Angel Investing, Entrepreneurship & Learning

Thanks to Phil Windley, I found out about the very-easy-to-use web app TripIt. TripIt is a new tool that will manage your travel plans and itinerary for you (i.e. flight schedule, hotel reservations, directions from airport to hotel, weather suggestions, etc.). The best part about the tool is that all you have to do is email your itinerary to plans@tripit.com and it will do the rest. In fact, you don’t even have to register the first time that you use it… just send the email and it will reply with a confirmation and allow you to register the next time that you visit the site.

As you can tell, I am very impressed. It made my travel arrangements last weekend very convenient because I didn’t have to the spend the time figuring out directions, maps, etc. TripIt also has a tool that allows me to share my itinerary with others (those traveling or others that need the information).

Highly recommended.

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Over the past few weeks, I’ve been discovering a lot of the latest Google apps for my Blackberry.  Over the break, my brother showed me the new Google maps, which led to the exploration and adoption of several new apps that I’m stoked about.  Here are a few (all of which are on my Blackberry):

1. Google maps:  The new map application acts almost like a GPS.  It can automatically detect where I am (within 1700 meters) which makes it easy to search directions on the fly.  They are also starting to show the flow of traffic on the map feature.  It was a huge step forward from the previous map feature that I had been using.
2. Google Calendar + Google Sync:  I’ve been a long-time Outlook calendar user.  I didn’t ever think that I would switch from Outlook because it was the only program that would sync with my Blackberry.  The problem with Outlook is that it was almost impossible to share my calendar with anyone.  I’ve recently switched to Google Calendar because the Google Sync app on my phone automatically syncs and updates my Blackberry calendar from the internet.  Now, I can share my calendar with my wife so that she can see what I’m doing and easily add family events.
3. Others:  Besides the two mentioned above, I have downloaded Picasa, Google docs, Google Reader, Google Talk, and Gmail to my Blackberry.  Since we are always using those applications at FundingUniverse, it makes it incredibly efficient to have them on the fly.

I just realized that I have made 2 blog entries about Google in the last month.  They must be doing something right.

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In keeping up with my latest tradition, I’d like to share a few companies that I have met with (through my role at FundingUniverse obviously) recently that, to me, are the latest and greatest Utah up-and-coming companies. In no particular order, we have:

1. Global Tech: GT was the highest rated pitch at our last SpeedPitching event and was immediately asked to present at a couple of Utah’s angel group meetings. It may be a little difficult to explain Global Tech, but I’ll do my best. The technology that they have developed can measure (very, very accurately) the volume of liquid in any container at any time. For example… right now, if you’d like to measure the volume of gas in those huge tanks, someone has to travel to the tank, climb on top of the tank, measure the level of gas, (etc. etc. etc. — you get the idea — it’s a pain in the butt). GT’s technology can measure the change in volume (by the mL) by simply dropping their technology into the tank and monitoring it from the computer on the desk. The founders of GT have been working out of their garage (for the past 3 years) doing their best to build their prototype — and it appears that the R&D is complete and ready to go to market. GT is in a good situation bc gas & oil companies from across the US have been knocking on their door trying to get the product.
2. Jive Communications: Jive is an up-and-coming full-service VoiP provider for businesses here in Utah. It was started by a fellow Junto partner and they have been steadily growing over the past 1.5 years. We have used their service at FundingUniverse and have been very happy from the beginning. The VoiP market is so fragmented that there will certainly be some consolidation/roll-up a few years down the road — and I’d bet that Jive will be an attractive target. If you are looking for a great phone service for an affordable price — you’ll want to check out Jive.
3. ISYS Technologies: This company is the brain child of a brilliant techy named Jason Sullivan. 7 years and 3 patents later, Jason has made a significant advancement with the modern computer. Instead of trying to explain, I’ll recommend watching this video/demo.

A few others that I like too:  Mountain West Energy, Green List, and Innovative Showing Solutions.

Keep your eye out for great things by these companies. If there are any others that we should know about, let me know.

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H3 Tec, a company here in Utah, recently purchased a full-page ad in the USA Today to attract the attention of Ed Zander, Chairman & CEO of Motorola. Apparently, the founder of H3 Tec, Charles Christensen, has invented a technology that can detect any element or compound from up to 2 miles away.

For example:

• If you are walking out in the desert, the technology could detect oil within 2 miles
• If you are at the airport, the technology could detect any hazardous element or compound on the plane
• If you are up in the mtns., the technology could detect gold

Starting to get the idea? If not, here is a more extensive demo.

Anyway… back to the full page ad. Talk about a gutsy marketing strategy! If you haven’t clicked on the link above (the full-page ad), you need to. Charles left his personal email and cell phone on the ad and went all out to attract the attention of Motorola’s CEO.

Some people that have talked to Charles said that a lot more people than Ed ended up calling his cell phone; Eric Schmidt (CEO of Google), Steve Jobs (Apple), and others also called him expressing interest.

To me, this is all pretty far-fetched. Sounds like a story out of the tabloids… but I’m very anxious to find out. Has anyone else heard anything about this story?

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As I was just sitting here reading the latest entries on my blog reader, I realized that I am Teck Geek.  Not as big as a tech geek as some people out there, but a Tech Geek nonetheless.  Here are a few things that I do (that you might do also) that make me a tech geek:

1.  I joined Twitter
2. I stay up on the newest and latest technology companies via TechCrunch, ValleyWay, VentureBeat, etc. (especially lately)
3. I have a BlackBerry (read “my email comes to my phone and sometimes lures me into addiction”)
4. I actually send “tweets” on twitter so that my friends, family, and other “peeps” know what I’m up to (like anyone really cares)
5. I blog … and I read blogs

I’m sure that the majority of people that read this blog are saying… “those things make you a tech geek?”  If you are thinking that in your head, you are probably a tech geek yourself.

Let’s be honest, most people in this world do not read blogs.  Most people have never even heard of Twitter.  And most people could care less about the latest and greatest technology.

What other things do you do (that I probably do too) that would make us tech geeks?

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We’ve been quietly spending the summer working on a private, invite-only social network for angel investors and VCs — think Linkedin with a focus around deals. One of the things that we pride ourselves on (at FundingUniverse) is the quality of our investor network. Every single investor on our site has gone through both an internet and phone interview to prove her legitimacy as an angel. We’ve now taken that one step further by closing off open registration to angels and making it an invite-only private network.

Now, investors that join our network will be able to connect to other like-minded angels from across the country. They’ll be able to see each other’s investment preferences and boast their personal investment portfolio. Collaboration and syndication on deals has never been easier.

One of the hidden gems of the service is the tool we’ve developed for investment groups. Any investor can create his/her own private investment group online — it doesn’t matter if the group consists of 2 friends casually looking at deals or 80 active members of a large angel group — the tools will work for both.Let me give you a quick example: let’s say that 2 friends and I want to do some casual investing on the side. By the click of the mouse, I can create and name my own group, invite my 2 friends, and start adding interesting deals to our group watch list. Now, anytime 1 of the 3 of us logs in, the 3 of us will all see the deals that are on our group watch list. We can make private comments to each other regarding the deals and even send out a quick email to the group inviting each other to come & “vote” on the deals.

The service adds deal flow, organization, and easy communication to any investment group.

After a few demos, we already have small and large groups of angels adopting the tools. As the quality and quantity of our investor network grows, so will the quality and quantity of quality deals (and vice versa).

I don’t know a group of individuals that are more “relationship-based” than angels and VCs. Their world is all about who you know and they place a lot of emphasis on their network. At every event, many angels are coming to me asking… “who’s that gentleman that….” or “tell me about what investor x has done…” With our new service — that will all come very easy.

(If you are an investor and are interested in an invitation, feel free to contact me personally at bblake at fundinguniverse.com.)

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One of my good friends, Lance Black, has recently released their first version of a very dynamic online webinar tool and he is offering it for free to the first 100 customers who sign up.

We have been using Huddle for about 6 months now as a beta client and are hooked.  At first, we wanted to use it for an online webinar.  Since then, we keep finding many other uses of the tool to help us in our daily communication.  Huddle is very easy to use… it has “pods” that allow you to mix & match the display of presentations, videos, chat sessions, message boards & more.

Other features that I like:

1. You can record the entire session — exactly as it happens — and have it on file for playback (So if you missed the meeting, it will always be there).
2. The tool works in any browser or platform (mac or PC).

Go to www.livehuddle.com and sign up — I’d be anxious to hear what you think.

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A few weeks ago, I decided that I would start posting various business ideas to my blog. These ideas will be those that I believe are great ideas, but don’t plan on pursuing them any time in the near future. I’d love to hear your comments and thoughts regarding the potential; it would also be nice to know if you have heard of someone that is already trying to accomplish the idea or if would be seriously interested in pursuing the idea.

So here’s the first idea: Electronic billboards on Stop lights.

We’ve all seen the newest/latest electronic billboards on the side of our local interstate highways — large plasmaTV-like billboards that grab your attention and flash several advertisements on the screen. This idea would use a similar screen with flashing advertisements and place it up on the stop lights of your city. Now… before you get upset with me thinking, “Brock, that’s a stupid idea — way too many accidents would happen because drivers would be distracted by the advertisement and wouldn’t pay attention to the changing lights!”, here me out for a second.

The electronic billboard would have to be connected to the timer of the stoplight and only flash advertisements when the light is red. When the light is green or yellow, the billboard would display the name of the street — removing the distractions that might otherwise occur.

The owners of the billboard could charge a premium for the advertising spot because it is gauranteed that you will have a captive audience! What else can people do when they are waiting for the light to change other than stare up at the stoplight?!

This idea would be very difficult to implement because you would have to work with the city/county governments (and we all know how difficult that could be). But, if you could get over that hump…I really believe that you would have a VERY successful business. What do you think?

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I’m confessing… I haven’t received a comment on my blog since April 21st! I guess that I just write really stupid entries. No one cares about what I have to say. My entries are not stimulating in any way. I’m wallowing in blog self-depression.

But wait…an email from the infamous Jordy Gunderson!

SUBJECT: Your blog hates me!

Brock, when I posted a comment on your blog it took me to a blank page. I’m not sure whether the comment was posted on or not, but you should look into it.

–
Jordan Gunderson
Blog ~ http://jordy.gundy.org

So…it might be true that nobody tried to comment on my website for a few months, but I’m going to take the liberty to believe that there must have been hundreds, maybe even thousands, of people that have been trying to comment on my blog but couldn’t! It makes me feel much better about my late night blogging habits.

Now, the question arises…how do I fix this dang thing? Anyone who is tech/wordpress savvy, please advise!

Also, for the thousands of you have been trying to comment, feel free to shoot me an email (bblake “AT” fundinguniverse.com) so that I can post your comments when it gets fixed.

July 19th 2006 Posted to Personal, Technology

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I have heard the a lot of good and bad stories when it comes to outsourcing development offshore. We will soon be in the hiring mode for programmers and I am interested in hearing from those people who have had good or bad experiences.

Obviously, you can’t beat the price… and there is a language barrier; but, is there a way to get around/over those hurdles? I really have had no experience with outsourcing, but would really like to find out more. Please advise…

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Yo blog readers: If you haven’t heard already, the Utah Bloggers Conference is coming soon. Mark your calendars:

• June 13, 2006 (6:30 pm - 9:00 pm)
• Miller Business Innovation Center
• Free admission, food, and prizes
• Hosted by my peeps: Ryan Money, Phil Burns, & others

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As I mentioned in my last post… my wife and I ended up moving last week.  While we are stoked about the new opportunity, I’m not stoked about the increased commute time that I will be experiencing.

With all of this new time on the road, I’ve recently converted to podcast listening.  I usually download 3-5 new podcasts a day that provide a great hour of learning.  I also recently download the Book of Mormon in mp3 format for free from LDSaudio.com, and I hope to download other books so that I can listen to and from the office.

I wonder how many other people have also replaced their radio with mp3 players?  How long it will be before we will be able to search and listen to any podcast from our car stereos?

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With all of this talk about Blackberry going out of business, I started to think about what my life would be like without my Blackberry. Here is a list of some of the things that I thought of:

1. I wouldn’t be as effective with my time. Having a Blackberry could possibly save me about an hour each day responding to emails. Since I am huge believer that the best things happen outside the office, this is time that I try to spend networking and meeting with customers or potential partners.
2. I gaurantee that I would sleep better at night. Since I don’t have an alarm, I end putting my phone next to my bed so that it will wake me up in the morning. The problem is that my Blackberry ends up vibrating on the nightstand up until midnight (when it automatically turns off) and starting at 6 am (when it automatically turns on). Although I am getting better, it almost kills me to know that I just received an email and not take the time to at least see who it is from.
3. I would be a much safer driver. (I probably shouldn’t admit this, but…) I sometimes reply to emails while I am driving! I’m trying really, really hard not to do this (thanks to my wife’s help :)). Instead, I try to reply with very short emails when I am stopped at a stoplight. Don’t worry, drivers, I am making a concious effort to stop.
4. My work wouldn’t go with me everywhere I go. Actually, I’m not quite sure this one is completely accurate because I suffer from “the curse“, but at least it would help.
5. My thumbs wouldn’t be so small. According to Paul Allen’s Connect Magazine article, the thumbs of many businessmen are actually decreasing in size because of the increased Blackberry use — it’s the “survival of the fittest” theory.

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One of our potential partners showed me the free do-it-yourself-podcasting site called Gcast. I’m totally stoked to try it out and see what happens. Has anyone else tried or used Gcast? I’d love to hear about your experience.

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Ok…I might be a little slow to the blog reading community! Up until this past week, I have been reading my 10-20 blogs each day by visiting each of their sites individually. I guess that it wasn’t that hard because I had them all bookmarked in my browser. Finally, one of my Junto Partners showed me Google Reader and I love it.

Basically, it captures all of the RSS feeds from all of my favorite blogs and stores them in my reader. This way, I can just visit one site to see and read all of the new blogs.

Yes….I know…it’s about time.

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Exciting things are happening at FundingUniverse.com. If you haven’t been to the site lately, you really ought to check it out.

This week, we launched our first of many pod-cast interviews. The first interview features Shawn Nelson, founder and CEO of LoveSac. He was also the winner of the Richard Branson reality TV show “Rebel Billionaire.” Judd Bagley, founder of the instant-hit site BusinessJive.com is the expert who does our interviews and he does a terrific job! Look forward to next week’s interview; Bill Payne, the leading expert on angel investing in the country will be interviewed.

In addition, we have launched our next speedpitching event. The luncheon will be held Thursday, February 2nd at the SLC Downtown Marriott. We have already received a large number of entrepreneurial applicants…so it looks like it will be a great event. We are excited because we are hosting the event in partnership with Alan Hall’s Grow Utah Ventures.

Lastly, we are very excited to say that our video pitch software will be launching within the next month. If you are an entrepreneur, this will be a great tool because it will allow you to show the passion and enthusiasm that you have for your company. We have received terrific feedback from investors across the country and we are very excited to roll it out.

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I finally was able to make it to the Provo Labs/Dev Utah Geek Dinner…and it was great! Phil Burns has been recommending it for months and I can see why; the event was great learning, networking, and fun. If you have not yet attended, I highly recommend it.

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Doesn’t it seem like Google announces a new product everyday? I just read an article in Forbes announcing the newest product Google Transit.

Google Transit will allow you to receive directions to your destination using the local public transportation system. The coolest part about it is that it allows you to compare the cost of public transportation to driving the same distance!

One neat feature is a price check on the trip to be made, allowing the user to decide whether it would be better to go by car after all. The service cleverly calculates the cost of driving, based on the average mileage for the shortest route between the start and end addresses and the cost per mile (40.5 cents) that the IRS allows businesses to deduct, although it doesn’t yet account for tolls, variations in gas mileage for different types of cars, and over-zealous parking attendants.

While I’m not a Google fanatic, I’m always impressed with their constant innovations.

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