Hooked On Startups

What if the users that make Snapchat worth anything at all had been given ownership in it from the beginning?

In this episode I talk to Frank E. Banks, co-founder of ZEN for iOS, a video sharing and communications app for the video editor community and ZENCoin – the cryptocurrency that is the front door to a powerful business model innovation.

There are literally millions of mobile app developers worldwide. And who knows how many video content creators there could be over time.

Find out how ZENCoins will be the currency to knit them all together into a single, infinitely dynamic, market.

1:11 - Introducing Frank E. Banks, cofounder and CEO of Zen; some background on his career and on Zen.

3:02 - Comparing the current landscape of fanart distribution to how Zen will change that; finding this market through working with a video editing app for vine.

3:47 - The scope of this market and some of the specific benefits.

4:45 - How Zen specifically fits into the fanart distribution market.

5:21 - The monetization structure for Zen and how Frank plans to evolve it over time; comparing that structure to Youtube.

9:02 - The shadow market of influencer marketing.

11:13 - Applying this shadow market to how brands use social media marketing.

12:48 - Building a following quickly using these influencer techniques that stay more or less an industry secret.

14:17 - What results could come from turning this into an efficient, structured market through Zen; reposting as the primary attention commodity and how Zen streamlines that.

16:43 - Applying Zen's functions to how advertisers and influencers can benefit.

17:32 - The global scope of Zen's market and how they're solving the currency problem by utilizing their own cryptocurrency, Zen Coin; additional benefits of using a cryptocurrency for this marketplace.

20:21 - What Zen's decentralization means for users and providing incentives for using Zen Coins more widely.

24:18 - The potential for appreciating value of the Zen Coins and how they want to foster that through creating a strong ecosystem with other complementary businesses.

29:28 - Comparing this value proposition for content creators to using other platforms like Facebook and Instagram.

30:23 - Looking at Zen's potential for growth, geographically and demographically, and how using a cryptocurrency facilitates that.

32:49 - Zen Coin as an incentive to be an early adopter for the platform and why it's an added benefit over platforms like Instagram.

33:36 - Why cryptocurrencies can grow in value and looking at trajectories of previous iterations.

34:32 - What Frank is most excited about with the business right now.

35:50 - Frank's experience at Zynga, having seen the network effects in action, and how something like cryptocurrency could have affected Zynga's early sustainability.

37:34 - Comparing cryptocurrencies to other huge technology changes.

39:05 - The questionnaire, borrowed from James Lipton.

45:28 - Contacting Frank and learning about Zen - www.zenvideo.co.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

Zynga

Mafia Wars

Cryptocurrency

Farmville

Download Zen

Contact Frank at [email protected]

In the US, 95% of startups fail.

Is the American dream just for rich boys?

In this episode I chat with Brian Mac Mahon - founder of Expert DOJO, the largest startup high performance center for entrepreneurs in Southern California.

With access to thousands of experts and mentors Brian and his team help entrepreneurs find out whatever they need to know to pursue their small business dream.

Find out what raising capital for startups is really like, and what you need to focus on to make sure your business gets on the path to success.

1:03 - Introducing Brian and his background in startups through Expert Dojo; The big disconnect Brian saw in the way businesses were being funded and how he wants to address that through his company

3:03 - Details on Brian's love for entrepreneurship and creativity; being a service entrepreneur.

5:14 - How entrepreneurship hasn't changed much over the past 100+ years.

6:32 - His somewhat contrarian views on companies like Amazon and Uber.

9:25 - Matthew's counterpoint, using the airline industry as an example.

12:35 - The journey of being an entrepreneur and how the funding landscape has affected that journey; the problem with accountants running companies as opposed to entrepreneurs.

15:13 - Identifying the problems with funding as well as presenting options to fix them; the effects of social media and mindsets on this landscape.

19:02 - How Expert Dojo is addressing these issues; their approach to starting out by studying startups and the conclusions they came to.

23:26 - The community that supports startups in the US versus in other countries; an example of a logistical company that they're working with.

26:30 - Why he sees the Lean Startup idea as problematic; the importance of branding and business planning.

28:23 - Distinguishing between pivoting/agility and abandoning ideas too quickly.

29:19 - The final piece of information they found in studying startups.

30:05 - What Brian's days generally look like and how the Dojo operates.

32:10 - The statement that encapsulates Brian's philosophy on startups and how he tries to help.

35:38 - Managing relationships between the businesses he's helping and venture capitalists.

37:20 - How Brian's business also helps venture capitalists as well as the companies he works with.

39:03 - The mission of Expert Dojo and some advice from Brian.

39:41 - How he sees this changing, particularly thinking about crowdfunding.

40:58 - The problems he sees in crowdfunding.

42:21 - Creating an investor club to help educate people on investing.

44:00 - Discussing cryptocurrencies and Brian's interest in them.

45:38 - Benefits to seeing so many startups in so many different industries; understanding the relevant probabilities.

48:12 - The rapid fire questionnaire.

52:14 - Contacting Brian and Expert Dojo.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

Expert Dojo

Brian's Tedx talk

Lean Startup methodology

Apple Pay

Google Glass

StartEngine

Expert Dojo Investor club

Cryptocurrency

Contact Brian at [email protected] or [email protected]

Ever wanted to have a Creative Ninja on your team?

Have you ever been just blown away by the graphics from a really cool presentation?

In this episode I talk to Glenn and Kristen Hemanes – co-founders of Glenns Designs, a cutting edge design agency which focuses on developing brand identities, multi-media presentations and variety of creative projects.

Listen to this episode to find out some of the Powerpoint horror stories Glenn has turned into powerful and effective pitch decks.

Find out why visual storytelling is so important to get your message across effectively.

1:02 - Introducing Glenn and Kristen and what their business does.

3:22 - Digging into each client's specific needs based on their brand messaging and continuing to get outside feedback themselves to hone in on their own message.

5:57 - The importance of storytelling in Glenn and Kristen's business.

6:58 - Leveraging their experiences with presentations and communications in order to help their clients.

7:28 - Conversation and storytelling as ways to facilitate effective, engaging social media marketing.

10:02 - How that same approach of conversation and storytelling applies to presentation decks.

11:39 - Horror stories that Glenn and Kristen have seen in presentation approaches.

14:09 - Glenn's 3 part approach to working with clients on presentations.

15:26 - Some feedback they've gotten from clients about how much Glenn has helped them and the impact his decks have had on audiences.

17:20 - Differing mindsets regarding having a professionally done presentation deck and tailoring the deck to the client's preferences; focusing on a "less is more" approach to building the decks and slides.

20:08 - Comparing an effective presentation to an effective advertisement and incorporating the concept of a story arc.

22:06 - The outsized importance of communication, regardless of the quality of the product.

22:58 - How Glenn and Kristen work with brand concepts.

25:44 - The impact of details as small as fonts.

28:30 - Understanding your audience's concentration and how best to communicate with them via tools like Crystal Knows.

30:32 - Their approach to relationships with clients.

32:12 - Glenn's early experience working with creating slides and working with it his entire career.

33:02 - The feeling when they get to unveil presentations to clients and when they hear that it was effective.

35:18 - Matthew's questionnaire.

41:52 - Contacting Glenn and Kristen.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

Simon Mainwaring

John Livesay (Episode #038)

Crystal Knows

Ken Rutowski

Misophonia

Glenn's Designs website

Email Glenn at [email protected]

Youtube

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Pinterest

Today's buyers are crazy-busy and ultra-savvy, which means yesterday's sales strategies fall flat and leave your salespeople easily forgettable.

How can you stand out with new competitors and new technologies disrupting the marketplace every day?

In this episode I chat with John Livesay – an international sales and marketing speaker known as the 'Pitch Whisperer'

Find out from John why the sales people who Get To YES are those who become master storytellers with magnetic pitches.

Discover why telling the best story gets the sale, and find out how John crafts irresistible stories for his clients.

1:46 - Background on John, known as the Pitch Whisperer, and what he does.

3:56 - How John started learning about effective communication with different brands.

5:06 - Breaking from the traditional methods of approaching advertising companies by starting with stories rather than numbers.

6:50 - Analyzing approaches that do and don't work; storytelling addressing each aspect of neurolinguistic programming

8:46 - A story of John working with Gensler to become storytellers in their pitches.

10:10 - Comparing traditional sales training to the methods that John espouses.

13:08 - Overcoming resistance to this idea of storytelling in selling; focusing on genuine stories rather than strictly "selling.

16:09 - People's willingness to listen to stories as opposed to being resistant to being sold to and how much more memorable stories are than strict pitches.

19:16 - Showing humanity through your pitch and focusing on how you can bring value to the prospect.

21:55 - Finding interesting stories in anyone's experience and fighting impostor syndrome.

24:21 - Dangers of feeling like you know everything, as it relates to startups pitching VCs.

27:05 - Things to never say or do in a pitch as well as some things to say.

30:16 - John's experience working with startups looking to get funded and how he helps; training people to communicate, generally, rather than just pitching.

32:26 - How John's skills translate to existing and larger companies, not just startups.

35:02 - Who John typically works with within companies and the return on investment companies have seen from hiring him.

36:57 - These teachings coming from John's first hand experiences.

38:25 - Benefits of being able to connect different departments within companies and another story from his work with Gensler.

41:33 - How John encourages potential clients to look ahead at what it might look and feel like if he comes in and has a great impact.

44:17 - John's thoughts on scaling his business.

46:50 - The questionnaire.

49:26 - Contacting John.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

http://johnlivesay.com/

John's podcast, The Successful Pitch

LinkedIn

Twitter

Potential date? Handyman to fix your fence? A new babysitter to watch the kids?

Just who are these people, really? And, more importantly, can you trust them?

In this episode I meet Justin Parnell – co-founder of Legitifi, a powerful new tool for consumers that enables you to use your phone instantly to verify and validate the identities of people you interact with.

The Legitifi platform is built on patent pending, proprietary algorithms that leverage machine learning and artificial intelligence to ensure that the person on the other end of a digital connection is who they say they are.

Catch the full episode to find out how Justin and his team developed this remarkable service, and learn about their vision to inspire honest relationships and safe social interactions by putting a halt to catfishing scams and social identity fraud.

1:10 - Introducing Justin, CMO of Legitify, and what he's sacrificed to be on the show.

2:40 - Background on Legitifi and how it works.

4:30 - What problem Legitifi solves and when Justin got the idea for social verification.

6:55 - Some of the advantages that Justin has found with the software and more details on how it works.

7:55 - How Legitifi helps to sift through the tons of data available online about people as well as how it gives a way to manage your online representation in real time.

11:17 - The ways that Legitifi could change the face of app development and social networking.

13:06 - New opportunities Justin sees given the data that Legitifi presents to users.

14:55 - The challenge of staying focused with all of the possibility around this technology.

16:51 - Justin's views on online anonymity.

17:20 - Dealing with the people who are found to not be legit online; the role of machine learning in the app.

19:56 - Knowing what questions to ask about people's online identity and understanding what is important for different people.

20:55 - More details on how machine learning is influencing Legitifi.

22:33 - Applying the technology to different cultures and countries.

24:14 - The role of trust in online interactions and the concept of blockchains.

27:37 - How Legitifi can be a more foolproof identity layer since it's drawn from so many sources.

30:12 - Creating a fundamentally different way of protecting identities online; the universality of using social verification for identification.

35:19 - The traction that Legitifi has now and how that helps improve the software.

36:44 - Where Legitifi stands with their funding and their approach to finding VCs; being at TechCrunch Disrupt.

38:40 - How this kind of company can boost portfolios for VCs through synergy.

40:37 - What it feels like to be working in Legitifi as a company with such growth and impact potential.

42:40 - The questionnaire.

46:49 - Contacting Justin and finding Legitifi at TechCrunch Disrupt.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

Legitify website

TechCrunch Disrupt

Email Justin at [email protected]

Facebook

Instagram

LinkedIn

Twitter

Youtube

Ever had that sinking feeling when you're out to dinner and all your friends are staring at their phones?

Ever felt the world needs more love, more laughter, more creativity – everybody coming together to have fun?

That's exactly why Edwin Benton created Slang N'Friendz – a brilliantly funny, engaging, unique card game that uses Slang words to bring people together.

Find out how Edwin came up with the idea for this game…

How he overcame countless challenges to bring it from concept to reality..

How he managed to land Hollywood A-lister Ludacris as his partner..

And how you can get a unique version of Slang N'Friendz on Kickstarter…..if you're quick!

Guaranteed you're friends won't be staring at their phones when you bring out this game!

0:56 - Edwin's background as a creator, director, producer, and many other things including a being a game developer for a game called Slang N' Friendz; the mission behind the game.

2:22 - How the game development process got started when Edwin was at a dinner party and everyone was on their devices and some details on the app.

4:18 - The compelling business aspect to this game company.

5:35 - Describing the physical card game that's in development now.

8:02 - The dictionary for the game constantly being updated with new slang terms.

9:29 - The reception and feedback that Edwin has had so far and the process for updating the dictionary with new words.

10:21 - How he got from conceiving the idea to where he is now and some more details on the game.

13:15 - The process for landing Chris "Ludacris" Bridges as the face of the game.

14:56 - More details on the scale of the market that Slang N' Friendz is in and some of the next steps for the business.

18:14 - Different ways that the game can be adapted to specific niches to expand the audience.

19:13 - Advantages Matthew sees that Slang N' Friendz has over other similar very successful games.

20:58 - Looking at the breadth of slang and how that can take the game international.

22:34 - How the distribution would grow if they can get in with a major retailer like Target.

24:20 - Details on the Kickstarter campaign Edwin has launched for the card game.

26:40 - Whether or not Edwin has second guessed his idea; some of the challenges from the Kickstarter and how he has used exclusive offerings to overcome some of those challenges.

28:03 - The community aspect of Kickstarter and how that affects strategies for campaigns as well as what a successful campaign says about a company itself.

32:10 - The questionnaire.

34:54 - Contacting Edwin and the Kickstarter campaign for Slang N' Friendz.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

http://www.edwinbenton.com/

Slang N' Friendz website

Slang N' Friendz Kickstarter

Email Edwin at [email protected]

Instagram

Twitter

Facebook

Want to build reliable revenue into your business using Facebook advertising?

Do you know the difference between likes, shares, viral messages, content and advertising?

In this episode I'm joined by Facebook advertising guru Billy Broas.

Founder of the hugely successful Homebrew Academy, Billy uses his intimate knowledge of his successful Facebook advertising campaigns and years of experience in the trenches of a "real" business to ramp up revenue for his clients.

Discover how good copywriting is critical for the success of your ad campaign.

Find out how the playbook for small businesses is different to the strategy that works for big brands.

Building an audience doesn't pay the bills. To find out what does, listen to this episode!

1:02 - Billy's background, his experience within his field, and what he was doing before in a corporate role.

2:23 - Starting a homebrewing blog on the side and how that progressed into a business.

3:24 - Having the entrepreneurial bug from a young age and aspirations to be an inventor; a story about one of his inventions.

6:07 - When Billy decided to start his beer blog and more details on how it developed into a pursuit of marketing.

7:56 - Making the leap from a steady job into an entrepreneurial pursuit and what influenced the decision.

10:03 - Billy's advice for making the transition into self-employment: starting with a side-hustle.

12:41 - Contextualizing Billy's education on marketing for his site and course; his dive into copywriting and direct response marketing

15:42 - How copywriting fits into the sales model and why it clicked with him.

17:21 - Finding the gaps in his existing knowledge for marketing and the aha moments he found in the Teaching Sells course.

20:15 - The profile of customers that Billy helps and how he found that niche

21:47 - Applying traffic temperature to prospects and approaching marketing differently at different parts of that spectrum; consequences of marketing in the wrong ways to the wrong people.

26:07 - Digging into the customized experience of Facebook and how to wield that more effectively as a marketer.

29:42 - How research and testing play into marketing on Facebook; which metrics to keep an eye on.

32:29 - Features in Facebook marketing, such as creating custom audiences and events.

33:34 - Helping people to understand the process involved with effective Facebook marketing rather than just guessing at it.

34:12 - Defining retargeting and how it fits into ecommerce today.

35:59 - Fitting copywriting into the Facebook marketing landscape

40:00 - The importance of social proof when it comes to social media marketing; some ninja tips for Facebook ads; pursuing quality data from Facebook ads instead of money, at times.

46:51 - The questionnaire.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

Teaching Sells from Copy Blogger

http://billybroas.com/

Instagram

Facebook

Fear makes you something that you're not. It's something we all suffer, but it's also something we can get beyond so we can live our lives full of joy, freedom and vitality.

In this powerful episode I'm joined by Sam Morris, founder of Zen Warrior Training.

In 1999, just after leading a bicycling trip for nine teenagers across the United States, Sam was in a car accident caused by a drunk driver which left him paralyzed from the waist down

Determined to not become the victim of his circumstances, Sam learned and created a system of mental and physical training based in Zen philosophy, meditation and somatic disciplines that healed his mind and body and brought him more vitality and clarity than he had before his injury.

In this episode we discuss how your circumstances do not have to define you, and how you can choose a life based on your intention.

We talk about how truly transformative Sam's work is for his clients.

Find out how to get outside the habitual thoughts you have about yourself and tap into a deeper truth about who you are.

1:08 - Introducing Sam and his background, including being the founder of Zen Warrior Training and the car accident that put him in a wheelchair.

3:09 - The fear associated with situations like Sam's, but using the situation as a journey to a more present and mindful place; not being defined by your circumstances, but your intentions.

7:06 - Knowing who you are rather than who you think you should be and how Sam forced himself into knowing who he is through confronting fear.

9:35 - The feeling of discovering a rare understanding and awareness of yourself.

11:42 - The concept of being present and training your mind to be present rather than consumed with busy thoughts; learning to observe the mental noise while being separate from it.

14:02 - Applying these ideas to Sam's specific situation and examining how he started training his mind.

18:16 - The role of these techniques as they relate to limiting belief systems.

19:25 - Comparing Sam from now to Sam before the accident, mentally and physically.

21:59 - Different ways people go through traumas and how Sam can help unpack that through the Zen Warrior Training; the microtraumas in the unconscious mind.

23:57 - The impact of daily actions and Sam's analogy of an island being shaped in the way our lives are shaped over time.

26:35 - How perspectives and expectations can shift.

28:18 - The importance of figuring out who you are and how that shapes the trajectory of other goals and decisions; breaking away from ego through being humbled.

30:52 - The concept of neutrality and using that as a way to listen to yourself; describing neutrality as a state of observation and the analogy of making a movie.

35:45 - Separating yourself from the noise and how that can aid in decision making; effortlessness as a result of this process.

38:06 - Embracing the discomfort and quiet of separating from noisy thoughts; the analogy of your mind as a still lake from The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer.

41:28 - Finding stillness as the foundation for tapping into a deep joy of being connected to the authentic self.

43:13 - Contacting Sam.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

Zen Warrior Training

The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Remember Tom Cruise's computer in Minority Report? You ain't seen nothing yet.

In this episode I chat with Philippe Lewicki – tech visionary, founder and CEO of AfterNow – an augmented reality company and one of the pioneers of developing content for experiences in mixed and augmented reality.

We're all flat-screeners. Everything we do today with our computers, tablets and smartphones is based on the designs of rectangular screen. Lookout world, because this is all going to change.

The changes that mixed reality and augmented reality will bring to our lives will be seismic. Remember how the mouse revolutionized the way we interacted with the pc? The impact of AR and MR will be like that, but a thousand fold.

Ever dreamed of truly immersive entertainment where you can actually live the experience, rather than just being a spectator or seeing it in third person? How about truly holographic interaction with other people?

Find out how this technology is just around the corner….

This is a truly amazing story of grit, inspiration and pure dogged determination.

In this episode I chat with Mike Paul Hughes. Awarded NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal, Mike is a truly exceptional rocket scientist, NASA engineer, music producer, composer, writer and inspirational speaker.

Working in a print shop by day and playing in a rock group at night, the odds were stacked against him. Following his dream of becoming an aerospace engineer was going to be no easy task.

He didn't have the grades and he didn't have the money. It could have been so easy just to give up, to abandon his dream, to go back to his day job.

But he knew nothing was going to stop him. After the Challenger disaster, Mike knew that aerospace was his calling. And so, under the dim light of a 40W bulb, reading math books rescued from the trash, Mike began his amazing journey.

1:11 - Mike's impressive and diverse background information.

3:15 - Dispelling the myth of rocket science being an inaccessible field.

4:04 - The story behind how Mike found his passion for science and engineering.

6:28 - "Advice" from someone whom he worked with about pursuing engineering.

8:48 - Challenges and discouragement he faced before even being able to get started.

10:25 - Where the determination came from in dealing with everyone telling him "no."

11:38 - Getting started in the program and showing the will to put in the work to learn calculus.

14:43 - Having no clear vision for what he was getting himself into.

15:35 - How Mike fared through his coursework.

17:18 - Proving that you can outwork your competition to achieve what you want and overcome a lot.

17:51 - How Mike differed from most of the other NASA engineers, but also shared similar paths with some.

19:30 - Mike's technical knowledge and troubleshooting ability being rooted in playing bass and dealing with the PA system.

20:22 - What it was like to walk into NASA for the first time as an engineer and what the working environment was like.

24:40 - Comparing the computing technology from the 90s to now and how that affected the work.

25:48 - The first moment he felt like he'd really found something special.

27:26 - How his experiences as a musician affected the way he approached working in the aerospace field

29:53 - Applying Newton's laws to be able to effectively perform the math.

31:23 - The impact of artificial intelligence on this kind of work.

32:30 - What Mike is working on now with the Starshade project and how he views his work with exoplanets.

36:55 - Continuing to be in a period of testing in his work.

38:56 - Star Wars versus Star Trek.

40:34 - Tension between discovering life versus finding new planets; disagreements over credit.

43:53 - Comparing the competitive aspects of medicine and science; benefits to working in hierarchical organizations.

45:59 - Potential changes to the landscape due to things like AI; analogous to the internet or electricity.

48:21 - The questionnaire.

51:23 - Learning more about Mike and getting in touch.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

NASA Jet Propulsion Lab

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