Sat.Jun 08, 2013 - Fri.Jun 14, 2013

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Why You Should Give Before You Get

Both Sides of the Table

'I have a motto in business and life, “give before you get.” It’s a philosophy, really. And it applies to business relationships & networking as much as it does to remuneration in the workplace. It seems we live in an era of “ask.” I see it on Twitter. Lots of asking. I see it on email even more. And in person in spades.

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Naki Laundry Debuts In Santa Monica With Tech Friendly Laundry Service

socalTECH

'In the latest services-meets-smartphone service to launch in the Los Angeles area, a new startup, Naki Laundry , said today that it has launched its service in Santa Monica, letting the tech set use their smartphone or the web to get their laundry cleaned. Naki lets users use the web or an app to request a laundry pickup, and gets your laundry done--clean and folded--either later the same day or the next morning.

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Don’t Know This YouTube Superstar? You Will When He Wins An Oscar

InfoChachkie

'A version of this article previously appeared on Forbes. It is only a matter of time before a YouTube filmmaker wins Oscar gold and my money is on Joe Penna. His videos have 325 million views and he has over 2.5 million subscribers to his MysteryGuitarMan YouTube channel. Mainstream America was first introduced to him in THIS McDonald''s commercial.

Startup 168
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8 Questions Keep Great Entrepreneurs Up At Night

Startup Professionals Musings

'Even entrepreneurs who have built many startups, or sold their last one for millions of dollars, know they make occasional people leadership mistakes. They know leadership is all about managing their own complicated, illogical, and fallible human variables, as well as the people they depend on. These can and will trip up even the best, often at the cost of a good night’s sleep.

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Can You Ask for Office Rent Relief? How to Manage Your Lease During COVID-19

Office leases are one of companies’ largest expenses, and if your whole team is working from home with no clear end in sight, you may be wondering what to do about your lease.

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Why Your Startup Needs a Sales Methodology

Both Sides of the Table

'This article originally appeared on Inc.com. Like most startup entrepreneurs, when I began my first company in 1999 I had no formal sales experience. I did have the wherewithal to visit potential customers and try to understand the pain points that I thought could be solved with our solution. This is a very important to do when you first start a company.

Sales 393
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CampaignEQ Aims At Better Mobile Marketing Attribution

socalTECH

'Is that mobile cost-per-click, CPA ad, Facebook campaign, or Pinterest page actually translating into a customer? A new, Santa Monica startup, CampaignEQ , is hoping to help marketers better attribute increases in mobile customers and traffic to their marketing campaigns, with a new product. According to CampaignEQ--founded by former Beachmint execs William Belk and Dirk McGregor--its new cloud-based, web and mobile affiliate tracking platform is aimed at offering up better mobile attribution a

Mobile 249

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Every Startup Should Assume Pivots Will Be Required

Startup Professionals Musings

'The traditional mode of starting a company is to plan a serial process, where you complete once all the steps, leading to the “big bang” launch of the company. I strongly recommend a dramatic departure from this model, called “planned iteration” or Lean Startup methodology, where you assume you won’t get it right the first time, so you launch with a minimum viable product (MVP).

Startup 105
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Here’s What’s Driving Collaborative Consumption and Where the Market May Head Next

Both Sides of the Table

'I spoke this past week at the LeWeb conference in London, which was a superbly well run event with a very quality production team. Kudos. The 20-minute video of my presentation is here if you’re interested. And it was convenient for me because we also held our annual London board meeting of DataSift , who helps companies processes and analyze large volumes of social plus enterprise data in realtime.

Marketing 361
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Surf Air Takes Flight, Starts All-You-Can-Fly Shuttles To Silicon Valley

socalTECH

'For venture capital investors and entrepreneurs, used to making the commute between Silicon Beach and Silicon Valley, the distance--and time--between the two technology centers has just dropped, thanks to the launch of Surf Air , an all-you-can-fly membership airline. Surf Air launched its first flight today at 10:45am, flying from Burbank to San Carlos.

Burbank 246
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Callaway and Uber Partner | The Next Wave In Event Transportation

Tech Zulu Event

'Nowadays when you need a ride somewhere you instinctively reach for your phone and open an app to call upon your latest driver. However due to much controversy and competition, the same hasn’t played true while at large events (*cough* SXSW ). Today that changes as two major brands Callaway and Uber, partner to offer on-demand rides at one of the largest events in sports.

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How Many Key Leadership Principles Do You Practice?

Startup Professionals Musings

'Creating and building a business is not a one-man show. It requires a team effort, or at least the ability to build trust and confidence among key players, and effectively communicate with partners, team members, investors, vendors, and customers. These actions are the hallmark of an effective leader. Behind the actions are a set of principles and characteristics that entrepreneurial leaders, like Mark Zuckerberg and Sergey Brin, seem to have in common.

News 104
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Moving Out – and Up

Frank Addante

'We moved into our new headquarters in June. We left our old space and are now located on the tech campus over in Playa Vista (neighboring companies like Facebook and Google). Our old space was very scrappy; and our new space is the perfect balance of scrappy and mature, even though we kept our Ikea desks, and still have them crammed together in an open floor plan to keep communication flowing.

Google 92
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Tapping The Creativity Of The Crowd With Tongal

socalTECH

'You''ve seen the company''s work in the Superbowl, on television, and on the web, all for big brands--but you might not know it came out of the crowdsourcing efforts of Tongal (www.tongal.com). The Los Angeles company--which is backed by $15M from Insight Venture Partners--has come up with a way to utilize the web and its deep depth of creative talent to produce many viral videos and commercials for its clients.

Ideas 243
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L.A. Area Chamber Launches Emerging Tech Center Bixel Exchange Live

Tech Zulu Event

'In an effort to foster innovation, the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce has partnered with the Small Business Administration to launch Bixel Exchange – a technology center focused on growing L.A.’s emerging tech ecosystem — on Thursday, June 13th. Bixel Exchange will leverage the power of the Chamber and the proven track record of the SBA’s Small Business Development Centers with a specific focus on the rapidly evolving segments of the tech community, including clean

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How Many Entrepreneurs Really Need a Business Plan?

Startup Professionals Musings

'On a regular basis, I am approached by entrepreneurs who assert that business plans are a waste of time. They cite sources like a recent BusinessWeek story, “ Real Entrepreneurs Don’t Write Business Plans ” and this NY Times article. From my perspective as a professional investor and long-time advisor to entrepreneurs, much of this urban legend advice is just plain wrong.

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Kill the Acronyms!

Frank Addante

'As an industry, we’re confusing the market, because we’re constantly creating new terms and acronyms. RTB, DSP, SSP, DMP, programmatic premium, programmatic guaranteed. Wow! The simple trend is automation. Advertising is becoming automated, just like other markets. When we started Rubicon Project six years ago, very few people were talking about automation, and no one was doing it.

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Naki Laundry Offers Up Deal In Launch Of Smartphone Laundry Service

socalTECH

'Wish you could use your smartphone to get your laundry done? You can, kind of, if you use Naki Laundry , the new, smartphone-driven startup which lets users get their laundry done by smartphone, and which launched today in Santa Monica. Naki lets users use their smartphone to request pickup of their dirty laundry, and get their clothes laundered and returned that day or the next morning.

Services 232
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TZ Presents: What Makes a Startup Attractive for Acquisition | Chat with Krishna Gupta

Tech Zulu Event

'TechZulu is excited to invite you on July 18, 2013 at 7pm , to a fireside chat with Krishna Gupta , Partner/CEO of Sortfolio , which he recently acquired from 37Signals. Krishna will be interviewed by our very own Espree Devora , known as “the Girl who Gets it Done” and creator of SaveBusinessTime. Krishna will share his experience on ”What Makes a Startup Attractive for Acquisition” There will be plenty of FREE Pizza & Drinks !

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Beware the Long-Term Pitfalls of Entrepreneurship

Startup Professionals Musings

'Most entrepreneurs expect to face the “normal” challenges of starting a business, which include finding the right opportunity, building and executing a winning plan, and financing their venture. But many forget the pitfalls associated with traditional business jobs which can apply even to the smartest and most dedicated people running their own business.

Startup 97
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Managing Culture Like a Product

Frank Addante

'At Rubicon Project, we manage culture like a product. We have a Culture Product Manager whose sole job is to manage our most important product, culture. And we have a simple formula – great people build great products, and great products attract great customers. It all starts with people. Managing culture like a product takes a lot of discipline. We have a roadmap for it; we measure it; and we’re constantly trying to innovate on it, manage a budget and ROI (Return On Investment) for it, a

Product 80
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How RxVantage's IT Software Aims To Automate A $20B Market

socalTECH

'Pharmaceutical companies spent $20 billion a year marketing their products to medical offices. However, the whole business of those companies working with medical offices is one sorely in need of technology. RxVantage (www.rxvantage.com), based in Los Angeles, is looking to tackle that huge market with its medical scheduling software for pharmaceutical and medical sales reps and medical offices, and is venture backed by Slater Technology Fund and Javelin Venture Partners.

Marketing 231
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Down the Stack | How Low Do You Go?

Tech Zulu Event

'You’re a startup. You’ve got a great idea for an app. You’ve got some friends interested in helping out and you think you can make this work. So how do you figure out where you’ll host it? How do you decide between a raw infrastructure provider or platform service, and how much work do you do yourself and how much should you rely on service providers?

SaaS 90
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A Business Requires Collaboration But Not Consensus

Startup Professionals Musings

'Any entrepreneur with a vision can postulate a new business, but it takes a collaboration of many people to make it a success. Today the complexity of forces required for success include multi-disciplinary skills, competencies, and experiences in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Entrepreneurs who embrace the “lone wolf” approach usually live to regret it.

Study 95
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Engineering the Way We Engineer

Frank Addante

'As an organization grows from a single-product, single-market company, the way that you engineer products and take them to market needs to change. Most companies start out as functional organizations – with teams for engineering, sales, marketing, finance, etc. But, as you grow, it becomes harder to balance innovation with scale. The greatest companies are able to innovate at scale.

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Cute Puppy Alert: DogVacay Uses Cute Dog Photos To Find Customers

socalTECH

'It''s almost always difficult to get people to share information about your startup to the world. However, DogVacay , the Santa Monica-based startup which offers up an online service to help connect dog owners with people to watch their pets, has a secret weapon -- cute dog and puppy photos. Followers of the company''s Facebook page, blog, and Twitter feed are familiar with the steady drumbeat of cute dog and puppy photos that the company is always sharing--and, might now be familiar with DogVa

Customer 216
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Mark Suster, Nely Galan to Keynote Silicon Beach Fest

Tech Zulu Event

'Silicon Beach Fest is gearing up to showcase the most promising startups and visionaries from across LA’s growing startup entertainment ecosystem. Mark Suster of GRP Partners and Launchpad was confirmed to keynote along with Nely Galan of Galan Entertainment, the first Latina president of Telemundo. Silicon Beach Fest takes place June 19-22, 2013 in Santa Monica.

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Your Health and Balance are Key to Startup Health

Startup Professionals Musings

'A couple of years ago, I saw firsthand what can happen to a founder, and the business, when the founder practices unhealthy habits such as working 20 hours a day. A typical “Type A” personality, with boundless energy and enthusiasm, she aggravated some previous health limitations until she was bedridden, and the business floundered. Many entrepreneurs are too focused on their dream to take notice of health warning signs, which leads them to ignore business health signs as well.

Startup 93
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Silicon Beach Fest Expands Event Lineup, Sets Keynotes

socalTECH

'Silicon Beach--the self-appointed name that has been used to describe many parts of Southern California''s tech community, but which has seemed to have centered itself over Santa Monica and surrounding towns--has no shortage of events and conferences. However, Silicon Beach Fest , the upcoming conference which combines both the local high tech community as well as the entertainment industry, seems to be emblematic of the spirit and energy which has become apparent recently in the local startup

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Amazon Launches Grocery Delivery In LA

socalTECH

'Amazon.com has officially launched its grocery delivery service in the Los Angeles area this morning, saying it will let Amazon Prime members try out the new delivery service for a 90-day free trial, starting now. Amazon Fresh , Amazon''s free grocery delivery service, has only previously been available in Seattle, and offers same-day and early morning delivery on orders over $35.

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Green Dot Buys GE Capital's Walmart Cards

socalTECH

'Monrovia, California-based prepaid card provider Green Dot has acquired the reloadable prepaid card business of GE Capital , which are marketed under the Walmart brand, the firm said today. The companies said they expect the deal to close in the second half of the year. Financial terms of the acquisition were not announced. Green Dot has recently been expanding the range of services it offers, including launching a "bank for the mobile generation" called GoBank, which is powered entirely from a

Capital 191
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Frost Venture Partners Snags OCTANe's Vasquez

socalTECH

'Frost Venture Partners , the "big data" startup incubator started by DatAllegro''s Stuart Frost, has just hired away Luis Vasquez, OCTANe''s VP of Entrepreneurship and LaunchPad director, as its new Vice President of Investor Relations. According to OCTANe and Frost, Vasquez joins Frost Venture Partners on July 1st. Vasquez had been at OCTANe since 2004, and was one of the key drivers behind OCTANE''s LaunchPad program, which helps accelerate startups in the technology, life science, and clean

OCTANE 189
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Walk In My Closet Debuts iOS App

socalTECH

'Walk In My Closet , a Los Angele startup which develops a service for letting users resell their high end fashion clothing, has released a new iOS application. Walk In My Closet said its app is a "high-end virtual wardrobing app" which lets users take pictures of their closet, and display those as a "online boutique". The company said the app lets users shoot and upload photos, share their style, and look into the closets of fashion influencers.

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ChowNow Raises $1.19M More

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based mobile food ordering startup ChowNow has raised $1.19M more in an ongoing funding round, according to a regulatory filing by the firm last week. ChowNow is venture backed by Daher Capital, Double M Partners, GRP Partners, Karlin Ventures and Velos Partners. The round is targeted at $2M. Chownow lets users order food via their mobile phone or Facebook.

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The Search Agency Launches Award Program

socalTECH

'The Search Agency , the Los Angeles-based search marketing agency and online marketing firm, said today that it has launched its own, annual awards program called the Stars of Search Award. The Search Agency said it will award search marketers in the area of paid search, search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing, mobile marketing, comparison shopping and search retargeting.

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Internap's Los Angeles Data Center Gets LEED Certification

socalTECH

'Hosting and colocation provider Internap said today that its Los Angeles data center has received LEED Gold certification, the green label for buildings administered by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). According to Internap, the certification covers buildings that are designed and constructed with sustainable concepts and practices, which reduce a building''s impact on the environment.

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Linksys Ships Home Powerline Networking Equipment

socalTECH

'Irvine-based networking equipment manufacturer Linksys has released a new product today, for the home, powerline networking market. LInksys says it has shipped a new product, its Powerline HomePlug AV2 Kit, which helps consumers connect their computers into the Internet. The new product takes advantage of a home''s network of power lines to provide high speed, Internet connections.