7/12/11

7/12/11

Good morning, All,

Find A Cofounder is tonight and we’re looking forward to seeing many of you there. It’s summer’s first big outdoor party at a 4000 square foot terrace overlooking the Hudson. Come find a cofounder for your startup. Network with fellow entrepreneurs and investors. Enjoy the views and a cold brew at sunset. Sponsored by EW, SOS and ER. RSVP: http://findacofounder2011.eventbrite.com/ To all of the SOS members who volunteered for this evening: Thank you! Others out there: there’s still time to volunteer (hello@startuponestop.com and any and all help is appreciated!).

So we’re starting SOS 1-1 (One on One) and here’s how it works:
Every month or so, we’ll have a gathering and invite a seed/angel/early stage investor to come meet with you. The investor will do his or her presentation, letting you know what sort of investments they make and what the sweet spot is; then you have an opportunity to ask question, then meet him or her, one-on-one. You’re also free to network with each other, while waiting to get the investor’s ear, and everyone who wants an opportunity to talk to the investor, will have one. It’s more an elevator pitch than office hours, and you can always follow up at a later time. Our job is to make the introductions. We may do a special mailing when details are all finalized, or it’ll be posted next week, so stay tuned. Our first guest will be Aaron Price from DFJGotham, and organizer extraordinaire of the Hoboken Tech Meetup, which we did not post this week, since it’s waitlist only. Gotta be fast to get into that one! And we did give you advance notice.

And Graham Lawlor is hosting two events this week: Ultra Light Startups on Thursday and a Singapore event on Friday. More info under ‘events.’

Google+ gives me a headache – or is it social network overload? And since GOOG  took the time and resources to bother to go into social, why did they reinvent the wheel? Why not do something spectacular, rather than – pun intended – go in circles? Eric Schmidt claims that there is a lot more to come and we don’t doubt him: http://tcrn.ch/reHSV5. According to Mashable, Google+ is Your Plus One (http://on.mash.to/p67j1Z). Every time we open a GOOG browser now, there’s the +me reminder in the upper left; notifications on the right. Not giving us the warm and fuzzies, Mashable. Brill from a marketing standpoint, but kind of makes us yearn for the privacy of FB. Onward and forward.

Deadlines:

Flights! Camera! Action! AA deadline July 15th. Now’s the time to submit your video telling American Airlines and the world how flying benefits your business. You could win up to 50 tickets for your company and exposure to thousands of potential customers by telling AA how travel boosts your business – you might get the ultimate boost to your travel budget! For more information and to apply: http://bit.ly/mkP9Mu

Charles Barkley wants to give your startup $25,000. Deadline July 18th to win ‘Chuck Bucks.’ The National Basketball Association Hall of Famer, AKA “Sir Charles” announced on his website a contest called “Earn Chuck’s Bucks.” He’s calling for the best business-plan pitches and says he’ll give the winner $25,000 to help fund that business. Finalist entries will be posted on CharlesBarkley.com where fans will be encouraged to vote for their favorite pitch. A winner will be selected in mid-September based on the total number of fan votes and other criteria, which include the pitch’s creativity, originality, feasibility and “energy and enthusiasm.” This definitely isn’t your typical business plan contest, and it might seem a little strange coming from a former NBA All-Star with no previous business experience. Advice from Sir Charles:
• Keep it short. “I don’t want to be readin’ through a bunch of crap.”
• Make it realistic. “Don’t be sendin’ me no bull,” Barkley says.

The 11th Annual New York Venture Summit is July 20th-21st. Next early bird deadline ends July 18th. The summit will showcase 50 of the hottest early stage and emerging growth Technology, Life Sciences and Clean-tech innovators.  If you are a startup seeking capital and/or partnerships, submit your plan for the opportunity to present at The 2011 New York Venture Summit, the premier venue connecting emerging growth companies with active Venture capitalists, Angel investors, Corporate VCs and Investment Firms. Presented by YoungStartup Ventures, The 2011 New York Venture Summit provides an unparalleled opportunity for startups to meet, network and showcase their innovative investment opportunities to a leading group of investors. For more information, to register ($100 discount with your “sos” code) and to apply to present: http://bit.ly/jCFrNr

The NYC Big Apps Challenge is on! You have until July 28th to enter your submission. For details and information on how to submit: http://ideas.nycbigapps.com/

Applications for StartupChile Round 2 open July 11th. Things change; deadlines move:Start-Up Chile is a program of the Chilean Government, created by the Ministry of Economy, executed by CORFO via InnovaChile, that seeks to attract foreign, high-potential entrepreneurs to come to Chile to bootstrap their businesses with the end goal of converting Chile into the innovation and entrepreneurial hub of Latin America.  Start-Up Chile provides access to a mentors network, attendance to weekly networking events, and the support of the Program which offers all the necessary contacts to find the money, the talent, the expertise, the visibility or other support that you may need. The Program assigns a $40k grant per project ($20,000,000 CLP), a 1-year resident visa to every founding team member provided on the application, a temporary workspace (desk & wifi). And you surrender zero equity in your company. The program is conducted in English, and entrepreneurs worldwide are encouraged to apply. You have until August 11th; tick-tick-tick. For more information: www.startupchile.org. To apply: http://bit.ly/i8bFur

The Daily Candy 2nd Annual Start Small, Go Big Contest: Deadline August 5th. Here’s your chance to launch your bazillion dollar idea. One winner from each of our categories (fashion, beauty, food and drink, and home) will win a trip to New York City, a DailyCandy write-up, and a day at the DailyCandy Academy, where the likes of Isaac Mizrahi, Marcus Samuelsson, and Rebecca Minkoff will mentor the begenius out of you. Just think, you have nothing to lose but your day job. For rules, details, and an entry form: http://bit.ly/aR8Yk5

Heads up, college students! Moverandchangers.com is all set to launch its third nationwide challenge to uncover the country’s next young entrepreneurs who want to make it big with their innovative ideas for a new business. The contest is open to 16-28 year old college students to develop and produce a compelling business proposal. Ideas must be original, feasible, scalable and practical. More information on the site, which features a video with Dennis Crowley, who, just for the record, wouldn’t qualify for the contest now, nor would he when he first started foursquare.  Deadline is October. Information is here: http://bit.ly/EvBLZ

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For you edification this week:

From our friends at chubbybrain.com: NYC Startup Accelerators: A Quick & Dirty Guide. Helpful, too: http://bit.ly/hTNLSN

11 startups that found success by changing direction. Yes, they use the ‘p’ word, but sometimes it can’t be helped. http://on.mash.to/nFYQvZ

Do Not Pay for Fundraising Advice. A caveat and sage words – along with advice and even an invitation to reach out to him – from Mark Birch, another one of our favorites: http://bit.ly/ohRYBR

The Many Ways I Failed as a First Year Entrepreneur. We all make mistakes. A year after the writer fulfilled his lifelong dream and started his company, he took a look back at some of the mistakes he made. Want some examples? http://bit.ly/neyiBN

The Perk Bubble Is Growing as Tech Booms Again. Oh, those crazy kids and the things they come up with to make work seem less like…work. Hoodies. A nap in a tree house. All good, but don’t forget: showering is still considered de rigueur in most of the civilized world: http://on.wsj.com/nce8Jd

Since our Find A Cofounder is this evening (and just for the record, people have successfully found their cofounders through our FAC events), we did feel the need to add this one: Please, please, please stop asking how to find a technical co-founder: http://bit.ly/ixvem1

The Two Phases of Successful Seed Fundraising. This advice is for people looking to raise their seed round. We all start somewhere: http://bit.ly/nxwr3S

Entrepreneurs are from Mars and VCs are from – Mars. Roger Ehrenberg once again, explains it all for you: http://bit.ly/qrtsSG

We’ve all heard it: that there’s no such thing as a stupid question. Of course, there’s always an exception and on that note, we leave you with an oldie but funny – A Blonde and a Third Grade Geography Question. Note: not all Americans – or blondes – are this clueless: http://bit.ly/hD0HyU. Since people are just getting back from holiday, short and sweet this week (part of the Birthday Prerogative), and yet, as always, help is on the way…

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