NHHTC's Entrepreneur Forum Fall 09 - " “New Hampshire is north of Mississippi, but not much.”
Imagine motivating New England types to get hip to social media. It’s like chasing chickens with a stick, unless you’re JitterGram!
JitterGram™ sends just-in-time messages to your mobile device allowing organizations to deliver coupons, promotions, and invitations moving consumers to action. I was working in the office early last spring when I got a JitterGram that Gunstock Ski Resort was offering a 2 for 1 ski day. That weekend I ended up spending the afternoon skiing, where I bumped into, Matt Pierson, Chairman, and his family. We must have all gotten Jittered!
JitterGram’s concept is to build consumer loyalty by reaching out, Jitter- style, to your mobile device. Ric Pratte, CEO, made the analogy that they are like the Constant Contact of mobile devices. Giving merchants the ability to move espresso-fast and deliver campaigns to their user communities that are localized, personal, and effective is powerful. (It worked for me, I went skiing!) Think Twitter does mobile, and you got it. Ric is on a fundraising mission and also looking to hire key staff.
Our esteemed panel consisted of Katie Delahaye Paine, President & CEO, KD Paine & Partners, Brian Costello, General Manager & Vice President, Red Plum Networks, and Jim Levinger, CEO, Nextcode. Brian noted that people are very likely to pay attention to text messages, giving JitterGram an advantage over other promotional methods. His advice was to find 600 sales people, fast.
Katie is a global social media expert and noted great technology, tough location. In the heart of Los Angeles, New York, or Atlanta where social media is hot, this will have rapid adoption rates due to the nature of the urban lifestyle and pervasive social media. She recommends that JitterGram provide analytics, measurement, and reporting to merchants monthly and that brand recognition as a measureable marketing vehicle would be invaluable. She also believes that JitterNation has tremendous potential, practically in college towns. <<Meet at Wildcat Pizza after the game for our post game special!>> I’m there, baby!
Jim Levinger said the self-service aspect of JitterGram allowing merchants the flexibility to promote, invite, and communicate anytime they wish is fantastic. He stated that pull works better than push in the mobile market. JitterGram invites consumers to opt-in via the web and they can opt-out at will. The parting shots from the panel were moving JitterGram’s service to major metro areas like New York or LA, and the ability to scale for the masses, why? Because it’s hot!
Have you ever been accused of trying to boil the ocean? Bill Staby, President and Founder of Resolute Marine Energy is doing just that, only he is harnessing the ocean wave and tide energy in a unique market called the wave energy sector. Bill has several fascinating projects underway that are being funded by NOAA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. His technology includes harnessing the energy of underwater waves, pressurized water, and clean water generation. To Bill, energy generation is a global issue. He currently has a pilot scheduled in 2010 off the coast of South Africa, image the wave action there!
In addition, he invented WaveWater™ a patented desalination system funded partially by grants from the MIT Sloan School and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government combined. For his wind energy initiatives, he has received grants from the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Navy. Bill commands respect for his research and his vision for alternative energy options. What he is seeking now is funding for his technology as a business and for a future trial over the Continental Shelf. Anywhere there is wave action, he’ll find it!
The panel included Dr. Ken Baldwin, Professor and Director of the Chase Ocean Engineering Laboratory at University of New Hampshire, Peter Bloomfied, CEO, Concord Power & Steam, and Trent Yang, Founder and CEO, Clean Membranes. Trent delivered insights into what investors look for, “back of the envelope calculation” of the overall market, differentiation, team, and your offering. Can investments be made in increments and what milestones would be achieved? Creating compartmental investment opportunities with clear revenue projections, payback scenarios, and exit strategies are helpful in painting the picture for investors.
Dr. Ken Baldwin was hilarious – with his unapologetic academic approach to the challenge. With red pens, black pens, and highlighters he did a thorough job of grading Bill’s business plan. His simple remarks were, ”nothing in the ocean is easy.” He remarked that in their own oceanic experimentation that equipment had to be tested, checked and replaced frequently due to harsh conditions. One of his own experiments didn’t do much but “collected enough mussels for a nice meal with white wine and butter.” His class at UNH must be entertaining, we were in hysterics!
Peter Bloomfield said that anything green is measured by what it cost and how much it can generate in kilowatt hours. If you can harness it, converting it to the grid is the real engineering challenges. He also suggested that differentiation for Resolute Marine Energy’s solution is key.
During open mic, my suggestion to Bill was to “stick to your knitting” and focus on your key technology, providing clean water to the 1.2 billion people in developing countries who have no access to water and the 2.6 billion who lack basic sanitation. That’s half of humanity and he has the technology today to solve it.
It was another fun and educational night at the now NHHTC Entrepreneur Forum, same great people, just a different name.
Will you join us on October 28th for the Speed Venture Summit?
We’ll Jitter about it - See you then!
Catherine Blake, President
Sales Protocol International
Media Chair, MIT Enterprise Forum
cblake@salesprotoocol.com
www.salesprotocol.com