Forums Search

Marketing and business models might not be the same as they were decades ago. But one thing hasn’t changed: Customers are still any business’s greatest asset. That seems obvious, right?

It should be, but brands can forget that fact all too easily. In the race for the newest shiny things and the largest caches of data, it’s not hard for marketing teams to forget to tailor campaigns toward what customers actually want.

Chatbots are a great example. As sales associates, they can make shopping much more convenient. But as customer service reps, they kind of suck. In fact, when nearly a third of U.S. brands began shifting to automated customer service, the American Customer Satisfaction Index took the steepest dive since the 1990s.

Convenience i...

What is company culture?

Despite how obsessed the startup world is with company culture, there’s no singular definition we can all turn to. But while it’s difficult to put a dictionary definition on company culture, there are really two parts to it: Philosophical and practical.

On a philosophical level, company culture is the intangible atmosphere of your company. Some people call it the “personality” or the “glue that holds everyone together” or even the “soul.” It’s as much a feeling — of belonging, of shared purpose, even of similar ways of dress — as it is an aspiration for the entire company to contribute to.

“The truth is that culture – on its own – is not the thing that will bring you success in whatever way you may define it for you...

Without a doubt, reading and learning is one of the most essential ingredients to becoming a stronger entrepreneur. As a learning enthusiast who travels everywhere with a paperback, I’ve recently joined the ranks of Blinkist downloaders. Unfamiliar with the name?

Blinkist allows you to quickly digest books by offering condensed versions of hot sellers in the form of voiceover narratives. It’s great for entrepreneurs who can’t seem to keep up with Bill Gates’ penchant for reading 50 books a year. I prefer the feel of a traditional book, but it’s a nice stopgap when I’m short on time.

When I do have a few hours over the weekend, I turn on my meditation app and block out some “chill” time. (Thank you to my loving wife who understands!) It’s mo...

Have you ever had a desire to have total control, make an impact on the world, and establish something that will last for generations?

If so, then entrepreneurship is likely your ticket. But what does it actually mean to become an entrepreneur? The journey for entrepreneurs can be both exciting and gratifying, yet at times challenging and risky. There are plenty of possibilities if done correctly.

Here we'll discuss in depth the concept of becoming successful as an entrepreneur — from gaining insight into crucial entrepreneurial thinking required all the way through to how one may navigate running their own business — offering practical guidance specifically tailored towards early-stage entrepreneurs.

In conclusion, you'll be far more prepa...

Communicating a bold vision isn't just about how it's delivered, it's about how it's crafted.

As Founders, we live and die by the quality of our visions. We use it to inspire people to join us, to convince customers to buy from us, and to attract investors to fund our ridiculous ideas. Visions are the lifeblood of what we do, and yet, a lot of us don't really understand how to create them.

The common misconception is that our vision is simply a grand statement we make about the future. While that's partially true, it doesn't really explain what separates a good vision statement from a great one. To create a great one, we have to understand the three underlying mechanics.

Sell the Problem

Selling a vision is really about framing a problem be...

As my partner, Startups.com and Fundable founder, Wil Schroter likes to say, “There's not a lot of ‘fun' in funding.”

Raising equity funding for your startup is a long, difficult, and often demoralizing process. However, if you're successful, you walk away with money that will help your startup grow and become everything you hope it could become.

One of the major challenges that founders run across is that raising a round often takes more time than they expected. While a founder might know that your startup is excellent, convincing other people to invest thousands — and potentially millions — of dollars into their company is not a simple task.

“I've always heard that the rule of thumb is three to four months to do a fundraise — or that you sho...

We’re excited to see how communities on Slack are steadily growing day by day. People from different countries and backgrounds discuss a various range of topics in these communities. It is a source of valuable information and contacts we use every day at Standuply while building a Slack bot for remote Agile teams.

We decided to compose a list of Slack communities for your own good. It took us several weeks and after we the list contained more than 400 communities. You’ll see number of members in brackets.

I. Product Talks

🚀 Startups and Product Development

• Startups Live (n/a): Twice-a-week chat with Founders of startups.
• MindTheProduct (6201): International product community. A good one!
• Startup Study Group (6014): Growing community of he...

Millennials have set a high bar in terms of tech and entrepreneurship, but Generation Z could be even more ambitious than its predecessor. The newest generation in the workforce grew up surrounded by Snapchat, YouTube, and Musical.ly — and Gen Zers probably had an iPad before they could walk.

A whopping 98 percent of Gen Zers own a smartphone, and this generation expects to get smartphones at a younger age than any other generation. Research indicates that 45 percent of Gen Zers are on their phones “almost constantly,” and about 62 percent of Gen Z and Millennials would rather leave their wallets at home instead of their phones.

But the differences go beyond tech. Young people in 2018 know how to work for what they want, know how the gig ec...

What is a private investor?

The short answer: A private investor is a person or company that invests their own money into a company, with the goal of helping that company succeed and getting a return on their investment.

The long answer: The field of private investment is more varied than the short answer might make it seem at first. It's important to note that while some types of private investors may be from firms that focus solely on investments — like VC firms and angel investors — they are never from banks (for example, SBA bank loans).

The four main types of private investors

a. Friends and family

Family and Friends are often the first private investors that startups and small businesses turn to. They're a great resource for seed funding a...

We’ve all been to networking events where we’re bored to tears by the same mindless conversations. You swap credentials (and probably a few not-so-humblebrags), but the connection never goes beyond skimming the surface.

Networking is the first step of building a professional community, but you need to develop meaningful relationships to actually make an impact. In their book, “Superconnector: Stop Networking and Start Building Business Relationships That Matter,” Young Entrepreneur Council co-founders Scott Gerber and Ryan Paugh advocate for a move beyond the typical boring, dead-end interactions.

In the chaos and noise of the social media age, the demand for authentic, credible voices — otherwise known as superconnectors — is at an all-tim...