Notes on the upcoming reading exam

A few questions have come in about the reading exam next week and I wanted to send a few details.

The exam will include 15-20 multiple choice questions and an essay question. The exam will cover chapters 1-15 of Founders at Work and all of Crossing the Chasm. Finally, the exam will be closed book/note.

Let me know if you have any questions.

History of the Zipper

It was a long way up for the humble zipper, the mechanical wonder that has kept so much in our lives ‘together.’ On its way up the zipper has passed through the hands of several dedicated inventors, none convinced the general public to accept the zipper as part of everyday costume. The magazine and fashion industry made the novel zipper the popular item it is today, but it happened nearly eighty years after the zipper’s first appearance.

http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa082497.htm

Announcements – Jan 23

A few announcements:
* Introductions
Please send us a short introduction to you, as soon as possible. We’re looking for a short description of who you are, where you come from, what you’re interested in and, if you have any, your entrepreneurial experience.
* Course website
The course website is available here: http://bit.ly/cal-ICE. In addition to the most recent syllabus, we’ll be posting takeaways from our “Make Us Smart” module and using the blog to link to articles and other items of interest. All I School students should have automatic access to the blog while outside students should have been added to the access list. If you’re having trouble accessing the site (regardless of your school) let me know.
* Purchasing cases
Follow the instructions below to access the cases we’ll be reading. We’re still talking with the school about the possibility of providing these cases free of charge. For the time being we’ll use the website below — cases are $3.95.
2. register (if you don’t already have an account) for account when prompted
3. login
4. select the case you’d like to purchase
* Make Us Smart
Please sign up for a Make Us Smart session here: http://bit.ly/z4fhGa

Article: How-Tos: Entrepreneurs Talk Customer Acquisition, Social Media & More In New Video Series

TechCrunch covers Grovo, a startup that is attempting to become “a field guide to the internet”. From the article:

Building on their education and training videos for startups and SMBs, Grovo is today launching an “Expert Series” that aims to “shed light on the evolving world of Web 2.0,” in which entrepreneurs, small business owners, celebrities, journalists, and investors will offer insights into successful operation strategies, brand building, differentiation, how to leverage social media, and everything in between. The goal is to not only help others understand how to use popular web services and tools, but why they’re important and how they’ve helped grow their own businesses.

The Expert Series premieres with an eight-part video featuring Andy Dunn, the co-founder and cEO of Bonobos, a premium, web-driven men’s apparel brand and eTailer. Dunn talks about how he and his team have leveraged social media to help build a vertically integrated product and improve customer service, and also touches on some approaches to brand building, customer acquisition, and eCommerce that he’s found successful.

On building a brand:

On customer acquisition:

Welcome

Welcome to Information-Centric Entrepreneurship & Startup Strategies. We’ll use this website to share relevant information with the class. As soon as the syllabus is finalized, we’ll have it available here.

Paul