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Workshop: Overcoming Barriers to Generating Sales

February 24, 2011
2:30 pm	to	4:30 pm

Seating limited to the first 25 who register

Fee: $25 (workshop valued at $199) coffee, tea, beverages and light snack provided.

Location: Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce, Sony Room

NOTE: The Smart-ups Pub-Talk “Funding Your Business Through Selling Product – Not Equity” follows this workshop from 5-8PM at the Oregon Electric Station.

The very successful Portland Ten model which helps early-stage companies reach $1M in sales within 18 months is coming to Eugene to deliver a 2-hour workshop on generating sales.

Whether it’s closing your first deal, switching from consumer to enterprise sales, improving the efficiency of your overall sales pipeline, or scaling up sales efforts to maximize a market opportunity, sales are an integral part to the survival and success of your business.

For any entrepreneur, there can be significant barriers to making a first sale or scaling up your sales force. This workshop will provide you with hands-on principles for facing those barriers head-on!

Hands-on Training! Bring to the Workshop:

Your business model
You sales pipeline
Your deal tracker, and recent sales figures to break down your sales process and identify areas to optimize and generate additional revenue in the months ahead!

Workshop Facilitators:

Carolynn Duncan is the Director of Portland Ten, and an expert in venture capital, angel fundraising, and start-up management. She has assisted entrepreneurs in raising millions of dollars, and founded Portland Ten to increase the quantity of high-growth start-ups in the state of Oregon.

Prior, Ms. Duncan worked in the tech, start-up, angel/venture capital networks in Seattle, Portland, southeast Idaho, and Salt Lake City. She has also been affiliated with FundingUniverse, EPIC Ventures, Eastern Idaho Entrepreneurial Center, Hundred Dollar Business, and Provo Labs, and has advised more than 300 startups during her career.

Jennie Kalberer is the Program Manager of Portland Ten’s Six Week Sprint track. She is Founder and Director of Kahnaway Art and Ecology Center in the Columbia River Gorge, and consults for start-ups and new venture projects. She also is the owner of Clean Like You Mean It, a natural cleaning products company. She worked as an interior designer before receiving her MBA in Finance from the University of Portland, serves on the Board of Oregon College of Art and Craft, and volunteers at Chapman Elementary.

Thanks to our great sponsors for supporting entrepreneurship in our community!

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Tags: Carolynn Duncan, Portland Ten, sales workshop, start-up workshop, Workshop
Posted in Events, Expert Advice, Start-up Funding, Workshop, eugene, start-up sales | Comments Off

Submitting to SWAN

One of the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce’s main organizational goals is Entrepreneurial Development. We recognize that entrepreneurs are the backbone of our economy, and it’s the innovators who take the risks, launch new ideas into market, invest in business growth, create jobs and provide great products and services to our community and beyond.

Entrepreneurs and innovators who have or need to raise somewhere between $200,000 – $2 million to launch their idea into the market can submit their business plans to the Southern Willamette Angel Network (SWAN). Below are the submission requirements:

Executive Summary Outline (not to exceed 5 pages):

Need in the Market – including an overview of your company
Your Product/Solution – including any information about patents/intellectual property
Your Traction – highlighting the successes you’ve currently attained (i.e. money raised, customers secured, signed Letters of Intent, significant hire, significant media coverage, etc.)
Your Target Market – including your addressable market, and any barriers to entering this market
Your Customer Acquisition Strategy – including any data to back-up your proposed strategy
Your Competition – including your value proposition
Your Revenue Model – including how you will phase your growth over time
Your Financial Projections – including key assumptions and the number of human resources you’ll need to reach these goals.
- Note: You will also be required to provide your detailed financial projections as an attachment to the Executive Summary
Your Management Team – highlighting successes relevant to this venture

10. Your Key Advisers – noting if they have any ownership in your company

11. Your Funding Needs – including your use of these funds

12. Your Exit Strategy – including any market comparables

Investor Pitch Deck Outline (Presentations should take 12-15 minutes to deliver – which gives you around 1 minute per slide; therefore, it’s important to practice you pitch. Investors need to walk away understanding the value proposition of your product):

Slide #1: Title Slide

Slide #2: The Problem in the Market (tell in story format)

Slide #3: Your Solution (your product/service)

Slide #4: Your Business Model (how you’ll make money)

Slide #5: Your Special Sauce (why you’re product is so unique)

Slide #6: Your Customer Acquisition Strategy

Slide #7: Your Competition (best to present in a matrix format)

Slide #8: Your Team (including key advisers)

Slide #9: Traction (key milestones you’ve met)

Slide #10: Your Current Status and Timeline for Growth

Slide #11: Your Financial Projections (key assumptions)

Slide #12: Your Funding Needs (including use of funds)

Slide #13: Your Exit Strategy (highlight comparables where appropriate

Process for Submitting to SWAN:

E-mail your Executive Summary and Pitch Deck to JJ O’Connell: jjo@eugenechamber.com
Your submission will be reviewed and you can expect to hear back within 2 weeks after your submission. You will be notified whether or not you’re selected to pitch to SWAN. We will inform you if additional coaching is required, and where possible, we will recommend advisers.
SWAN hosts company pitch meetings once a quarter – and sometimes more frequently (depending on the time of year and the quality of the deal flow). Contact Ben Sappington: bens@eugenechamber.com for more information.
If selected to pitch to SWAN, you will be invited in prior to the SWAN meeting to deliver a dry-run of your slides, and additional coaching will be provided.
Upon delivery of your presentation to SWAN, individual members will decide whether or not they choose to inquire further about your company. The Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce does not have any involvement in the investment decisions.

Best of luck to you in your venture!

Tags: blog, eugene, start-up capital, submit for funding, SWAN
Posted in Executive Summary, Expert Advice, Investors, Presentation, SWAN, Start-up Financials, Start-up Funding, Start-up Marketing, Start-up Wisdom, Traction and Sales, eugene, start-ups | Comments Off

Who to Hire and How to Find Them

September 29, 2011
5:00 pm	to	8:00 pm

Building start-up teams can be one of the most challenging parts of emerging growth companies. Your team IS your business. Learn from experts about how and when to hire your first employee, how to navigate HR laws/regulations, how to know when to give equity, and how to grow from 4 employees to 20.

More info coming soon…

Tags: hiring in start-ups, human resources, start-up employees
Posted in Bootstrapping, Events, Expert Advice, Panel, eugene | Comments Off

A Panel of “Firsts” in Start-ups

April 28, 2011
5:00 pm	to	8:00 pm

A panel of successful entrepreneurs discussing their start-up “Firsts”

First big sale – first employee hired/fired – first big purchase – first funding secured – first big mistake – first media coverage, first…. and the list goes on. Learn from those who have “been there done that!” Come and be a part of the conversation! All three panelists also built their businesses via bootstrapping! Many of you have been asking to hear more from founders who didn’t utilize angel or venture funding. This panel is for you!

$20 if you pre-register; $25 at the door; $15 for Eugene Chamber, Corvallis Chamber and SAO members, $10 for students (present ID at the door)

Location: Mookie’s Northwest Grill, 400 International Way, Springfield | location

Panelists Include:

Nikos Ridge

Co-founder of Ninkasi Brewing Company

Tim Berry

Founder of Palo Alto Software

Jeff Kast

Co-founder of IDX Broker

Thanks to our great sponsors for supporting entrepreneurship in our community!

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Tags: first funding, first sales, gaining customers, IDX Brokers, Jeff Kast, Mookies, Nikos Ridge, Ninkasi, palo alto software, sales, selling, start-up sales, Tim Berry, traction in start-ups
Posted in Bootstrapping, Events, Expert Advice, Start-up Marketing, Start-up Wisdom, Traction and Sales, eugene, pub-talk, start-up sales, start-ups | Comments Off

Guerrilla Marketing for Start-ups/Small Businesses

January 20, 2011
5:00 pm	to	8:00 pm

Location: Oregon Electric Station, Eugene | directions

Register: Click here to register:

$20 (includes food and beverage)

$15 for Eugene and Corvallis Chamber members + SAO members

$10 for students (present ID at the door)

$25 at the door

Marci Hansen (Palo Alto Software’s VP of Marketing) will talk about the creation of a brand and the creation of an Internet marketing campaign through real life examples. Her presentation will be interesting for start-ups and small businesses because of the focus on low-cost and free marketing tactics that really work!

Hansen has an impressive background in both conventional and non-conventional marketing. She was awarded the “Guerrilla Marketer of the Year Award” from Brandweek Magazine while she served as the Marketing Director for the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Hansen broke new ground with search engine optimization (SEO) efforts, web ads, paid search terms and other then-uncommon initiatives.

Prior to joining Palo Alto Software, Hansen served as VP of Marketing at the Crafts Americana Group where she oversaw the marketing and merchandising activities for two online crafting brands. Previously, she oversaw product launches, directed content and design, and developed marketing and sales campaigns as the Marketing Director at Dotster Inc.

Hansen additionally developed and directed the marketing campaign for the Amazon.com Outlet Web site while serving as the company’s Marketing Manager. She also worked as a Manager of marketing and corporate events at Eddie Bauer.

Hansen has more than 15 years of marketing experience, and in her new role at Palo Alto Software, she is overseeing online and traditional marketing and promotion, and business development and strategic partnerships for the company’s full line of small business products. In addition, her team will be actively involved in new product development and introduction.

You won’t want to miss this presentation to hear about low-cost and free marketing tactics that really work!

Thanks to our great sponsors for supporting entrepreneurship in our community!

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Tags: Brandweek Magazine, guerrilla marketing, Marci Hansen, marketing, palo alto software, SEO, Start-up Marketing, web marketing
Posted in Bootstrapping, Events, Expert Advice, Presentation, Social Media, Start-up Marketing, Traction and Sales, eugene | Comments Off

Why You Should Start a Company in… Portland, Oregon

I came across this article on Fast Company’s website and decided, given our location (yes this is a reference to my last post), I had to post it. According to Fast Company these days, location DOES matter. For Part Ten of Fast Company’s series about where to start a business (Why You Should Start a Company in… Portland, Oregon), Laura Rich interviews Jive’s Chairman of the Boards, David Hersh, in a very honest article about why one would want to start a company in the Pacific Northwest’s “Silicon Forest.” So for all you Portland based entrepreneurs, why did you choose the Rose City?

Tags: advice, blog, entrepreneurs, portland, start-ups
Posted in Expert Advice, Start-up Wisdom, start-ups | Comments Off

The Biggest Small Business Competitions

Forbes recently came out with an article about “The Biggest Small Business Competitions” across the country. The article gives insight to the 15 biggest university-sponsored events. Granted, some competitions are only open to students and/or alumni of the hosting university, but it’s not the situation for all. Some competitions are even right here in Eugene, like the New Venture Championship at the University of Oregon. Hey, the article even has some tips from our very own Tim Berry, president of Palo Alto Software…which I advise you to pay attention to since he’s a judge at three of the competitions listed.

Tags: advice, b-pan competition, blog, eugene, Start-up Funding, start-ups
Posted in B-Plan Competition, Competition, Expert Advice, Start-up Financials, Uncategorized, Universities, eugene, start-ups | Comments Off

FREE EVENT: Start-up Speed Networking at WiN in Corvallis

November 11, 2010
4:00 pm	to	7:00 pm

5 Minutes of free advice from Start-up Experts!

Location: CH2M HILL Alumni Center, Oregon State University, Corvallis

Register: This is a FREE event, but you should RSVP on the WiN networking site so they can track the number of attendees (food will be provided + cash bar)

*** Visit the Willamette Innovators Night Web site for more information ***

Smart-ups “Speed Start-up Networking“: Visit the Smart-ups Booth at the WiN event between 4:30 – 6:00pm to participate in a speed networking opportunity and get 5 minutes of free advice from from each the following emerging growth company experts:

Dean Hansen: Pacific Continental Bank, active angel investor, and coaches emerging growth companies for growth

Joacim Trybom: Moss Adams – specialty working with emerging growth companies

Marci Hansen: Palo Alto Software, awarded the “Guerrilla Marketer of the Year Award” from Brandweek Magazine

David Brabender/Katherine Moyer: Endeavor Law Group, specializing in legal work emerging growth companies – including securities law

Thanks to our great sponsors for supporting entrepreneurship in our community!

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Tags: advice, Expo, Networking, OSU, pub-talk, start-ups, WIN
Posted in Events, Expert Advice, Expo, Investors, Networking, corvallis | Comments Off

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Workshop: Overcoming Barriers to Generating Sales

Seating limited to the first 25 who register