Hi: Sounds promising. Something to remember, however, is that a VC who invests in a series B round has different objectives than an angel investor, a seed investor and perhaps even in investor in a series A round. If one of the B round investors in that other company has been with that company through all of those stages, they may be a candidate for you to approach, but if they're only in at the B level, you may not interest them at this time. That said, it may not hurt to chat with a B round investor to get on their radar. They may even point you to an earlier stage investor colleague. That should be part of the prioritization exercise you take with your potential investor pool. Before you approach any investor, however, get your story straight around differentiation and your company's unique approach to solving a marketplace problem. If you wish to discuss, send me a PM through Clarity for 15 free minutes. Cheers, Kerby

From an identity and branding standpoint, it sounds like your operations in the two states provide the same product or service to the same target demographic. Thus, they should stay as a unified brand as far as your look and feel, including logo, website, business cards, and social media. It's not unusual for companies to co-locate. This is partially a legal question, so be sure to contact your accountant and lawyer about the matter. However, it would be helpful to learn more about what your startup does in order to best solve your dilemma, including how location-dependent the service is. Would you like to set up a call so that we can dive into the issue further?

I have lived and worked both in Dubai and Bahrain and done business and help set up branches all across the GCC - also known as the Arabian Gulf. Firstly, let me commend you on having boots on the ground in trying to sell your product in this part of the world. Its really tough to sell a software product from afar unless you are so unique that customers are going to be forced to listen. I assume you have competitors. Dubai is usually where most multi national companies set up their regional head quarters and there are very good reasons for that. Namely easy set up, great infrastructure and desirable living conditions for your personnel. However its not inexpensive to both set up as well as operate in. Bahrain is a less expensive place to operate with good infrastructure, hungry job seekers and easy access by road to the Saudi market. If you have researched which country may be your primary target market - its usually one of the two - UAE or Saudi, then take your pick: Bahrain or UAE. Oman is also not too difficult to set up a branch but without significant investment, setting up in the other Gulf countries is more challenging. Travel connections are easy except for the recent rift with Qatar. Feel free to set up a call with me to get more detailed answers to any questions you may have.

You can base your business in mostly referrals, however, if you want to grow substantially, you should use some paid advertising to boost your revenue. It all really depends on how much you want to grow and how fast. If you are alone as an architect without staff, then referrals are a good place to begin since you can only take on so many projects at any given time. -Richard

Looks like you have already defined your ideal customer; Next You need to find out where the potential students spend their time - Online & Physically - and meet them there. I'll start with the option, which I think has the most potential: and the answer is NOT online - do not underestimate the value of networking; going to meetup's - interest clubs - sticking adverts on buildings, bus stops etc. with little rip-off pieces. Online: - do they spend time on facebook? probably the most undervalued forms of marketing - quora - you can do a very narrow targeting through Google Ads, but you did mention a very low budget. Hope this helps Sylvia

Hi, I was once in such an environment. The company had an interesting way of dealing with the slowdown... they sold vacation time. Here's how it worked (and it may only help you in 2019) If you know you don't need a full complement of staff in the last weeks of the year, offer your employees the chance to take an extra week of vacation in that time which will be unpaid. However, if they do want a paycheck, they can 'buy a week of vacation' by deducting 1/51st of a week's pay from each week's pay over the course of the year. So a person who earns $1000/wk would have $19.61 taken off each week's pay in order to get a paycheck on the week which is essentially an unpaid absence. The money just goes back and forth. The effect though is that your labor cost is cut in the slow period of the year. People get excited about their extra vacation week. Happiness and fun fill the air in the lead-up to 'vacation time.' Hope that helps. dave www.DavidCBarnett.com

I've watched different companies struggle with customer acquisition, and I myself struggled with it. I doesn't matter if its a physical product, a service or an app. Attention costs a lot of money, usually more than we can afford. Paid acquisition should never be your main driver of new users, it will almost never pay for itself on its own. The only way to create a sustainable business is to have enough organic growth. I would suggest using your marketing budget not on generating direct sales but rather on cultivating channels that can grow organically. There are many ways you can achieve this. Some tactics that are commonly used: Offer free products in exchange for "honest" reviews (https://www.amazon.com/gp/vine/help). Find influencers (read people that are active on social media) that might have interest in your product, in your case - outdoor people - hikers, travelers, etc. Send them free samples, ask them to recommend it to their users if they like the product. Another avenue I would suggest exploring is going to B2B or B2B2C. Camps & resorts for example would be places that probably have interest in product. Reach out to them, send them free samples. Offer them to purchase it, or to sell it in their gift stores. I would be happy to discuss this further, answer questions and offer more advice. Good luck, Ron

Hey, This is a great question that can be answered with many answers. Simply, and as cliche as it is, it is to believe in yourself and promote your true self. Simon Sinek wrote a book called "Start with WHY" and it is about finding out WHY you do things and start with telling people why you do things instead of what you do. Mostly everyone promotes WHAT they do and HOW they are different from everyone else who does the same thing they do. I firmly believe Sinek is correct when he says to start with telling people WHY you do what you do then tell them how you do it. Once you start to apply this to everyday life, you will notice yourself become different from your peers. It will be subtle but this is a way to stay true to who you are and what you believe and you can be a leader with that. Good luck

I'm a buyer and not a shopper so I've already decided I'm going to purchase before I'm in front of a salesperson. Prior to choosing to buy I ask; Do I want this? Do I need this? Can I afford it? I've already done my research and know what price is fair. What makes me say yes is based on convenience and whether or not I like the person selling me. What is the path of least resistance for me the buyer? Is the salesperson genuine and do they actually care about helping me? As a salesperson, I always strive to take as much off my client's plate as possible and it's very easy to "sell" to someone who likes you.

It would run more smoothly if there were fewer people in the communication chain HOWEVER do not connect your client direct to the developers. 1) clients will casually "remember" things that need to be added and go direct to the developers with their requests, which will cut into your margins 2) developers that you don't have air-tight contracts with will negotiate direct with the client and cut you out - make no mistake about it, you could have a great relationship with the client but business is business Do NOT mention the development partner name anywhere. The client is not signing an agreement with, or contracting with them - it is with YOU so the agreement needs to be with you. Unless you are planning to reverse the relationship and become an affiliate of the development company, you need to touch all the money. Why would you allow your valuable clients (assets) to be managed in any way by someone that isn't your company?

Hello, thanks for ask. Well, in the Web are specialized sites for coders, developers and testers. I reccomend you the three I consider best for your searching: 1.Toptal: It matches the a good percentage of freelance developers with employers. Based on your project description, you will be matched with the developer most suited for the job. You will then have two weeks to decide if they are right for you. 2. Matchist: This site connects top freelance developers with entrepreneurs and startups. You submit your project, and they will give you three great developers from which to choose. Matchist accepts only 15 percent of developer applicants to their network. 3. Guru: Guru allows you to look for specific services and people who provide them. These include general programming, language-specific programming, software, and management. I hope this info would be useful for you. Greetings.

Hi: Congrats on arriving at this important juncture in your business. Regardless of how you decide to compensate the development team (or any other employees/contractors), your most valuable asset at this point is your vision -- rallying others around conquering a big, broad challenge is stickier than cranking out code for a platform/app. Otherwise, please know that raising money will take longer than you anticipate, via either the crowdfunding route or the angel investor path. What is your plan for the period where you are developing the product but have received $0? Lastly, I can't tell if you have an MVP, but if you don't yet, consider one of the many low-cost hacks that others have had success with -- presenting even a rudimentary version of your solution is easier than pitching a dream. If you wish to discuss, send me a PM through Clarity for 15 free minutes. Cheers, Kerby

Hello, thanks for ask. Well, in the Web are specialized sites for coders, developers and testers. I reccomend you the three I consider best for your searching: 1.Toptal: It matches the a good percentage of freelance developers with employers. Based on your project description, you will be matched with the developer most suited for the job. You will then have two weeks to decide if they are right for you. 2. Matchist: This site connects top freelance developers with entrepreneurs and startups. You submit your project, and they will give you three great developers from which to choose. Matchist accepts only 15 percent of developer applicants to their network. 3. Guru: Guru allows you to look for specific services and people who provide them. These include general programming, language-specific programming, software, and management. I hope this info would be useful for you. Greetings.

Jon Loomer has an excellent library of resource that can help you: https://www.jonloomer.com/tag/facebook-custom-audiences/

Hello: Sounds like you have some pieces in place, which is good. To get the rest secured, consider the following: * Develop a financing plan that encompasses how the money you raise will drive your business' growth as well as how much you need - it sounds like your initial approach fell a bit short. * Explore borrowing options through community banks, credit unions, microlenders or other places that help earlier stage businesses and usually offer lower interest rates than credit cards. * On the investment side, really think through your needs - weigh buying vs. leasing and new vs. used, in addition to prioritizing your equipment from must-have to nice-to-have. If you wish to discuss, send me a PM through Clarity for 15 free minutes. Cheers, Kerby

This is a very large matter, of course. It needs thorough investigation, otherwise would be a grandiose waste of money and time and will lead to a failure. I have business experience in Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Central Asia. And I am convinced, whatever is well working in one place, doesn't work mandatory well in other places. Provided, it is not about any international brand of electronic gadgets, construction machines, power generators or fashion clothes. As you say to "set up branding business", obviously you mean to set up a new brand. In that case, first I advise if you are not African, find somebody lived for long and last years there. Local mentality and culture' knowledge is the most important factor. There are tons of investigations, reports, etc. from banks, agencies, companies or private investigators. Those can be supportive to you. But the main support shall be from a local person, he/she will explain to you the culture. And there is the starting point of your business. all the best Val

Video production is in super high demand and a great lucrative niche! I would start by building up your social media channels with your work. Showing off your skills. Demonstrating your value consistently. Next find brands that get you motivated and offer them a free video for their brand. You will find 9 outta 10 brands are always looking for high quality video. Study their social media channels and if they are not using a lot of videos odds are they dont have a source of good video production. Offering the free video will show your skills, help the brand and make them want to hire you (if you are good) and also can also go viral. Make sure to watermark the free video. From there you just have to seal the deal with those brand and then you can start using them as a reference to your clients and that will surely help attract high paying clients. I have lots of other ideas here too. If you need my help along the way Im just a call away.

Chiropractors often sell supplements to drive revenue in their business. They're capped out like dentists and tradespeople on the hours they can crack backs (or 'drill and fill' as the dentists do), so supplements are a great complimentary product that doesn't eat time to fulfill. You'll see a bunch of them and doctors getting into CBD oil now. Their client base already has trust in them so these recommendations are easy to swallow heh heh. Be looking for your version of supplements in the architectural field. Something complimentary, that your clientele already trusts you about, that you can earn a recurring income on while not using up more of your time. One advantage I see them having over you is I presume they see more people in a day. What can you do to increase the number of people you see in a day, to leverage your "architect authority" and drive the income stream of the complimentary product or service? Could be as easy as loans: helping people rent money from your position as a professional. Food for thought.

Create a simple logo in photoshop using a font. Zero cost. But, it's worth hiring a designer. If you don't know any, just hit the #logodesign hashtag on instagram and DM the one you liked most and offer the money you have.

I would start with some growth hacks to increase your sales without raising your costs that much. 1. Social media - provide valuable content related to your SAAS and the industry it targets. Build traction by showing case studies, customer reviews, how customers use your product and how it saves them time & their sanity. 2. Referrals - if you have happy customers who love your product you could create and easy referral program offering your happy customers an incentive for sharing your product. Make this very easy like 1-2 clicks. All the biggest SAAS companies have used this tactic to scale their users rapidly. 3. Create Content - Create valuable content on your website that will laser target your client base in the search engines for the problems they have, and how you can solve them. Along the same lines of the social media content creation... Case studies, how users use your product, videos, reviews, tips & tricks, etc. I would set aside at least 30 minutes per day and focus on this. Ideally more time will increase sales. But the key is consistency. I have lots of other ideas how to help here so if you need my help along the way Im just one call away.

Hi: It sounds like your non-profit is in the early stages, so it's probably as rich in vision and mission as it is poor in cash. That's a great start. Now take that vision and mission and sell it to family, friends, colleagues and strangers. Open with what need exists, follow with what you're doing to fulfill that need and what's driving you and close with an appeal for $. Once you're more established and have outcomes, there are other sources, but as you get rolling, it's all about selling that vision and mission. If you wish to discuss, send me a PM through Clarity for 15 free minutes. Cheers, Kerby

One of the best resources BY FAR for SEO is SEMRush.com. Their free PDFs (https://www.semrush.com/ebooks/) will keep you awake for nights! Let me know if I can help you further.

It’s an interesting concept and the next step is to qualify it further with some market research. Where will you find your potential customers for services? My initial assumption would be in a relatively dense urban setting where people want to commute to work or school by biking, or otherwise on their feet, and they need access to a shower and a place to change clothes. I recommend surveying the nearest metro area (New York, San Francisco, et cetera) which is close to you and look for a traffic pattern that would support providing the services. Maybe there is a neighborhood of office buildings or a university where there are inadequate showering options for commuters. I think you could do a site survey for a few places, to see what you learn. You might also consider spending some time at the bike racks and talking with bicyclists to see how they are dealing with the issue today. Is there a need for what you would like to provide? How much would they be willing to pay? You can also scout out the real estate to determine the costs of creating a facility with the tenant improvements necessary to serve your customers. Conversely, maybe the business is brokering existing shower or bathroom facilities at businesses or at residences with your customers in a manner similar to Airbnb. Maybe the business is providing portable showering facilities by converting RVs so they 2-3 sets of showers, then you can serve weekday commuters but also provide services at local festivals where there are no services. It’s hard to say what the results will be but I believe doing some market research will give you a better sense of the viability of the concept. You may well uncover other unmet needs that you could serve better than your original concept. If you can identify a basic value proposition to get started, then you can iterate from there.

Hello, Great question! I went from a large firm to a small business and became the manager quickly. I ran and managed the entire office and that is how my experience relates. There are multiple ways to keep the manager enticed to stay in your organization. Here are a few ideas that have worked, could work, and other ideas that I have heard. 1. Pay - of course providing a higher pay to the manager to retain them. This shows that they are valued to the growth of the company. You are investing in the manager as a key piece to keep the company growing. 2. Providing Education - Paying for classes to help this certain employee grow personally. Ideally, paying for the classes to help this employee grow professionally will help both your company and your employees growth. 3. Retirement - provide a retirement account for the employee if you do not have one yet. 4. Student Loans - help by paying for part of their student loans. Obviously this relates to pay but this is a different way that can keep the employee enticed to stay. 5. Delegate - if they are that good and qualified to keep, allow them for responsibility/freedom to incorporate their ideas so they feel the value they are bringing to the company. This is just a few example but I hope these help and if you want more ideas, please reach out. good luck!

We need to start with the outcome in mind; if meeting facilitator knows what he/she would like to accomplish then meeting would be more productive. Basics are: 1. Create an agenda (and attach to it) and let it know 2. Be prepare 3. Listen to understand 4, Have an assigment to participans as a follow up 5. Stand up meetings are more productive.