Invite Media, 80M In Four Years

Becker, Turner and Weinberg

Invite Media is a tech company that developed an innovative platform for online advertising. Nat Turner, Scott Becker, Michael Provenzano and Zach Weinberg are the founders of the company, originally based in Philadelphia. Invite Media was acquired by Google in 2011 for roughly 80M just four years after the company's launch. All four founders were in their early 20s while starting the venture. Invite Media's platform supports a vast number of ad exchanges including Google, Yahoo and Microsoft. The idea was first developed in a UPenn dorm room, eventually leading to the teams involvement with UPenn's Wharton Entrepreneurial Program. Turner and one of his early investors, Chris Dickson, share optimism for tech start ups even during the recovery of an economy. "The best time to start a company is when no one else is" states Turner. "A lot of the economy is suffering" states Dickson "the technology world is actually doing very well.” Nat Turner also talked about his experiences as an entrepreneur. "Getting the first win...is probably the most important part" states Turner "The hardier we worked...the luckier we got." He also believes that the younger population has an advantage due to "insight" on what people like. 

Scott Becker gives advice on where to spend money in the early stages of a start up (above) and talks about common mistakes among young entrepreneurs (below).

Visit www.InviteMedia.com for more information.

Inside The Investor Pitch

I attended a small start up event at local college just last week. There were around 8 different presentations all on new companies. There was a group of roughly 15 Alumni Investors in attendance. Some of the presenters are already in the revenue stage, others had just launched their business and some were still in conceptual phases. Some reoccurring themes were brought up throughout the presentations. The presenters were given roughly 10 minutes to talk about their business or idea, followed by 10 minutes of Q&A. Some went longer and some did not make it that long. The basic goal of the event was to give these young companies an opportunity to receive feedback from the investors, who virtually all of whom have their own companies and have started multiple business ventures. Many have been involved with start ups in their past whether this meant mentoring, investing or both. The event was an opportunity for the presenters to not only receive feedback on their company, idea or vision but also on their presentation, how to present to inventors and what investors are looking for.

The main points that came up throughout the presentations.

-What is the problem you are solving? Who are you solving it for? How do you solve it? These three questions need to be answered and addressed within the first couple slides if not the first slide.

Also, you need to assume that your audience (even if it is a group of well established and well educated investors) does not know anything about your product, your service, your technology or your business. A brief background covering the technology or what you do/intend to do needs to be in the presentation early on. Talk about your story, how you came to the idea or vision and your passion for it. The attention of the investors needs to be grabbed within the first couple slides. This could be tied into the big three questions that need to be answered in those early slides.

There seemed to be a problem in some of the presentations with entrepreneurs that were so into their idea and the technology that they neglected the need to go over basic terminology used and a brief background of the technology. One tip given to someone in this category was to go over more business and less technology. What you need money for, how much you need and how you are going to give a good ROI are all important to have in those early slides as well.

Other major topics that need to be addressed are competition and your company's business model. Neglecting to go over competition can cause you to come across as naive. You can talk about the advantages of you company/idea over competitors and how you differentiate your product or service from other companies in your area while going over what's out there. The business model is also important. Some presenters talked about their product or service but failed to address how they make money. The fee structure needs to be explained when talking about the business model in a clear, concise format. This may be a pricing overview of a web based service or how much your product sells for/costs to make comparison.

The team that someone is considering investing in is very important no matter how great or ground breaking your business is. One investor mentioned that there are five key things people look for when considering to make an investment.

These are:

   1.People
   2.People
   3.People
   4.Market
   5.Product / Technology

A basic concern that came up with a web based company was that “Why couldn't someone just take what you have and run with it?” Intellectual Property is always good but not always realistic depending on the nature of the business. If you have I.P. in place it will help this concern to discuss it. If not, you could talk about how your company is different enough from competitors that they could not duplicate what you do.

The presentation itself, which will most likely be a power point needs to be clear and understandable. A common presentation tip to investors is that your grandmother should be able to understand it (nothing against grandma). This ties back into previous points brought up that you shouldn't dive right into the complexity of the technology but should assume that your audience knows nothing about your product, service or idea. More Business, Less Technology.

Presentation Outline Suggestion:

12 slides.
7 bullet points per slide.

7 words per bullet.

One of the presentations was a company that has not only reached revenue of nearly 1M a year but has been profitable. Some encouraging data came out in the Q&A after what I felt was a promising business. The investors felt very strongly that this relevant data related to the market that the company had already tapped into should have been in the slides. Also, the three main points that need to be addressed early on were commonly neglected. What is the problem you are solving? Who are you solving it for? How do you solve it?

The presenters commonly had a lot of passion for their company whether conceptual or real. This is a great attribute, although the investors are typically not very easily impressed (doesn't mean they can't be). However great your idea or business may be to you the investors will bring up points and concerns you may not have previously contemplated.

Some websites where you can find investors, learn about them and connect with them are listed below.

TheFunded.com (allows you to search for investors)
AngelList.com (connect with investors)

Pitching to Investors

Up and Coming Young Entrepreneurs

Naveen Sevadurai

Naveen Sevadurai is the co-founder of Foursquare.com, a location based social networking website that allows users to communicate their geographic location via computers or smartphones. The online service has 10 million users worldwide and has an Alexa Rank of 623.Sevadurai founded the company with Dennis Drowley who is now CEO. The company is valued somewhere between 100M and 250M.

Chris Van Pelt and Lukas Beiwald are the founders of CrowdFlower, a crowdsourcing platform that uses internet tools to help companies outsource large projects and tasks to thousands of people. A project that may have taken months to complete could be done in a day. The technique used by CrowdFlower is to delegate a task to thousands of people all over the globe. Their network includes close to one million workers in 70 countries. Their website allows for the managing of all the task delegating. Van Pelt and Beiwald founded the company (formerly called Doroles Labs) in 2007 and they are located in San Francisco, CA. Things have been good for Van Pelt and Beiwald. Crowdflower, reached 100M completed tasks sometime in Spring 2011 and have received $13.25M in funding from various VC and Angel Groups.



Angelo Sotira, a native of Greece, co-founded deviantantART.com at age 19 with two others. This supercharged, facebook of the art world allows users to interact in a variety of different ways. Artists of all kinds can share their work, browse, buy, sell, discuss, collaborate and more right on the site. The type of artwork is open from digital art to traditional art, photography to poetry, film/animation to game development and others. Their Alexa Rank is currently 111. The site has well over three milion unique visitors a month,  12 million members and over 100 million unique, original artworks. You can browse all different types of art on their site.

Ecovative Design believes that mushrooms are the new plastic. Eben Bayer is proving this theory to be true. MycoBond is a a patent pending technology that takes agricultural waste products and turns them into packaging materials. The result is a styrofoam alternative that is equal in it's packaging strength and reliability but is 100% safe for the environment. One of their main products, Eco-Cradle was featured in a previous post in top green inventions of 2010. Below is a video of Eben Beyer speaking at TED in Oxford, England.




Websites discussed:
Foursquare.com
deviantART.com
CrowdFlower.com
ecovativedesign.com
Alexa.com

Inc's   30 under 30: Young Entrepreneurs
Retireat21.com   Top Young Entrepreneurs

Visualize Your Business Model: A Presentation by IDEO

IDEO, a Design and Innovation Consulting Firm located in Palo Alto, California, recently posted a video presentation by Tom Humle. "Visualize Your Business Model" takes you through the process of creating and developing a successful business model.

Here are the key points I took away from the presentation.

Visualizing your model can be an effective way to help you "communicate it, consider the whole" and "be creative."   Visualizing can help us so that we communicate more efficiently by referring to different facets as we explain. The ability to communicate a model can be very important, especially if you are proposing to investors.

Step 1)  A) Value Proposition & B) Market Segment...

A) Value Proposition) What is the value that is being created? What is the need that is being filled? A common tactic of developing a successful business model is creating a solution to a common problem. What is the frustration that is being remedied by your business model? This is where it all starts.

B) Market Segment) What is your Market Segment (who will "realize the value") or who will benefit from your model? Humle mentioned to "keep an open mind" when thinking of ways that the need can be filled. Also, ask questions like "How many are there?" and are their numbers "increasing or decreasing" when analyzing the Market Segment.

Step 2) How you deliver & realize value:

A) Distribution Channels: Realizing the value, getting the product or service to the consumer or user.

B) Marketing Channels: The process of making the product or service known and the methods to do so. Humle mentioned that lack of this was one of the biggest downfalls of a business model.

Pricing Model) How the value created is re compensated for. Prices can either be fixed, variable or subscription based.

Step 3) Competitors) The economy today consists of "dynamic markets" which is why it is important to differentiate the model from what is already available to consumers.

Step 4) A) How To Create The Value) Partners: How will you bring this value to life? Who will you partner with or hire?  Capabilities: What teams do you need in place and what skills do they need to accomplish your goals? These are things to consider when thinking about how the ultimate goal of the model will be achieved.

B) Costs) The costs of creating, marketing and delivering a model all need to be addressed and well thought about before pursuing it. This ties into the next segment of a business model...

C) Profitability) How much value is added by the model versus the costs of creating it? The goal of any business is to maximize value while minimizing costs.

Step 5) Growth Strategy) Constant progression and development of a business model is part of what makes it successful. This also deals with being able to estimate more precisely where your business will be in the future. which can help with important decisions. 

This overview should help organize your thoughts and get a clear vision of what you want to achieve with your business goals.

View Tom Humle's blog @ weijiblog.com.

I first discovered IDEO back in 2009 when a documentary on design and how it affects the world around us came out. Objectified, a film by Gary Hustwit, is a very interesting movie that I would recommend to anyone interested in design, product ideas, inventing, how it affects us, the psychology of design and the companies/people behind it. Designers from IDEO, Smart Design, Apple, BMW Group and others were all featured in the film.

5 Things To Look For In A Patent Attorney

Entrepreneurs commonly have new ideas, concepts or inventions in the early stages of their venture and need the counsel of a patent attorney to better access what can be protected, help with patent searching and help with writing/filing a patent. Here is what I came across as I discussed this topic with professionals in the field...

1) Registered with the United States Patent & Trademark Office: Search here for Registered Patent Attorneys and Agents. They should have a five digit number with the USPTO if they are registered.

(Check out inovia.com and wipo.int for info on international protection and foreign filing).

2) Field Specific Experience: They should have experience in the field or technology you are pursuing a patent in. Ask them what field if any they specialize in. This will ensure that they understand the terminology, writing, technology and other aspects of the specific type of invention you are trying to get patented.

3) How long they have been in the practice: Ask or research how many years they have been in this practice of law or writing/filing this specific type of patent(s). Experience is good but this doesn't mean a new attorney would not be able to provide adequate service.

4) Success: Ask how many patents have they or their firm filed successfully, with a Non Provisional Patent being granted (usually Utility). If they are a new attorney or a new practice you will not see the same results as in an established firm, with a higher number of patents granted if they are established. The most patents granted by the top 5 U.S. firms in a two year period (ending in October 2010) are...

1 Fish & Richardson P.C.   9718 Patents Granted
2 Oblon, Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt, L.L.P.  8133 Patents Granted
3 Oliff & Berridge, PLC   6247 Patents Granted
4 Sughrue Mion, PLLC  6205 Patents Granted
5 Birch, Stewart, Kolasch & Birch, LLP   5523 Patents Granted
Number 10 on the list, Townsend and Townsend and Crew LLP with 2956 Patents Granted


Examples of specific successful patents are important as well and tie into how many have been granted. What patents are now developed into successful companies, products and services? This could be encouraging information if some of their patents have led to successful entities. A study done, however, showed that only 6.5% of inventors actually ever sell their invention. But, it also showed that independent inventor's patents are eight times more likely to reach the market when compared to patents granted to an established firm. (Basic Statistics on the Success Rate and Profits for Independent Inventors)

5) Intangibles: Certain qualities can't be shown through numbers or data. Qualities like creativity, professionalism and willingness to work with clients. These will all help with the write up of the patent, the relationship you have with your attorney and the interaction you have with him or her in the process. These factors can all help in the overall process of filing a patent.

Top Inventions 2010: Green Energy

Deep Green Underwater Kite ( Deep Green, an underwater, energy producing kite is in the process of testing out their first prototype. Deep Green, a new type of tidal energy,  has potential to increase the tidal energy market by 80%. The project, run by Minesto, capitalizes on the fact that water is 800 times as dense as air giving a projected result of 500 kilowatts (with an effecient turbine that travels ten times the speed of the water it flies in). A prototype, one fourth the size of the actual, will be tested in 2011 in Northen Ireland.)



Almost Water-Less Washing Machine ( A new concept for a washing machine that uses small nylon beads to remove stains and 10% of the water of a regular wash. The concept, developed by Xeros Ltd., is intended to be put out in 2011 for commercial dry cleaning and laundy businesses across North America. The reusable nylon bead system could reduce the current 330 billion gallons of water a year (U.S.) used from washing machines and help consumers save on their water bills in the process. )

Eco-Cradle Natural Packaging ( Ecovative Design, located in Green Island, NY, has discovered a innovative way to build packaging that uses compostable byproducts. The material is not manufactured, it is grown. This new type of packaging materials is made from seed husks and mushrooms. Eco-Cradle, performing the same function as styrofoam, requires less energy to produce and can be thrown into your garden after use. A complete eco friendly product that does not compromise quality. )

Power Aware Cord ( This new type of power strip reveals to it's users the amount of energy being used. It does this by a cord that literally lights up bright based on the amount of current being used. The brighter the cord, the more energy is being used. This new project, a product of The Interactive Institute in Sweden, is designed to help cosumers increase awareness about energy and decrease consumption. )

Be inspired...develop your idea...talk to an expert...

Green Energy Patent Attorneys (note: Attorneys may practice other areas other than Green Energy, Sustainable Energy or Clean Energy. Raj Abhyanker offers free legal protection services for Green Energy Patents. Look for the sections on Green, Sustainable and Clean Energy by looking under practice areas / industries.)

Foley & Lardner LLP

Raj Abhyanker PC

Celander Law

Luce, Foward, Hamilton & Scipps LLP

Heslin, Rothenburg, Farley & Mesiti PC

Top Inventions: Tech, Software

Here is a select group of inventions from 2010 and 2009 in this field with brief descriptions. A list of U.S. Patent Attorneys who practice this field are listed below.

Square ( A payment platform that allows users to swipe/accept credit cards with their iPhone, iPad or Android at any location. The actual swiping device is free with 2.75% of each transaction being charged. Co - founded by Twitter Chairman, Jack Dorsey. )

Flipboard ( An application for Apple's iPad that collects data from all of your social networking platforms and favorite sites; displaying them in a magazine like format. This allows you access to all your favorite spots in a unique way. Apple's 2010 App of the year for the iPad. )

Electric Eye ( A microchip developed by MIT that uses as an implant for people with retinitis pigmentosa or age-related macular degeneration. The person will wear a pair of glasses (with the implant) that will transmit images with the use of a camera. This invention, although groundbreaking, does not restore full eyesight. But partial eyesight recovery can help individuals with these two causes of blindness live more independently. )

Teleportation ( A discovery of University of Maryland's Joint Quantum Institute; this invention involves moving atoms from one location to another without moving through a physical medium. This has been groundbreaking in helping computers security and speed. ) Relevant Article

Smart Thermostat ( A device that can communicate to you how much gas or electricity your house is using. The EnergyHub Dashboard will let users know how much energy each appliance or furnace is using, as well is what that amount of energy is costing you. The purpose is clear; reduce energy consumption and energy costs. )

Get Inspired...Develop Your Idea...Talk To An Expert...

Select Tech & Software Patent Attorneys

Aeon Law - High Technology

Kuesy & Associates - Areas include Computer & Internet Technology and Software

Harness Dickey Intellectual Property Firm - Electrical & Computer

Silicon Valley Patent Attorney - Various Technological Fields

Some of these attorneys may practice other specific areas other than software, tech, computers, etc.

Invention Promotion Firms: $300 Million in Scams

So, you're an inventor, an entrepreneur. Your idea is your passion. You hear an ad for a company that will take your idea and make it the next big thing. Here's the truth...

5 Things Invention Promotion Firms Can Do For You:

1) Help you file a patent.
2) Write your business plan.
3) Create a prototype.
3) Submit your idea to companies for potential licensing.
5) Suck a lot of money out of you and leave you with nothing.

*Only what's underlined need be applied.

 If you have an idea and are stuck or don't know where to turn; do your research on any company that you are considering working with. Companies that want a lot of money upfront and keep asking for more and more (for each stage of the "process") are almost always scams. These companies capitalize on the enthusiasm of the inventor and their belief that they're idea can and will make it. There are countless stories of inventors getting scammed...don't be one.

The USPTO estimated that inventors lost around $200 million each year as of 2002. This number may be closer to $300 million. For lists of invention promotion firms that have had complaints filed against them visit InventorEd.com's CAUTION Lists.

Stay clear of any company on any of these lists.

Relevant Articles:

About.com's How to Avoid an Invention Company Scam
Federal Trade Commision's take on Invention Promotion Firms
MSNBC's Got an invention, you to can be scammed