| Startup America Celebrating Entrepreneurs Posted: 17 May 2011 02:00 PM PDT 
Steve Case has dipped his hand into many projects. He got his start as the founder of AOL. Today he is the chairman for Startup America Partnership, reports gigaom. Startup America is generally focused on "celebrating and accelerating" entrepreneurs across all sectors and geographic regions of the U.S. by providing tools to help them grow, Case told me. "We particularly help people in the speed-up phase, when you really see one of these companies on a growth trajectory," he said. "What can be done in terms of giving them access to services, or access to customers, or access to talent, to increase the odds that they'll make that transition to be a successful company." Meanwhile, with the Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, he advocates for specific governmental policies that would make it easier for people to start and build companies. "That's really more trying to get people in [Washington] D.C., the White House working with Congress, to put policies in place that are more entrepreneur-friendly." He said the council is currently targeting policies on immigration, FDA regulations, and regulations around initial public offerings, to name a few. In both roles, he's hoping to create Silicon Valley-like ecosystems across the country and in sectors beyond technology. "There is something magical about Silicon Valley," Case said. "It's hard to get a healthy, vibrant, entrepreneurial ecosystem working… and Silicon Valley does have that." Case also offered advice for what entrepreneurs themselves can do to position their companies for success: Don't start a company just because you think it will be a quick flip. "A lot of people are starting businesses because they think it's an opportunity to make some money," Case said. "You occasionally get lucky, but that doesn't really work. You have to be passionate about it."
Screenshot from Startup America 
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| Someone With Focuses On Women With Cancer Posted: 17 May 2011 01:00 PM PDT 
For most things, we can find what we need on a website or in a catalog. However, The Washington Post wonders where women with cancer go for answers. That is where Someone With hopes to help. She can get medical help from doctors and other professionals; solace from friends and family; perhaps spiritual support within herself or clergy. But what about the daily things most women use in their lives, from makeup and clothing to special items such as wigs? A local entrepreneur, who has a distinguished background in creating and managing successful ventures, is working to change that. Paula Jagemann has launched Someone With. "I named it that because we say we know 'someone with' cancer or another medical problem," Jagemann said. Jagemann has spent months setting up the company. She has not only contacted suppliers of products designed for cancer victims but had them independently tested and rated. She has talked with specialists in medical fields about services and products. "There was nothing out there," Jagemann said. "If you went to a doctor's office there wasn't much information other than medical. This will have makeup, wigs and other products that are tested and safe for women with cancer."
Screenshot from Someone With 
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| YumTable Connects Customers With Empty Reservations Posted: 17 May 2011 12:04 PM PDT 
Sometimes people enjoy living life as it happens. Unfortunately, most restaurants that require reservations of some kind do not feel this way. YumTable has found a way to help hungry people find restaurants in your neighborhood. If a restaurant faces a last minute cancellation or has an open table, they can list the opening and find a paying customer quickly. Customers can finally find an open table without all the calling, and restaurants make money on an opening that may have remained unfilled. I recently asked the founder of YumTable, Mark Sehler, a few questions about his service and his goals for it. Tell us a little about YumTable? YumTable is a last minute restaurant booking service that connects hungry people with empty restaurant tables with deals near them, or where they are travelling to. It establishes the “last minute” concept to the restaurant scene in line with other familiar concepts such as with flights or hotel accommodation.
How does it work? Hungry people can book available tables via the yumtable.com website or location based iPhone app by searching by suburb. Restaurant can set custom deals for time periods or days they know they have surplus table capacity, create an early sitting (eg early bird dinner) or if they get last minute cancellations and want to fill the table. Customers then browse all available tables with deals in time-order, knowing all deals are live and can be booked without having to talk to the restaurant – confirmations are instant by SMS message and email. Best of all there are no coupons! The restaurant knows any YumTable customer booking has an incentive or deal that they have set, so when it comes to paying the bill any discount is applied without asking for it.
What inspired it? We know that many restaurants offer specials on a daily basis to attract hungry people and new customers walking by, we created YumTable with this in mind, however to widen the net for people looking for a free table rather than restricting it foot traffic. From the customers perspective it can be difficult to book a table last minute, usually resulting in many phone calls and knock backs until they find a free table – it’s very much reflective of the non-committal and spontaneous trend of society these days. YumTable embraces this trend by showing all the available tables near hungry people looking for one there and then. We also dislike coupons – they are awkward, embarrassing and cheapens the dining experience. We wanted to come up with a brand and solution that was street-smart, with a great user experience that is fun to use and engaging – we think that our website design does that with use of ad hoc images supplied by customers and the YumTable team to connect people on the street with the service.
In what countries/cities are listings through your app available? We are currently fully launched in Australia, and piloting in New York City and Los Angeles with restaurants being added daily through our sales teams. We are soon to launch in New Zealand and Hong Kong with teams being set up in those locations.
How does a restaurant get listed? Any restaurant on the planet can sign themselves up and be found in their location through YumTable. Restaurants simply set up a profile, then can start designing offers and scheduling them in real-time through their YumTable account. We’ve had restaurants buy 3G iPad’s to just quickly jump on YumTable and add more tables when they find their restaurant has free tables they want filled.
How much does it cost? For hungry people, it’s free to use the service and book a table. For restaurants, it’s free to list and we provide 20 table bookings for free as well to try out the service, after that it costs them around $1.6 a table booking…pretty much a no brainer.
Do you have any goals you would like to accomplish over the next year or so? We’re continuing to add more restaurants to the service to further enhance the experience of using YumTable. Our goal is that no matter where you are there should always be at least 5 restaurants near you that you can choose from. We’re also in development to deploy an Android app, and enhance the social sharing of the service with anyone who has the app, such as inviting a group to dinner.
What are some lessons your business has taught you? You definitely need to get people involved in a business concept that cover the skill sets that you need for it, ie you can’t do it all yourself. I’ve found there are also huge differences in taking a business from start-up to commercial reality. When you’re developing in the garage it’s great fun, however as you start to open the garage door and release your business to the public, operational issues begin to take hold and before you know it there’s a danger of making rash reactive decisions to your site to correct the feedback your getting from the market. I’ve found it a really interesting cycle that can really improve the business but at the end of the day it’s our product and we have the vision, so maintaining a cool head to keep the website pure to our original goals is really important.
Do you have any advice you would like to offer fellow app entrepreneurs who are just getting started? Pick a simple idea that you know is achievable, and most importantly has a business model OTHER than an advertising selling strategy. If you look at YumTable, we’ve got a no advertising policy so as to not pollute our website. Focus on good SEO so as to limit your reliance to SEM/CPC advertising costs. Also get lots of honest feedback about your idea from friends and potential target audiences before starting – ignore the naysayers who pretty much see fault in everything. It’s a confronting process as well that requires courage and self belief at times when you think that no one is interested.
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| Niche: Organic Food Garden Kits Posted: 17 May 2011 11:00 AM PDT 
Al Benner believes everyone should have a garden. For anyone with an aversion to playing with dirt or simply do not have the time to care for a garden on their own, there is Backyard Farmers, reports philly.com. “I’m one of these guys with a lot of energy,” the 48-year-old Mount Airy resident said by way of explaining what is, by his count, his seventh business effort: Providing homeowners turnkey organic vegetable gardens that don’t require them to thrust shovels into the ground, or even do the watering. The gardens, costing a couple of thousand dollars each on average, are raised beds of special soil enhanced with micro-nutrients and locally grown plants, contained in cedar frames made in South Carolina and irrigated with drip systems. Backyard Farmers, formed at the end of last year, joins a bumper crop of small businesses by Benner including companies specializing in deer fencing, cat fencing, moss (the inspiration for which is obvious), gift baskets, a sustainable Costa Rican community, and a harvest-sharing farm in Wayne County, Pa. There was also the roadside vegetable stand Benner operated when he was 12. He has sold off the deer-fencing and gift-basket businesses, and unapologetically concedes running companies is not where he gets his thrills. “I am a person who thrives on start-ups,” Benner said. His favorite place, the outdoors, is a common theme.
Photo from Backyard Farmers 
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| Respecting At-Home Business Hours Posted: 17 May 2011 10:00 AM PDT 
Keeping a set schedule is a common problem for anyone who works from a home office. The Charlotte Observer recently responded to a question posed by a mompreneur who has trouble with friends who do not understand her at-home business hours. Start the day right. Treat your home-based work just as you would an office-based job. Wake up, take a shower, get dressed, and go to work. These simple steps can send a powerful message to your subconscious that you are in "business mode." Say "yes" to your priorities. I have a little saying, "If you don't know what you've said "yes" to, you'll have a hard time saying "no" to everything else." So start by writing down at least 1 specific business goal that you can achieve in the next 90 days and post it in your workspace. Look at your goal statement as you say, "I wish I could help you with that, but I'm re-writing my marketing materials today." You had me at "Hello." Finally, consider changing the way you answer your phone. That way, the next time someone calls, they'll hear you say, "This is Mary Jones, Acme Group," and immediately understand that you're working.
Photo by Alexander Baxevanis 
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| From Gas Guzzler To Hybrid Posted: 17 May 2011 09:00 AM PDT 
Mary Meadows believes she has the perfect device needed to turn a regular engine into a hybrid, reports The Arizona Republic. She’s not replacing gasonline, but her device helps lower the amount used per mile. The company manufactures the Hercules Hydrogen System, which is about the size of a car battery and can be installed under the hood or in the trunk. The system manufactures hydrogen, mixes it with gasoline and puts the mixture into the engine by air intake. The system works with gasoline, diesel, propane and biodiesel. The system can be traded among vehicles, such as moving it from an RV to a car driven locally. Long-haul truckers can expect a 30 percent increase in mileage, she said. Cars and pickups have seen increases of 30 to 50 percent, and RVs, 50 percent, Meadows said. Meadows installed the system on her car, a 1977 Cadillac Eldorado. “That car went from 8 miles per gallon to 32,” she said.
Screenshot from H2 Pure Power 
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