The Complete Series: Lean Startup Lessons Learned Below is the entire Lean Startup Lessons Learned series where Intuit leaders, including CEO Brad Smith, Founder Scott Cook and Vice President of Design Innovation Kaaren Hanson sat down with author Eric Ries to expand on some of the themes in his best-selling book “The Lean Startup.” Part 1: Lean Startup Lessons with Eric Ries In this episode, Brad Smith and Ries explore the role leaders can play in living the values outlined in “The Lean Startup.” Part 2: Lean Startup Lessons: Leaders, Get out of Your Comfort Zone What is one of the most important questions a leader can ask a team when managing in a lean startup environment? Part 3: Lean Startup Lesson: Test Before you Build Eric Ries, author of The Lean Startup, speaks with Intuit founder Scott Cook about entrepreneurial failures and successes. Part 4: Lean Startup Lessons: Breaking Down Your Grand Vision into Entrepreneurial Success Leap of faith? Part 5: Lean Startup Lesson: Changing Course on a Business Idea Without Giving Up Part 6: Part 7:
46 Ways To Start A Business With No Money Most people who want to start their own business don’t have a ton of money laying around and it’s probably one the most common questions I get emailed about: How can I get started without a lot of cash? Well I’ve put together a list below of the best ideas I’ve heard and personally used. I hope you find it useful! The three basic strategies to starting a business without much money are: Delay the normal “business starting” activities like incorporating, hiring, renting office or retail space, etc until AFTER your business has started earning money. Start With The Easy Stuff: Eliminate Expenses Don’t rent an office! Legal Stuff and Incorporating Make a website for your business Don’t pay a premium for a top end domain name, there are plenty of good ones leftTest out your ideas by writing to a blog, you’ll get feedback on what people like and don’t likeGet a free business website at www.wordpress.com or tumblr.com. Getting a Logo Don’t hire a fancy graphic designer. Accepting Credit Cards
10 Business Card Mistakes You Might Be Making Everyone should have a business card, right? Whether you have a business, a nonprofit, a local organization or are looking for a new job, you need a way to leave people with important information. But most make big mistakes on their cards. Do you? To write this post, I grabbed ten random business cards from a stack I received last week. So if you are ready, pull out your business card, lay it on the desk near your computer, pull out a pen or highlighter and be ready to identify the mistakes you are making Here are the 10 business card mistakes people make: #1 Small font size – Some of us have perfect vision. #2 Glossy paper – One way I can make your card more usable and memorable is to make some notes on it before I leave you. #3 Light font color – I mentioned font size up above. #4 Design inconsistent with website – Whether your business is just you or you + 100 others, there is great value in having a card design that integrates the look and feel of your brand. Need some new cards?
Best 101 Entrepreneurship Quotes Ever I’m a big fan of quotes. I could read them all day long. Some quotes can shift your entire mindset on something while others are just nice to bring up in conversations. I’ve spent the last two years (off and on) compiling 101 of my favorite entrepreneurship quotes around success, failure, leadership, wisdom, humor, money, practicality, motivation, and a smattering of entrepreneurial proverbs. Success Quotes Failure Quotes “Failure defeats losers, failure inspires winners.” Leadership Quotes “Leaders don’t force people to follow, they invite them on a journey.” Wisdom Quotes “The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts.” Humorous Quotes “I think it’s wrong that only one company makes the game Monopoly.” Money Quotes “Formal education will make you a living. Practical Quotes
Facebook Debuts Facebook For Business - Resources Businesses, especially those led by tech-savvy entrepreneurs, have long been using Facebook to promote their brands and interact with customers. But now the social-networking giant is formalizing the relationship with the introduction of Facebook for Business. Unveiled Tuesday, Facebook for Business is a webpage that gives directions on everything from how to create a profile to how to communicate effectively with customers. The Facebook page seems to target small businesses especially, since they don't have the marketing budgets to outsource the social-media function. It also advises companies to make sure that they have a “consistent voice for your page, so your fans know what to expect.” Not having a well-thought-out brand strategy is one of the problems that Al DiGuido, chief executive officer of digital marketing service Zeta Interactive, sees when businesses first delve into the social-media space.
100 Must See Interviews With the World's Most Successful Entrepreneurs At Under30CEO we think big. We recently published a list of our Top 50 Most Motivational People on the web and things got a little nuts. The article created incredible buzz all over the web and most importantly we fired up our audience to go out and make something happen. As young entrepreneurs it’s important that we keep swinging for the fences. Super successful investors like Ron Conway say they’d rather invest in an 18 year old Mark Zuckerberg than a 31 year old seasoned entrepreneur because the young Sean Parker types truly think the sky is the limit. The list below is the most incredible people to learn from as entrepreneurs and we intend to interview them all…somehow. Introducing our Top 100 Entrepreneurs to Learn from and their best interviews from around the web…1.) 2.) 3.) 4.) 5.) 6.) 7.) 8.) 9.) 10.) 11.) 12.) 13.) 14.) 15.) 16.) 17.) 18.) 19.) 20.) 21.) 22.) 23.) 24.) 25.) 26.) 27.) 28.) 29.) 30.) 31.) 32.) 33.) 34.) 35.) 36.) 37.) 38.) 39.) 40.) 41.) 42.) 43.) 44.) 45.)
5 Ways You Are Turning Your Customers Away This article by VerticalResponse CEO and founder Janine Popick originally appeared on Inc.com. When it comes to running our companies, we all get into a rut from time to time. One big rut is not having enough time in the day to really assess all of the ways our customers are interacting with us, whether it’s digital or good old face-to-face. Take a look at your business and see if any of these pitfalls could be turning your customers away: Employee Chatter How many times have you walked into a store and you hear employees talking to each other about their shifts, the fact that they hate working today, or how they can’t wait to get off work to go clubbing tonight? Phone Tree Hell Have you ever called your own business phone number to see what the customer experience is like? Mobile Mania Have you ever had to wait for someone to get off his/her mobile device before helping you? Inconsistencies Welcome! Have you ever walked into an office building and had no one pay attention to you?
10 Blogs Entrepreneurs Need to Be Reading See the 2012 edition: 10 Must Read Blogs for Entrepreneurs (2012 Edition) #1. The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur Site: What it is: Mike Michalowicz provides entrepreneurs and small businesses with tips on everything from starting a business to networking to marketing and health care. Why you should read it: Mike not only provides great tips but he provides great tips from REAL people. #2. Site: What it is: Written by a panel of small business owners, the site offers tips and advice on everything business related. Small business trends really covers EVERYTHING! #3. Site: Run by two brothers, Matthew and Adam Toren, Young Entrepreneur is exactly what it sounds like; a site dedicated to young entrepreneurs. Between blog posts, forums, polls and interviews with other small business owners, the site offers fantastic content. #4. Site: Why you should read it: #5. #6. #7. #8.
Foolproof Web Design | Technology > Software Services & Applications from AllBusiness You don't have to be a master programmer or have a computer science background to build great-looking Web pages. In fact, the most important consideration is your users. If you can build Web pages that are attractive, easy to navigate and provide value, your users will return again and again. Designing Web Pages The natural tendency of beginning designers is to clutter their pages with too much text and too many graphics. One of the benefits of the Web is that, unlike in print, there are no space constraints. Another way to improve the look and feel of your Web pages is to "borrow" concepts from professional designers. All Web browsers allow you to view the source code of any Web page. If you're still daunted by the prospect of building your site from scratch, you can shop around for consultants who can help you. Testing Your Site Implementing simple user testing can make your site immeasurably better. Be sure to test your site on all major browsers. Quality Control
Entrepreneur Startup Advice I usually tell people that everything I learned about being an entrepreneur I learned by F’ing up at my first company. I think the sign of a good entrepreneur is the ability to spot your mistakes, correct quickly and not repeat the mistakes. I made plenty of mistakes. Below are some of the lessons I learned along the way. If there’s a link on a title below I’ve written the post, if not I plan to. For now it’s mostly an outline for me to follow (in no particular order). Disclaimer: I ran two SaaS software companies. 1. 2. You also need to consider founder scenarios, ownership, prenuptials and stock options. Learning to work with lawyers. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42.
Strategic Planning My Concern About the Use of Strategic Planning “Templates” By Carter McNamara on March 18, 2014 It seems that the use of “templates” in strategic planning is on the rise. People want a simple and straightforward way to get the Strategic Plan written and finished. They want a “roadmap” that applies to every organization with everyone all the time and everywhere. I’m seeing them mentioned more often lately for strategic planning, [...] [ Read More → ] Your (Leadership) Role in Establishing Goals By Michael Wilkinson on November 21, 2013 As a leader in your organization, part of your role during strategic planning is to help establish goals that provide a foundation for the rest of the plan. [ Read More → ] Painting the Picture – A Sample Visioning Exercise By Michael Wilkinson on October 1, 2013 To help determine your organization’s goals, utilize a visualization exercise that guides the team through a scenario ten or more years into the future. [ Read More → ] Why Do You Need a Plan?
Business Planning Mindfulness as a Competitive Strategy By Rolfe Larson on February 18, 2014 One emerging trend we’re noticing in our work is the number of companies using meditation and mindfulness practices to increase individual and group productivity, improve well-being and health, and reduce stress in the business environment. Moreover, recent neuroscience research demonstrates at the brain’s molecular level that meditation and mindfulness, even if practiced for just 20 [...] [ Read More → ] Caves and Campfires… By Rolfe Larson on November 1, 2013 OK, you know this. [ Read More → ] Crowd Financing Debuted Last Week (sort of) By Rolfe Larson on October 7, 2013 First the good news: Starting Sept 30, US federal law allows small startup companies to raise equity on the Internet, without the expensive barrier to register the shares for public trading with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). [ Read More → ] Intrapreneurial Business Plans By Rolfe Larson on September 9, 2013 [ Read More → ] [ Read More → ]
Building a Business Simple Steps to Small Business Savings By Carter McNamara on April 30, 2013 (Guest post from Brittany Evans) It’s amazing how much small purchases can add up when they are being done by an office. That’s because of the volumes involved. For example, a house may have five or 10 lamps inside, but an office can easily have 50-100 bulbs running during operating hours. Therefore, it’s important to [...] [ Read More → ] Paying Taxes Quarterly Saves Time By Tove Rasmussen on September 29, 2011 – By Guest Writer, Bert Doerhoff, CPA By paying quarterly you can ease your yearly accounting process with less calculations, allowing you to devote more time to the important day-to-day aspects of your small business. [ Read More → ] Gain Insight – Get a Board By Tove Rasmussen on August 9, 2011 Business owners often find it a challenge to lift their heads and view the long term. [ Read More → ] Top 5 Tips on Building an Excellent Team By Tove Rasmussen on August 2, 2011 [ Read More → ] [ Read More → ]