A must read and a re-read!--Tony Fadell, Coinventor of the iPod/iPhone & Founder of Nest LabsVeteran venture capitalist Randy Komisar and finance executive Jantoon Reigersman share no-nonsense, counterintuitive guidelines to help anyone build a successful startup.Over the course of their careers, Randy Komisar and Jantoon Reigersman continue to see startups crash and burn because they forget the timeless lessons of entrepreneurship.But, as Komisar and Reigersman show, you can beat the odds if you quickly learn what insiders know about what it takes to build a healthy foundation for a thriving venture. In Straight Talk for Startups they walk budding entrepreneurs through 100 essential rules--from pitching your idea to selecting investors to managing your board to deciding how and when to achieve liquidity. Culled from their own decades of experience, as well as the experiences of their many successful colleagues and friends, the rules are organized under broad topics, from Mastering the Fundamentals and Selecting the Right Investors, to The Ideal Fundraise, Building and Managing Effective Boards, and Achieving Liquidity.Vital rules you'll find in Straight Talk for Startups include:The best ideas originate from founders who are usersCreate two business plans: an execution plan and an aspirational planNet income is an option, but cash flow is a factDon't accept money from strangersPersonal wealth doesn't equal good investingSmall boards are better than big onesAdd independent board members for expertise and objectivityToo many unanimous board decisions are a sign of troubleChoose an acquirer, don't wait to be chosenLearn the rules by heart so you know when to break themFilled with helpful real-life examples and specific, actionable advice, Straight Talk for Startups is the ideal handbook for anyone running, working for, or thinking about creating a startup, or just curious about what makes high-potential ventures tick.

    It has led nothing short of a revolution in the entertainment industries, generating billions of dollars in annual revenue while capturing the imaginations of hundreds of millions of people in over 190 countries. But to reach these great heights, Netflix, which launched in 1998 as an online DVD rental service, has had to reinvent itself over and over again. This type of unprecedented flexibility would have been impossible without the counterintuitive and radical management principles that cofounder Reed Hastings established from the very beginning. Hastings rejected the conventional wisdom under which other companies operate and defied tradition to instead build a culture focused on freedom and responsibility, one that has allowed Netflix to adapt and innovate as the needs of its members and the world have simultaneously transformed.Hastings set new standards, valuing people over process, emphasizing innovation over efficiency, and giving employees context, not controls. At Netflix, there are no vacation or expense policies. At Netflix, adequate performance gets a generous severance, and hard work is irrel-evant. At Netflix, you don't try to please your boss, you give candid feedback instead. At Netflix, employees don't need approval, and the company pays top of market. When Hastings and his team first devised these unorthodox principles, the implications were unknown and untested. But in just a short period, their methods led to unparalleled speed and boldness, as Netflix quickly became one of the most loved brands in the world.Here for the first time, Hastings and Erin Meyer, bestselling author of The Culture Map and one of the world's most influential business thinkers, dive deep into the controversial ideologies at the heart of the Netflix psyche, which have generated results that are the envy of the business world. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with current and past Netflix employees from around the globe and never-before-told stories of trial and error from Hastings's own career, No Rules Rules is the fascinating and untold account of the philosophy behind one of the world's most innovative, imaginative, and successful companies.

    It’s out of date! and is way way way behind in terms of what’s actually working in the world of online business.Most ecommerce business owners are still doing things in the same way they were done back in the early dot com days. And that my friend is a recipe for disaster.There is SO much more to ecommerce than building a store, filling it with products and driving some traffic.If that describes you and your business, then let this be your wake up call!There is a transformative shift happening in the ecommerce industry right now.What worked before is either no longer an option or is rapidly losing its effectiveness.It’s time for you as an ecommerce entrepreneur to evolve your brand, your business and your brain.THIS BOOK, Is the playbook for capitalizing on this evolution.Ecommerce Evolved contains a simple, repeatable and proven formula to help you build, grow and scale a wildly profitable ecommerce business in today’s competitive market.You will find Zero Theory inside this book. Tanner Larsson has distilled years of research & practical in-the-trenches ecommerce experience into a hard hitting ecommerce blueprint.The book is broken up into 4 distinct parts and each part is then broken down into a number of focused chapters. The book kicks off with the 12 Principles of Ecommerce that have been developed after working with over 10,000 different businesses. These 12 principles...of which we can almost guarantee you are violating over half of...are what differentiate the thriving ecommerce businesses from the mediocre ones. Part 1 which is called Evolved Strategy and is where we pull back the curtain, take you behind the scenes, and show you how 7, 8 and 9 figure ecommerce businesses really work. Part 2 is called Evolved Intelligence and deals with the most underutilized aspect of most ecommerce businesses...your Data. Part 3 is called Evolved Marketing. In this section you will learn how to leverage the your business's structure and data to build create systematic and highly automated marketing campaigns for both the front end and back end of your business that produce massive return on investment. Ecommerce Evolved takes you through the exact same processes I take my high level clients through as we restructure their businesses for maximum growth, profitability and most importantly longevity.As an added benefit… Ecommerce evolved is also the key that will unlock access to my private ecommerce community.This is an up till now secret group of ecommerce professionals where we talk shop, strategize and grow our businesses through the collective genius of the group.This book is literally the step-by-step blueprint to building a successful and highly profitable ecommerce business and the private community is the support group that will help you along the way.

     I am an independent mobile app entrepreneur just like you, and I wrote this book to teach you all my strategies for how to: - Get 1,000,000+ downloads from mobile app store marketing - Save money by doing your own ASO (search engine optimization SEO for Android and the Apple App stores) better than most consultants you might consider hiring - Create an app marketing strategy outside the app stores by getting press coverage and learning how to promote an app using social media and social sharing - Make money with effective app store monetization to help you maximize your app revenue with subscriptions, in-app purchases, publishing effective ads, selling affiliate products and other strategies used by successful mobile app businesses - Create a successful mobile app business I wrote this book with all my heart and soul. The book draws on my own years of experience building top apps in my niche, promoting apps, making money with my apps, and coaching other app entrepreneurs on how they can make turn their mobile apps into successful businesses. You will be getting the best of all worlds. First, I have very deep hands on experience building and growing my own apps. Second, I have a wealth of experience coaching and observing other app entrepreneurs whose experiences and aspirations are probably very similar to yours. In this book you get all the insights from me making my own apps a success, and the insights of the cumulative experiences of the people I've coached. This is a very to the point book with many actionable tips and strategies for how to promote your mobile app (iPhone or Android), make money from your smartphone applications, and generally treat it as a real business. All suggestions in this book are based on my own experiences promoting my own problemio.com business apps which at the point of latest revision of this book have cumulative 1,000,000+ downloads, and insights of me having coached over 100 other app entrepreneurs. I am an independent mobile application developer and mobile application entrepreneur just like you. I am not a multi-million dollar app development studio or a big company. If you are an independent app developer just like me, you can use the mobile application marketing strategies that I outline in this book. Many of the strategies are simple and effective, and you can begin working on them as early as today. The book contains over 20 strategies to promote your apps. They all worked for my apps and they will help you grow your app to its highest potential. After growing your app, you will be able to make good money from your app, and achieve the goals that you have for your app business. Get the book now, and become a pro at app store marketing (app store SEO which is otherwise known as ASO), and start increasing your app downloads and revenue today!

    Yet, sometimes business owners go full speed ahead without even having a destination in mind, much less a map on how to get there. That's why so many businesses never make it. In today's competitive marketplace, 3/4 of all new businesses fail within two to three years. Whether you're launching a new business or working to strengthen or expand an established one, a business plan is your road map to success. Business Plans For Dummies, 2nd Edition helps you keep your businesses on track and reach your goals. Written by Paul Tiffany, PhD, professor at UC Berkley Haas Business School and the Wharton School of Business and Steven Peterson, PhD, Professor at UC Berkeley Haas Business School and CEO of Strategic Play, it helps youRealistically determine where your business is and where you want to go Create a detailed business plan and put it into action instead of in a drawer Use the plan to secure financing Prepare for opportunities avoid common pitfalls In short, Business Plans for Dummies helps you determine where you want your business to go and create a map for getting there. You'll discover how to:Identify and approach potential financial backers, including venture capital firms, angels, bankers, and others Clarify and crystallize your company's mission, vision, and values Analyze your industry and your competition Identify your customers, including their needs, habits, purchase triggers, and decision-making processes Objectively analyze your company's strengths and weaknesses Analyze your financial situation in order to do realistic forecasts and budgets Recognize trends and anticipate changes, both in the overall economy and in your industry Plan for growth, considering the product life cycle, new products, or new markets Structure your organization and nurture leadership Complete with diverse techniques and approaches plus a sample business plan, Business Plans For Dummies gives you detailed how-to for designing a dynamic, business plan that will keep you on course in spite of the inevitable curves and detours in today's marketplace. It's a plantastic resource for business owners and entrepreneurs.

    They have lied to you deliberately... I am going to give you the real-deal truth about what it takes to BE AWESOME and what it takes to become successful. Inside this brand-new book, you’ll discover... - The REAL “Secret” to success that nobody wants to tell you\Achieve massive success with less effort than you ever thought was possible - How to rise from a failure like a true champion - One simple trick for building rock-solid self-confidence - How to set and accomplish all your goals faster than you think you can - How to Instantly overcome fear and insecurity - 5 simple tips to overcome fear of failure - How to build habits that will instantly put you on the fast track to success  And that’s only the beginning… Again, this book is not for people want to be like everyone else. It’s not the book for people who accept normality and complacency in their lives. This book is exclusively for people want to be  FUCKING AWESOME  LIMITED TIME OFFER!!! For a limited time, this book will be only $0.99… But don’t let the price fool you. I’ve released it for such a low price so it can get it into the hands of as many people as possible. People who want to learn…  - What's The Purpose of YOUR Life? - How to stop being a little Bitch - How To Become the "HERO" of your own life story - How to instantly motivate yourself to accomplish goals faster - How to exercise your brain to gain almost superhuman power - And much much more  Are you ready to get your shit together? Then get this book now! - Brandon Carter PS - Scroll up and click the "Buy" button now before the price raises. PPS - Stop fucking around (on this page and in your life) and scroll up and buy the fucking book before the price raises!

     By mastering the Amazon Selling System in this book, you will be able to easily tap into the opportunities on Amazon, and create an additional $1K - $10K a month in passive income. This book will teach you the highly sought after secrets of how to identify highly popular products, and then transform them into your own special brand, which customers will pay a lot of money for. In this book you will learn How to: Identify Desirable Products People Want to Buy. Create a Unique Brand that People will Remember. Find High Quality Product Sources that will Support Your Thriving Amazon Business. Create High Converting Amazon Listings that will Emotionally Compel Customers to Buy Over and Over. Create the Most Profit Possible with the Least Amount of Expense. Test and Validate Your Product to Guarantee your Success. Effectively Manage Your Inventory and Fulfill Orders with Little Effort. Provide Outstanding Customer Satisfaction and Motivate Customers to Buy More. Get Abundant Reviews from Raving Fan Customers. Automate the Process so that You Can Sell Products While You Sleep. Expand Your Amazon Selling Business and Make 6 or 7 Figures a Year. By the time you finish this book, you will have all the tools, resources, and a simple, yet effective system to make an extra $1000 - $10,000 a month. So Get Your Copy Now and Start Making Money on Amazon Today!

    Gives practical advice on developing and marketing products in the technology industry, looks in detail at Intel's marketing campaign against Motorola, and stresses the importance of commitment to a successful campaign.

    Since its creation in 2010, Instagram’s fun and simple interface has captured our collective imagination, swiftly becoming a way of life. In No Filter: The Inside Story of Instagram, technology reporter Sarah Frier explains how Instagram’s founders married art and technology to overcome skeptics and to hook the public on visual storytelling. At first, Instagram initially attracted artisans, but then the platform exploded in popularity among the masses, creating an entire industry of digital influencers that’s now worth tens of billions of dollars. Eighteen months after Instagram’s launch and explosive growth, the founders—Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger—made the gut-wrenching decision to sell the company to Facebook. For most companies, that would be the end of the story; but for Instagram, it was only the beginning. Instagram borrowed some lessons from Facebook and rejected others, until eventually its success stirred tension with Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg, just as Facebook became embroiled in a string of public crises. Frier unearths the details that led to the cofounders’ departure, bringing to light dramatic moments unknown to the public until now. At its heart, No Filter draws on unprecedented exclusive access—from the founders of Instagram, as well as employees, executives, and competitors; hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio; Anna Wintour of Vogue; Kris Jenner of the Kardashian-Jenner empire; and a plethora of influencers, from fashionistas with millions of followers to owners of famous dogs worldwide—to show how Instagram has fundamentally changed the way we communicate, shop, eat, and travel. The book brings readers inside users’ strategies to craft their personal image and fame, explaining how the company’s product decisions have affected the structure of our society. From teenagers to the pope, No Filter tells the captivating story of how Instagram not only created a new industry but also changed our lives.

    When this investors’ darling was exposed as a house of cards, tales of fraudulent accounting, a lavish lifestyle involving multimillion-rand racehorses and ructions in the ‘Stellenbosch mafia’ made headlines around the world. As regulators tally up the cost, 'Financial Mail' editor Rob Rose reveals the real inside story behind Steinhoff. Based on dozens of interviews with key players in South Africa, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands – and documents not yet public – Steinheist reveals: how Bruno Steinhoff formed the company by doing business in the Communist bloc and apartheid South Africa; how the ‘Markus myth’ started in the dusty streets of Ga-Rankuwa and grew thanks to a ‘bit of luck’ in a 1998 takeover; how Jooste insiders shifted nasty liabilities off Steinhoff’s balance sheet to secretive companies overseas in order to present a false picture of the profits; how Wiese was lucky to lose only R59bn and how Shoprite narrowly escaped getting caught in Steinhoff’s web; and what happened behind closed boardroom doors in the frantic week before Jooste resigned.

    In barely six years, a small group of young, ambitious programmers in Silicon Valley built an $11.5 billion business out of the ashes of a failed podcasting company. Today Twitter boasts more than 200 million active users and has affected business, politics, media, and other fields in innumerable ways. Now Nick Bilton of the New York Times takes readers behind the scenes with a narrative that shows what happened inside Twitter as it grew at exponential speeds. This is a tale of betrayed friendships and high-stakes power struggles as the four founders—Biz Stone, Evan Williams, Jack Dorsey, and Noah Glass—went from everyday engineers to wealthy celebrities, featured on magazine covers, Oprah, The Daily Show, and Time’s list of the world’s most influential people. Bilton’s exclusive access and exhaustive investigative reporting—drawing on hundreds of sources, documents, and internal e-mails—have enabled him to write an intimate portrait of fame, influence, and power. He also captures the zeitgeist and global influence of Twitter, which has been used to help overthrow governments in the Middle East and disrupt the very fabric of the way people communicate.

    This quick start guide gets business professionals up and running on Pinterest then shows how to leverage the power of Pinterest to reach more customers and make more sales.

    From deal sourcing to exit, LBOs to responsible investing, operational value creation to risk management, the book systematically distils the essence of private equity into core concepts and explains in detail the dynamics of venture capital, growth equity and buyout transactions. With a foreword by Henry Kravis, Co-Chairman and Co-CEO of KKR, and special guest comments by senior PE professionals.   This book combines insights from leading academics and practitioners and was carefully structured to offer: A clear and concise reference for the industry expert A step-by-step guide for students and casual observers of the industry A theoretical companion to the INSEAD case book Private Equity in Action: Case Studies from Developed and Emerging Markets Features guest comments by senior PE professionals from the firms listed below: Abraaj • Adams Street Partners • Apax Partners • Baring PE Asia • Bridgepoint • The Carlyle Group • Coller Capital • Debevoise & Plimpton LLP • FMO • Foundry Group • Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer • General Atlantic • ILPA • Intermediate Capital Group • KKR Capstone • LPEQ • Maxeda • Navis Capital • Northleaf Capital • Oaktree Capital • Partners Group • Permira • Terra Firma

    MacMillan and Dr. James Thompson, director of the Wharton Social Entrepreneurship Program, provide a tough-love approach that significantly increases the likelihood of a successful social enterprise launch in the face of the high-uncertainty conditions typically encountered by social entrepreneurs.MacMillan and Thompson used their own systematic framework to publish The Social Entrepreneur's Playbook. To test the market, they offered the first phase in their start-up method (step 1) as a free ebook. Readers were invited to join The Social Entrepreneur's Advisory Group, and nearly 300 aspiring and active social entrepreneurs shared feedback that helped shape the complete edition of the book, which covers all three steps in the start-up to scale-up process.Based on this crowd-sourced feedback from readers of the free ebook and drawing on the authors' more than 26 years' combined experience developing and studying social enterprises in the field across Africa and in the United States, this new edition provides guidance for each phase:Phase One: Pressure Test Your Start-Up Idea. Based on the free ebook, this expanded section now includes advice on setting revenue and social impact goals, how to navigate the sociopolitical landscape, and how to develop a strong concept statement. In addition, MacMillan and Thompson provide advice on how to identify and test a proposed revenue-generating solution and define and segment your target population.Phase Two: Plan Your Social Enterprise. All new to this edition, this critical phase shows you how to frame and scope the venture, determine what it will take to actually deliver a sustainable enterprise, identify the key assumptions that have been made, and design checkpoints to test those assumptions before making major investments.Phase Three: Launch and Scale Your Social Enterprise. Available for the first time in this edition, you will learn how to effectively launch your enterprise, manage upside potential and downside risk, and strategically scale up.Filled with accessible frameworks and tools, as well as inspiring stories of social entrepreneurs, The Social Entrepreneur's Playbook is a must-read for any aspiring or active social entrepreneur, as well as philanthropists, foundations, and nonprofits interested in doing more good with fewer resources. Includes access to downloadable planning documents, including user-friendly spreadsheets

    Are you tired of working hard all year, just to lose the largest chunk of that money to the IRS? Believe it or not, the U.S. tax system is filled with loopholes designed specifically to benefit real estate investors just like you. In this comprehensive follow-up to The Book on Tax Strategies, bestselling authors and CPAs Amanda Han and Matthew MacFarland bring you more strategies to slash your taxes and turn your real estate investments into a tax-saving machine.Inside, you will learn:· How to take advantage of the tax reform benefits in all of your real estate deals· Tax-deferral and tax-free techniques to significantly increase your return on investments· How to use your rental properties to legally wipe out your taxable income· What you need to know to take advantage of the Opportunity Zone tax benefits· Tax-free methods to take cash out of a 1031 Exchange· How to supercharge your nest egg using self-directed investment strategies· Common retirement investing tax traps and how to avoid them Taxes saved means more money for you, your family, and more money to invest. Learning to save on your taxes could be the easiest money you ever make!