CoolTech 2010 Internet Technology Summit

Bernie Borges Interviews Entrepreneurs at COOLTech 2010 [ 38:09 ]
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Internet & Technology Summit Special Edition Podcast

I recently attended and spoke at the Internet & Technology Summit, (aka TechSummit) June 22nd and 23rd in Orlando. I managed to connect with nine of the speakers for this podcast. I asked each of the speakers to summarize the key points from their talk. When you listen to the podcast, I’m sure you’ll agree that each speaker did a terrific job of sharing their key points very succinctly. Here’s what you can expect to hear on the podcast from each speaker.

Jody Haneke, President, Haneke Design

Jody provided examples of how some companies are deploying strategic mobile applications, such as a pharmaceutical company sharing info with doctors. He explained how one mobile app allows the doc to enter height and weight of a patient and a dosage calculator will calculate proper dosage to prescribe. He explained the growing importance of creating user experiences that allow the user to access an app from any device they use whether it’s a mobile device or a desktop device.

Carol Cox, Founder of InterMedia4web and Chair of Internet Marketing, Full Sail University

Carol articulated four ways to reach your customers online by leveraging the newest internet business models. 1) Social shopping. People spend a lot of time in social networking sites. Brands can integrate shopping in Facebook, allowing browsing and  purchase. 2)Virtual goods is estimated to be a $1B industry in 2010. Examples include avatars, a digital rose, etc. Brands should consider creating a digital equivalent of their product. 3) Virtual currency.  Place ads and allow the consumer to earn virtual currency they can actually spend. 4) Going beyond the browser. Through smartphones, iPads, Facebook applications and other mobile apps a brand can engage consumers where ever they are. Be available where your customers spend time, engage them and keep them coming back.

Alfred Goldberg, President of Absolute Mobile Solutions

Alfred spoke about how Europe is ahead of the U.S. in the use of mobile technology because they adopted mobile faster than the U.S. Alfred is quick to point out that most businesses adopting a mobile strategy do so without a strategy. They don’t do the research up front. They don’t put the user at the center of the experience, which Alfred believes is stifling innovation. When asked for a good example of a brand using mobile, he mentioned Kraft Foods. They allow us to see the content of food by scanning a bar code. He also referenced location based apps like FourSquare. Alfred optimistically points out that most businesses can harness mobile by creating an SMS app, a mobile website or a mobile application that serves their user community.

Mary Spio, Co-Founder & President of Vidaroo (formally Gen2Media)

Mary opens with the compelling point that over 86% of online users are engaging with video! Wow! As Mary says, brands shouldn’t ignore almost 90% of internet users by ignoring video. Mary explains in her presentation that a company doesn’t have to be a media company to produce video. Just leverage your expertise in your industry and create videos about your products, your company, your industry. Share your videos with your website visitors. Find a way to communicate your product benefits through video.

Tony Greco , CEO of TekGiants

Tony’s presentation took all the mystery out of cloud computing. He explained the three types of cloud computing: public, hybrid, private. A public cloud is a company that builds their own cloud and extends it out to the field for rent. Examples include Amazon and Google Apps. Anyone can rent computing access from them.  In business, the most common cloud is private. The business benefits of cloud computing are many. Among the biggest benefits are cost reduction and lower risk. Cloud computing can considerably reduce IT expenses. Other significant benefits include availability, scalability, affordability, zero footprint, green friendly and less resources are needed to run systems in a business that run on a cloud infrastructure.

Mike Volpe, SVP of Inbound Marketing at HubSpot

Mike gave the keynote on day two. He gave a very inspirational talk on tools and hiring strategies used by HubSpot to fuel their growth. Summed up in four words: Treat employees like entrepreneurs. HubSpot uses a hiring strategy called: DARC. Digital, Analytical, Reach, Content. The idea is that each new hire should have these qualities about them. It turns out that about one third of the key initiatives at HubSpot started without management authorization. That’s pretty darn entrepreneurial. HubSpot prides itself on maintaining an entrepreneurial culture due to their DARC hiring practices. As Mike says, HubSpot uses  modern tools and practices to be a modern company.

Guy Hagen, Founder & President of Innovation Insight

Guy gave a very insightful presentation on social media tools. He cites two excuses that people use to not do social media monitoring. One excuse people give is that tools are too expensive. Guy’s entire talk referenced free tools. The other excuse is many people simply don’t know which tools are available. The result is that many people are ignoring the conversations in social media involving them. He shared simple tools like alerts from Google and Social Mention as well as more advanced tools like BlogPulse and Yahoo Pipes. Social Mention also includes some stats such as sentiment.

David Glass, Publisher at Florida Technology Journal

David is the founder and co-producer of TechSummit. David’s vision behind the TechSummit is to educate companies on the latest strategies, tools and resources to help them grow. The speaker slate was comprised mostly of local Florida based entrepreneurs, showcasing our local technology and people. David is passionate about showcasing local talent as much as possible. His next event is the Tech Venture Conference on November 19th in Orlando,  showcasing early stage and growth stage companies.

Steve Tingiris, CEO of Enthusem

Steve shared his experience building a new technology company and the importance of building relationships. As great as tools and technology are, building solid relationships at every level is the most important thing according to Steve. It’s the people that will create the outcomes. The tools will help the people, but the people will create the outcomes. The relationships with employees comes down to “can you imagine working somewhere else?” Ask your customer, “can you imagine doing what you do without (fill in your business name)?” Relationships ultimately drive cash flow, profitability and growth. Technology should reinforce relationship building. Lots of food for thought here…

Michelle Malott, Co-Chair TechSummit, CEO HDYI

Michelle moderated the event, and did so with great charm. She worked closely with David Glass to organize and produce the TechSummit event. Unfortunately, my podcast interview with Michelle got corrupted. But, I will have Michelle as my guest on the Find and Convert podcast very soon where she’ll share her wisdom and insights on innovation with us very soon.

Lastly, I spoke at this conference on the risks of social media marketing. My presentation outlines some of the most common risks in social media to be aware of and how to avoid or mitigate them. These risks include no strategy, the wrong strategy, lack of resources, expecting overnight results, not measuring results, underestimating the influence of one person and the risk of employee abuse.

I hope these interviews have delivered on my commitment to the 3 Es of content (educate, enlighten, entertain). Hopefully you’ve been educated or enlightened, and maybe a little entertained.

There are plenty of pics and comments from the event on the TechSummit Facebook page.

I hope you’ll listen to the podcast to get a feel for the energy at TechSummit and to hear these great speakers firsthand. Just click the play button above or subscribe to my podcasts in iTunes.