SETVI co-founder Joshua David is a fan of charging for a product, even in beta. “We started selling SETVI in beta. I think you should always charge for your product, because if they’re not buying it, you can identify the problem and fix it.”
Serial CEO Lucinda Duncalfe finds that her martial arts training has a lot in common with running a company. “You have to be willing to be vulnerable, the same way as when you come to full speed in an attack in martial arts. Women in particular are terrible at this. We ask for less money, we worry about what people will think. Just GO.”
“Knowing a need and filling it was an early lesson I learned,” says inventor John Bacino. That lesson led to a long and illustrious career at W.L. Gore, and even spurred him to launch a company in his retirement.
When inventor Robert Morris showed his multimedia program to an investor and told him that everyone was going to have multimedia on their desktop in 5 years, “He told me I was crazy. But that was the same person who turned down Steve Jobs so I don’t feel so bad.”
Alan Rihm on his early days as an entrepreneur: “We went from selling 2-3 accounts a day to 20-30 because we went on the Howard Stern Show and gave away Netscape disks for free.” Alan needed help. Fast. “I recruited my mom to answer the phones. She said, ‘But I don’t know what to say!’ I told her just to pick up the phone and put them on hold.”
Frank Coates of Wheelhouse Analytics believes, “It’s all about finding small pockets of need in these big financial organizations that other IT companies find underworthy of their investment. A small company like ours can do that.”
Henry Blue was restless.
“The cyclical nature of education started to worry me,” confesses the former teacher. “How do you reconcile that need to impact major change during your day-to-day work?”
SEER Interactive founder Will Reynolds loves sharing. “Being open about my ideas makes me go back into the lab and learn some new shit when no one else is looking.”
“Decide what you want and ask for it,” says iPipeline’s Bill Atlee. “Go for the close. Remember that if no one wants to pay for your idea, it’s not a good idea.”
“Coupons are not the most sexy thing to work on in the tech business,” says Ted Mann, founder of mobile couponing app SnipSnap. “But the truth is that they are huge part of the retail economy. Eight-five percent of Americans use them every month.”
“One of the reasons BioBots is exciting is because our $5,000 device offers an alternative to the large, half million dollar bioprinters currently on the market.”
In 2006, Paul Keogan founded BackOffice Thinking, which works with midsize nonprofits throughout the U.S. They help nonprofit clients with everything from customer/constituent relationship management (CRM) support to social media strategy and business intelligence.
“I don’t want to work so damn hard. I don’t expect any of my products to be my single source of income. I want to have 3 to 4 smallish products, little plugins for Office 365. Each one brings in an ok amount of money, and I’m good. I don’t need to have that one huge single product.”
Four bitcoin enthusiasts weigh in on the current stage of bitcoin evolution during a collaborative panel discussion.
“We want to be the Flintstones vitamins of stock market games.”
John Walters is bringing the thrill of fantasy sports leagues to the stock market. The Villanova grad started off at First National Bank, where he learned first hand about the problems confronting small businesses. Today, he’s a Senior Living Balance Sheet Specialist at eMoney Advisor, as well as the founder of StockJock, an online fantasy stock trading game.
Jason Browne, CEO of SPOR sporchargers.com @SporrChargers “It’s wildly popular to call yourself an entrepreneur these days.” Jason Browne thinks that lots of people want to be entrepreneurs simply because they don’t want to be labelled as anything else. “Is it that...
Kip Wetzel, VP of Social Media Strategy at Capital One @kipwetzel Kip Wetzel claims he’s just a “dirty hippie” despite the fact he’s probably the most dapper person in the room. Fifteen years ago, he abandoned an Andersen Consulting gig to embark on an odyssey, hiking...
Kyle Riggle, Partner at EWS, CEO of Orth Cleaners @OrthCleaners @EWSystemsInc Kyle Riggle wants your dirty laundry. Seven months ago, the New York City-based entrepreneur bought Orth Cleaners, a dry cleaning business with locations in Coatesville and West Chester,...
Tracey Welson-Rossman, Chief Marketing Officer at Chariot Solutions and Founder of TechGirlz.org @TechGirlz @TWelsonRossman @ChariotSolution “If we don’t engage women and underrepresented groups, the U.S. is going to be in trouble. By 2020, there is going to be a job...
Jason Rappaport, Founder of Squareknot, Zelda Universe and Zelda Wiki @Squareknot @GoldenChoas @ZeldaUniverse @ZeldaWiki What is Squareknot? Squareknot founder Jason Rappaport seems to be as excited about the appeal of design-heavy guides as he is about the prospect...
Lars Knutsen, CEO and Co-founder, Requis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. www.requispharma.com Lars Knutsen’s introductory slide is filled with black lines resembling ant trails--diagrams of the chemical structure of the successful drugs he’s developed over the course of his...
Peter Strid, VP of Sales at PeopleLinx @PeterStrid @PeopleLinx PeopleLinx.com Peter Strid has a hunch we are all pretty bad at using LinkedIn. When he asks the 75-person crowd who uses it, almost every hand goes up. “OK, now who considers themselves effective, or has...
Bob Cirino, Global Impact Director at The Biochar Company, Cofounder of Dive @bobcirino @biochar_IBI @SoilReefBiochar Bob Cirino sees how everything fits together. He communicates his vision at a lightning pace, blending science and a positive, forward-thinking...
Melissa Alam, Founder of The Hive and Femme & Fortune melissaalam.com @RingTheAlam thehivephilly.com @TheHivePhilly femmeandfortune.com There is a joyous fearlessness in Melissa Alam. Her latest venture is The Hive, a coworking space for female entrepreneurs in...
Dr. Chao Chen, Co-Portfolio Manager at TFS Capital “In August 2007, our fund lost a lot of value very quickly, and we didn’t know why. It was a period where we had to face the fears of maybe losing the company, and losing money for investors. We learned a lot from...
Yasmine Mustafa, Founder of ROAR & Leader of GirlDevelopIt Philly “I was born in Kuwait. My mother had an arranged marriage and had to ask for permission to go outside. She didn’t go to college, women at that time never dreamt of that. My brother was born here and...
#52: Round Table w/ The WSL Team @walnutstlabs wsldivi4.kinsta.cloud "We started Walnut St. Labs technically, about this time last year. I signed the lease and figured I would find a way to make it work. It was in large measure through a degree of instinct, and...
Michael Riley, Cofounder of Boxter ContentBoxter.com @ContentBoxter @itsatechworld "Theres nothing better then getting out there and actually interacting with successful people, who are doing things they care about, and do it well." -- Michael Riley, Cofounder of...
Satyajeet Shahade, Cofounder and CEO of HootBoard @sshahade @hootboard "Hootboard was encouraged to enter in AngelList by Gabe Wineberg. He recommended us and it stays on our profile forever. It's based on that type of social proof validation that their (AngelList's)...
Jeff White, CEO of Media Analytics @IMSReport imsreport.com "Be conscious of what path you will take when you hit the fork in the road. Know what NOT to do and be willing to admit it to yourself when you hit a dead end." -- Jeff White, CEO of Media Analytics "Your...
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