outcome possible when SEALs train under all possible conditions. The CEOs in the room had wide eyes and were certainly thinking hard about their training regimens and scenario planning after that example.
Every seat counts. Brendan pointed out the price of settling for mediocrity, even in a big organization. Every SEAL needs to know with 100% confidence that the man behind them will be able to save their life and get them out of a bad situation. The CEOs in the room were asked if they could say the same about their management teams and if those management teams, in turn, could say that about their lieutenants. One CEO objected that he had 1000 employees in his company and couldn’t possibly hire all “A’s”. Brendan replied by citing the example of D-Day. Eisenhower planned D-Day with a small number of subordinates who he turned to and said, select 12 men underneath you who can trust with your life to execute this mission. Each of those men did the same. And so on and so on. That cascading effect resulted in the successful employment and combat engagement of over 2 million troops throughout Europe. The lesson? Don’t let a large organization be an excuse for mediocrity.
Text: Jeffrey Bussgang
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Everyone is expendable. The SEALs are trained in a nearly identical manner and no one SEAL is indispensible to the unit or the mission. The nature of combat is that anyone can be lost at any time. Entrepreneurial companies have a harder time executing on this philosophy since there are specialists and superstars, but Brendan’s message was to make sure contingency plans were thought through for any set of personnel circumstances.
Everyone left with a great appreciation for the brave men who serve our country so ably, and the system behind it that produces such a consistent, excellent “product”. Brendan is also the co-founder of the Navy SEALs Foundation, a non-profit that helps take care of the families of SEALs when things don’t go as smoothly as they did in Pakistan a few weeks ago. I was inspired to make a donation to the organization immediately after the dinner. You can read more about them here. [http://www.nswfoundation.org/] One final humorous note - Brendan observed that the spouses of Navy SEALs are as tough as nails themselves and impossible to impress. They still make their spouses take out the garbage, do the dishes and change diapers - no matter how impressive their accomplishments in the field of battle. I suspect many start-up executives have similar, appropriately humbling marital arrangements!
Text: Jeffrey Bussgang
JEFFREY BUSSGANG / 5 LESSONS
You never know the measure of a person until they are tested. As mentioned earlier, the SEALs training program weeds out 70% of participants. Brendan conveyed that the people he thought would never drop out did while others proved to be more resilient and tougher than imagined. Until your people are really tested (see “what is hard is good”), you can never be sure who will step up and who will falter. One sure sign, based on pattern recognition, is that those that talk tough and are full of bluster are predictably those that are the first to blanche in the face of adversity. Quiet strength and determination in a start-up are invaluable. When you see it in your people, bottle it.
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AUGUST 2011
GADGETS / JOYSTICK-IT
JOYSTICK-IT
ATTACHES TO ANY TABLET GAMING DEVICE
ARCADE GAMING FEEL The JOYSTICK-IT Arcade Stick is a solid aluminum joystick that attaches to any tablet gaming device to provide precision control of touch screen games. “Out of the box, the JOYSTICKIT works with thousands of different game apps,” says Ty Liotta, head of ThinkGeek product development. “We chose to use solid-milled aluminum because it was lightweight but also provided the most realistic arcade gaming feel.”
AWESOME? Priced at $24.95, you can grab it from www.thinkgeek.com
WORKS WITH ANY TOUCH SCREEN The device works with any device which features a capacitive touch screen, this includes the iPad and many Android tablets The device works with any device which features a capacitive touch screen, this includes the iPad and many Android tablets.
EASY TO REMOVE The device works with any device which features a capacitive touch screen, this includes the iPad and many Android tablets. The JOYSTICK-IT is easy to remove and requires no batteries to operate.
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GADGETS / CHROMEBOOK
CHROMEBOOK
AN ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL NETBOOKS
FIRST CHROMEBOOK We have been waiting for this since Google first announced its Chrome OS in 2009 – a vessel for their web based operating system. The Samsung Chromebook has arrived! The Series 5 weighs 3.3 lbs and has a battery life of up to 8.5 hours, including five hours of video playback for all-day use without the need to recharge. The Samsung Series 5 packs power with an Intel Dual-core processor.
STARTS UP FAST The average out-of-the-box laptop starts up in about 45 seconds. The Series 5 starts up in a fraction of the time; less than ten seconds. When waking from sleep, it’s ready to go in the time it takes to open the lid.
KEY SPECS 16:10 Resolution 8.5 Hour battery Intel® Dual-core Processor 2 USB ports 0.79-inch thin case Full-size Chrome keyboard Oversized multi-touch trackpad
EXCLUSIVE The Series 5 launched in the U.S. on June 15th at Amazon.com and BestBuy.com. The Wi-Fi + 3G model retails at $499.99, and the Wi-Fi only model at $429.99.
12.1-inch SuperBright Display HD Webcam, built-inatter digital microphone and stereo speakers Support for removable media cards (SD, SDHC, MMC) for photos, videos, music and documents
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GADGETS / MIX WALKMAN
MIX WALKMAN ZAPPIN’ JAMMIN’ LOVIN’ !
INNOVATIVE Sony Ericsson’s latest candy bar phone, Mix Walkman offers a new and innovative way to listen to music. It comes with a ‘Zappin’ key to make it even easier and more fun to search for your favorite song. Simply press the Zappin key to preview the chorus of the next track and decide whether it is a favorite you want to listen to.
€$¥ The price hasn’t been announced yet, but it is expected to hit stores in September 2011.
SING ALONG WITH YOUR FAVORITE SONG A karaoke function also enables the vocal track from any song to be lowered instantly so you can sing along with your favorite tune.
WHAT IS COOL? 3” touch screen 3.2 megapixel camera 13h music listening time WIFI/EDGE 88 grams
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AUGUST 2011
GADGETS / AR-DRONE HELICOPTER
AR-DRONE HELICOPTER PERFECT GIFT FOR HOBBYIST
REMOTE CONTROLLED HELICOPTER AR Drone helicopters are the perfect gift for hobbyist and those who want a remote controlled helicopter experience unlike any other.
INTERESTED? Visit www.ardronehelicopters.com to see firsthand just what these magnificent remote controlled helicopters are capable of. Consumers can see firsthand by watching one of the many videos on how this helicopter operates. Products can also be purchased directly from the site and shipped to directly to your home.
TODAY’S TECHNOLOGY AR Drone helicopters are sure to be on the list of every person who enjoy electronics and the capabilities of today’s technology.
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AUGUST 2011
GADGETS / MSI G SERIES
MSI G SERIES
MOBILE GAMING FOR GAMERS
HIGH PERFORMANCE NOTEBOOK Only “truly” high performance notebook computers can meet the needs of demanding gamers. MSI released its G Series of gaming laptops, including the 17.3-inch GT780 as well as the 15.6-inch GT680, GE620, at CES 2011. They all come equipped with the latest 2nd Generation Intel Core i7 quad core processor and top-end discrete graphics cards.
WHAT’S MORE? Some models also pack MSI’s own turbo boost. What’s more, the top models feature accelerated dual solid state drive (SSD) architecture
WHAT’S COOL The MSI GT680, GT780, GR620, and GE620 notebook computers feature the latest 2nd Generation Intel Core i7 quad core processor. The GT780 and GT680 also come with top-end nVidia GeForce GTX Series discrete graphics cards, while the GE620 come equipped with nVidia GeForce GT Series discrete graphics cards.
YEAH! Gamers can now go into battle knowing that they are packing the most powerful hardware available.
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You’ve created buzz and awareness about your business, you’ve gained permission to educate and you’ve even started to build trust through your content and SEO work – prospects are coming to know, like and trust you – you’ve achieved the equivalent of marketing nirvana, right?
Text: John Jantsch
JOHN JANTSCH / 7 QUESTIONS
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Well, not exactly. In fact, you’re also making your case in logical terms, you’ve offered up a perfectly competitive product or solution, one that everyone should buy, only to meet with one of the most powerful forces in nature – resistance. I’m no science wiz, but I’ve always loved the idea of resistance in physics as a metaphor for the kind of resistance many business owners encounter when trying to spark a sale. Resistance is the ability of a substance to prevent or resist the flow of electrical current.
Below are seven questions that every business owner must answer, as part of what I call The Marketing HourglassTM, in order to lower or overcome resistance for their products and services and create competitively sustainable momentum. What are your free or trial offerings? Although you may have created the perfect solution there are times when people need a little taste before committing to the entire purchase. It’s essential that you find ways for people to sample your products or expertise. You can do this by creating starter offerings that are free or low cost, packaging information products that make your solutions accessible, or presenting educational workshops that teach while putting your approach on display in a non-sales environment.
Text: John Jantsch
JOHN JANTSCH / 7 QUESTIONS
Many times we can present a solution and price that seems like the obvious and logical choice, but can’t seem to make the sale. What we sometimes fail to factor, however, is that while a product may have a logical price of, say, $10, the buyer’s emotional price – “I don’t trust myself to implement this solution, I don’t know enough to believe this is the answer, the cost of potential disruption is too high” – has effectively raised the perceived cost beyond recognition – and that’s the resistance you must address. You must bake resistance crushing tactics, products, services and processes into your overall mix and marketing approach.
What is your guarantee? This one frightens some people, because they fear the repercussions of every customer demanding a refund. Of course, if that’s even remotely possible then you’ve got bigger problems than marketing. The fact is most businesses offer or honor an implied guarantee – if a customer feels they didn’t get what was promised we often resolve this by offering a refund. So, why not lower the implied risk of doing business with you by finding a way to offer a compelling guarantee up front. Tell the world you’re so confident in the results you can bring that you’ll assume all of the risk in the transaction.
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What is your “make it easy to switch” offering? Even if you offer the perfect answer the customer must still factor the change in routine, disruption or down time, and chance that something will not go as planned into the decision to switch to or adopt what you’re offering. It’s essential that you consider ways to shoulder some of this burden by creating support processes and assurances that all but eliminate this potential snag. This may include doing prep work unrelated to your product or even offering to switch the client back if they don’t realized the promised benefits. What are your core offering enhancements? The question of buying or not buying often comes down to total value and total value is built by surrounding your core offerings with additional products, services and value enhancing features that may or may not be directly related to your product or service. For example, if you sell a product, then offering training or providing a maintenance plan as part of deal may tip the scales in your favor. If you’ve developed an expertise in some area of business that could benefit your client base, say blogging or SEO, you may find that you can add value by teaching these skills, no matter what you sell. What is your good, better, best appeal? Offering a variety of prepackaged price points makes it easier for some prospects to make a decision about your products and services. There is a strong psychological pull in this approach and some firms find that,
Text: John Jantsch
JOHN JANTSCH / 7 QUESTIONS
although most of their sales come from one package, the existence of the other options helps to overcome resistance because people feel they get to make a choice. This can also create some distinct competitive differentiation as well. What is your ‘members only’ offering? The offer of exclusivity or community is very appealing to most, no matter the industry. The airlines, rental car companies, credit card companies and even the local coffee shop, have based a large part of their existence on the loyalty club and membership program model. I believe any businesses can explore ways to promote their best customers into some form of exclusive membership offering. This can include things like special discounts, networking opportunities, advance product features and premium content What are your strategic partner pairings? I’m a very strong advocate of assembling a team of best of class providers that can help your clients with any facet of their business or personal needs. When you become the “go to” person for your clients, you dramatically increase the value you provide in the relationship. I believe you can take this a step farther than many people do and proactively promote access to your network as a benefit of doing business with your organization. Of course, this mindset requires you to build strong and tangible relationships with your strategic partners, but if you do, and you take this proactive pairing approach you can dramatically enhance your own offerings while simultaneously creating referral relationships that will open the doors to additional opportunities.
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COLUMN / FRED WILSON
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FINANCING OPTIONS
CUSTOMERS When referring to equity investments, friends and family are probably the most common method of financing for startups. However, the most common technique that startup businesses use to raise capital to ‘get going’ is by selling their goods or services to the customer. Customers are a great way to finance a business for many reasons: First, customer financing is typically non dilutive. They want something from you other than equity in your business. Customers help you introduce your product to the market; they will help debug and improve the quality of your product. An early customer will give you credibility with others in the market and an early customer may spend more with your company down the road. The most popular method of customer financing occurs by selling the customer on the product before it is commercially available. This way, the customer helps bear the burden of the investment advance of the product being available to build or finish the product and is a guaranteed client when the time comes. It is possible that an early customer might ask for a level of exclusivity with the product or even some free equity in the business, but typically just wants the finished product & nothing more. So why doesn’t every startup use this approach? Well, it isn’t always possible to find a customer who will put up money in
and ready to use. It takes great sales ability to convince a customer to invest in something that isn’t built or isn’t finished. Be aware that even if you can convince a customer to do this, there are some possible ill effects. First and foremost, building a product explicitly for one customer often makes it less applicable to the market as a whole. An early customer who provides funding to build your product may want it tailored specifically for their own needs. A highly tailored product is often not as well suited to a broader market. Second, you risk building a “fee for services culture” in your company with this approach. Some companies build products for customers for a fee. Other companies build products and sell them “as is” to customers. The latter is a scalable model for building valuable companies. If you use customer financing, you risk being pulled into the former. Customer financing is much more difficult, if not impossible, in consumer facing services. It is far more applicable in business facing services. Those are the pros and cons of customer financing. If you can convince a customer to put up significant capital in advance so you can build or finish your product, you should consider it very seriously, as it has been the launch pad for many successful companies.
TEXT FRED WILSON