Category: Business Trends

Article Contributed by Ryan Currie

What makes for a great startup city? Definitely a relatively low cost of living (see ya, New York), lots of burgeoning industry, and definitely an available workforce, right? What about things like affordable office space and green space and even good public school districts? The things that make a city great for starting a business are complicated but a few mid-sized cities are just right, at least right now, for startups.

Here are six of the most startup friendly cities in the U.S. that you may have not considered…

Indianapolis, Indiana

Indiana? Yes, Indiana. Indianapolis has a lower cost of living for self-employed individuals than the national average and it’s got just enough residents to support new concepts, provide skilled workers, and even test multiple locations of a business. Office space is insanely cheap here and Indianapolis International Airport provides a streamlined hub for cross-country business travel. Angie’s List is Indy’s most famous startup.

Austin, Texas

What’s not to love about Austin? People love calling this part of Texas home and there are many, many opportunities here to exploit. Not only is Austin quickly becoming a tech-hub in the south, it’s a really insular culture for all things organic, music, and crafty. Austin has the lowest cost of living of any of the big tech cities (ex: Seattle, San Francisco, New York) and the area’s proximity to Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio make it a great startup city.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh is currently undergoing a cultural revival which makes it an increasingly appealing place to live. Not only are there a lot of VCs and angel investors with outposts here, nearly 30% of the workforce has a bachelor’s degree making for a rich talent pool for startups to draw from. Carnegie Mellon University provides some great resources for local startups in Pittsburgh, too.

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville hits that perfect-population number with right around 2,000,000 residents and there’s more here than music. Interestingly, the city has proven to be a great home-base for food startups and biotechs. It’s incredibly low cost of living as well as low workplace expenses make it a haven for culture-loving big city types who need a cheaper place to launch their business.

Bend, Oregon

Bend has branded itself as a startup friendly city and you’d be hard-pressed to find an area offering more incentives for startup businesses. It’s proximity to Seattle, Portland, and the Bay Area plus several startup acceleration mentor programs in town, it’s a good place to be in business. Bend’s cost of living is low, the weather’s great, and the city even hosts an annual Bend Startup Weekend.

Denver, Colorado

Colorado actually has several startup friendly cities, but Denver’s the place to be. The fact that Denver hasn’t yet reached its tipping point (i.e. too many startups in too small an area, thereby poaching talent from one another) means it’s a good place to launch. People love living here and there’s no shortage of money or highly-educated professionals to draw from. Denver may just be the next Bay Area.

Ryan Currie is a product manager at BizShark.com, with 5 years experience in online marketing and product development.  In addition to web related businesses, he also enjoys the latest news and information on emerging technologies and open source projects.

Article Contributed by Anand Srinivasan

The rising cost of health care is a major point of debate in the United States as well as a number of other countries in the developing world like India and China. According to a white paper on this subject by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), the primary reason for the broken health care system is inefficient spending. Other main concerns include inadequate coordinate of care and poorly designed production processes.

While the health care and its rising costs continue to be a challenge, this is a goldmine of opportunity for entrepreneurs looking to fix problems. Take Brighter.com for example. The site offers a “free” alternative to dental insurance by letting its website visitors save money by comparing quotes offered by various dentists in your locality and thus letting you save some serious money on dental care even if you don’t have an insurance. This is an example of solving a pain point that people face in the health care industry.

The time has never been more appropriate for entrepreneurs to explore the health care space. Today, we have startup incubators like Rock Health that focus entirely on healthcare startups. Universities too have sensed the need of the hour and have been offering MBA degrees in healthcare for people looking to explore the health business. The challenge is now to find the right problem to attack and offer a solution that is better than what is available in the market.

One of the major barriers to entrepreneurial success has often been the greed for instant success and money. According to Steve Picheny, the pioneering entrepreneur whose medical devices company was the first to bring the finger pulse oximeter to the market, the focus should be more altruistic than merely measuring success through the money made. In a recent talk given to aspiring health care entrepreneurs, Picheny said, “My advice to you guys is to find a goal greater than making money. Have the goal of making this world a better place and you’ll be happy every day you go to work.”

There are however several challenges that healthcare entrepreneurs need to tackle. The first and foremost challenge is the regulatory red-tape. According to Jonathan Bush, the CEO of AthenaHealth, new entrants to this industry are “frisked with a cheese grater”. He further notes that regardless of how revolutionary your product is, the doctor (who is the real decider in most instances) may not be in a position to try your service if the hospital management has its way. It is a business decision that the hospitals take to ensure their procedures include what’s most profitable to them; not what is most valuable to the patient.

Despite these challenges, the system itself is getting better with the advent of digital startups targeting the healthcare space. Startups like Brighter help in getting the doctors to compete against one another in offering the most cost-optimal service to patients. Such services highlight the beauty of a capitalist society that enables businesses to compete with one another to offer customers the best service at the lowest cost.

Author Bio: Anand is a market outreach consultant for a number of businesses in the United States, Canada and United Kingdom.

There are many good reasons for setting up a new entrepreneurial venture in Bahrain. For a start,  the string of government incentives on offer are hard to ignore. Bahrain is also the perfect gateway to markets in the wider Middle East and beyond. And the wealth of the region, much of it built on the back of incredible oil and gas reserves, is legendary. In other words, there’s plenty of money sloshing around, more than enough for any would-be entrepreneur seeking to turn a solid idea into a profitable venture. Need some more good reasons?

How about access to first-rate financial services both for the business you’re looking to set up and for any workers you aim to employ. Opening a current account in Bahrain is a reasonably straightforward exercise, even for expatriate employees, although the production of a passport, residence permit and tenancy agreement to provide proof of an address almost goes without saying. Some banks may also require an applicant to produce a letter from their employer detailing the salary which will be paid into the account each month.

Economic Freedom

Heard of the Index of Economic Freedom, the annual guide published by The Wall Street Journal and the Washington-based think tank The Heritage Foundation? Of course you have. The good news is that Bahrain ranks highly in the 2013 Index – again. In fact Bahrain is ranked 1st out of 15 countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and its economic freedom score is well above the world average. It even ranks higher than the United Kingdom!

The index says, “As a regional leader in economic freedom, Bahrain sets a critical example for other countries in the Middle East and North Africa. Its transition to greater openness, diversification, and modernization is based on strong foundations of economic freedom. Firmly institutionalizing the rule of law by enhancing judicial independence and transparency will be critical to stamping out lingering corruption and ensuring success in this ongoing evolution.

“Despite the challenging external and internal environments, Bahrain has maintained above-average levels of economic freedom in almost every measure. It remains a financial hub for dynamic economic activity, with high levels of trade and investment bolstered by a competitive and efficient regulatory environment.”

So What About The US?

Tries hard but could do better just about sums up the United States these days. The US has lost ground in the Index yet again, with declines in monetary, business, labour and fiscal freedoms. According to the Index, “Registering a loss of economic freedom for the fifth consecutive year, the US has recorded its lowest Index score since 2000. Dynamic entrepreneurial growth is stifled by ever-more-bloated government and a trend toward cronyism that erodes the rule of law. More than three years after the end of recession in June 2009, the US continues to suffer from policy choices that have led to the slowest recovery in 70 years.”

But there’s much more to mull over. Restoring the US to a place among the world’s “free” economies, says the Index, will require significant policy reforms, particularly in reducing the size of government, overhauling the tax system, transforming costly entitlement programs, and streamlining regulations. So not much to fix then!

Still worried about setting up an entrepreneurial venture in Bahrain? Thought not! Read more from the 2013 Index of Economic Freedom here.

Article Contributed by Kelly Gregorio

The popularity of business blogging is getting harder and harder to ignore.  Whether you run an ecommerce site or a local mom and pop shop, it seems like just about everyone has a blog that’s positioning them as frontrunners in their niche.

You may be fostering some cozy hesitations (i.e. I’m not a writer, and even if I was I don’t have the time…) but the excuses are stopping here.  The interactive experience of blogging is a great way to establish your presence in your market and provide usable content to an audience that in return, will give you their trust and respect.

But, Do I Have To Be a Writer?

No.  Writing a business blog is a lot different than writing a book.  Each post will be about a different theme, short and concise.  And considering that most blogs tend to be around a page long, they should not take much longer than an hour to write.

You don’t need to be a writer, but you do need to be a helper.  Give your readers actionable steps and sound advice they can easily put into practice. Additionally, be sure to edit each post (even better, have another set of eyes review it for you), keep paragraphs short with only 3-4 sentences and make the content easily digestible by using bullet points and numbered lists whenever applicable.

But, Do I Have To Post Every Day?

No, but you should post consistently.  Try to aim for at least two posts a week and post on a pattern, for example, every Tuesday and Saturday.

Keep things fresh by alternating what types of posts you contribute – one post might be a how-to article, while another could be an interview, and another, breaking news.  In your efforts to keep things fresh and interesting for your readers, you’ll refresh yourself as well.

But, Do I Have To Be an Idea Genius?

No, but you do have to know how to stay relevant.  Check out other blogs similar to your niche, see what they are reporting on, and then see what unique spin your perspective can craft.  Tuning into industry-related podcasts is another way to generate ideas and bonus: you can listen in with your Smartphone on the go.

Also, don’t undervalue your own daily experiences within your business.  Almost every day holds a new topic to explore.  Make an active effort to keep your eyes and ears open for material.  Keep in mind too that once you cultivate an audience, you can always cater specifically to them and ask for topic requests.

But, Do I Have To Whine About It?

Absolutely not! You’ll find that your best posts will be on topics that you are passionate about and know inside and out.  That’s no accident; continue to write what you know and the motivation and writing will flow. After all, the goal is to position yourself as an expert in your field, so have fun while sharing any and all of your personal, unique expertise.

Happy Blogging!

About the author:

Kelly Gregorio writes about topics that affect entrepreneurs and small businesses while working at Advantage Capital Funds, a business loan provider. You can read her daily business blog here.

In past generations, having a customized, tailored article of clothing was a luxury, which not many could afford.  Going to a tailor or seamstress to create a one-of-a kind piece was reserved for highly specialized occasions, or for the very wealthy.

However, with advanced technology, a new trend has emerged: customization. The customization craze is taking almost every industry by storm, from athletic shoes, clothing, t-shirts, purses handbags, and even cookware and furniture.  Items can either be fully customized, or be created using mass customization.  When a customer purchases an item using mass customization, the user is able to choose from a list of styles and options to make the item unique and highly individualized.

However, the customization craze does not stop at mass customization.  A fully customized item can also be available.  Some designer lines are now offering customers the ability to create a fully customized item online using their interactive online services, or even an iPhone application.  Not only is the item itself highly customized, but the way in which we even order the item is just as specialized.

Ordering a highly customized item can be attractive to those who use social media or crowdsourcing to recommend items.  Crowdsourcing involves asking large groups of people, usually on social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter, advice about products.  Users are also able to show off a customized item that they created and bought online using an interactive tool.  This indirectly creates a word-of-mouth advertisement for the item.  Friends, and other users of the site, are able to not only see the product, but may want to purchase a similar item for themselves.  Keeping up with the Jones is now high-tech and digital!

Technology has now enabled customized t-shirts to be either fully or partially customized at an affordable price.  Many websites now offer customers the ability to create customized t-shirts in large or small quantities for affordable prices.  Although this trend has been available for quite some time, customers are now able to customize their t-shirts, ordering in very small quantities.  For example, using an interactive tool on the company’s website, customers can now create a t-shirt with a personal picture, logo, or statement, and order just one shirt.

Existing and start-up companies may wish to consider cashing in on this customization craze.  Companies which already are well-established into the market, like Nike, have begun offering customers the ability to mass customize some of their existing lines, adding specialized colors, materials, and engraving.  This allows such companies to charge full retail price for the item, bringing in customers who may have been previously using discount websites.

Everyone seems to love a unique, highly customized item which they can create using a fun, interactive online tool or application.  Even if the customized item means that the customer will have to pay a full, retail amount, the price seems to be well-worth it, when showing off the item in social media sites or other gatherings.  Customization, it seems, is the wave of the future.

Article contributed by Jenna Smith