StartupNation |
- How to Build a Better Brand Through Content Curation
- A Work-From-Home E-Book From Dell
- 5 Real Advantages for Second-Time Startup Founders
- WJR Business Beat: E-Commerce Falls Short of Consumer Expectations (Episode 326)
- Gen Z’s Mindset of Purpose Fuels a New Business Model
- When Do You Need Business Insurance?
- 10 Ways to Create a Successful Business Pitch
| How to Build a Better Brand Through Content Curation Posted: 29 Nov 2021 09:00 PM PST
As an entrepreneur, you're always on the lookout for ways to bring more organic traffic to your website. We're constantly told that "content is key," but there are plenty of misconceptions out there regarding the best approaches to content curation and marketing, and how search engine algorithms (such as Google's) give preference to one type of content over another. The fact of the matter is, churning out as much content as you can isn't the key to success. In fact, today's search engines penalize sites that hammer out poor quality content just for the sake of publishing regularly. Your target audience doesn't benefit from spammy content, so why would Google give it any kind of preferential treatment? If all you're doing is pushing out content for the sake of it, not only will your SEO effectiveness likely take a big hit, but your audience will soon seek better quality alternatives, likely in the form of your competitors. To put it simply, instead of fixating on quantity, start curating your content and sharing relevant material that's strategic and beneficial to your brand in order to heighten brand presence and awareness. Let's dive into the world of content curation, including a few essential tips to help your business. StartupNation exclusive discounts and savings on Dell products and accessories: Learn more here |
| A Work-From-Home E-Book From Dell Posted: 29 Nov 2021 09:00 PM PST For most companies, work-from-home directives came almost overnight, with little time to address critical remote technology issues of scale, management, support, productivity, security and more. For your IT team, this situation is certainly not normal. And it has tested Dell shares how companies have put remote technology solutions to work in ways that can be adapted to work-from-home requirements so your employees can continue being as productive as possible, wherever they are. Productivity. Flexibility. Responsiveness. Mobility. These have been some of the many benefits of tech-enabled remote working over the years, whether your employees were on the go—in cars, in airports awaiting flights, or in the clouds flying somewhere. Or, perhaps they were visiting client or customer sites, in hotels between meetings, or in cafés recharging themselves and their devices. And, yes, remote working has meant your employees could work from home, too. In all cases, remote working extended the enterprise beyond walled-in spaces away from home. It has required IT to extend the reach of its coverage in terms of device management, support and security. Given today's extraordinary times, you now have the opportunity to rethink remote working in the context of more employees than ever working from home. You can reimagine your business as one where your employees can work more productively and collaboratively than ever, eliminating their commute times and reducing your real estate footprint. These are among other changes in your business model that may be possible in the long run. Learn how companies have benefited from Dell Technologies in this e-book. Click below.
StartupNation exclusive discounts and savings on Dell products and accessories: Learn more here |
| 5 Real Advantages for Second-Time Startup Founders Posted: 29 Nov 2021 09:00 PM PST As a first-time founder, starting a startup is incredibly difficult. Raising capital, finding product-market fit and acquiring customers isn't easy. As a second-time founder, it is a bit easier. After our first company was acquired, I knew that I wanted to start another company. Working for yourself, especially during the earliest days of founding at startup, is incredibly rewarding. After taking a year or so off in between roles, I cofounded my second startup called ContainIQ. Over the last year, I've realized that second-time founders do have real advantages and that I've been able to move faster this time around. Here are five real advantages for second-time founders that I've experienced over the last 12 months.
1) Raising capitalFundraising is a time-consuming and difficult process for most founders. But it is a necessary one. As a first-time founder, breaking into angel and venture capital networks is tough. And because fundraising is largely a numbers game, it is difficult for first-time founders to get the reps in and to schedule as many meetings in a tight one- or two-week window that is necessary to secure funding. However, as a second-time founder, I was able to leverage many of my relationships with previous investors, angels and venture capitalists. I don't believe the fundraising, pitching, deck building and overall process is that much easier, but the ability to get meetings into a tight window is. After having fundraised previously, it was much easier to schedule nearly 100 meetings into that tight window. Importantly, this time around, I was better able to prepare myself mentally for the inevitable nos and ghostings. I've learned that these are just a part of the fundraising process. I often tell first-time founders to not take any one meeting too seriously. It is important to just keep moving forward with an "on to the next" type of focus. Having additional meetings and perspective as a second-time founder helped me through our $2.5M seed fundraise. Most Popular: 10 Negotiation Techniques to Make You a Better Entrepreneur |
| WJR Business Beat: E-Commerce Falls Short of Consumer Expectations (Episode 326) Posted: 29 Nov 2021 07:12 AM PST
On today’s Business Beat, Jeff Sloan talks about why success as an online business isn’t a trip down easy street. Tune in to the Business Beat, below, to learn more about two new studies that show consumers aren’t all that thrilled with their online shopping experiences.
Tune in to News/Talk 760 AM WJR weekday mornings at 7:11 a.m. for the WJR Business Beat. Listeners outside of the Detroit area can listen live HERE. Are you an entrepreneur with a great story to share? If so, contact us at editor@startupnation.com and we'll feature you on an upcoming segment of the WJR Business Beat! Good morning, Paul! Well, now that the holiday shopping season is in full swing, if you’re a merchant, you want to make the most of this critical shopping season, that’s for sure. And to do that, you go online, right, Paul, that’s where all the action is. Well, that’s right, but it’s not as easy as it looks to meet with success. In fact, now two new studies show that consumers aren’t all that thrilled with their online experience. Really? Yes, indeed. In fact, one study done by Optimizely of the consumers polled show that 49% say their expectations are now not being met by businesses online. A circumstance caused by both online sellers falling short of expectations in some cases, but also as a result of the extremely high standards that U.S. consumers now hold for those online sellers and their shopping experience. Another study, the 2022 Global Consumer Trends study by Qualtrics XM Institute, provides more detailed insight into this now rising level of consumer dissatisfaction have found that because the bar has now been raised so high online sellers better offer broad selection, the best pricing, and a really supreme level of customer service and support. And for the most part online sellers are struggling to meet those really high consumer expectations today. The takeaway? Well, don’t think that by simply going online, you’re going to pick up lots of easy business. In fact, if you go online, you better be prepared to meet an extremely high level of consumer expectation in order to succeed. I’m Jeff Sloan, founder and CEO of startupnation.com, and that’s today’s Business Beat on the Great Voice of the Great Lakes, WJR. The post WJR Business Beat: E-Commerce Falls Short of Consumer Expectations (Episode 326) appeared first on StartupNation. |
| Gen Z’s Mindset of Purpose Fuels a New Business Model Posted: 28 Nov 2021 09:00 PM PST
In September 2021, 4.4 million Americans quit their jobs. We're hearing about the Great Resignation everywhere–on TikTok and Forbes and everything in between. The industries affected are vast, and the reasons are highly variable. The common denominator, however, seems to be that there is a widespread shift in mindset among American workers that may no longer be compatible with the way the business world traditionally functions. We could say that this mindset shifted because of the pandemic, but as a 24-year-old entrepreneur who brought my business from zero to $3+ million in two years, I'd say the mindset was there long before 2020. I'd be bold enough to say that this mindset shifted the moment Gen Z entered the workforce. My generation is highly entrepreneurial. We have already built businesses or are aspiring to. This ubiquitous and revolutionary mindset is contagious and is already sending ripples through other generations who are also not fitting with traditional business models. If you are in startup mode or are planning to build your business, you are not alone. Don't let news about the Great Resignation frighten you. It should inspire you. It shows that people—millions of people—are ready for a change, and their mindset is finally aligning with what Gen Z has been saying for years. Business should have purposeIt's no longer a secret that consumers expect brands to have purpose. But it isn't said enough that internal teams, as well, want their companies to have purpose. If you are starting a business during the Great Resignation, both the business and your team must have a sense of purpose to survive. There are too many choices for everyone involved for people to waste their time on companies that don't contribute to society or the world. One of the many reasons cited that people who are leaving the workplace is because "it's just not worth it." Why would they put their health (physical and mental) on the line for a job they don't care about? That is why purpose is so incredibly important. As an entrepreneur, you need to believe in what you are doing beyond only financial rewards, and your team needs to believe in what they are doing beyond only a paycheck. Their work has to matter. Making work matter starts at the top, with you. My philosophy is about giving the team complete ownership over their roles and activities from executive leadership all the way down to new hires. They have ownership over their clients, projects and activities, with a guiding hand and strategic input from me whenever needed. My role is to support their success, not mandate their day-to-day. Regardless of title or pay, every team member should have a purpose and ownership over their work. No one likes someone swooping in at the last minute and taking credit for their work. What people do like is feeling like they are contributing to something greater and being recognized for those contributions. Anyone in startup mode should analyze the purpose of their business and then make that the central pillar from which all things are built. Thriving people make thriving businessesFor too long, businesses have viewed their teams as resources, not assets. The postindustrial age mindset has been about climbing a corporate ladder for better compensation. This is often done at any cost and with little consideration to work/life balance or health. People are leaving their jobs because they are beginning to value their lives over their careers and will settle for lesser pay, or financial uncertainty, if it means a better lifestyle. Within that lies the second mindset that Gen Z is bringing to the table. Businesses that focus on their people and make sure they are thriving, professionally and personally, will allow them to then invest themselves in the business. A company cannot thrive if its people are not. It goes beyond company culture. The entire business must be oriented around empowering and inspiring the team, so team members can find their purpose and enthusiastically take the company with them. Entrepreneurs need to be every bit as focused on their people as they are on their customers or prospects. Successful business models are built on freedom Ultimately, this comes down to the freedom for teams to work the best way for them and to have the independence to own that work. The pandemic lifted the veil and showed many people what freedom in the workplace looks like. We demonstrated that not only was it possible to work on our own terms, but we could be more productive and more successful doing so. Businesses that know how to build a flexible culture built on freedom and trust found ways to grow in spite of remote work and the pandemic. If you are starting a business in this climate, it is good to know what will be expected of you. More than that, it is an exciting time to build a new model of business that lifts up employees so they can do their best work—not for you, not for a paycheck, but for themselves. What Gen Z wants should not be revolutionary, but it is. They want a culture that trusts them to do their best work in the best way that they know how. They want a company that gives them the freedom to live their lives on their own terms. They want to be respected and valued. They want to be inspired and empowered. They want purpose. StartupNation exclusive discounts and savings on Dell products and accessories: Learn more here |
| When Do You Need Business Insurance? Posted: 28 Nov 2021 09:00 PM PST
A few weeks ago, I bought a new car. It was a stressful experience because of the shortage of vehicles at dealerships across the country. Incredibly, I was able to work out a sale price my wife and I were comfortable with, but we still purchased the car in a seller's market. Worse, unlike homes and real estate, a car depreciates considerably the moment it drives off the lot and goes down every subsequent month. If you've ever purchased a new car or a new home, you know that you won't be handed the keys until insurance is in place. It's standard, so there's no guesswork on timing. Buy a car? You need insurance. Related: Business Owner's Policy: Why Your Startup Needs This Type of Insurance NowThat is not often the case with business owners. In fact, I am routinely asked, “When do I need to have insurance?” The simplest answer I can offer: once you have an asset that is valuable enough to protect. That may mean something different to every individual but let me provide a few examples. Construction: Most building owners understand they must have insurance on the physical facility once completed, but it is advised to insure the ongoing construction, too. The moment you break ground on a project, you have committed resources and you'll want to protect against loss. Laying a foundation, pouring the cement, building the walls, installing the plumbing and electricity, etc., cost money, time and labor. Protecting those efforts ensures that if there is a fire or wind or another included peril that damages the structure, you are not starting from scratch financially. This is called Builders Risk Insurance. Outside Investment: Depending on your business, you might have sought outside capital from private investors. Even before you sign an investor, you would be wise to carry Directors & Officers Insurance. This category of insurance insures your executives (CEO, CFO, President, etc.) and your board of directors from lawsuits filed by your investors. Why would they file a lawsuit? The moment a person agrees to sink capital into a business, they almost certainly expect a return on investment, and if those returns are not meeting expectations, they may seek to recoup their financial commitment through a lawsuit, holding the decision-makers in a company responsible for the results. We're Hiring: Congrats, you've reached a position where you're now hiring employees, either full-time or part-time. Whether it is retail or hospitality, technology, or professional services (and everything in between), employees have certain rights as to how they are to be treated. If they feel harassed, if they feel discriminated against, if they are terminated for any reason and believe it is unjust, they can pursue a complaint against their employer. Employment Practices Liability covers a business in all these examples, and you should have it in place before the first employee comes on the clock. A Customer Walks Through The Door: This may be obvious, but you better have insurance before you open your doors to real customers, or if you're a contractor – from washing windows to cleaning carpets, handyman services or plumbing – before you go into a customer's residence or commercial property. General liability covers you in a variety of manners, but, arguably, most importantly if a customer were to suffer injury on your premises. That could mean slipping on floor mats, tripping over a chair, or stubbing their toe on a nail sticking out of a project at their home. Liability covers other areas as well, but bodily injury and/or property damage to a customer/client are among the most important and will keep you out of financial ruin whether you're one day, one year or one decade into the start of your business. While there are many other instances in which it is wise to have insurance, we can only cover so much in one brief article. As always, my suggestion is to consult with a trusted insurance agent early on in your business' process so they can work with you to ensure you have the proper coverage on a time line that makes the most sense for your unique needs and goals. Contact Michael Spath with any of your insurance questionsThe post When Do You Need Business Insurance? appeared first on StartupNation. |
| 10 Ways to Create a Successful Business Pitch Posted: 28 Nov 2021 09:00 PM PST
Recently, the term “business pitch” has become as popular as the term “startup.” A pitch is essentially a business plan that one presents verbally to potential investors of a business. A shorter summary of the complete pitch is an elevator pitch. The startup owner has to clearly explain the business opportunity to the investors, so that they can make the most appropriate decision. Here are 10 necessary steps to create a winning pitch for your business.
Most popular: 5 Terms That are Killing Your Startup's Pitch |
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