Reunion is a social networking company that looks decidedly old-fashioned, compared to glitzy (or garish, some would say) sites like MySpace.
And yet its simplicity, like that of Facebook, is apparently part of its success. It now has 28 million registered users, and is adding one million users a month — and by that measure, it ranks among the top five social networks (Facebook, by contrast has slightly more than 19 million registered users). That’s why Reunion has just scored $25 million in venture capital from Oak Investment Partners, in what is the largest first round of venture capital any social network has received to date.
So why have you never heard of it?
Launched in 2002, Los Angeles-based Reunion is far more retro than Facebook. It shrugs aside the sexy “widget” doodads popularized by companies in Silicon Valley — and has slogged away through the years quietly, without marketing hype or verve. Reunion targets the 25 and older crowd. When you register, it provides you a straight-forward profile page, and then lets you add a range of information about yourself (bio info, favorite movies, character descriptions, etc). At its simplest, you can add your friends, and then stay in touch with them — as the name “reunion” would suggest. No video sharing or anything. Plain-vanilla stuff. See screenshot below. Many of its 28 million users registered years ago, and aren’t that active. However, it has about eight million unique users a month, which comfortably places it among the top ten networks.
Yet its new users — because they are older — are far more profitable than users at younger sites, such as MySpace, says chief executive Jeff Tinsley. Reunion brings in revenue of more than $30 million a year, though he wouldn’t be more specific. Cyworld, the raging popular Korean site, has said it makes $2.10 revenue per users, and Reunion makes much more than that on its recent users, Tinsley said. “It’s interesting, we don’t get covered nearly as much as these other guys,” Tinsley said.
One source of Reunion’s traffic is the “people search” technology it offers to other sites. It powers people search for AOL, Infospace, and Lycos, and will announce another big deal in two weeks, he said. People search is becoming more popular, and it will soon “bubble up” to become a staple feature at the top of most major sites, Tinsley said. Reunion powers 60 million people searches a month.
More at:
http://www.reunion.com
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
www.corporateinterns.com
When Jason Engen was an undergraduate student at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, he and his friends knew the challenges students faced in finding worthwhile internships. So for one of his business classes, Engen wrote a business plan detailing a concept for an internship placement service--one that would interview and screen students and match them with local companies that needed interns. "We hit a nerve in terms of the marketplace and focused 100 percent of our efforts on students," says Engen. "We started a week after we graduated, and it took off."
More at:http://www.corporateinterns.com/
More at:http://www.corporateinterns.com/
Get Rich by Selling Aprons
Aprons are generally considered more of a fashion faux pas than fashion-forward. They're hidden in the backs of drawers and thrown aside in the presence of company. Helena Steele knew it wasn't always this way. She could remember when her grandmother, Jessie, would bake treats while clad in finely constructed aprons with beautiful patterns on them.
So in 2002, Helena and her daughter, Claire, formed Jessie Steele, a line of aprons meant to go far beyond the kitchen drawer.
When the mother-daughter team created their line of vintage-inspired aprons, their unique backgrounds proved to be invaluable. Claire, a former model and marketing executive, used her knowledge of fashion and marketing to promote the business, while Helena, an accomplished seamstress and the founder of Golden Gate Kitchens, a successful kitchen design company, helped with the design. Their mission was to create an apron that bridged the culinary/fashion divide, an accessory that could be worn whether buyers were making meatloaf or strolling down Fifth Avenue.
"We definitely feel that they're functional fashion," says Claire, 29, who helped Helena, 54, update the vintage apron styles and textiles for modern wearers.
Claire and Helena unveiled the aprons to immediate success. The vintage styles are a hit among home chefs, as well as hip retailers and boutiques, which have seen a growing demand for retro styles, from '20s flapper gowns to bell-bottoms.
More at:http://www.jessiesteele.com/index.php
So in 2002, Helena and her daughter, Claire, formed Jessie Steele, a line of aprons meant to go far beyond the kitchen drawer.
When the mother-daughter team created their line of vintage-inspired aprons, their unique backgrounds proved to be invaluable. Claire, a former model and marketing executive, used her knowledge of fashion and marketing to promote the business, while Helena, an accomplished seamstress and the founder of Golden Gate Kitchens, a successful kitchen design company, helped with the design. Their mission was to create an apron that bridged the culinary/fashion divide, an accessory that could be worn whether buyers were making meatloaf or strolling down Fifth Avenue.
"We definitely feel that they're functional fashion," says Claire, 29, who helped Helena, 54, update the vintage apron styles and textiles for modern wearers.
Claire and Helena unveiled the aprons to immediate success. The vintage styles are a hit among home chefs, as well as hip retailers and boutiques, which have seen a growing demand for retro styles, from '20s flapper gowns to bell-bottoms.
More at:http://www.jessiesteele.com/index.php
seahorsepower
The BigBelly is a solar-powered waste container that aims to eliminate those all-too-familiar overflowing trash cans, keeping public spaces cleaner and greener. The flagship product of US-based Seahorse Power Company, BigBelly units compact trash on the spot, optimizing refuse capacity — a BigBelly holds up to five times as much garbage as a regular, non-compacting bin. This reduces the number of times bins need to be emptied, and fewer collections means saved time, fuel and truck costs. Since they don't need to be plugged in, BigBelly units can be placed just about anywhere. The units also are fully enclosed and weather-resistant, are available with optional bear-proofing, and cost USD 3,600–3,900.
More at:Website: www.seahorsepower.com
More at:Website: www.seahorsepower.com
Tiger Woods Could Teach Us How To Run A Business
If you play much golf, you've probably heard the saying "Drive For Show, Put For Dough." For those of you who don't play, it means that driving the ball far on your first shot off the tee isn't really the key to winning in golf.
The funny thing is, if you ever go to a driving range, 90% of what you see is people with their drivers trying to smack the ball as far as possible. I've played with some of these people that drive 280 yards, but then they 3 and 4 put holes and end up shooting in triple digits. For some reason though, it's important to golfers that they be able to drive the ball far. To have the longest tee shot makes them feel good, even if they don't have the lowest score.
Now, most people know that Tiger Woods is one of the greatest golfers alive. A few years ago, my uncle got a chance to play on a Florida course frequented by Woods.
Driving by the range to begin the round, my uncle noticed that Tiger was on the driving range with a single club when they took off for 18 holes. Nearly 4 hours later, the round was finished and Tiger was still on the range. The guy driving the cart with my uncle knew Tiger and drove up to say hello. They chatted for a few minutes and realized that the whole time they had been playing, Tiger had been practicing with the same club - a 7-iron. A pile of balls out on the range showed that he had been within 10 yards of his target on every shot, but that wasn't good enough. He was trying to get even better. One club. Four hours. That's why he's one of the world's best.
There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all. -- Peter Drucker
In business, I think we often know the things we should do, but instead we try to do the things we want to do. We like the random fun things. We want to plan, brainstorm, hold meetings, all the stuff that doesn't require any discipline or focus. Unfortunately it's also all the stuff that doesn't make us better at what we are ultimately trying to do. We know we should be putting, but we want to take out the big driver and have a good time. Then we complain about our score.
More at:http://www.businesspundit.com/contributors.php
The funny thing is, if you ever go to a driving range, 90% of what you see is people with their drivers trying to smack the ball as far as possible. I've played with some of these people that drive 280 yards, but then they 3 and 4 put holes and end up shooting in triple digits. For some reason though, it's important to golfers that they be able to drive the ball far. To have the longest tee shot makes them feel good, even if they don't have the lowest score.
Now, most people know that Tiger Woods is one of the greatest golfers alive. A few years ago, my uncle got a chance to play on a Florida course frequented by Woods.
Driving by the range to begin the round, my uncle noticed that Tiger was on the driving range with a single club when they took off for 18 holes. Nearly 4 hours later, the round was finished and Tiger was still on the range. The guy driving the cart with my uncle knew Tiger and drove up to say hello. They chatted for a few minutes and realized that the whole time they had been playing, Tiger had been practicing with the same club - a 7-iron. A pile of balls out on the range showed that he had been within 10 yards of his target on every shot, but that wasn't good enough. He was trying to get even better. One club. Four hours. That's why he's one of the world's best.
There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all. -- Peter Drucker
In business, I think we often know the things we should do, but instead we try to do the things we want to do. We like the random fun things. We want to plan, brainstorm, hold meetings, all the stuff that doesn't require any discipline or focus. Unfortunately it's also all the stuff that doesn't make us better at what we are ultimately trying to do. We know we should be putting, but we want to take out the big driver and have a good time. Then we complain about our score.
More at:http://www.businesspundit.com/contributors.php
Why Adult Prepaid Cards?
Adult entertainment on the Internet is a multi-billion dollar a year industry that continues to grow in annual revenue each and every year without fail. No matter what the economic climate may be here in the U.S. or abroad, sex always sells! The Adult Prepaid business opportunity is a franchise that allows you to cash in on the adult business.
Why Adult Prepaid Cards?
100% Personal Privacy
No Credit Card Required
No Membership Obligation
No Hidden Fees
Global Access
And Much More...
Earn Incredible Profits!
The "Mini-Pack" consisting of 100 cards costs you only
$399.00 offering a potential return of $2,000.00
The "Senior Pack" consisting of 350 cards costs you only
$999.00 offering a potential return of $7,000.00
The "Distributor Pack" consisting of 1,000 cards costs you only
$2,499.00 offering a potential return of $20,000.00
Purchase an "Exclusive Territory Distributorship" for only $50,000.00 U.S.
which includes 25,000 cards offering a potential return of $500,000.00
This is your best opportunity to start making money from one of the Internet's top money-making industrys. In addition to our prepaid card program, we also offer a full line of turnkey adult web sites, casino web sites, and adult chat lines starting from only $99.00.
More at:http://www.entrepreneur.com/business-opportunities/adultprepaid/71012.html
Why Adult Prepaid Cards?
100% Personal Privacy
No Credit Card Required
No Membership Obligation
No Hidden Fees
Global Access
And Much More...
Earn Incredible Profits!
The "Mini-Pack" consisting of 100 cards costs you only
$399.00 offering a potential return of $2,000.00
The "Senior Pack" consisting of 350 cards costs you only
$999.00 offering a potential return of $7,000.00
The "Distributor Pack" consisting of 1,000 cards costs you only
$2,499.00 offering a potential return of $20,000.00
Purchase an "Exclusive Territory Distributorship" for only $50,000.00 U.S.
which includes 25,000 cards offering a potential return of $500,000.00
This is your best opportunity to start making money from one of the Internet's top money-making industrys. In addition to our prepaid card program, we also offer a full line of turnkey adult web sites, casino web sites, and adult chat lines starting from only $99.00.
More at:http://www.entrepreneur.com/business-opportunities/adultprepaid/71012.html
Etsy
Etsy is a lovely site with beautiful pictures of the handmade and craft items it sells. It also has cool technology allowing you to find sellers by their location, and it gives good background information on them. It's not the place to buy a mass-merchandise item like a baseball glove, but it has pewter baseball glove stitch markers.
Because it is something of an alternative site, Etsy has odd quirks that you may find endearing (or annoying). The “Time Machine” channel is a cool Flash site that shows items from “the past” (if you can really call one minute ago the past). But it wasn't clear to me whether these items were on sale (or bought). Nor does clicking on them give you anything but a pop-up Flash picture.
Nevertheless, if you want to make a personal connection with a craftsperson and her lovingly made items, Etsy would seem to be a great destination.
More at:http://www.etsy.com/
Because it is something of an alternative site, Etsy has odd quirks that you may find endearing (or annoying). The “Time Machine” channel is a cool Flash site that shows items from “the past” (if you can really call one minute ago the past). But it wasn't clear to me whether these items were on sale (or bought). Nor does clicking on them give you anything but a pop-up Flash picture.
Nevertheless, if you want to make a personal connection with a craftsperson and her lovingly made items, Etsy would seem to be a great destination.
More at:http://www.etsy.com/
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