| Making Snow: Even in the Summer Posted: 19 May 2011 08:57 PM PDT 
SnowMagic is a company that makes snow… in any season, even in the dog days of summer. They use a patented system called Infinite Crystals Snowmaking. The technology can make snow to your specifications – for recreation, special effects, or decoration. According to the company, even indoor snowmaking is possible, allowing venues to add snow attractions where one might least expect them. 
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| The Rise of Toilet Paper Posted: 19 May 2011 08:12 PM PDT 
Neatorama: Since the dawn of time, people have found nifty ways to clean up after the bathroom act. The most common solution was simply to grab what was at hand: coconuts, shells, snow, moss, hay, leaves, grass, corncobs, sheep's wool—and, later, thanks to the printing press—newspapers, magazines, and pages of books. The ancient Greeks used clay and stone. The Romans, sponges and salt water. But the idea of a commercial product designed solely to wipe one's bum? That started about 150 years ago, right here in the U.S.A. In less than a century, Uncle Sam's marketing genius turned something disposable into something indispensable. 
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| The Death of the Printed Book Posted: 19 May 2011 05:41 PM PDT 
TechRadar: Amazon has announced that it now sells more Kindle ebooks than all print books – that’s hardcover and paperback combined – through the Amazon.com site. Introduced less than four years ago, the Kindle has quickly become Amazon’s top selling product, and now digitised books for the reader have become more popular with its customers than their paper and ink fore-runners. Wow. Not that I’m surprised. I don’t own a Kindle, but I buy nearly all of my books for the Kindle. (I have an iPad.) 99% of the books that I get the mail these days are review copies sent from publishers. I wonder when that will cease. 
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| Free, Real Time, Ad Supported News from 1912 Posted: 19 May 2011 05:33 PM PDT 
Long before the internet, The Boston Globe had a free, real-time, ad-supported product: headlines written on chalkboards inside the windows of their storefront on Boston’s Newspaper Row. From at least the turn of the century until the 1950s, Globe staff shuttled back and forth throughout the day from the newsroom to the street. There they wrote breaking news headlines and sports scores on four blackboards and two enormous sheets of newsprint. Behind the Globe's windows? Ads. Breaking news – a bank holdup, a bus accident, the death of FDR – was quickly featured on the storefront (NB: usually in 140 characters or less). The storefront even offered streaming multimedia of a kind: telegraph dispatches of boxing matches and baseball games were shouted out play by play through a pair of loudspeakers. Different "layouts" were used. During World War II an outsized map of Europe loomed over the storefront. For Red Sox World Series appearances, a scaffold was built. Sports desk hacks stood on it to chalk up the scores for bowler-hatted crowds numbering in the hundreds. Photo by Boston Globe. 
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| Consumers Take Free Shipping for Granted Posted: 19 May 2011 05:23 PM PDT 
If you haven’t noticed, gas prices are pretty high, and since my family lives about 60 miles from most retail stores we do most of our shopping online. One of the biggest determinants of whether we’ll buy a particular product online is we can get free shipping. It turns out we’re not alone: According to a ComScore report released today, nearly half of those orders included free shipping, at 47% versus 53% for Q'1 '11, 49% versus 51% in Q'4 10 (the holiday season) and 41% versus 59% in Q3 '10. "A lot of consumers are taking free shipping for granted," said ComScore Chairman Gian Fulgoni. Indeed the report also came to the conclusion that 61% consumers are "at least somewhat likely" to cancel their entire purchase if free shipping isn't involved. So have we come to expect free delivery on our gadgets, Christmas sweaters and cookbooks? As eCommerce hits the highest share percentage its ever seen versus retail ( 8.6% ), the perk of free shipping is a major incentive to buy more, as orders with free shipping average around 30% higher in value those that tack on a couple of bucks for transport. Now I’m not so dense as to not understand that when a business says that they offer free shipping what they’ve in-fact done is to include the price of shipping in the retail price of the product. I get that, but for some reason that $3.99 shipping charge your company tacks onto the end of my order is a real turn off. It’s psychological, I’m sure. 
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| Secret of Facebook’s Success: Zynga Posted: 19 May 2011 05:10 PM PDT 
If you’ve ever been sucked into Facebook games like FarmVille or Zynga Poker and wasted hundreds of hours of your life in the blink of an eye, you might not be surprised to learn that Zynga, the company behind the games is one of the hottest topics in Silicon Valley. Vanity Fair has up a longish profile of the founder and CEO, Mark Pincus: Facebook's success, on a business level, owes something to Pincus, although most people don't realize it. The dirty little secret of Facebook is that there isn't really much to do there once you've finished looking at pictures of your friends' babies and your crush, and signed up for a few pages run by political causes. "Is Facebook a success because of Zynga, or is Zynga a success because of Facebook?" asks Michael Pachter, a video-game analyst at Wedbush Securities. "The answer is both. But the truth is that it's a delicate eco-system." Zynga's games are expected to claim at least $850 million in earnings this year. David Kirkpatrick, author of The Facebook Effect, says, "Zynga could account for as much as 10 percent of Facebook's revenues this year, a lower percentage than last year but still very significant." "We're going to have billions of people on social networks, so if a third of the people on Facebook love games, about a third don't, and a third are indifferent, you're still talking about hundreds and hundreds of millions of people playing Zynga games," says famed venture capitalist John Doerr, of Kleiner Perkins, which has invested heavily in Zynga. "These games are not for everyone, it's true, but it's for more of everyone than anything else I know." 
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| Change Your Frames With Your Mood Posted: 19 May 2011 11:43 AM PDT 
Feel like changing your look around? There is a unique product that can help you do that. Late last year we mentioned the first care bag, a unique bag which helps protect jewelry and electronics from moisture. The founder, Darrian, has come up with another unique product that people will love, Changeable Logo glasses. The logos and frames fall under 10 different categories: Country, good luck, expression, luxury, love, green, flower, funny, Christmas, and Easter. Whether you’re in love or feel like telling the world you are a part of the eco-movement, there is something for everyone. The move toward customizable eyeglasses began with Darrian. He wears glasses, and he found them to be quite boring. He couldn’t understand why their appearance couldn’t be changed, so he decided to do something about it. He created a product line and began marketing. It has been rough, but slowly he hopes to convince the world they need customizable eyeglasses! I recently asked Darrian a couple questions about his experience as an entrepreneur. What are some lessons your business has taught you? The business [taught] me to how to deal with suppliers (ensure quality on products), distributors (how to maximize their profit), and customers (maximize customer satisfaction).
Do you have any advice you’d like to offer fellow entrepreneurs who are just getting started? [To] start a new business [you] need to spend a lot of time and energy building the product. The support from your business partners, family, and friends is [an] important motivator when your business [is] on the downturn or not doing well.
Each 60 count set costs USD 25, with over 100 logos to choose from. Unisex frames cost USD 25, with 25 changeable frames included. 40% of the profits on each sale are also donated to a local charity. 
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| FTC Set Sights On ‘Free Trial’ Scammer Posted: 19 May 2011 11:00 AM PDT 
Anyone who has surfed the Internet at any given time has probably seen the various “free trial” ads that plague the web. Many of those people have also signed up for the free trial, and found themselves charged high rates for a product they do not have or want. According to PC World, the FTC has taken notice and has filed a lawsuit against a Canadian entrepreneur behind 10 of these web companies. Customers in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia and New Zealand were lured in by the free trial offers, the FTC said. Willms and his companies obtained consumers’ credit or debit card account numbers through the promise of free or risk-free trial offers, the FTC said. Customers had “no reason to believe” they would be charged for the trial product or extra bonus products, but they were often charged for the supposedly free trial, plus a monthly recurring fee, typically $79.95, the FTC said. “The defendants used the lure of a ‘free’ offer to open an illegal pipeline to consumers’ credit card and bank accounts,” David Vladeck, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a statement. “‘Free’ must really mean ‘free’ no matter where the offer is made.” Willms and other defendants in the case allegedly contracted with affiliate marketers that used banner ads, pop-ups, sponsored search terms and unsolicited e-mail to lead consumers to the defendants’ websites. The defendants “buried” important terms and conditions in fine print, the FTC alleged.
Photo by Mark Coggins 
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| Stop Lugging Baby Gear, Rent Posted: 19 May 2011 10:00 AM PDT 
It seems the younger the traveler, the more gear they require. Any parent knows this is true if they have ever tried to travel with a baby. Besides the basic necessities, a trip is not complete without toys and a portable crib. According to the Clinton Patch, three moms were considering this issue over breakfast when they decided to start a business. Could you use a service like this in your town? During the summer of 2010, my mother, Janine Burt, was having a breakfast get-together with her friends. That morning, Darcy suggested they start a business because she has been recently laid-off from her job, Janine works part-time, and Cathy is a single mother caring for two children, desperately needing money to support her family. Then, Cathy suggested that they make traveling easier for families by starting a company to rent baby equipment such as strollers, cribs, monitors, beach toys, play pens, and more. One month later, their business was a huge hit! They received at least a dozen orders from people in Clinton and out of town. Spoiled Rotten Rentals is located in the heart of downtown Clinton. If you would like to pick up the equipment yourself, you pick it up there. But if you don’t want to pick it up, a Spoiled Rotten Rental representative is always available to deliver it right to your door. But, if you live outside of Clinton you must pay a small delivery fee.
Photo by Keith Williamson 
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| Niche Biz: The Bicycle Taxi Posted: 19 May 2011 07:30 AM PDT 
Bicycle taxi’s are not a new form of transportation, but the shift toward green living has brought this trend back. Unlike a regular cab that may charge by the mile, the Eau Claire Bike Cab works on tips alone, reports WEAU.com. “Just as quick as driving, a little more fun and a lot more safe too,” said Barker. “We’ll go anywhere in the Barstow area to Water Street and in between.” It’s an idea other big cities have started and Eau Claire is now adopting. “If you’re downtown here and you just want to go from Music in the Park to Water Street or just out to a restaurant, it’s a lot easier than finding parking downtown,” said Barker. And the response from the public? “We’ve had people smiling and waving and we had people honking but not in a bad way. Just in the little beeps, just to say they really enjoy what we’re doing,” Morfitt said. You can even make reservations ahead of time through Facebook, Twitter or just by calling.
Photo by Joe Bielawa 
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