Entrepreneurship can definitely become a way of life.  I should know.  I’ve been a life long entrepreneur,  just as my father was before me.

I don’t know if it’s an addiction,  the challenge, knowing you can bear the pain of the long climb, the exhilaration of success when, against long odds, you know you’ve created something  that didn’t exist before. Maybe it’s a hidden gene, waiting to be discovered.  Maybe it’s just that after entrepreneurship, nothing else seems so satisfying.  But whatever it is, and the x factor is, author Rajesh Setty gets it, to mind, just right in The Dance of Entrepreneurship:

Tags: business, entrepreneurship, money, Rajesh Setty, small business, start up

TwtBizCard Says

Web

• TwtBizCard – Your twitter business card

Related articles by Zemanta

• HOW TO: Exchange Business Cards With Twitter @Replies (mashable.com)
• TwtJobs – a simple career manager twitter app (twi5.com)
• twtapps.com: simple and useful Twitter applications (netwala.blogspot.com)
• TwtBizCard – your twitter business card (twi5.com)
• CalendarTweet – an events calendar for twitter (twi5.com)

Tags: Business card, Twitter, Twitter Business Card, twtapps, TwtBizCard, twtvite

If you happen to be an entrepreneur on the web, like me, whether you’re
building your own blogs and websites or building them for others, you need to keep your eye on the web’s future. That’s where we’ll be competing for eyeballs, relevance and revenue.

Some distilled insight is offered by Richard MacManus in Understanding the New Web Era: Web 3.0, Linked Data, Semantic Web. He analyzes and sets out to distill “a fascinating 3-part series of posts this week by Greg Boutin, founder of Growthroute Ventures. The series aimed to tie together 3 big trends, all based around structured data: 1) the still nascent “Web 3.0″ concept, 2) the relatively new kid on the structured Web block, Linked Data, and 3) the long-running saga that is the Semantic Web.”

It might be a tall order to understand all of that in one gulp, but let’s look for a second at Web 3.0, then gently peek over the horizon to see a tiny preview of what lies ahead. ( Some of it might be a little techie, but for most of us it will work behind the scenes, and we will have simple tools which help us take advantage of the Net’s increasingly intelligent structural and linking dynamics.)

“Web 3.0: What Comes After 2.0 (!)

Last year Greg Boutin loosely defined web 3.0 as “the Web of Openness. A web that breaks the old siloes, links everyone everything everywhere, and makes the whole thing potentially smarter.”

There is a lot of debate about what Web 3.0 is and the term itself is open to derision. In my view Web 3.0 is an unoriginal name for the next evolution of the Web. What’s important to note though, is that there is a difference in the products we’re seeing in 2009 compared to the ones we saw at the height of ‘Web 2.0‘ (2005-08). If Web 2.0 was about user generated content and social applications such as YouTube and Wikipedia, then Web 3.0 is about open and more structured data – which essentially makes the Web more ‘intelligent’.

The smarter the data, the more things we can do with it. The current trends we’re seeing today – filtering content, real-time data, personalization – are evidence that ‘Web 3.0′ is upon us, if not well defined yet. We actually saw a great example of Web 3.0 this week, with Google’s release of Search Options and Rich Snippets. Those features added real-time search, structured data, and more to Google’s core search.”

Macmanus goes on to discus “linked data” which is interesting, if pretty techie.  There is a fascinating, if mind blowing, graphic of a Linking Open Data (LOD) project.  He also notes that Google will be a big player in all of this.

The bottom line is that, ultimately, we will have a more intelligent web and entreneurs would do well, to position themselves for the future by keeping an eye on linkages.  To  dive into the complexity of it all, go to Understanding the New Web Era: Web 3.0, Linked Data, Semantic Web – ReadWriteWeb.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Google’s Rich Snippets and the Semantic Web (radar.oreilly.com)
• Linked Data is not owl:sameAs Semantic Web (semantic-web.at)

Tags: Google, Greg Boutin, Linked Data, Linking Open Data, Semantic Web, Web 2.0, Web 3.0, YouTube

As competition heats up in this tough economy, one way to beat your online competitors is to go local. Even hyper-local.

Fortunately Twitter has the tools to let you do that.  Of course, you are using Twitter to build your brand and develop your relationships with other Tweeple, so you don’t want to overdo it.  But, if you have a product or service to sell, it’s helpful to remind your neighbors what it is.  For example, if you’re selling fresh baked bread, other Twitterers in your ‘hood are not likely to be getting that from Seattle or Chicago, unless they live there. So, your first step is to identify local Twitter users so you can reach out to them

Identifying Local Twitter Users

If you’re interested in local twitterers and happenings, 50 Useful Twitter Tools for Writers and Researchers lists these tools which will help connect you with nearby potential customers and you keep up to date with the local scene:

1. Nearby Tweets: Check out Nearby Tweets to seek out local Twitter users.
2. Atlas: Use Atlas to see tweets on a map.
3. GeoFollow: Using the GeoFollow directory, you’ll be able to find users in specific areas.
4. CityTweets: See real time Twitter activity for cities on CityTweets.
5. Twittervision: Check out Twittervision for real-time geographic tweets.
6. TwitterLocal: On TwitterLocal, you can find tweets in a designated location.
7. Localtweeps: Check out Localtweeps to find Twitter users near you.

These tools make it very simple to hone in on your nearest and possibly your best market.  Happy hunting!

Tags: Social network, technology, Twitter

Not sure what the hardest thing is in business is because so much of it is challenging.  But one of the hardest things to achieve has to be “insulation from competition”.  Even if you are great at doing whatever you do, someone can always come along and replicate it. Seth Godin, marketing guru, makes the point in Seth’s Blog: Thinking about business models

that building a “tribe”, insulates you from competition.  I can think of some examples of this.  Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream. After all it’s only ice cream.  Volkswagon, when it brought out the Beetle.  After all it was only a car.  Apple when it introduced everything from the Mac to the Iphone.  After all, there were competing products, but for those who fell in love with the meticulous design, ease of use and the sheer enjoyment of using the product, there was only Apple.  Here’s how Seth makes that point when thinking about business models”

Tags: business, Business model, how to insulate your business from competition, Market, Marketing and Advertising, Price war, Seth Godin, Viral marketing, Virtual community

Remember when the Net roared on the scene and created new business models not even imaginable before?  “Opportunities where Amazon is 34x bigger than Barnes & Noble, where NetFlix destroyed Blockbuster, and where Skype is worth $2.6B while telecom companies drop like flies?”

Jason Cohen, founder of Smart Bear Software reflects on what’s happening on the net today where, as he sees it…. and it sounds pretty reasonable to me…the same pattern is emerging, just in a different guise.

In, Why you have to engage in social media, even if you don’t want toJason talks about how social media has already changed the rules of the game. Here’s his take:

“The days of “have a website and advertise” are over. It’s too expensive to be noticed on an Internet that’s already full.

Social media is the only way LinksFor.Us could get traction. If Darren Rowse or Brian Clark talks about it, it’s visible. If it hits the front page of Digg, it’s visible. Once it’s visible, once you have things like incoming links and lots of regular traffic, then you have a shot at using traditional SEO techniques for staying visible. But social media is the only way to overcome static friction (short of spending crazy money).

Social media is already changing the rules of the marketplace, just like the web did a decade ago. It’s still early of course and no one — not even the experts — knows where all this is going. But it’s clear that times are changing again, and those that don’t jump in will go the way of print media.

Want examples?

• In a test run by BazaarVoice, Rubbermaid discovered that adding customer reviews to their website increased sales and decreased returns of their products. Skeptics said sales of low-rated products would crater. What actually happened is that sales of low-rated products increased. When shoppers were questioned, they explained that when they read why someone else maligned the product, often they disagreed or didn’t care about that particular problem. If the price was right, it was worth buying anyway.
• Fog Creek software makes millions of dollars from FogBugz, a bug-tracking system. There’s hundreds of bug-tracking systems — free, cheap, expensive, open-source, commercial — yet Fog Creek is highly visible and successful with no advertising. How? Because the founder, Joel Spolsky, has built an incredibly popular blog about writing software. He was before his time; before RSS he wrote essays and notified you by email when a new one was posted. It’s widely agreed that without the blog-before-it-was-called-a-blog, Fog Creek would likely have remained an unknown consulting company with a few struggling products.
• Nike allowed people to build and order custom shoes on their website. Skeptics said deep customization is too expensive, design-sharing is too complicated, and people need to try shoes on. Wrong! Once the site took off, Nike created physical stores where you could do the same thing.  Joaquin Hidalgo, Nike VP of Global Brand Marketing says those stores now “represent 25% of our revenue.”
• Speaking of shoes, Zappos also sells shoes on the Internet. CEO Tony Hsieh is so convinced that their legendary Twitter presence results in sales, he even wrote a popular beginner’s guide to Twitter. He insists that Twitter and other forms of open communication are required for excellent customer service; employees are trained in Twitter. Zappos raked in $1B last year even with the recession; they’re doing something right.
• Oddly-named marketing site Marketing.fm gets double the traffic of marketing.com. One has a blog with useful content and one doesn’t. Guess which is which.
• Zeus Jones describes 16 more terrific examples. (Thanks to David S. Finch for digging it up.)”

Conclusion: better jump in now while you still can and keep leveraging up with social media. Or, as Jason puts it, “Will there be another new thing someday? Sure.

But today and for the foreseeable future, this is the world. You have to jump in even if you don’t yet understand it.”

Tags: Fog Creek, FogBugz, Netflix, Social media, Twitter, Zappos

Business plan guru, Tim Berry, will be reading and evaluating 75 or so business plans in a single month so he should know something about how to create them and how to judget them.

As Berry says: “This is business plan season for me. I just finished reading half a dozen plans for Notre Dame’s annual business plan competition (we (Palo Alto Software) give a prize to the best one), and another half dozen plans for the Rice business plan competition (I’m a judge, and we have a best business plan prize for that one too). I still have to read five plans for the University of Oregon’s New Venture Competition next weekend (I’m a judge), and I’m supposed to produce a first-cut on 43 plans for the Willamette Angel Conference (I’m one of the angel investors) by the end of the workday today.:

Here’s his take on what sort of business plan you need:

Tags: Angel investor, Business plan, entrepreneur, Palo Alto, small business, Tim Berry

Dan Schawbel makes an  interesting point and one I think might be helpful to all of us about the value of starting your own page on Facebook. Schawbel in HOW TO: Build Your Personal Brand on Facebook notes that with over 200 million active users, Facebook has become a personal, product and corporate branding hub. He presents a very thorough  guide to building your personal brand on Facebook, but the most interesting point he makes, I think, is How To Start Your Own Page.

“Facebook pages are for brands, ranging from Coca Cola to Barack Obama and even you. These pages resemble your Facebook profiles, so only use one if you have a large number of Facebook friends. By having a Facebook page, your brand can go viral, holding a spot on other people’s profiles. The other main advantage is that your page will rank high for your name in Google () () and you can use it for your professional career, while keeping your personal profile private.”

The reason I think this is a really good idea is because I recently read a study showing the most likely prospect for getting new business is from someone you are already doing business with. The next most likely place is from someone who’s heard good things about you from someone you are doing business with.  In other words, credibility — being good at what you do—, attention to clients and colleagues and word of mouth or at the core of building your brand, your reputation and your business. Remember that when you are deciding where to invest your time.  Facebook is a more intimate platform where you can get some of those qualities across.

Since I’ve just come upon this truth myself I haven’t built my Facebook Page yet, but it is now on my priority to do list.  It will be a bit tricky because my Facebook friends come from many different personal camps or tribes, and my page will blend webbiz, social media and entrepreneurship.  The idea will be to gather a small community with interesting thoughts on these subjects. An interesting challenge.  I’ll keep you updated.  In the meantime, if you’ve built a Facebook page or are planning to, please share your thoughts and experience.

Tags: Build Your Personal Brand on Facebook, facebook

Can you start a business for under $20?  Scott Allen says yes in 10 Legitimate Businesses You Can Start for Under $20.  He also tells you exactly how to spend your 20 bucks in each case.

Some of these business, although a good idea,  might take a little longer to get money rolling in like Webpreneur.  I should know.

More promising for immediate cash flow:

eBay Seller

I have a cousin who haunts the garage and estate sales, specializes in silver, jewelry, old books and post cards and makes several thousand a month on eBay.  Of course it does take time to buy, photograph, price and upload.  Or you can let someone else do it for 30% of the take.

Or, as Scott says: “Yes, there really are people who make a decent living buying things at garage sales and flea markets and selling them on eBay. The big secrets? Stick to products you know (or learn before you start) extremely well, package your goods carefully, and provide impeccable customer service. It helps to have a digital camera or a scanner, but it’s not required.

Spend the $20 on: Your first inventory at a garage sale.

Other business I think are very doable and at a professional level you probably already have the necessary skills:

Consultant

As Scott says: “Getting into consulting is relatively simple. All you have to do is know how to do something better than most people do, and be able to either teach people how to do it or be willing to do it for them. Networking is the key to success in this business, so start by making a list of everyone you know and giving them all a call.

Spend the $20 on: $14 on a box of clean-edge laser or inkjet business cards and $6 buying your first prospect a cup of coffee one morning.”

Desktop Publishing

“It’s amazing how many people have a computer and still don’t know how to make a decent flyer! If you’ve got a good design sense, are extremely familiar with your word processor, and already have a laser or high-quality inkjet printer, you can get into desktop publishing. Create a really great-looking portfolio for yourself and go door-to-door.

Spend the $20 on: Some high-quality paper to create your samples on.”

Scott also mentions: Personal Services – Shopping & Errands and Tutoring, both of which you can get into and start making money immediately.

Others depend on your personal level of interest in them.  If you like selling, for instance, Avon might be for you.

• Housesitter / Petsitter
• Avon Independent Sales Representative
• Secretarial Service – Typing / Transcription / Proofreading

Others I think might take a little more skill and experience like

Professional Organizer

If you’re looking for extra income you might want to look over the details of all these possibilities at Legitimate Businesses You Can Start for Under $20

Hope this starts you thinking of all the ways you can start now, for very little and build a profitable business, one which will tide you over in tough times.

Tags: business, entrepreneur

Guy Kawasaki, marketing and Net guru, recommends this in his Tweet: The Top Five Innovation Killers

Although the article mentions 5 top innovation killers, there were 2 that really resonated with me:

1. An intolerance of failure. The #1 top tactic for innovation, according to expert innovators, is to ‘experiment fearlessly’. Nothing works first time, so you may as well get it wrong as soon as you can. If you cannot accept failure you are unlikely to see too much innovation, no matter how much money you throw at it.
2. A desire for a magic pill, not a daily exercise regime. This requires innovation as a way of life rather than as an isolated change programme.

I have always seen people looking for a magic pill or a silver bullet to solve all their problems in business.  In fact, in my 20’s, in a fuzzy, unformed way, I probably thought that as well.  But experience shows that success most often comes from putting one foot in front of the other every day. Wasn’t it Einstein who said genius is 1 part inspiration and 99 parts perspiraton?

Tags: business, innovation