CSB Interviews - Josh Weinstein of GoodCrush
March 2, 2010
Company: GoodCrush.com
Name: Josh Weinstein
Title : Founder
Email : reps(at)goodcrush.com
Give us the 30-second elevator pitch of your company
GoodCrush is focused on connecting student bodies. We started out with the CrushFinder – a simple anonymous matching service where you have a risk-free way of making a match - that was used by 30% of Princeton within 24 hours of launch. Now we are spreading the love to other campuses nation-wide and have requests from international schools as well. We’re constantly adding functionality and currently have profiles, messaging, Top 10 and the very-popular missed connections.
Tell us about the founders, who they are, backgrounds, and why they are passionate about your company
I started GoodCrush with a simple idea – there should be a way to connect people in a risk-free way. I created the CrushFinder and launched it the day before Valentine’s Day of 2007 as a student government project while I was Vice-President. My passion for the company is rooted in the success of and excitement created by the initial launch of the CrushFinder as well as the subsequent match stories, requests for additional features, as well as new schools reaching out for the service.
Do you have funding?
Yes. We raised seed funding from FirstMark Capital to get us to launch and are currently looking to raise our next round.
How do you make money?
Dating sites and social networks have proven a wide array of business models. At the moment, we aim to improve the functionality and utility of the service as much as possible before implementing potential revenue models. Among the ideas we are considering are premium services and virtual goods.
What are your startup’s goals for this year?
The goal up until now was to build an offering to whet the appetites of students and generate excitement for our upcoming features. This year, we aim to expand the number of schools significantly and add the functionality that will make GoodCrush a truly unique, compelling, and useful service.
What makes GoodCrush different from the hundreds of other dating sites out there?
I’m hesitant to place GoodCrush in the same category of “the hundreds of other dating sites out there.” GoodCrush focuses on connecting student bodies – bringing people together within dense and insulated social networks. Although we see an opportunity for inter-campus interaction down the line, our core focus right now is on intra-campus crushing and matching. There are people that you already like or have noticed on campus, and those people may like you…we are changing the way people connect on campus by helping facilitate that connection.
CSB Returns and Upcoming Events
February 16, 2010
Hey everyone.
My apologies for the extended absence. I’ve been working a TON (not at a startup right now), trying to get my personal site back up and running (if any of you are good with WP let me know…. Fantastico doesn’t let me install in my root directory and I’m having issues there), doing the school thing (15 hours this semester) and being a new dad (well… he’s 8 months old, so maybe not so new….).
But I’m making a concentrated effort to start publishing at least once per week, with the first being late this week or early next week. I’m doing an interview with a company that just launched.
Hopefully I’ve still got a subscriber or two.
While you’re waiting on my next post, for those of you in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, there’s a great event happening a week from Thursday (Feb 25th). It’s dinner and some presentations about Bootstrapping.
What: Bootstrapping Event
When: February 25th, 2010, dinner’s at 5:30pm
Where: Infomart #2019, 1950 Stemmons Freeway, Dallas 75207 (aka the Architel/Big in Japan Offices)
Who: The event is presented by the MIT Enterprise Forum, and two of my buddies are presenting, Ryan Roberts and Alex Muse
Why You Should Go: The presenters lineup is REALLY freaking good. Besides Ryan and Alex, there will be a rep from the new Tech WildCatters microseed fund presenting. Also, if you’re an entrepreneur, a little bird whispered in my ear that there will be a discount.
Cost: $20 (which includes dinner…. BARGAIN!), and there are discounts available for entrepreneurs. Space is limited, so sign up now.
More Info: http://www.mitforum.com/2010/02/12/bootstrapping-2010/
CSB Interviews - Andy Beal of Loomagoo.com
September 29, 2009
The Textbook Market is one that’s badly in need of an overhaul. I recently (or not so recently, sorry Andy!) connected with Andy Beal, who’s trying to reshape that market and perhaps make it a little more efficient.
Company: Loomagoo.com
Name: Andy Beal
Title : Founder
Email : andy(at)loomagoo.com
Give us the 30-second elevator pitch of your company
Loomagoo.com is online marketplace for students to buy and sell used textbooks, and upload and share supplemental learning material. The site was created by two college students eager to bring the offline-aspect of the classroom, online. Loomagoo was launched in January 2009 and to date is operating at 5 colleges and universities. Our goal is to bring the social network into the classroom. We want to give our users the tools to exchange knowledge and information instantaneously, and we want to give it them for free. Our marketing strategy extends across several online channels, including a Facebook Application that allows for seemless integration between both sites. Our business model focuses on securing partnerships with companies interested in the college market.
Tell us about the founders, who they are, backgrounds, and why they are passionate about your company
Loomagoo was founded by Andy Beal and Chris Zimny. Beal is a recent graduate of Loyola University New Orleans and current 1L at Loyola Law. He is deeply passionate about the online, social-networking fabric and the abundance of tools that it brings to a user. ”Loomagoo is a necessary step in achieving a real-time, online learning environment. The wealth of information that exists on campuses across the country can, and I think it will, be brought together, sorted, ranked, and made available to everyone, for free!” Zimny is a Finance/Economics major with a soft spot for P/E ratios and financial data. He is the de facto public relations and accounting department at Loomagoo. ”This is a simple platform that gives students a place to meet and exchange. It’s a great feeling when students tell you how much they saved using your website. If we can give students something they didn’t already have…an alternative…then mission accomplished!”
Do you have funding? How much?
Everything was originally financed by the founders. We have since partnered with businesses that market directly to college students.
How do you make money?
We are taking a different approach with our business model. We are not comfortable charging students to use the site or incorporating bulky banner advertisements. Rather, we are partnering with larger companies that have a vested interest in the college market. If we can bring both parties, company and students, to the same location and introduce them…magic!
What are your startup’s goals for this year?
Goals for the year include:
- Establishing a presence at 15 universities
- Refining the site’s search methods to ensure that every student finds what they are looking for.
- Secure regional, mutually beneficial partnerships, that allows us to grow and expand the service.
Shark Tank is Not the Real World
September 4, 2009
Alex over at the Texas Startup Blog has had several posts about this new TV show called Shark Tank.
I’ve subscribed to the RSS feed on Hulu and have watched all the current shows.
Verdict? I really like the show. It’s got drama, hope, heroes, bad guys…. It’s nice to see a major network giving an inside look of the VC/Angel world.
But I’m afraid that this show might be giving would-be entrepreneurs the wrong idea of how an investment round works in the real world. You will probably never walk into a room by yourself with several ’sharks’ and be asked to even verbally commit to a deal. You’ll be able to take your lawyer, accountant, advisors, etc. If the ’sharks’ don’t allow this, then you should probably walk away from the deal. Another thing that bothers me is that the valuations and equity stakes that are offered up in those segments don’t seem realistic to me.
Feel free to watch the show. It’s entertaining, and interesting. But don’t think you’re going to walk in to pitch an investor or group of investors and it’s going to go exactly like it does on TV.
Being stranded on a desert island isn’t much like being on Lost either. FYI
How Scrappy Are You?
September 3, 2009
Paul Graham has an excellent new article up about some of the things that an architect has come to realize about startups after having been involved with Y Combinator.
My favorite part is number 4, where the YC architect, Kate Courteau, says:
4. How scrappy founders are. That was her actual word. I agree with her, but till she mentioned this it never occurred to me how little this quality is appreciated in most of the rest of the world. It wouldn’t be a compliment in most organizations to call someone scrappy.
What does it mean, exactly? It’s basically the diminutive form of belligerent. Someone who’s scrappy manages to be both threatening and undignified at the same time. Which seems to me exactly what one would want to be, in any kind of work. If you’re not threatening, you’re probably not doing anything new, and dignity is merely a sort of plaque.
This has got me thinking…. If you’re at a startup, how scrappy are you? Do you have the right balance of irreverence and openness? Are you threatening and undignified? If you’re not, how can you become ‘more scrappier’?
First of all, you’ve got to be confident. There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance, but I’d rather have you err on the side of arrogance than err on the side of diffidence. Be smart about it, and remain open to listening to other’s ideas, but don’t worry so much about fitting in the status quo. Don’t worry about being nice.
The old saying, “Nice guys finish last,” isn’t always true. The new saying should be, “Scrappy guys finish first.”
Before You Send Me Your Pitch…
September 1, 2009
I get an average of 3-4 students a week pitching me their startup ideas every week. I’ve found some common themes among the folks that send me their ideas.
Selling to Google/Microsoft/Facebook is not a revenue stream. This might be a possible exit strategy, but it is not a source of income. If this is how you intend to make money…. don’t bother sending me your pitch. If I see that anywhere in your email, I will stop reading.
Selling ads is not a revenue stream. Sure, there are lots of websites that make money doing this. There’s also a plethora that don’t. Find a way to monetize by adding value. If you’re going to sell job postings, you’d better have the traffic to charge for them. Alternately your app/service should attract a certain niche that will make those job postings more valuable. This is the 37Signals model. Here’s where they sell their products. And here is where they sell their job postings. They’re able to charge $300 for 30 days because they attract a certain kind of job seeker. If you want to hire someone that’s interested in Ruby on Rails, this is one of the places you go. Make something cool, and then charge people for it. It’s a lot easier than you think to sell one subscription for $30/month than to sell ads and hope that they can get shown to 100,000 people or hope that they get clicked on by 100 people every month.
Focus. Don’t try and solve every problem at first. You’ll get distracted and you will lose focus. When you first start out, focus on one problem and solve it. And solve it really really well. Don’t worry if you’ve got competition, if someone’s already doing it. Just do it better. You don’t just have to believe you’re better, you have to actually be better. Facebook didn’t just believe they were better than MySpace. They were actually better. Hulu and TiVo didn’t just believe they were better than cable or satellite. They were actually better. Find that one thing or those two things, and become actually better. It’s best to be an expert at one thing, no matter how small, than to be average at lots of things.
Why I Hate the Words ‘Guru’ and ‘Rockstar’
August 20, 2009
I hate the word guru almost as much as the word rockstar when referring to business people.
If you see a job posting for a Rockstar Web Developer or a Rockstar Designer or a Marketing Guru, run the other direction, because the person hiring obviously doesn’t know much about developers, designers, marketers, rockstars or gurus.
I’m guilty of using the term Rockstar, sure. But after reading it, I realized that I sounded like a complete asshole. Developers develop, designers design, and rockstars play loud instruments (sometimes poorly) and sometimes have promiscuous sex. There isn’t a correlation.
If you want a great marketing person, advertise that you’re looking for someone that knows how to make things stick, how to recognize and help create purple cows, and who will know what you’re talking about when you say ‘Holy Kaw!’
If you’re hiring, your reputation should be enough to attract the right people. If it’s not, the project you’re working on should be interesting enough to attract them. If the project isn’t that interesting, then you shouldn’t be seeking a rockstar.
Why the Recession is Great for You
August 18, 2009
Times are tough for some folks. Thankfully, not so much for you. You are either involved in a startup, or interested in them. Here’s several reasons that the recession is good for you:
- There’s an abundance of talent around due to layoffs and cost cutting. Maybe even some folks that haven’t been laid off are looking for a little extra work on the side because they’re worried about their 401(k). If you’re thinking about launching a startup, now is a great time to find that developer that hasn’t been available until now. Or that web designer. Or that marketer. There’s lots of good marketers looking for work. There’s probably even a few great ones.
- There isn’t a sense of capital being plentiful. This will force you to be very conscious of your cash flow sheet. You will think twice about springing for $2000 chairs for everyone in the office. You will be more likely to seek out that great deal when looking for that printer/monitor/desk/office carpet. Maybe you’ll be more inclined to get a great college intern to do your marketing instead of someone that expects a $60,000 salary. What they lack in experience, they will often make up for in creativity.
- It will end soon enough, and being 6 months into a startup when the economy rebounds is a lot better than being 6 weeks in. IPO’s are on the uptick right now, credit lines are thawing, and the next thing you know, that bull will be charging and you’ll possibly be riding that wave instead of looking on wondering what would have happened if you’d only taken that chance.
Whatever your idea is, whatever phase of planning you’re in…. now is the time friends. Go and change the world. Do something amazing.
How to Network
August 3, 2009
I don’t mean hooking computers together my friends. I mean hooking people together. Figuratively speaking of course. No CAT-5 or handcuffs required.
4 Tips to Help You Become Better at Networking
- Be interested. Don’t be interesting. I know this advice abounds, but I still meet people that talk all about themselves. I do it too occassionally. (Usually it’s halfway through my glass of Jameson’s at Startup Happy Hour). The most interesting person that you can be, is the person that listens to the other person talk about themselves. The tangential advantage of this is that you’ll know more interesting things about other people. I promise you that if you let someone talk long enough, they will probably say something interesting or useful.
- After you’ve listened to someone talk about themselves for a while and they give you their business card, immediately excuse yourself to the bathroom or other private place and write down something memorable about them. Write it right there on their card. I know that Tim Augustine of Atwell-Hicks likes single malt scotch. McClelland’s 12 if it’s available. I know that because I wrote it down on his business card when I met him at a conference in February. That’s pretty poweful information the next time I see him at an event. I can walk right up to him with a glass of scotch in hand, and even if he doesn’t remember or care who I am…. he’ll listen to me for 5 minutes because I know what he drinks. Knowing one personal thing about a person is the difference between getting 5 minutes with someone (and getting a job, funding, board member, whatever) and getting the “Oh, nice to meet you [while I look around the room for someone more important to talk to].”
- Go to networking events that are outside your primary area of expertise and interest. Sure, I love startups. But I’ll also go to a networking event for accountants, vetrinarians, members of ARMA, whoever, whatever. What you need to realize is that other people are just like you. For my day job, I work for a corporate telecom company. Most of the people that I work with have no idea that startup companies are what my primary interest is. That’s probably the same way with accountants, vets, and people that keep records. Maybe that accountant has a great idea for some web-based accounting software, but they don’t know a programmer. Or maybe they do know a programmer and they just don’t know someone who has marketing chops, or knows the angel/VC networks. You will surprise yourself if you’ll just step out of your comfort zone a little bit.
- Always remember to make yourself a purple cow. Find a way to make something about you stand out to those that meet you. One of the best and easiest ways is to have a great business card. Don’t hand me a card that looks like every other card that I’ve seen in my life. Find some way to make it unique. If you can’t think of a way, then hire a great designer to help you. Here’s just one example of an unusual, purple cow of a business card. There are probably a million other ways to make yourself a purple cow, and this is just one example. Obviously, the best way is to do something that no one has thought of (or blogged about) yet.
CSB Interviews - Zach Blatt of Blattistics
July 30, 2009
Over the past few months I’ve had a chance to exchange a few emails with Zach Blatt, the founder and CEO of Blattistics. Last week we were able to do an interview via email.
Company: Blatt Financial, LLC
Title: Founder/CEO
Email: contact(at)blattistics(dot)com
Give us the 30-second elevator pitch on your company
Blattistics sells investment models to individual investors. We sell customizable regression models starting at $15. Regression models are simple equations that look at historical stock prices and express the price of a stock as a function of the prices of other stocks. For instance, if you track a small oil company, you can design a regression model that predicts its price based on the S&P 500 price and Exxon Mobil’s share price. This can be used to identify whether this stock is overvalued or undervalued. Our models can also provide insights into how risky your portfolio is to changes in the market or in a specific sector. Customers receive these models in a spreadsheet form via an email before the next trading day. Blattistics models allow you to have the insight of a hedge fund manager, without having to invest thousands of dollars in information services.
Tell us about the founders, who they are, backgrounds, and why they are passionate about your company
Blattistics was founded in spring of 2009 by me, Zach Blatt. I’m a member of the class of 2011 at Dartmouth College majoring in Economics and History. I’m originally from Bedford, NH. I’m something of a stock market hobbyist, and I had the idea for Blattistics when I realized how difficult it was for individual investors to construct simple statistical models. Things that excite the average person have no effect on me. Football Dancing with the Stars? No thanks. Fancy restaruants Concerts? I’ll pass. Linear regression models? Now you’re talking….
[Editor's Note: I added the last little bit prior to publishing the interview, and received the following from Zach: "Just one thing--I'm an avid Patriots fan and am a conneiseur of restaurants. If you can change "Football" to "Dancing with the Stars" and "Fancy Restaurants" to "Concerts" that would be appreciated." The College Startup Blog in no way meant to offend Patriots fans (despite the Cowboys obviously being the superior team), or foodies. The College Startup Blog regrets the error.]
Do you have funding? How much?
Blattistics is self-funded from an initial $300 investment. Because of low operational expenses, we do not anticipate seeking additional funding sources. We have already recouped our initial expenses including incorporation expenses.
What are your startup’s goals for this year?
We’d like to penetrate a much greater percentage of the individual investor market over the next several months. As such, we are monstly concerned with attracting visitors to www.blattistics.com. We believe that our products can help investors consider more quantitative approaches to investing, and better design their own investing strategies. We would like to expand our product lines and provide more useful models for individual investors over the next several months.
If you’ve got questions or comments for Zach, feel free to drop him a note at the email address at the top of this post or drop a line or three down in the comments.
