Announcing the 2009 Escalator Pitch Competition
Announcing the 2009 Escalator Pitch Competition
LaunchMemphis is pleased to announce a new competition aimed at developing and perfecting your “escalator pitch” — a modern twist on the elevator pitch idea. Whether you already have a business or just have an idea for one, articulating your idea is key to gaining customers. Not only will this competition help strengthen your pitch and improve sales, but you’ll also have the chance to win a prize package valued at over $10K!To enter the competition, simply create a 30-60 second video of your escalator pitch. Post it onto You Tube. Then register for the event by clicking on the following link, where you’ll be asked to provide the URL where you posted your video. The cost for entry is $20.
Click here to register today! http://escalatorpitch.
The competition is open to all businesses with fewer than 25 employees. There will be seven finalists selected from the YOU TUBE videos submitted. Also, three at-large finanlists will be chosen from those who walk in the day of the competition. Each finalist will ride up an escalator with a judge to deliver a brief and relevant pitch about their company. The winner will be chosen by the judges.
The $10K prize package includes consulting packages from area sales and marketing specialists, as outlined below, as well as $1000 cash!
- Marketing & Research Counsel – marketing research package (10 hours of consultation)
- Second to Nunn Design – logo/identity/print design package (10 hours of design work)
- Valeo Design & Marketing – web design and internet marketing package (10 hours of web design and/or internet marketing consultation)
- Obsidian Public Relations – public relations package (10 hours of PR consultation)
- RedRover Sales & Marketing – marketing and sales coaching package (10 hours of marketing consultation and/or sales training/coaching)
- Merrick Photography – photography package
- Main Events – event planning package (10 hours of event consultation)
Nervous about competing? Here’s the entrepreneurial philosophy; whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you are absolutely right! So, take a risk and don’t miss this opportunity because you have too much to lose!
Questions? Contact Lynda Hobbs at 901-266-2662.
An Insider View of Bioscience Entrepreneurship: Successful Case Studies
A Panel Discussion
Moderator: Jan Bouten, Executive Director, TECWorks, A Memphis Bioworks Organization
Panel Participants:
· Bob Bean, President and CEO, Transnetyx
· Preston H. Dorsett, Ph.D., Executive in Residence, INNOVA
· Daryl Newman, CEO, CAGENIX
Thursday, October 8, 2009 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Fogelman Executive Center, The University of Memphis
330 Innovation Drive, Memphis, TN 38152
$25 online registration – includes parking
$35 on-site registration
Space is limited. Register now at www.bioworksbusiness.com
SPONSORED BY: Adams Keegan
The Memphis Bioworks Business Association was created to advance the bioscience industry in the Memphis region through three core areas: education, professional networking and advocacy. The association will provide industry specific information and programs to increase knowledge and provide a platform for collaboration and communication between industry professionals.
Startup Weekend Memphis Reunion on Thursday August 27th
This past Thursday at the Startup Weekend Reunion, at EmergeMemphis downtown, five new enterprises presented the progress they’ve made in the first 3 months since Startup Weekend. Two of these businesses have managed to achieve revenue and all five were able to report on valuable lessons learned. Furthermore, at the reunion, several members of the group were recognized for their contributions to Startup Weekend.
The Roll Play allows users to collaborate in interactive storytelling. It was awarded the title Business Most Likely to Succeed.
Other distinctions from the night were awarded to Mark Dinstuhl, Caitlin Woodward and Kevin Yancy celebrating their enthusiasm and contributions to Startup Weekend and their respective teams.
Kevin Yancy, the founder of The Roll Play, who was recognized as the Participant of the Weekend stated, “The most inspiring thing about the Startup Weekend experience is the incredible pool of local talent.” Yancy credited his team’s successes to the relationships he formed with his fellow participants.
Beyond the recognition, many of these entrepreneurs used the Reunion to share their ideas and build publicity for their growing concerns.
Mark’s Menus provides a searchable online menu database for local restaurants. They outlined their use of Twitter and Facebook to promote their enterprise. On one occasion, a single tweet scored 43 hits to their website by offering free dinner to Twitter users who came to a tweetup.
CheezyWeezy, a photo-sharing site that allows users to upload and rate pictures of cute kids, discussed their plans for recruiting users at local festivals this fall, like Cooper-Young Fest, Germantown Arts Festival and the River Arts Festival. Nnaemeka “Meka” Egwuekwe of CheezyWeezy offered free advertising on CheezyWeezy to all Startup Weekend projects.
Kevin Yancy of The Roll Play has been using Startup Weekend participants and their families as boosters and beta testers. He noted that they will be introducing premium features in September with their 2.0 version. “It’s great to see families around the community come together and support one another’s entrepreneurship.”
Events like Startup Weekend are popping up all over Tennessee. Chattanooga will host a 48 Hour Launch in November, and Memphis will host a 48 Hour Launch in the spring. Interest in entrepreneurship continues to grow in the Mid-South and these events promise to bring phenomenal participants and teams together for collaboration – and, of course, cold Red Bull for participants also helps.
Fall 2009 Schedule of Events
This is the Fall 2009 Schedule for LaunchMemphis. In keeping with our goal to support entrepreneurial action in the Mid-South, we have a unique set of events planned – a combination you won’t get anywhere else. We hope you will join us in growing a rich community and building new business ventures.
This Fall Note that Global Entrepreneurship Week is November 16th through 22nd and we will have a series of concentrated events together with other entrepreneurship support organizations in our city.
Boot Camp: Build and Refine Your Business Plan
August 15th, 2009 and August 22nd, 2009
Location: EmergeMemphis
For more information: http://www.launchmemphis.com/2009/07/21/launchmemphis-bootcamp-august-15-22/
For registration: http://bootcamp2009.eventbrite.com/
The LaunchMemphis Boot Camp is an intense, two session course in entrepreneurship that will dramatically boost your chances of seeing your dream become a reality. Professionals will offer advice on all aspects of starting, successfully running, and gaining funding for your new venture. Join us at EmergeMemphis for two exciting days that will answer all your questions and put you on the right track for success in whatever business you are trying to start!
Startup Weekend Reunion
August 27th, 2009 5:30pm to 7:30pm
Location: EmergeMemphis, 516 Tennessee Street, Memphis, TN 38103
Tickets and Information: http://suwmem2reunion.eventbrite.com/
This is a chance for past participants of StartUp Weekend I & II to mix, mingle and hear updates on ideas generated during SUW. Expect updates from: The Roll Play, Mark’s Menus, Rezzie, GameWav Media, and CheezyWeezy. Others in the community are welcome to attend to learn more about Startup Weekend and get connected.
SocialCamp Memphis ( Tag: #SocialMEM )
Evening of September 18th and the day of September 19th, 2009
Location: Memphis Academy of Science and Engineerings
Information: http://www.socialcampmemphis.com/
Tickets: http://socialmem.eventbrite.com/
SocialDevCamp, like BarCamp, is an un-conference; An open format event where programmers, designers and business owners can network and learn. A SocialDevCamp conference is unlike any other technology conference. Rather than being planned by a committee in advance, each community works together to create its own event. A SocialDevCamp generally has an underlying theme, but the individual topics and sessions are organized shortly before or even at the event. This enables SocialDevCamp to be much more than targeted to the needs of the community.
Escalator Pitch Workshop
When: Saturday, 10/24, 9:30-12:00
Where: EmergeMemphis, 516 Tennessee Street
What: Training on how to develop a “Dynamic Escalator Pitch,” followed by development of your own pitch, role playing of that pitch with a small group, and one-on-one feedback from a member of the LaunchMemphis Board.
Cost: $25 per person (lunch included)
RSVP: Through http://pitchworkshop.
Note: The workshop will focus on helping you craft a pitch to be used in attracting prospective customers which in many cases varies from the pitch you’d use to attract investors. LaunchMemphis will offer an Investor Pitch Workshop next season.
Sign up for the October 24 Escalator Pitch Workshop today, before it’s too late. Only 48 tickets will be sold! And with a price point of just $25 which includes lunch, you’ll want to act fast.
You Tube Video Submission
When: Due 11/5
What: Those attending the Escalator Pitch Workshop will be encouraged to submit a video of their refined escalator pitch for consideration as a finalist in the Escalator Competition. Others may also participate, but those attending the workshop will no doubt have a leg up. 7 finalists will be selected and notified by 11/13 that they have been selected for the competition on 11/21.
Cost: $20 per submission
Note: Details on how to submit your You Tube video will be announced by October 24. Visit www.launchmemphis.com for details.
Tickets for entry into the Escalator Competition can be found here: http://escalatorpitch.
*Note: To be considered for the Escalator Pitch Competition, your company must have fewer than 25 employees.
BarCamp
Evening of November 13th and the day of November 14th, 2008
Location: Memphis Academy of Science and Engineering
Ticketing: http://barcampmemphis2.
BarCamp is an un-conference; An open format event where programmers, designers and business owners can network and learn. A BarCamp conference is unlike any other technology conference. Rather than being planned by a committee in advance, each community works together to create its own event. A BarCamp generally has an underlying theme, but the individual topics and sessions are organized shortly before or even at the event. This enables BarCamp to be much more than targeted to the needs of the community.
Global Entrepreneurship Week November 16-22 — LaunchMemphis has scheduled an exciting week of activities to celebrate entrepreneurship throughout the city with our sister organizations.
TechFuel: Global Entrepreneurship Week 2009
November 17th, 2009, 5:30pm-7:30pm
Location: TBD
Inspired by other networking events occurring across the country like Tech Cocktail, the LaunchMemphis TechFuel is designed for technologists, entrepreneurs, media (bloggers), and other business professionals to meet, and share ideas in a fun and open atmosphere. The event is open to the public. With the LaunchMemphis TechFuel we hope to see the Memphis tech community better connected.
Core Conversations on Entrepreneurship
Event Date: November 20, 2009
Location: Folk’s Folly, 551 S Mendenhall Rd, Memphis, TN 38117
Tickets: http://coreconv
In celebration of Global Entrepreneurship Week, The Society of Entrepreneurs and LaunchMemphis are hosting this exciting Networking Event. Reservations will be made to sit at a table based on interest and industry. Tables will be hosted by members of The Society of Entrepreneurs. Look for reservation information in your inbox or email info@launchmemphis.com.
Escalator Pitch Competition
When: Saturday, November 21, tentatively scheduled for 10:30 am - 12:30 pm, final time to be announced soon
What: Competition for a prize package worth $10K! Prize package made up of consulting packages from area sales and marketing specialists (e.g., market research, logo/identity design, web design, sales coaching, public relations, photography, media). $1K of the package will be awarded in cash.
Where: To be announced soon
Cost: $20 per person for walk-ons; those submitting You Tube videos would have already paid
RSVP: None needed; walk-ons will be asked to register when they arrive
Interested in what happened during our pasts “Seasons of Entrepreneurship” visit these blog posts:
- http://www.launchmemphis.com/2008/03/09/spring-2008-schedule/
- http://www.launchmemphis.com/2008/12/01/launchmemphis-fall-2008-schedule/
- http://www.launchmemphis.com/2009/02/23/spring-2009-schedule/
LaunchMemphis and Butler Snow Present: Business Plan BootCamp August 15th & 22nd
“Great job!!! Thanks for this fantastic opportunity; it came at a time when i really needed some direction and advice on how to proceed.” -past BootCamp participant
LaunchMemphis Business Plan Boot Camp
Sponsored by Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens and Cannada, PLLC
August 15th and 22nd, 2009
At EmergeMemphis
Tickets here: http://bootcamp2009.eventbrite.com/
For a new startup, the journey from an idea to a working, successful business is a confusing and dangerous one. Real, practical advice from objective outsiders can make all the difference in helping a fledgling venture reach its goal.
LaunchMemphis is hosting the Business Plan Boot Camp: a two session experience where entrepreneurs will be given the tools they need for success. Experts from several fields will be on hand with hard-earned, practical advice, while attendees can get tailored feedback on their business plans in several break-out sessions.
Topics will include:
- Business plan development
- Legal issues for entrepreneurs
- Marketing
- Financial considerations for entrepreneurs
- Gaining funding
- Finding investors
- Perfecting your pitch
LaunchMemphis’ goal is to foster entrepreneurial growth within the Memphis community. The group is non-profit and the cost of the BootCamp is $60 for two days filled with insight (and lunch and materials!).
The two sessions will take place on Saturday, August 15th and 22nd from 8:30 a.m. – 2:15 p.m. at the Mercury Launchpad located at:
EmergeMemphis, Suite 133
516 Tennessee Street
Memphis, TN 38103
For more information email Chris@LaunchMemphis.com or call (901) 628-4657.
Be sure to grab your ticket here: http://bootcamp2009.eventbrite.com/
SUW MEM 2.0 Update
Hi All,
I just wanted to give an update on the projects that came out of SUW Memphis 2. Again we had a great weekend with a lot of strong ideas coming out of the 48 hour event. Marks Menus pitched at the LaunchMemphis Investment forum and the roll play is really taking off. As a recap, we had 70 participants and we ended up with 5 projects. All projects are still progressing. Below is a summary of each idea and a recent update. Please get involved and join one or a few of these ideas. We are going to have our reunion on August 27th.
The Roll Play (www.therollplay.com) is a new web system to allow students, writers, and others to build stories collectively with other members by assuming the role of a character of their own making. The members in effect make a “rolling” play or even a debate. The site is up and running with new differentiating functionality coming out weekly.
The Roll Play is still progressing well. We have been live for 45 days and are up to 59 users. To date, 20 roll plays have been created, with the most active consisting of more than 200 posts.
59 Users
20 Stories
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Marks Menus
Mister Menus changed to Marks Menus (www.marksmenus.com) is a site that allows a user to upload menus of their favorite restaurants and to rate menu items. This enables other users to search where to eat using criteria like dish ingredients and menu items. This way if you need to find the best vegan dishes in the city you can easily locate them and know where to go.
At this time, Mark’s Menus has 30 registered users and, this week, we got our first restaurant manager to enter their OWN menu on the site!
CheezyWeezy (www.CheezyWeezy.com), another project that built a beta launch product and business plan in 48 hours, encourages the world to “Take a Smile Break” by heading to their site to view and rate photos of cute kids. Grandparents unite and rate your grandchildren to the top!
We’ve completed our alpha testing and starting a private beta last week. Expect to see a public beta by the end of the week. After that, my team will be meeting on how best to market and get the word out.
Rezzie focused on designing an innovative business model for the real estate and print news industry. By providing previously unavailable data to consumers on agents and brokers on print news web sites, all parties can benefit with revenue and savings. This idea easily could provide large returns to investors and the team is moving forward with technical specs.
Interest declined after SUW and a few parties trotted the idea out to potential customers and there was interest but they wanted to see something. We’ve got a meeting scheduled Thursday evening at the Launchpad to discuss technical requirements and team members roles and responsibilities.
GameWavMedia focused on providing a new cross functional gaming platform to change the way games are designed, distributed and played. At the center of the idea is object oriented gaming independent of game functionality. Sound complicated — it is — but the idea has some merit, especially since the average age of a gamer is over 35.
Another Successful Investment Forum
The 2nd Annual LaunchMemphis Investment Forum was held June 19th at the FedEx Institute and attracted an impressively wide range of companies. We are proud to be able to refer to it now as an annual event, and we continue to be excited about the long-term viability of this event. Entrepreneurs brought their ideas and pitches to investors with companies ranging from concepts that were still in the early development stage to companies that have been in operation for several years. The event included representation from the retail, real estate, medical device and software industries.
Based on the feedback we have received to date, the event has once again exceeded the expectation of those that participated. Meetings are occurring with investors and the dialog that started at the event continues today. For some participants, the practice of pitching 7 times in 1.5 hours was challenging, educational, and life-changing. For others, it was a way to discover the areas that need work and to try out different pitches on an audience that asked challenging questions and pushed them to consider some interesting alternatives to their business models.
This year’s event was a more compact event, with a smaller seed track. We felt that most participants last year were just too exhausted at the end of the day to provide the feedback that the entrepreneurs deserved, and the changes we made were received well by those who participated. Whereas last year the number of companies in the seed track outnumbered venture companies 3 to 1, this year it was evenly split, with 7 companies in each track. While these numbers reflect the types of applications we received, they are also reflective of what we see as some maturation of some participants. We couldn’t be happier with the quality of the ideas we are seeing in the area.
Like any event, there are always lessons learned and things that we can do better. Our two top priorities as we look to next year’s event are engaging a broader base of investors to help grow the event and improving the pitches of those companies that participate. We recognize that in some cases, the presenters had great ideas but still had some work to do to turn the great idea into a great business. We will continue working with entrepreneurs and investors to help these great ideas become great businesses that can help take our great city to new levels. We were once again reminded by all those that presented that no city has a monopoly on innovation, and Memphis is a place that has the talent to compete with any city in the country.
If you are an investor (angel or institutional), we want to hear from you — we need to work together to ensure that this event can become a showcase for the talent that is in Memphis and that is all too often unrecognized by the media and the investment community.
For those that participated or plan to participate next year, look for updates on upcoming events to really try to help anyone interested get better at pitching their company to investors, partners, and prospects. We realize this is an area of critical need for our budding entrepreneurial community, and we want to provide events and means to help everyone improve.
We also want to thank our sponsors for the event, Tennessee Technology Development Council, TECworks, and the FedEx Institute at the University of Memphis. We could not continue this event without their support and greatly appreciate all their efforts in making this event a success.
Second Annual LaunchMemphis Investment Forum
The Second Annual LaunchMemphis Investment Forum has been set for June 19th, 2009. As an institutional or angel investor, we invite you to join us from 8:00am to 12:30pm to take the time to ask good questions, provide feedback, participate in the event, and if interested pursue follow-up with the startups for potential investment.
Location
FedEx Institute of Technology
On the Campus of the University of Memphis
Agenda
8:00 – 8:30 Welcome / Coffee
8:30 – 9:45 Seed Track
9:45 – 10:00 Break
10:00 – 11:00 Venture Track (Part I)
11:00 – 11:15 Break
11:15 – 12:15 Venture Track (Part II)
12:15 – 12:30 Closing
“How was the weekend?” “Intense and Creative!”
Here is a post I wrote for MemphisConnect.com here that I have place below: http://www.memphisconnect.com/2009/06/10/how-was-the-weekend-intense-and-creative/
Enjoy!
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On May 29th, 30th, and 31st, 2009, seventy (70) Memphians came together for one of the most intense, creative, and entrepreneurial events of their lives. In just 48 hours (6pm Friday to 6pm Sunday) these creative class members from all walks of life pitched 14 ideas, selected 5 for startup, and launched 3 beta products. In its second year of operation, LaunchMemphis brought Startup Weekend back to Memphis to support entrepreneurial action!
Why the excitement?
Last year, LaunchMemphis hosted over 100 people at EmergeMemphis and one idea was selected and born, Spynner. That concept eventually died, but one other idea pitched that weekend went on to form a team, build a product, achieve user base, and garner revenue in 2009. That company is NRange (www.nrange.com), a golf GPS app for smart phones that is cheaper but just as accurate as $300-$500 range finders golfers buy. Now that’s entrepreneurial action! This year with an enhanced entrepreneurship ecosystem and a dedicated group of 70 people, LaunchMemphis Startup Weekend delivered five new business concepts to our local economy.
Will all of these startups succeed?
According to Tulane University business Professor Lisa Amos, the average for entrepreneurs has 3.8 failures before finally succeeding. At LaunchMemphis with programs like Startup Weekend, we encourage people to form teams, build startups, and ‘fail fast’ so that they can learn and get right back into the ecosystem of entrepreneurship to start again.
You did what?
When asked, “What did you do this past weekend?” most may reply with the details of sporting events, yard work, and/or relaxing with a book. Not for this crew of Memphians. They can proudly say, “I launched a new business in 48 hours!”
What are the 5 startups?
Here I provide a very brief summary of the 5 ideas that moved forward. Stay tuned to learn about how these startups evolve. We will have a Startup Weekend Reunion on August 27th, 2009 to hear about how these businesses have progressed and if any of the other ideas not-selected moved forward, like NRange (www.nrange.com) did last year. Learn more about Memphis Startup Weekend at www.LaunchMemphis.com.
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The Roll Play (www.therollplay.com) is a new web system to allow students, writers, and others to build stories collectively with other members by assuming the role of a character of their own making. The members in effect make a “rolling” play or even a debate. The site is up and running with new differentiating functionality coming out weekly.
–
Mister Menus (http://mistermenus.com/) is a site that allows a user to upload menus of their favorite restaurants and to rate menu items. This enables other users to search where to eat using criteria like dish ingredients and menu items. This way if you need to find the best vegan dishes in the city you can easily locate them and know where to go.
–
CheezyWeezy (www.CheezyWeezy.com), another project that built a beta launch product and business plan in 48 hours, encourages the world to “Take a Smile Break” by heading to their site to view and rate photos of cute kids. Grandparents unite and rate your grandchildren to the top!
–
Rezzie focused on designing an innovative business model for the real estate and print news industry. By providing previously unavailable data to consumers on agents and brokers on print news web sites, all parties can benefit withrevenue and savings. This idea easily could provide large returns to investors and the team is moving forward with technical specs.
–
GameWavMedia focused on providing a new cross functional gaming platform to change the way games are designed, distributed and played. At the center of the idea is object oriented gaming independent of game functionality. Sound complicated — it is — but the idea has some merit, especially since the average age of a gamer is over 35.
Memphis Startup Weekend Version 2.0 May 29th-May 31st
We are only two and a half weeks out for start up weekend (May 29-31). We will start at 6 PM on Friday and end Sunday evening. There are still some tickets left and you can get yours here: http://memphis2startupweekend.eventbrite.com/.
This year we will have a pre-event gathering to present ideas. We will video record them and post them to a face book group page. Don’t worry, if you can’t make that you can still present your idea on the first day of the event. No decisions will be made until Friday, May 29th.
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