PREPARE YOURSELF TO START A STARTUP

I KNEW THAT I FAILED I WOULDN’T REGRET THAT, BUT I KNEW THE ONE THING I MIGHT REGRET IS NOT TRYING. – JEFF BEZOS, AMAZON 

Starting a startup is a task where you can't always trust your instincts. Running your own business takes guts, assurance and an enduring passion for what you do. If you know nothing more than this, you may at least pause before making them. Before you kick start, always believe in yourself and focus on the subjects that matters to you the most.  You can, however, trust your instincts about people. The most common mistakes young Entrepreneurs make is not to do that enough. They do get involved with people who seem exciting, but about whom they feel some misgivings personally. Later when a thing goes wrong then they say "We knew there was something wrong about him, but we ignored it because he seemed so impressive."

This is one case where it pays to be self-indulgent. Work with people you genuinely like, and you have known long enough to be sure – “CHOOSE THE RIGHT PARTNERS”

You need an expertise to give you advice that surprises you.

“WE AT VENTURE ART PROVIDES YOU WITH THE BEST AND INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS” - http://www.ventureart.biz/

Passion may be what attracts you to your new startup, commitment is what keeps you going. Commitment are shown in the conscious effort you make to stay on track or in the decisions; you make each day to do the things that needs to be done, even if they are boring or difficult. Learning new and latest ideas is an art that one could acquire with passion.  A passionate learners will always know the current demand of the society, which you could make him aware of the scenario.

Fit your attention into the type that startup ideas:

·      Get Innovative Ideas

·      Learn a lot about things that matters you and society

·      Work on problems that interest you

·      Work with individuals you like and respect

The way to succeed in a startup is not to be an expert on startups, but to be an expert on your customers and the problem you're solving for them. Choose the right partners who could give you innovative ideas, and make sure they are sustainable. This expertise should be able to guide you through all phases of the growth of your business. A comprehensive approach should be taken at any situation during the business process and importantly the outcome for the approach is essential.

Commitment is the fuel that keeps the engine turning over for the long haul. The entrepreneurial journey is a tough one. When you combine your spirit with commitment, and allow your passion to inspire you, the result is one of the hallmarks of successful entrepreneurs.

The way to come up with good startup ideas is to take a step back. Instead of making a conscious effort to think of startup ideas, turn your mind into the type that startup ideas form in without any conscious effort. In fact, so unconsciously that you don't even realize at first that they're startup ideas.

Young Entrepreneurs' first instinct on starting a startup is to try to figure out the tricks for winning at this new game. Since fundraising appears to be the measure of success for startups, they always want to know what the tricks are  for investors. The best way to satisfy investors is to make a startup that's actually doing well, meaning growing fast.

Depending on how wrecked the company is you can succeed by lapping up to the right people, giving the impression of productivity, and so on. Startups are as impersonal as physics. You have to make something people want, and you prosper only to the extent you do.

At its best, starting a startup is merely a mysterious motive for curiosity. And you'll do it best if you introduce the ulterior motive toward the end of the process.

So for young entrepreneurs, who would like to start a startup remember to boiled down to two words: JUST LEARN – “Paul Graham, Entrepreneur”

Could you run a startup with your best friend?

You grew up together, go out together, and have similar hobbies – but does this mean you’ll be good business partners? The idea of starting up with a friend sounds like fun, and could make business sense too. Businesses with more than one founder tend to be more successful, according to a report by Tech Factor.

But co-founding a business brings with it a whole host of responsibilities that can put the most tried-and-tested friendships under pressure. With many partnerships hinging on complementary skill sets, founders may have opposing approaches to problem-solving, increasing the risk of potential conflict.
Why business partners clash

Spending extended periods of time together is necessary and unavoidable when starting a business. And unless your co-founder is superhuman, it’s likely that little things they do will start to rile you.

“Being together constantly can be challenging,” says Susannah Jones, who co-founded Butchers salon in Hackney with Katie Knox, a friend and former colleague. “We know everything about each other and I know the way I breathe heavily when stressed can irritate Katie. I won’t reveal what annoys me about her.”

The likelihood of conflict increases after the first six months, when the adrenaline rush is over and the day-to-day reality of working together hits, says Christina Lattimer, leadership coach, consultant and founder of the People Development Network. In extreme cases, this can cause daily power struggles if co-founders have opposing personalities.

Tushar Agarwal, co-founder of Hubble, an online marketplace for London office space, met his business partner Tom Watson through Entrepreneur First, a pre-seed investment programme. Agarwal sought someone with complementary skills, but their different personalities mean they disagree daily over design and copy writing.

Sole Is Better, Even Partner Is Damn Good 

“I want everything to be perfect and nuanced before it’s seen by the world, however long it takes. Whereas Tom believes in solving the problem with a quick and dirty solution as soon as possible.”

Conflict can also arise over money when both partners have access to bank accounts, says Mandy Fitzmaurice, managing director of Purple HR. “I’ve heard stories about one clearing out the account and doing a runner or racking up debt without telling the other.”
What’s wrong with a little discord?

While not all clashes are detrimental, if they persist they can have a disastrous impact on a business’s success, says Lattimer. “Whatever the energy inside the partnership, it will inevitably seep out to customers and employees.”

Conflict can also damage personal productivity. “It’s impossible to operate effectively if you’re at loggerheads with each other,” says Fitzmaurice. “If left unresolved, disagreements can lead to terrible disputes, dishonesty and lawyers.”
How to reduce the risk of conflict

It’s important not to take criticism personally, and to settle disagreements through feedback from an external source. “Put it to the jury,” says Pip Black, co-founder of Frame fitness studios. “We have passionate staff and customers so if we need help making a call on something or want a sounding board, we ask them.”

Agarwal and his co-founder settle most disagreements with data. When they clashed over how important the “about” page was on their website, they collected data over two weeks to see how many people visited it.

Compromise can work if your disagreements aren’t settled easily with numbers. Missy Flynn and her two co-founders are equally opinionated but they have avoided arguments about their business, Rita’s bar and restaurant in Hackney. “Rita’s was always meant to be a sum of its parts and everything – the decor, the food, the drink, the music and our ethos has a bit of all of us in it.”

Black and her business partner Joan Murphy couldn’t agree on a name for their fitness studio – she wanted to call it Shake Studios while Murphy preferred Gym and Tonic, so they went back to the drawing board and Frame was a happy compromise.

To ensure your relationship doesn’t revolve around your business, make an effort to socialise together outside of work. Jones and Knox of Butchers salon schedule regular “date nights” when they’re feeling stressed.

“It sounds grown up but our last one ended with us climbing off a boat pissed at 7am,” says Knox. “Date nights remind us that we’re friends, not just business partners.”

For the team at Rita’s, it’s important to get out of the restaurant from time to time. “Sometimes you forget what you used to do when you were just friends without a business. Take a walk, drink a beer, or a coffee, cook dinner and watch movies. Anything.”

If you do find yourself in a blazing row with your co-founder, take a breather and move on as quickly as possible. “The longer the problem continues, the bigger the issue grows,” says Lattimer.

When Lucy Greene and Pandora Lennard, co-founders of modelling agency Anti-Agency, argue, “the eruption will end with the right answer and we just forget the argument ever happened and move on,” says Greene.

Lennard adds: “We both have very fiery tempers so arguments tend to burn out as fast as they flare up. We’re like siblings – we bicker but always make up with hugs.”

And while it’s easy to fixate on disagreements, congratulate yourselves when you work well together, advises Lattimer, and remind yourselves why you wanted to do it in the first place.
Trial phase

Agarwal recommends that entrepreneurs have a trial phase of working together to discover key points of disagreement and personality clashes before committing to anything. “Work on a few small, intense projects to test what it would be like when you’re both stressed in a high-pressure environment.”

And pick your co-founders wisely. Make sure they’re reliable and dedicated, says Eamon Jubbawy, co-founder of background-checking company Onfido: “Are they the type of person who would get out of bed at 3am to help you fix a bug or prepare a client deck? In the early days of a company, those moments define success or failure.”

Once you’ve established a partnership, set clear boundaries. Having more distinct roles from the beginning would have saved Frame’s co-founders a lot of time, says Black; and Flynn would introduce a “no work texts after 10pm” rule with her Rita’s co-founders.

It’s a full-on relationship, adds Flynn, and it won’t be perfect. You might not like each other every day but remember to look after each other – you’re friends after all.

Disclaimer :- Following article come from theguardian

Indian on Innovation

Three Indian companies among world's most innovative firms: Forbes

NEW YORK: Hindustan Unilever, Tata Consultancy ServicesBSE -1.47 % (TCS) and Sun Pharma Industries are the three Indian companies that have been named among the world's 100 most innovative companies by Forbes in a list that has been topped by Tesla Motors. 

 Fast moving consumer goods company Hindustan UnileverBSE -0.25 % has been ranked 41 on the list, followed by TCS at rank 64 and Sun Pharma at rank 71 in the Forbes list of 'The World's Most Innovative Companies'. 

 The list has been topped by Elon Musk's California-Based Tesla Motors which has a market capitalization of USD 25.5 billion. Musk has inherited (former Apple CEO) "Steve Jobs' mantle as the cult favorite CEO. And his electric car company has grabbed Apple's creative crown," it said. 

 On Hindustan Unilever, Forbes said the company had over 35 brands spanning 20 distinct categories. 

 India's largest IT company TCS, with a market cap of USD 80.3 billion, appears on the list for the eighth time. The company took a major step toward bolstering its digital services when last month it announced a training program in digital technologies for a third of its workforce. 

 In the past year it crossed the milestone of employing 100,000 women, meaning that one out of three employees is now a woman, Forbes said. 

 Sun Pharma had a market cap USD 39 billion and India's largest drugs company appears on the list for the fourth straight time. Billionaire Dilip Shanghvi - who owns more than half the company - pipped Mukesh Ambani earlier this year to become the richest man in India.

Stay Strong Startup

 The list also includes software company salesforce.com on the second spot, followed by Amazon (8), Hermes International (22), Netflix (27), MasterCard (36), Starbucks (45), Adobe (74), Coco Cola (81) and Cognizant (96). 

 Forbes said companies are ranked by their innovation premium: the difference between their market capitalisation and a net present value of cash flows from existing businesses. 

 To be included in the list, firms need seven years of public financial data and USD 10 billion in market cap. 

 Forbes said only those industries are included that are known to invest in innovation.

Citation - With Thanks from Economic Times http://goo.gl/SjFyh4

Tech business week: Start-up map and financial results revealed

Start-up map of Ireland goes online

A very useful, living and breathing online map has been produced by Start-up Ireland that takes into account the entire start-up ecosystem in Ireland, including start-ups, accelerators co-working spaces and more.

Produced ahead of the Start-up Gathering this October, the map will always be a work in progress.  For anyone trying to get a grasp of the start-ups of today, access incubators, investors, co-working spaces, accelerators and lots more, it is a fine, detailed piece of work.

Apple reports US$49.6bn quarter, says little about Apple Watch

Apple has been circumspect about the performance of its Apple Watch wearable except to say it got off to a ‘great’ start. The company reported a US$10.7bn profit on third quarter sales of US$49.6bn.

Apple reported third-quarter growth was fuelled by record numbers of iPhone and Mac products and strong revenue from services.

“We had an amazing quarter, with iPhone revenue up 59pc over last year, strong sales of Mac, all-time record revenue from services, driven by the App Store, and a great start for Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.

Microsoft posts US$2bn loss on US$22.1bn in Q4 revenues

Software giant Microsoft has incurred losses of US$2.05bn on fourth quarter revenues of US$22bn, which the company attributed to the costs associated with the US$7.5bn writedown for its acquisition of Nokia Devices as well as restructuring charges of US$780m.

Microsoft also blamed its poor fourth quarter results on the strengthening of the US dollar.

There was also a further charge of US$160m associated with the company’s restructuring.

ChangeX raises €400k seed round

ChangeX, a not-for-profit start-up, has raised €400,000 from a coterie of investors including Storyful founder Mark Little, Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield, prominent Irish financier Dermot Desmond and some high-profile Silicon Valley investors.

The investors also include: John O’Farrell, general partner of Andreessen Horowitz; Albert Wenger, managing partner at Union Square Ventures; Realex founder Colm Lyon; Brian Caulfield from DFJ Espri and Bil McKiernan from WMC Capital.

“I’m a long-time supporter of and believe in the power of grassroots movements and ChangeX has the potential to really accelerate their growth and impact and that’s important for the world,” Greenfield said. “I’ve known Paul for a few years now, I like his work and I’m just delighted to support him and the team in getting ChangeX to fly.”

ChangeX, which was our Boole Start-up of the Week in recent weeks, connects people with the best ideas and like-minded people so they can work on causes that they are passionate about.

Qualcomm to slash 15pc of workforce

Smartphone chipmaker Qualcomm — maker of the Snapdragon processor — is to slash 15pc of its workforce amidst a global slowdown in chip demand and pressure from an activist investor.

Qualcomm, a US$105bn technology powerhouse, employs 31,000 people worldwide and believes it could cut US$1.1bn a year in annual costs by cutting 4,500 workers by 2016.

Qualcomm, which operates a global R&D operation in Cork and is an investor in Dublin tech firm Cubic Telecom, has been under pressure since activist hedge fund Jana Partners acquired a US$2bn stake in the company.

9 out of 10 Irish adults bought online in the last year

The digital economy is alive and kicking in Ireland with nine out of 10 adults making purchases online in the last year. But Irish firms are missing out because 91pc of them don’t have e-commerce capabilities.

New research from Deloitte shows Irish consumers are no longer using the internet to simply source information. Engaging with businesses and other consumers, as well as sharing experiences, is becoming an increasingly important part of the purchasing decision and the majority of consumers under the age of 35 put most of their trust in anonymous online consumer reviews.

Clothing and footwear (49pc), hotel and accommodation (46pc), transport services (44pc) and books, music and games (42pc) are amongst the most popular items purchased online.

Citation from Siliconrepublic : https://goo.gl/JUaNiC

EAT, PROGRAM, LOVE: THE RISE OF TECH START-UPS IN BALI

Instead of unwinding in the tropical paradise of Bali, entrepreneurs are opting to plug into the island's emerging tech start-up scene because of a thriving start-up ecosystem, low overheads and, of course, the allure of the beautiful surroundings.

"With the rapid shift in remote working and entrepreneurial hubs popping up all over, [Bali] has quickly become quite a fascinating place for start-ups," said Andrea Loubier, CEO of Mailbird, a Bali-based email client start-up told CNBC in an email interview.

After completing her college education in the U.S., Loubier worked forseveral years before taking the plunge to seek out opportunities in Asia.

It was in Bali that Loubier met Michael Bodekaer, founder of Livit, an Indonesian-based tech start-up ecosystem. He invited her onboard tolaunch Mailbird, a Windows email client program, which was her first experience of building a tech company from the ground up.

Infrastructure, co-working spaces and start-up ecosystems

The IT infrastructure in Bali has grown rapidly over the last three years,with more Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and fiber optic networks.

"There are also many coworking and entrepreneurial initiatives in place to encourage the growth of tech start-ups," said Loubier.

For example, Livit collaborates with fledgling entrepreneurs and start-ups, providing them with mentors, specialist resources, growth acceleration and a space to work in one of Livit's six villas in Southeastern Bali.

Another successful start-up is Labster, a Bali-based tech science education company that generates scenarios with 3D animations to visualize life sciences and help students virtually go through their lab exercises.

Livit's ecosystem is unique because it functions as a coworking, co-living incubator program. Every need is taken care of, allowing participants to focus solely on their projects. Think of it as a work-and-play retreat with expert guidance on hand for the whole start-up team.

Many other coworking spaces in Bali also aim to create a conducive environment for tech start-ups to thrive, by actively promoting entrepreneurship, business networking and seminars through weekly events and conferences.

Strategic position

As an island province of Indonesia, Bali is in a good strategic position to attract IT talent, entrepreneurs and investments from Jakarta or Bandung, which have more mature IT infrastructure and investing communities. The greater Indonesian market also presents growth potential for Bali-based tech start-ups to tap into, or the location could be used as a launch pad to access the rest of Asia.

Bali might be an ideal haven in which to come up with new innovationsbut if the start-ups want to scale up, there are also limitations to overcome.

"They need to maintain and attract more IT resources to Bali, set up good business connections in other Indonesia cities and internationally, provide competitive customer service and support from their location," Yanna Dharmasthira, research director at Gartner, told CNBC in an email interview.

"Bali is somewhat remote in nature, compared to other cities, and the travelling expenses in and out of Bali should also be considered," she said.

"The island of gods" still has some way to go before claiming the title of Asia's Silicon Valley, but it is nonetheless a great middle ground for digital entrepreneurs to work in a beautiful, non-urban environmentand still be close to modern comforts and small luxuries.

CITATION FROM CNBC:http://goo.gl/rYk9Df

HOW AMERICAN INVESTORS BOOST EUROPEAN STARTUPS

European startups who attract the attention of U.S. investors not only raise more money but also have the potential to grow faster than those backed by European firms, The Wall Street Journal reported last week.

Despite the tech boom, European startups still struggle to raise the same levels of funding from European investors as startups in the U.S. are able to secure from American investors. While many point to the complex digital landscape in Europe, which makes cross-border trade and growth difficult, a deeply rooted aversion among Europeans to make the types of risky investments U.S. venture capitalists pursue may also be a factor.

WSJ cited data from Dow Jones VentureSource, which said that in 2013 European startups seeking to raise a second round of funding found an average of $8 million from potential U.S. investors. In comparison, startups that received interest from European investors were only able to raise a median amount of $3 million.

Even for startups in the early stages of raising money, the trend was still evident.

“If you’re based in San Francisco, you can fill up your whole portfolio in a 40-minute car ride. In Europe we have to take planes from one country to another,” Neil Rimer, a Geneva-based managing partner at Index Ventures, told WSJ.

But a rise in the number of viable European startups presents increased opportunities for U.S.

In 2014, the Dow Jones VentureSource found European-backed startups raised $9.2 billion dollars, up from $6.3 billion in 2010, with 40 percent of the money raised by the companies who had at least one American investor, WSJ said.

Ciarán O’Leary, a partner at Berlin-based venture capital fund Earlybird, told WSJ that U.S. investors are now tapping into the increased number and quality of startups Europe has to offer, while avoiding the potential for enormous losses surrounding the sky-high valuations of late in Silicon Valley.

“The deal terms are not as crazy as in the U.S.,” said O’Leary. “In the U.S., investing at a later stage has become a price war.”

CITATION FROM PYMNTS.COM : http://goo.gl/OFdaL9

STARTUPS SERVING THE 99 PERCENT WILL BE THE NEXT BILLION-DOLLAR COMPANIES

Many fast-growing companies in Silicon Valley have one thing in common: they cater to a small, affluent, urban population — the 1 percent. Residents in high-cost cities like San Francisco, New York and Los Angeles can order an array of goods and services from their mobile phones.

These startups, including Uber, Instacart and a host of food delivery apps like Munchery, GrubMarket, Blue Apron, and Postmates, eventually have plans to broaden their offerings to attract middle-income consumers. This is the classic trickle-down business model.

As Farhad Manjoo wrote in The New York Times, “The rich subsidize the rest of us — were it not for the suckers who spent more than $10,000 on early versions of the Mac, Apple might not have survived to build the iPhone.”

As a venture capitalist who has invested in both Chinese and U.S. startups since 2005, I’ve backed several companies leveraging the trickle-down model, such as GrubMarket. But, now I see it also makes sense for some founders to take the opposite approach: mass market first.

Going Mass Market First

Attacking a mass market from day one may seem daunting, but it’s not impossible — just ask startups in China. Many Chinese startups go after the mass market right out of the gate, as hundreds of millions of consumers there fall into the middle class. There also are many high-net-worth individuals in China, with plenty of companies chasing them, but the sheer size of the Chinese middle class makes the mass-market-first business model viable. Companies like Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu and YY all went after the mass market right away.

Founders with a global vision to serve the world’s middle class have the chance to create billion-dollar companies with lasting growth potential.

The huge growth in global smartphone adoption will now make this approach more common outside of China. Unlike the first wave of late 1990s (Internet companies that targeted higher-income consumers who could afford expensive computers), today’s startups can quickly reach billions of middle-income consumers who only need a simple smartphone and low-cost data plan to get online.

My favorite current example of the mass-market-first model is Xiaomi, one of the world’s most valuable private companies. Like Apple, Xiaomi makes high-quality, coveted smartphones. Unlike Apple, Xiaomi’s phones are priced very affordably. Companies like Xiaomi with mass-market appeal not only grow faster, but survive market downturns better than companies catering to the 1 percent.

Sectors Ripe For Mass Market First

Consumer Hardware. We already have the ultimate example of a successful mass-market-first company: Xiaomi. And not only is Xiaomi creating low-cost, high-quality hardware, it’s putting customers at the center of the entire design process. Xiaomi collects tons of usage data and customer feedback, and integrates these findings into future products. Xiaomi now has a massive customer base; the company sold 61 million phones in 2014 and recently broke a world record by selling more than 2 million phones in one day. With that scale, a whole startup ecosystem has sprung up to sell mass-market accessories and home appliances controlled by Xiaomi phones, including Zimi (battery packs), 1More (headphones) and Huami (activity trackers).

E-Commerce. When it comes to e-commerce, Chinese companies like Alibaba and JD.comnailed the mass-market-first approach, and similar models are beginning to emerge in the U.S. Whereas U.S. e-commerce startups tend to go after high-end consumers first (including Etsy, Gilt Groupe and monthly subscription boxes like Birchbox), Chinese e-commerce startups often target middle-income consumers first.

In China, Mogujie and Meilishuo.com have achieved mass reach selling low-cost items like clothes, baby goods and household goods. In the U.S., a great example of a mass-market-first startup is Wish, a smartphone shopping platform offering low-cost products shipped directly from China and elsewhere. It has a massive following of U.S. and European shoppers looking for bargains across its four apps (Wish, Geek, Mama and Cute).

Emerging e-commerce giants in India, such as Flipkart and Snapdeal, are also succeeding with mass market first. Companies that sell every-day items to millions of people, not those selling special treats and luxury goods to the 1 percent, will have staying power when the next economic downturn hits.

On-Demand Services. Though most mobile apps for on-demand services cater to tech-savvy early adopters, some can and will succeed with the mass market. In China, that’s already the case. For example, while Uber perfected the top-down approach, starting with luxury town cars and expanding into shared cars with UberX, Didi Dache in China and GrabTaxi in Southeast Asia started with the mass market first. These companies recruited existing taxi drivers for low-cost rides, and are only now expanding into luxury services.

Meituan, a daily deals site, and Wuba, the ‘Craigslist of China’, also offered their services via mobile app to the mass market first. Some on-demand mobile apps that could appeal to middle-income consumers in the U.S. include Boxed, which delivers a low-cost ‘club store’ shopping experience, and any other services that offer affordable necessities,

While it’s perhaps more natural to build a mass-market startup in China and even India, it’s far from impossible in the U.S. More importantly, the best startups taking the mass-market-first approach know they must go global from day one. Catering to the 1 percent in San Francisco and New York may deliver revenue and high margins in the short term, but founders with a global vision to serve the world’s middle class have the chance to create billion-dollar companies with lasting growth potential.

 

 Citation from TechCrunch:  http://goo.gl/ZrG1Jd

ANA and United Airlines reward SME business travelers

All Nippon Airways (ANA) and United Airlines recently launched the Asia Joint Venture Simple program, a complimentary corporate travel program to support small- and medium-sized enterprises based in Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam with discounts when their employees travel on business to destinations in North, Central and South America.

SME businessmen and employees get discounts and other benefits when they fly on business via All Nippon Airways and United Airlines.

The program gives SMEs in the said countries access to a comprehensive trans-Pacific network through United and ANA that connects to over 227 destinations in the US as well as Central and South America – enabling SME employees to enjoy far more convenient travel. Unlike other corporate programs, Asia JV Simple places no limits on a company’s revenue to qualify for the scheme, enabling more SMEs to benefit. Among the additional benefits SME travelers will receive include premier status, lounge access and upgrades and, like other customers, they can earn award miles by joining United’s MileagePlus frequent flyer program.

“SMEs play a vital role in our local and regional economies, comprising 90 percent of businesses in the Asia-Pacific region and accounting for 60-80 percent of jobs and 30 percent of total exports.  We’re delighted to support SMEs with this new program,” said Alison Espley, United’s managing director of Japan and Pacific Sales.

Mitsuo Tomita, ANA’s vice president of Marketing and Sales Asia, believes that “this program will prove highly popular with our current and future SME customers, who represent an important section of the global business community. The Asia JV Simple program supports them by making the comprehensive networks of our two airlines easier than ever for them to access. This will make business travel a breeze for SMEs, and contribute to their growth potential.”

Launched in April 2011, the trans-Pacific joint venture between United and ANA involves both airlines working together to coordinate sales and marketing to improve customer experience with more choices, more convenience and unprecedented flexibility in trans-Pacific travel. The Asia JV Simple program is an extension of this joint venture tailored specifically to support SME business travelers as they grow their businesses.

Citation from : THE STANDARD- Defining the news : http://goo.gl/ZWHu2V

At UNDP, Innovation for Development

On June 19, in a building of the US Senate, our UNDP Washington Representation Office participated in an Innovation Fair organized by the UN Foundation. The event was a timely success as development organizations must seek to innovate to meet stakeholders’ expectations in a fast-changing environment.

Among our partners, for example, USAID runs a Global Development Lab, UNICEF works with Silicon Valley’s technology start-ups and the US Global Development Council recently proposed new social impact funds and cash-on-delivery models.

UNDP has inherited a solid tradition of game-changing ideas such as the Human Development Index and continues to leverage technical, social and managerial innovation throughout its programs and operations.

In Sierra Leone, Yemen and the Democratic Republic of Congo, UNDP employs pioneering biometric voter registration techniques like fingerprint and eye scan, unique and unchangeable traits of a person, to prevent fraud and build trust in fair elections.

Using mobile phone messaging, Tanzanian voters check their electoral registration status and polling station location whilst in Papua New Guinea and the Philippines, text messages provide tsunami and earthquake warning.

On a global level, taking advantage of internet and mobile phone technologies, UNDP is polling people’s opinions (more than 2 million so far) to vote for the “World You Want” in addition to hundreds of community-based consultations. All results and data are shared publicly.

For many organizations, innovation also enables more direct communication and transparent management. Today UNDP leads the way on transparency by releasing all its project data on open.undp.org as well as its audit reports. By leveraging technology, UNDP can better monitor and evaluate its own programs and ensure greater citizen engagement through simpler reporting, mobile data collection or participatory statistics.

Social innovators such as A.H Khan (Khan Academy) or Mohamed Yunus (Grameen) work across sectors to propose new business models for a sustainable economy, such as distance learning and social entrepreneurship.  In 2014, UNDP launched the Social Innovation Initiative to combat corruption in Asia-Pacific, which funded theThai Youth Anti-Corruption Network’s "Refuse To Be Corrupt” cafés in universities, giving students a place to discuss and tackle corruption in their schools and communities.

Recently, our Innovation Board launched the UNDP Innovation Facility, with Denmark stepping forward as the founding donor.  This flexible mechanism will seek to offer technical and financial support, so that UNDP and its partners may propose new solutions to increasingly complex development challenges.

Innovation implies thinking outside of the box and taking risks, often a challenge for large organizations! Yet, UNDP is learning every day to harness innovation and stay a global leader.

Citation from UNDP : http://goo.gl/yEgY97

4 Keys To A Sustainable Content Marketing Strategy

READY FOR INNOVATION : START UP WITH VENTURE ART

Positioning an agency as a genuine thought leader in any competitive industry (and nowadays they are ALL competitive) carries the inherent challenge of building an enduring content strategy. The ability to remain in touch with the progression of marketing technology, and to capture it effectively through blogging initiatives, requires that agencies adapt their traditional content production methods to produce social engagement and social capital.

Automating social media and PR is one way of doing this. But it’s not the only way.

Here are some other keys to a sustainable content marketing strategy:

1. Data visualization

Writes Dorie Clark, a noted marketing strategy consultant, “Two recent factors have conspired to make this the moment for data visualization. First is the rise of Big Data and the growing public awareness of its power. Today more than ever, professionals are being asked to argue their cases and make their decisions based on data. But that push outside IT circles means that many non-technical professionals must now produce and comprehend insights from Big Data.

Visualization can help, and a raft of new tools makes that possible.” Nowadays, a business need not spend vast amounts of money to get right with data visualization (dataviz). These recent tools have become continuously more powerful and egalitarian. Far gone are those times when IT had to generate all reports for the non-technical employees. It’s easier than ever before for employees to speedily discover new things in increasingly abundant datasets. Examples include Visual.ly, Tableau, and R.

The more data marketers have on what their audience is doing, the better sustainable content marketing they can strategize.

2. Animation

You grab the attention of Facebook junkies with animation. E-cards are all animated. Reaching out to thank loyal customers is done through animated e-mails and other platforms. YouTube alone gets a billionunique visitors each month. If it moves, and it’s on the Internet, somebody is watching it.

The Internet is animated, and it’s only going to get more animated. Free animation software is readily available. You can only say the same thing about your brand in different ways so many times—but you can illustrate your brand in a never-ending variety of ways.

3. Engaging and interactive digital experiences

Yoav Vilner is a trending tech blogger and growth hacker. He’s all about the immediacy of SMS: “Right now, only 7 percent of consumers use SMS as a viable means to communicate with brands. But this is about to change. The same behavior that drives Self-Service is driving SMS customer service. Your customers don’t want to use call channels unless absolutely necessary. SMS is non-intrusive, low impact and an easily manageable solution.”

SMS is not a cure-all for content marketing strategy; when reaching customers via SMS just make sure to only send offers with real value.

4. Building communities

Michael Del Gigante, president and creative director ofMDG Advertising, says, “Everything we do as an agency is focused on building brand loyalty and advocacy for our clients. Customers are a community—one that changes and grows. We treat them as individuals, but we continually extend an invitation to each one of them through all touch points to join in a larger dialogue.”

Del Gigante continues, “Even though technology has enabled us to build and facilitate conversations with online communities, it still takes a skilled team that can speak on behalf of the brand and provide timely response to comments and questions. It’s important to remember that providing valuable information to a community that can share and comment on it is the goal. Consumers are savvy and will disengage if you use these communities as another platform to deliver marketing messages.”

Micah Solomon, a writer on corporate culture, says of customers, especially the large segment known as Millennials: “Millennials enjoy the possibility of collaborating with businesses and brands, as long as they believe their say matters to the company in question. They don’t necessarily see a clear boundary between the customer and the brand, the customer and marketer, and the customer and service provider.” 

A continuing dialogue with customers makes the marketer’s content marketing strategy that much more easy—and sustainable. 

CITATION  FROM  FORBES : http://goo.gl/LO3RCE