Most entrepreneurs we talk to these days is asking “how can I bring more customers into my business?” There are no quick or easy answers here. Just some encouragement to try a new technique or two. You will need to develop a multi-pronged approach for your business. Sometime it takes thinking of creative ways to […]
20 Ways To Generate Leads Read More »
Here’s a couple of sources for free public domain photo, clipart, cartoons and images. They are royalty free, not copy-righted and available for personal and commercial use. These stock photos are high resolution and high enough quality for print and websites. www.publicdomainpictures.net www.public-domain-image.com www.pdphoto.org www.unclesamsphotos.com However, keep in mind: You can not copyright the material
Public Domain Images for Presentations and Websites Read More »
I sent Kevin Garber an E-Mail yesterday afternoon “I love the product, I would like to pay for it.” I had spent about twenty hours in the last week cleaning up typo’s on www.skmurphy.com and www.bootstrappersbreakfast.com (first of all who knew that there were so many different ways to spell bootstrapper and entrepreneur, to name
Spellr.us Is So Good That I Want To Pay For It Read More »
I attended a workshop put on by CPSquare in 2003 on Communities of Practice that had a profound impact on my worldview. I met folks from around the US who helped to foster communities of practice in corporate, education, government, and non-profit settings and was surprised at how common the both the challenges and methodologies
Fantastic On-Line Workshop on Wikis at CPSquare in January 2009 Read More »
I am doing end of the year status for clients. I thought it would useful to share the best case numbers as well as the worst case numbers. We had a fun year working in the areas of banking & financial services, cloud computing, consulting, EDA, health care services, medical devices & services, search &
2008: Year-End Review of Client Metrics Read More »
Here are three startup feeds that I use at last weekly (I am skmurphy on Hackers News and may check there two or three times a day) that represent three different models to generate a stream of topical links for folks in software startups. Hacker News http://news.ycombinator.com/ Techmeme http://www.techmeme.com/ Alltop http://startups.alltop.com/ What are your favorite
Three Software Startup News Aggregators: Hacker News, Techmeme, Alltop Read More »
I have several rules of thumb I follow to avoid sending and email I regret. I don’t hit send after 8pm, or when I am angry, or when the other person is angry, or when a phone call is called for.
How I Avoid Sending Email I Regret Read More »
We plan to take a closer look at four services that exhibited at Office 2.0 last week. They each have one or more compelling features that may fill gap in our current set of productivity tools. Vyew It’s a zero configuration (100% browser based, provided you have Flash and Java installed) conferencing service that makes
Four Startups at Office 2.0 Worth a Second Look Read More »
If you missed us at SDWest last week, here are pointers to firms and organizations we had in the Startup Resource Center. Brighter Naming name your company, product, or service Fortis General Counsel is a law firm comfortable with bootstrappers Action Patents Pete Tormey registered patent agent (see interview) Boitano Sargent, and Lilly accounting firm
SKMurphy’s Startup Resource Center at SDWest 2008 Read More »
Rob Hof notes–hat tip to Ross Mayfield–tonight in “Jotspot Returns as Google Sites: Wiki Style Collaboration” (emphasis added): Ever since Google bought the wiki-based online application startup Jotspot in late 2006, people have been wondering if it had disappeared forever inside the bowels of the search giant. Tonight, Google’s launching Google Sites, using Jotspot’s technology
Jotspot Emerges From The Bowels of Google Read More »
Three features for a webinar or conference call: let someone raise their hand and speak; break a larger group into small groups and then reconvene; automatically manage the “queue for the microphone” during the Q&A segment.
Three Features For A Webinar Or Conference Call Read More »
Pierre Khawand of People-OnTheGo and I were on a panel at GABA in October of last year on “Communication Today: Blogs, E-mail and More” and we had a great conversation on blogs and wikis. He has invited me to speak on “Wiki Use Case: Managing Team Meetings: Agendas, Minutes and Tasks” at today’s Lunch &
Lunch & Learn: Using Wikis for Projects Read More »
I was an early fan of Steve Blank’s customer development model. This post was written when “Four Steps to the Epiphany” was only available on Cafe Press and documents the early set of principles he espoused.
Steve Blank on Customer Development Process for Startups Read More »
I am an small business owner. We are virtual team and use many on-line tools. These are ones that we actually pay for and use everyday: Calendar: WebEx, Central Desktop Contacts: WebEx, Central Desktop Design: Lucky Oliver for photos Logo Design: Logo Company, Logoworks Managing Money: Quickbooks Wiki, On-line Docs & Spreadsheets: Central Desktop Project
On-line Tools for Startups Read More »
To keep our workshops interactive we limit them to a dozen people. We’ve got two seats left in our Thursday December 6th “Idea to Revenue workshop” so we have added a second one Saturday January 19, 2008. This one will be held at the Moorpark Hotel in San Jose. We got a number of requests
We Added a Second Idea to Revenue Workshop on January 19, 2008 Read More »
Join the ACM and improve your peripheral vision–keep track of technical developments in related fields that may impact your business
Join the ACM & Improve Your Peripheral Vision Read More »
Q: I have an idea for a software product, how do I get started? Our answer is a series of twenty questions that will help you develop and refine your software product idea. See below for the first seven. We also cover these in our workshop Idea to Revenue, that gives you the time and
I Have an Idea for a Software Product, How Do I Get Started? Read More »
e-News for Small Businesses is a free electronic mail service designed to provide tax information for small business owners and self-employed individuals. Subscribers receive information about important upcoming tax dates for SB/SE customers, what’s new for small businesses on the IRS Web site, reminders and tips to assist small businesses and self-employed taxpayers with tax
Free Small Business eNewsletter From IRS Read More »
Here are the social networks I participate in. I find them a good source for practical advice for running my business. LinkedIn www.linkedin.com Intuit’s Jumpup www.jumpup.com Bank of America Small Business http://smallbusinessonlinecommunity.bankofamerica.com Bootstrappers Breakfast www.bootstrappersbreakfast.com Check me out, my screen name is tshafer.
Social Networks for Running your Business Read More »
Today, while at the Software 2007 conference at the Santa Clara Convention Center, I attended a great Breakout Session on Office 2.0: Opportunities and Challenges. The session was comprised of four CEO’s, one moderator and three panelist. Below is my summary of the presentation. Question to the panel: What is Office 2.0? Ken Rudin, CEO
Office 2.0 Opportunities and Challenges Read More »
