About this time last year, Amy and I were visiting my parents for Easter. Our wedding was a couple months away and preparations were going very smoothly. And then Amy had her one and only “bridezilla” moment. She realized that she was totally in love with a dress that she had once seen in a picture online, and had to find it. Without being able to look at any pictures because I wanted it to be a surprise, I helped her track down the exact dress at a store only 45 minutes from my parents house. She tried it on, loved it, and bought it. The only issue was that she had already spent a bunch on another dress. What do you do with a never worn, beautiful wedding dress? You put it on Tradesy. They’re a Santa Monica, CA based company that can help you “turn your closet into cash.” It’s a marketplace for new and gently used fashion.
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I’m not a big gamer, but when I do play games on my mobile devices, they’re usually pretty simplistic. Some people prefer a more immersive experience–they take mobile gaming seriously. Those people probably like the games from Gameloft. They’re a New York, NY based company that allows its “fans to play games anywhere, anytime, and on any digital platform.” In fact, more than one million Gameloft games are downloaded every single day. That’s what happens when you develop great games in-house while at the same time you’ve “built the world’s largest distribution network” (for games of course).
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Health is all about information. There was a time when we didn’t know how unhealthy smoking was. Now we do. Many people will live longer, healthier lives because of this knowledge. Any tool that can help both doctors and patients make more informed decisions is immensely valuable. Healthline is a San Francisco, CA based company that has built “the largest, most clinically accurate classification of health information available on the web.” They offer this resource both to consumers in the form of Healthline.com and to brands in a variety of solutions.
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Last night Amy was bragging to me about how popular one of her pins on Pinterest has been. Apparently she was the first to pin something repinned by thousands. Pinterest always struck me as having far more commercial potential than most other social media sites (LinkedIn being the biggest exception). Yet most of the software developed for marketing on social media sites seems to be focused on Facebook and LinkedIn. Ahalogy is a Cincinnati, OH based company that is “pioneering the science of discovery on Pinterest.” It’s not “some do-it-yourself suite.” Instead it’s “a marketing service, powered by [their] network and technology, and paid for performance.”
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I’ve worked in two real offices in my life (I’ve mostly worked from home). The first was in an old tide mill on a bridge in an estuary. The second was a beautiful building located on 377 acres of black bear habitat. They’re not your typical commercial real estate options, but what are? How does a company know what office space is available? I have no idea, but apparently there isn’t much information available online as you would hope. RealMassive is working to change that. They’re an Austin, TX based startup that has developed the “first-ever source of real-time commercial real estate information.”
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If you’ve watched as much Seinfeld as I have, you’re familiar with Lloyd Braun. He’s the guy who George Costanza’s mother wants George to be more like. Anyway, the real Lloyd Braun was Larry David’s lawyer and manager. I’m not sure how similar he is to the tv character, but let’s hope it’s not very. Anyway, the real Lloyd Braun moved away from the legal side and started a company called BermanBraun. The company recently rebranded as Whalerock Industries, but it’s still “a media company for the 21st century, one where the best and brightest minds come together to create world-class content, spanning all mediums and screens.” They’re based in Santa Monica, CA, and they’re behind some brand that you may be familiar with–for instance they’re managing Moviefone for AOL.
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It used to be that most websites were the same for everybody, but today almost everything seems to be personalized. Whether I log into Facebook, search on Google, or visit a jobs website, there’s a very good chance that my experience is being altered based on data that they’ve collected about me. Sites with this customization based on who is logged in used to be referred to (and maybe still are) as portals. Liferay Portal is free and open source software that allows anyone to build this kind of web experience. Liferay is a Diamond Bar, CA based company that was started in 2004 and “houses a professional services group that provides training, consulting and enterprise support services” focused on the Liferay Portal software.
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I barely shop in retail stores any more because I know that I can almost always find a better price online. Retailers have realized this and started getting much more aggressive about pricing merchandise competitively. The problem is that few people are willing to drive from store to store just to save a few bucks. That’s why you should do a little pre-shopping on Find&Save, a site run by Wanderful Media. The former seems to be the sole product of the latter at this point; however, the Los Gatos, CA based Wanderful Media is aiming “to transform the $4 billion business of traditional advertising circulars through digital innovation – just as joint media ventures such as CareerBuilder and Cars.com strengthened the industry’s position through the use of new technology.”
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It wasn’t long ago that the term “educational data” meant whatever was written in a teacher’s grade book. Today there are all kinds of software solutions to help teachers, administrators, and school systems better educate their students. The problem is that every piece of software works a little bit differently. Integrating one or two applications with a student information system may not be a big deal, but it can get out of hand with a few more apps. Clever is a San Francisco, CA whose software solutions “sync with your school’s student information system to provide an amazing experience for teachers and students.”
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When you finish reading this, what are you going to do next? You’ll likely read something else–an e-mail, another article, or maybe a Facebook status. That’s why I should have suggestions for related content at the bottom of every company profile (why don’t I?). You’ve seen this model on other sites. There are related articles recommended for you. What you may not have noticed is that some of those recommendations are ads. nrelate is a New York, NY based company behind many of these ads. They help “Publishers give their readers an easy way to find more great content from within their site or from around the web, while Marketers get their content in front of highly engaged readers.”
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Every time that Amy and I move (four times over the last six years), we say that we’re going to do a great job setting up our new place. When we move to the next place, we end up repacking the framed pictures that we never got around to hanging on the wall. Interior design isn’t our strongpoint. Next time we move, we’ll have to use Houzz for inspiration. They’re a Palo Alto, CA based company that offers “a collaborative platform for home remodeling and design, bringing homeowners and home professionals together in a uniquely visual community.” It’s kind of like Pinterest, but only for home design and decor.
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A few days ago we looked at a company called Groundspeak that uses GPS data to “to make everyone an explorer and to put an adventure in every location.” There are lots of other ways to use location data, and an obvious one is advertising. It used to be that you knew an ad would target a specific locale because it was on a billboard or a local radio station. Today it’s possible to advertise to people all over the planet with a few mouse clicks, but what if you want use where they are to your advantage? xAd is a New York, NY based company that allows advertisers to pinpoint “target audiences at pivotal moments during the consumer’s decision-making journey.” It’s a kind of targeting that seems to get far less attention than it should.
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Right now I have a shot at winning $1 billion. My bracket is 100% correct… though no games have been finished yet. In case you haven’t heard, Quicken Loans has put up that amount for anyone who gets a perfect bracket (and Warren Buffet backed it with one of his insurance businesses). It sounds like March Madness until you crunch the numbers. There is essentially zero chance that someone will win the prize, yet millions of people entered… and shared their information with Quicken Loans. That’s exactly why the Detroit, MI based company sponsored the contest. New leads are the lifeblood of a mortgage business, even if you’re already the “#1 online retail lender.”
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I love GPS. I have the technology in my phone (like most people these days), my camera, and even a dog collar. It’s great to know exactly where you are, where you’ve been, and where you’re going–especially if you spend a lot of time in the wilderness like I do. Some people are even more enamored with GPS than I am. Those are the people who participate in communities run by Groundspeak, a Seattle, WA based company that aims “to make everyone an explorer and to put an adventure in every location.” It all started in 2000 when the U.S. government flipped a switch and made the signal from publicly available GPS satellites far more accurate.
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St. Patrick’s Day is one of my least favorite holidays. It didn’t used to be, but after moving to Chicago and being inconvenienced by all of the idiots “celebrating,” I’ve lost my patience. However, you have to think the inconvenience is worth it for local businesses–all of the people who are partying are also spending money on drinks, food, and taxis. Maybe these merchants can make up for the headaches of serving these revelers by using Clover. They are a Mountain View, CA based company that replaces the “cash register, payment terminal, receipt printer, and barcode scanner with an all-in-one solution.” They also have a name that made them exceedingly appropriate to feature today.
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Back to the Future Part II was on this morning. It’s hard to believe that we’re only a year away from that “future.” The future never looks like what we expect it to, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try shaping it. Institute for the Future is a Palo Alto, CA based “independent, non-profit research organization with a 45-year track record of helping all kinds of organizations make the futures they want.” Their focus is on foresight, but it’s not as much about predicting the future as affecting it.
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Today is Pi Day! It’s a holiday loved by math educators and pastry fanatics alike. While some may say that all of the celebration is irrational, I roundly support it. Anyway, math is on my mind today, so I thought we should take a look at Motion Math. They are a San Francisco, CA based company that creates “awesomely fun, rigorously educational learning games so that children, regardless of their previous success in school or socioeconomic background, find delight in understanding difficult concepts.”
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Consuming content has never been easier. I used to travel with a backpack full of books and magazines. Now it’s all on my iPad (though my laptop, Kindle, and phone are also useful–and the combined weight of all is still less than a lot of books). For most of us the problem is organizing and prioritizing the content that we actually want to consume. I still haven’t found a way to do this that works for me, but I know a lot of people use Flipboard. They’re a Palo Alto, CA based company that offers a “single place to discover, collect and share the news you care about.” Their app is definitely socially powered, but it’s done in a way that filters out a lot of the noise that might show up on your Facebook feed for example.
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My dog is getting neutered today. I didn’t want to do it, but it was medically necessary. One of the problems with having an intact dog–especially in a bit city–is that a lot of dog boarding and daycare places won’t accept your dog. That’s actually not a big deal for me because I’d much prefer that Garçon stays with someone in their home when we go out of town (usually it’s the in-laws). Rover is just what I need for when the in-laws are out of town. It’s a “community for dog lovers to connect owners with sitters for home dog stays.” The Seattle, WA based company just raised $12 million in funding (they’ve raised a total of $25 million), so the market for this kind of business must be bigger than I would have thought.
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As a job seeker you know that having a digital presence is essential. This obviously true for brands as well. If someone is going to do business with you, they’re probably going to check out your website at some point. One thing that frustrates me is when restaurants have no website or a website that won’t display properly on my iPhone. All I want to do is check your hours, look at the menu, and maybe make a reservation! Anyway, most restaurants need help with their digital presences, and that appears to be what TVI specializes in. While the New York, NY based “award winning digital agency that designs leading brand experiences” doesn’t say anything explicitly about restaurants, a lot of their clients seem to be in that industry.
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If you haven’t been a victim of hacking yet, you will be. Even if you do everything in your power to protect your data, another party that you’ve trusted will have a breach at some point. Hopefully the companies that you trust are doing everything in their power to keep your data as secure as possible. That means being aware of the latest threats and detecting breaches immediately when they happen. Those two things are the specialty of Boulder, CO based LogRhythm, “the largest and fastest growing independent security intelligence company in the world.” This space is only going to keep growing in importance, and LogRhythm is leading the way.
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I can’t stand political advertising, but it must be pretty darn effective. Why else would politicians have spent $6 billion on advertising for the 2012 elections? Though it may seem crazy to think that people who spend other people’s money for a living are rational spenders, remember that getting elected is what they’re actually good at. Still, they often need outside help, and that’s where Targeted Victory comes in. They’re an Alexandria, GA based agency that has “anchored digital campaigns on the local, state, and presidential level.” While at some point they seem to have worked with non-political clients, today they seem to only work on the Republican side.
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When a group of people or businesses have a shared interest, they often form an association. Even in extremely competitive markets, it can make sense to come together and work towards common goals. As a result, there’s an association for nearly every possible interest. The problem with associations is that they can be hard to manage–administration can drain a lot of resources. Why should every association build its own management structure when that can be outsourced? Kellen Company is “an employee-owned professional services company serving associations, companies and foundations” with offices in Atlanta, GA; New York, NY; Denver, CO; Chicago, IL; and Washington, D.C. They provide essential services so that associations can focus on the important stuff.
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You can buy clothes in a lot of places. Where you buy typically depends on whether you’re looking for a good price, convenience, or your favorite brands. Then you have to decide whether you’d rather shop online or in person. If you’re brand focused and like shopping online, you may want to check out REVOLVE. The company is based in Cerritos, CA and is the “virtual home for an unrivaled collection of the world’s most coveted brands.” REVOLVE offers both men’s and women’s clothing, though the focus definitely seems to be on women’s lines.
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We live in a time when anyone can design nearly any kind product and have it manufactured overseas or domestically for a reasonable cost. It’s doable, but it’s not easy. 3D printing is in the early stages of changing that. Right now the capabilities are relatively limited, but there is no better place to keep an eye on where 3D printing is going than Shapeways. They’re a New York, NY based company that has built “the world’s leading 3D Printing marketplace and community.” It’s a site where anyone with a design can almost instantly offer the product to anyone who wants to buy it.
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Ordering food over the phone has always caused me anxiety, so when a site called CampusFood.com offered free food for my first online order, I jumped. I haven’t turned back. Online ordering is pretty much the best thing ever in my book, which is why I use GrubHub all the time. What I never really think about is what online ordering looks like on the other end. That’s what Olo offers: “Reliable, fast, and secure digital ordering for restaurants. Seamlessly synced with your operations, systems, and brand.” The company is based in New York, NY and powers 100s of brands while serving millions of customers.
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Do any of you remember Flip cameras? They were all the rage for a few years, and then they got completely crushed by smartphones. Who would buy a standalone consumer level point and shoot or video camera when you already have something that offers comparable quality in your pocket? The only good reason that I can think of is that you’re worried you might destroy your phone. That’s where GoPro came in. They’re a San Mateo, CA based company that has built a huge business by offering “the world’s most versatile camera.” While other manufacturers were killing each other with battles over megapixels and size, GoPro was focusing on a niche market of users who wanted to be able to take their cameras on adventures. It turned out that it was a really big niche.
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The original idea behind employer funded health insurance was that it was supposed to improve productivity by keeping employees healthy. That’s still generally the point, but today it seems that health insurance is mostly about fixing problems after they happen instead of prevention. Corporate wellness programs are the answer for employers who want to keep employees healthy (and lower insurance costs). Limeade is a Bellevue, WA based company that is aiming to “measurably improve well-being in the world through happy, healthy, high-performing workforces.” How do they do this? By offering software that makes rolling out a wellness program a snap for employers.
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I’ve been married nearly 9 months now. Slowly more and more people are asking, “When are you going to have kids?” Getting a puppy deflected a little bit of attention, but it’s only going to gain in intensity. If we do eventually give into the pressure, we’ll face a time in our lives that makes preparing for a puppy seem like nothing. That’s why it should be no surprise that the expecting parent market is absolutely huge. In fact, Destination Maternity Corporation, which is based in Philadelphia, PA, does $500 million in annual sales as “the world’s leading maternity apparel retailer.” Yes, a single company (albeit with quite a few brands) can generate half a billion dollars in revenue selling clothes for pregnant women.
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For me entrepreneurship is about starting something brand new and building it. For others it could be buying an existing business or becoming a franchisee. Today we’re going to talk about the latter. Odds are that you patronize quite a few franchises. Franchising is a cool model because it gives local businesspeople the opportunity to tap into an already successful network and brand. The only issue is that strong communication between the franchise and its franchisees is essential to the health of the brand. FranConnect is a Reston, VA based company that offers Franchise Management Systems. These are software solutions that “allow franchise organizations to manage all aspects of their operations including Sales, Marketing, Financial Data Collection and Analysis, Royalty Invoicing and Automated Funds Transfer” and much much more.
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