Community Building 101

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It’s commonly understood that people spend their time with people they know — both offline and online. People spend their money with companies and individuals they know and trust (if possible). People donate to causes run by organizations and people they know and trust. That’s human nature. Community building also is the lifeblood of any… Read More…

The future of the inbox

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My inbox is a horribly inefficient way to manage the requests that come into me. On any given day, I receive all sorts of different emails — all of which require different forms of action. Here are some of the types of emails I field daily: Introduction requests Notification emails from my bank Invoices Receipts… Read More…

The opportunity to redefine the feed reader experience

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I’ve used Google Reader almost everyday since 2008. I’m bummed it’s going away. And, clearly, I’m not alone. Millions of people are using Google Reader — evidence that there is still demand for a great utility to consume content in one location. It may not make sense for Google, but clearly there is a real… Read More…

Why it’s smart to be an early adopter on a new platform

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A Tweet posted last week by Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff — who I used to work for  — caught my attention. I don’t know how she did it, but this designer already has 1400+ followers on #ZillowDigs! #jealous zillow.com/digs/user69368… — Spencer Rascoff (@spencerrascoff) February 8, 2013 My first thought was this: Zillow Digs has hit every mainstream… Read More…

Streamlining the fundraising process for entrepreneurs: There’s NOT an app for that?

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Here’s my dilemma. Fundraising for a tech startup is hugely time consuming. There are a million other things to do, and there is no good tool to manage the workflow start to finish.  I’m in the early days of raising money, but the fundraising process goes something like this: Talk to my connections and see… Read More…

The time suck economy: Let’s start building value

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Time is our most precious asset. Yet, we’re wasting far too much of it. It’s called the time suck economy. And it’s available on a smartphone near you. You can waste time these days in unlimited ways — online and offline. Let’s just focus online, and more specifically from your mobile device which you carry… Read More…

Commentary: Why the downfall of Facebook is more possible than you think

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Facebook is the clearcut leader in social. We all know this. No one else is even close (except maybe Google). There are all sorts of reasons why they are succeeding — namely due to the billion people using the site. However, like all industry leaders, Facebook is under attack from all sides. As the well-established elephant in… Read More…