Making Yourself Known as a Startup

September 13 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Entrepreneurial Insights 0 comments Tags: Connecticut, CT, CT startup, entrepreneur, startup, startup tips, tips for startups

Checkmate was honored as "Murphy's Innovator of the Month" in August 2017. Founder Tom Nassr (right) accepted the award from Senator Chris Murphy.

How are you making yourself known? When you are starting out as an entrepreneur, sharing your name and idea with the world can be a good thing. There are advantages to marketing yourself, but there are some disadvantages as well. If you need help figuring out if making yourself known is a good idea for you, here are some of the things I’ve learned from building a startup.

Why Should You Make Yourself Known?

Telling people about your ideas does more than simply get your name out there. As you talk with others and introduce yourself, you will have the opportunity to make connections. Maybe the person you just met will know someone you should pitch your idea to next. They might know a network of people who could offer you advice and support or they could become your mentor or partner. If your venture doesn’t work out, you will still have accumulated relationships and established trust that can carry on to your next venture, even after a failure.

An early venture of mine was an app where users could post temporary tags on a shared map to discuss what was going on in their area. Before I even had a product, I openly shared my thoughts with a favorite professor of mine. The app I wanted to make had attributes, but a weak use case or purpose at the time. My philosophy professor realized the alignment my idea had with resources for refugees. Refugees were always spread out and could move or disappear at a moment’s notice, so we started thinking about how Kricket could be used to give refugees useful, real-time information.

Through my discussions with my professor, I was connected with the Nobel Summit for Peace Laureates. Although my product was not finished or ready to be used, my sharing it led to many more doors being opened for me in the humanitarian space and I made a lot of great connections with people I’m still in touch with today. None of this would have happened if I had kept my startup to myself until I felt it was the “right time” to share it with the world.

When Should You Make Yourself Known?

Although it would be nice to know the “right time” to start putting yourself out there, the reality is that there is no right time. Everyone wants to do things when they feel ready, but we are always thinking of what is happening in the future. It’s a lot like skydiving. You get up in the plane, you think about the drop, you become afraid and you don’t want to jump anymore. You forget that you have a parachute until the instructor jumps out with you and pulls the cord or you want to pull it before you’ve even jumped.

Although there is no right time (or even a wrong time) to start making yourself known, the best time is when you are just as ready to see your idea fail as you are to see it succeed. If you are too early, you risk appearing as if you are not committed to the idea. If you are too late, then you’ll likely have wasted time and missed valuable customer feedback. The “Goldilocks Zone” is when you have a sense of momentum in your endeavors. Even though failure is an option, the desire to try and the action to go through with your idea is further than most people go.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Aside from building up a network, there’s the opportunity to go to conferences or events related to your venture. You could find like-minded people who are just as passionate about your idea as you are or, most importantly, learn things that you didn’t know that you didn’t know.

That said, it may still be tempting to operate as a stealth startup, especially if you’re concerned that someone you share it with will steal it. However, the positives of getting your idea out there likely outweigh the risks. Aaron Patzer, founder of Mint and other ventures, promotes the idea of being as open as possible with your business. “Tell anyone and everyone your idea without fear they’re going to steal it,” Patzer said at a 2010 Future of Web Apps conference in Miami, pointing out that the chance of someone stealing your idea is very small while the benefits of receiving a lot of feedback early on are invaluable. This early feedback will let you address your market’s pain points before you start building your product, and you will be able to refine it to be more in line with your market’s needs as you build.

If you are still afraid of someone trying to take your idea for themselves, explore some provisional patents or use NDAs, or better yet, mutual NDAs. Doing so will give you some peace of mind while also giving you the freedom to discuss your idea with people who can help.

Getting your name out there is one way to build a startup, but it is not the only way. If you think it is a good idea for you, go to events, accelerators, maker spaces, etc., and introduce yourself to others. Start making connections, because you never know the potential of the person sitting next to you on a train, plane or at an event. The people who you meet will be the ones helping you along, and they will be the ones to decide if your idea is good enough to thrive. Yet it is on you, and only you, to take that first step out of the plane.

About the Author
Tom Nassr is CEO at Connecticut-based Checkmate Digital, which architects, designs, and engineers custom software products with startups. He is a member of the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invitation-only, fee-based organization comprised of entrepreneurs aged 40 and younger. YEC members represent nearly every industry, generate billions of dollars in revenue each year, and have created tens of thousands of jobs. In partnership with Citi, the YEC recently launched BusinessCollective, a free virtual mentorship program.

Interested in learning more about Tom and his entrepreneurial endeavors?

Read our interview: Connecticut Startup Helps Future Startups

Get more entrepreneurial tips from Tom in his Innovation Destination Hartford blog: Successfully Failing: What I Learned from Failing My First Startup

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CT Startup Provides Innovative Technology to Banks

July 10 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Innovation, Tech 0 comments Tags: Connecticut, CT, CT startup, entrepreneur, innovation entrepreneurship, startups

Payrailz, LLC CEO Fran Dugan and VP of Marketing Marvin (Mickey) Goldwasser told Innovation Destination Hartford Website Curator Nan Price about what it’s like to launch and work in and on a tech startup in Connecticut.

NAN PRICE: When did you launch Payrailz and how did you develop the business concept?

Fran Dugan is CEO of Glastonbury, CT-based Payrailz, LLC.

FRAN DUGAN: We launched the company publicly in November 2017. It’s my second startup. I started my first company in 2010. It still exists although I’m no longer involved.

The idea for Payrailz had been brewing for a while. Deciding to launch a startup was a big leap for someone like me, who had a very steady bank career from the time I graduated college until now.

I’ve been in banking for 30 years. Most recently I was with Webster Bank here in Connecticut. Having been through all the back-end pieces of banking, I understand how it works and I thought: There has got to be a better way to do this. Technology could be used to be used to help banks transfer money. I had some ideas and talked to some other people, who all agreed we can make the process much better.

NAN: I’ve heard that from other entrepreneurs—their idea sparks from thinking they have a better approach.

FRAN: I’ve always been one of those people who thinks there’s a better way of doing things. Before launching my own company, I had a lot of roles as an “intrapreneur”—an entrepreneur who works inside a company. For example, at Webster Bank we built our own online banking system, which at the time was kind of unusual.

Being in the corporate world things were going well, but I experienced a lot of frustrations, mostly because I would see all these things and think: We should do this and why can’t we do things quicker?

NAN: When you’re in a startup versus a large corporation you can be nimbler. And you can see your efforts more quickly.

FRAN: Absolutely. That’s the benefit. It’s a plus and a minus. Working in a startup there are huge highs and huge lows—and a lot of sideways.

In this world, one day we’ll all be celebrating something we just accomplished and the next day you get a phone call and you think: What happened? That’s something you just have to roll with. And I have found since being in the entrepreneurial environment that I love it. It’s not for everybody. There are definitely times where I think: What am I doing?!

NAN: Mickey, as an employee what makes you want to come into a startup situation?

Marvin (Mickey) Goldwasser is VP of Marketing at Payrailz, LLC.

MICKEY GOLDWASSER: That’s a great question. I’ve been in that conservative banking environment Fran mentioned, where things are pretty predictable. I’ve also worked for other startups. It’s exciting when it’s not predictable because you get to move fast and make a lot of decisions. But also, at the end of the day, you can go home and say: I did something. We’re doing this together. We win or lose together. We succeed together. That feeling is hard to duplicate in the corporate world.

As Fran said, working for a startup isn’t for everyone. And it is a roller coaster. You learn over time to kind of level it out. You also learn to fail fast. What I mean is, there are a lot of ideas and sometimes they’re not going to work, so it’s having that ability—almost the luxury—to be able to take those experiences and keep moving forward.

NAN: Fran, you mentioned the highs and lows. Anything else about being an entrepreneur that’s been unexpected? Anything you wish you’d done differently?

FRAN: The speed at which things happen is so much greater both in a negative and a positive. In my particular role, the amount of decisions I make in a day is phenomenal. But, when you’re an entrepreneur and you get into that mode of speed, it can be extremely frustrating when the rest of the world isn’t at that pace.

NAN: When it comes to decision making, how do you develop that kind of entrepreneurial leadership?

FRAN: I’ve had the benefit of coming out of that corporate world, where things can be analyzed to the bitter end. Some decisions you’re sort of forced into. It’s a learning thing. I don’t think you jump into being an entrepreneur and suddenly become that way, but you realize decisions must be made.

I think I learned a lot from launching my first startup, so the second time through I’ve been better prepared. For example, knowing to start now thinking about something we need in a month. You can’t wait until you need it.

There are things I put in place this time that alleviate some of that, knowing you’re going to need to make some of these decisions. And hiring good people. This time around, I have good investors and I knew upfront I was going to hire some good people. That cost money, but it makes the business work. Lesson learned from the first time: You can’t do it all yourself.

MICKEY: What I like about the entrepreneurial environment Fran has created is that there is no box. You can’t say: Here’s our culture unless you live that culture. As a leader, Fran’s door is always open. I like the collaboration this company brings. Everybody in the room has an opinion that’s heard. I think that’s what an entrepreneurial environment encourages.

NAN: Tell us about what Payrailz does. What differentiates you from other companies and makes you innovative?

FRAN: Payrailz provides technology solutions to banks and credit unions. What makes us different than what others is we are incorporating artificial intelligence into our platform to deliver smart payment solutions in what we call the “do it for me world.” The real innovation behind it is leveraging data and using automation to help banks provide more value for their customers.

NAN: In terms of these customers and your clients, how are you marketing?

FRAN: From a marketing standpoint, we go direct to some financial institutions. We also use reselling partners—there are other groups that sell technology to banks and credit unions—we can be part of their suite. We market a lot through social media, public relations, tradeshows/conferences and word-of-mouth. In this industry everybody knows everybody. So, when something new comes along, it tends to be a little viral and we’re kind of in that storm right now.

NAN: Does being in Connecticut play an important role in your business?

FRAN: That’s a good question. One of our founders lives in Florida, so we debated where to locate the company. Many of us are coming from financial services in the New England area.

I moved to Connecticut about 20 years ago and I think it’s a great place because we’re growing our business around the concept of family. We’re very big on our culture. At a lot of startups, it’s row faster, row harder because they’re trying to make that next dollar for their investors. Our company is not that way. We have good investors, but our focus is to be a place people want to work, where they can have life balance and build careers they know they can grow in. That’s fundamental to our company.

NAN: Let’s talk about funding.

FRAN: We are a startup and we are a technology company. A good amount of capital is required to build the types of capabilities we’re developing. We have some strong investors including Webster Bank, Live Oak Bank, Woodforest Bank, and First Data Corporation, which is one of the world’s largest card processors. We like to have clients as investors—banks and unions—so they get the benefit of using our services, but also the benefits of being an investor. That way our visions are aligned.

NAN: With an eye toward the future, what is your ideal vision for the company?

FRAN: We think we’ve got a new approach to payments and our vision is catching on within the market. We didn’t just want to be just another “me too” company and we believe we can bring innovation to the industry with a solution that simples lives and adds value.

In April 2017, Payrailz moved to a larger facility located at 95 Glastonbury Boulevard in Glastonbury, CT.

To this end, we’re growing pretty fast. We’re now up to 21 people. It’s going quick and we’ve got some very large clients. In April we moved to a larger facility in Glastonbury. That’s a sign of growth.

As we grow, I want to keep that small company family feel. To me it’s not always about making money. It’s about building a great company by providing a great product backed by great service. The question for our team is: Can everybody have a sense of accomplishment, feel good about who they’re working with, and have fun? I’d be happy if my employees can say: I’ve had my whole career here and I have a great life.

At this point, we’re moving along according to plan. In the future, we will have proven ourselves and we will have people who are saying great things. I’d like to think in a couple of years you’re going to hear not from us, but from others about what a great company we are, what great services we provide, and what great people we are to work with.

NAN: As a technology company, how will you continue to innovate?

FRAN: It’s always hard. I look at us as suppliers of technology, so I’m not going to invent artificial intelligence. It’s more about understanding how things work and thinking about using new technology in new ways. One way to do that is by listening to what your clients tell you. What are users doing?

It’s not always about doing something outlandishly wild much as it is understanding where the world is going. And it’s going to toward this do it for me world, so we think we have a long road there. But I’m never worried about not having a new idea. My staff would probably tell you they wish that would stop! I’ve never met a whiteboard I didn’t like!

MICKEY: Fran is an entrepreneur who has created an opportunity for people like me who have the same kind of vision where we can almost start with a blank slate, but also take all our experience and match it with the newest technology. What we are trying to do for banks and credit unions is enable them to simplify lives and add value.

NAN: Any advice for others on their entrepreneurial journey?

FRAN: You have to have a thick skin. I also say life is short, so if you think you might to do it, do it. You can’t worry about all the things. If it doesn’t work the first time, the second time, or the third time, it doesn’t mean the fourth time won’t be the charm.

People ask me if I wish I’d started my own business earlier. I don’t know if I have any regrets about starting when I did, but I’m glad I did it. Anyone who has a good idea or thinks they want to try it, just know you have to do a lot of work. You’re not going to come up with an idea that will earn you $10 million in a week. You’ll be lucky if you do that. If nothing else, pick something you enjoy, find good people to work with, and you’ll have fun. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s about.

Learn more about Payrailz, LLC

VISIT: www.payrailz.com
FOLLOW: Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter

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CT Entrepreneur Creates NEAT Solutions

July 04 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Women In Business 0 comments Tags: Connecticut entrepreneur, Connecticut startup, CT entrepreneur, CT startup, entrepreneur, startup, The Refinery

Connecticut entrepreneur Heidi Worcester created NEATsheets, an innovative solution to napkins, clothing protectors or bibs.

Heidi Worcester, Founder and Owner NEATgoods, spoke with Innovation Destination Hartford Website Curator Nan Price about the process of taking an idea, iterating it, and bringing it to market.

NAN PRICE: I read that the concept behind NEATsheets was developed by your father “a perennial businessman” and mother who came up with the idea for a car napkin/bib after a long road trip. How did the business concept evolve?

HEIDI WORCESTER: I took the idea a step further to meet the needs of my aging grandmother. I was looking at products available for her beyond just a bib. I thought: This market needs some good design. I started gaining momentum in my thought process as to how I could develop the concept.

Our first product is NEATsheets, but we expanded to the bigger concept of NEATgoods. The idea is to create exceptionally designed products for everyday uses. We’re taking products that typically aren’t designed and giving them an element of dignity and attractiveness. We launched about three years ago.

NAN: At what point did you realize your idea was marketable and you could start a company manufacturing the products?

HEIDI: I came up with a way to design a solution to using napkins or bibs. I researched the paper and the manufacturing. As I was talking about the concept, people reacted by saying: I get it. And they asked: Have you thought about using it this way? It had a snowball effect of people telling me new ways they thought the products could be used. I thought that showed there were some viability to the concept.

NAN: What steps did you take to get the startup going?

HEIDI: I went to a conference and met Jennifer Gabler, who was co-founding an entrepreneurial accelerator group for women in Connecticut called The Refinery. I was in their first class of students. They were willing to take me on even though I wasn’t far in the process because they thought my concept was strong.

NAN: What did you get out of that experience? Did The Refinery help with your business plan?

HEIDI: The Refinery provided a great support system. They helped with all different business aspects—marketing, finance, branding. We were kept very busy refining our business models. We had assignments, we attended lectures, we were meeting accomplished business people who mentored us.

As I went through the program and kept developing the product, I found that what I thought was going to be our biggest market—which were commuters and people in their cars—was probably a secondary market. I realized there was this whole senior market with a real need for these types of products.

NAN: Did you utilize other startup resources in addition to The Refinery?

HEIDI: After The Refinery, I felt like I was being pushed out of the nest. I realized: I’m on my own and I’ve got to find my legs.

I learned to take advantage of what’s out there. Because if you have a great idea and you want to see it get somewhere, you’ve got to go out and explore the resources available. If you sit at home and try to do it in your own little cocoon, it’s just not going to work.

I connected with Milena Erwin, Program Manager of the Women’s Business Center at the University of Hartford’s Entrepreneurial Center. I’ve worked on my marketing plan with Anne DiFrancesco at the Women’s Business Development Council in Stamford. And I have a fantastic mentor through SCORE, Buz Sawyer, who helps me structure my business.

There are resources available to support you and encourage you. It took a while to learn that, but now I find I’m constantly pushing myself to get out and network. I have to because, while I have a product, and it’s selling on Amazon and it’s doing nicely, I need to sell more. And it’s not my nature to sell.

NAN: Would you say that marketing is your biggest challenge as a startup?

HEIDI: Marketing has been hard, because it’s not a product that you necessarily know you need. And, it’s not a product you know how to google. So, we have to get it known, whether it’s through publications or any sort of news format. We got on the local Fox News station early on. It was great because that week we saw an immediate bump in sales, and that was right at the beginning. We need more of that.

Because otherwise: Great idea but how do I find you? Even if you know you can find us on Amazon, you might not necessarily know what to put in the search.

One strategy that has been extremely successful is we provide NEATsheets to food and BBQ festivals nationwide in exchange for sponsorship rights. This has been a very significant way we’ve marketed our product along with investment in social media, including Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.

In some ways, that’s been our biggest struggle. In the beginning, there were definitely challenges. We made product we weren’t happy with. The sticky tabs weren’t working, or the paper wasn’t high quality. We couldn’t sell something that wasn’t nicely designed or packaged well. The quality wasn’t up to our high standards and that’s what we’re all about—designing a better product.

NAN: Tell us more about how you got your product on Amazon.

HEIDI: Sure. It’s not as easy as you would expect. It was a process. A lot of that was done by my business partner and brother, Greg Pesky. He took on the task of getting us available on Amazon. We did hire someone to figure out the language so we had the proper search terms.

Since then, we’ve gotten an Amazon’s Choice designation, which I find personally influences me when I buy things. We do Amazon AdWords too, so hopefully that’s also bringing more people in.

Amazon offered us business-to-business designation, so we’ve gone through the process of applying for that. There are two designations, Seller Central and Vendor Central, and both have different advantages.

You must be aware that when Amazon offers a designation such as Vendor Central (versus Seller Central), while you have the potential for large sales, you also give up a certain amount of control. Not that it’s necessarily bad, but with the advantages there could be possible drawbacks if your company isn’t ready for them. If you’re considering Amazon, you really should go online and Google the difference between the two.

NAN: It sounds like you really need to do your research.

HEIDI: Yes. I’ve got to say, it’s been a great partnership. Amazon has been supportive. Through Amazon we could not ship as inexpensively as we do. We use Amazon to fulfill orders through our website.

Another thing with Amazon is the testimonials, which are wonderful. But, you don’t know who they are coming from, because you only have access to a certain amount of information. When people order through our website, we’re able to ask them questions. As you’re starting a small company, you want to find out as much about your customer as possible, and we are missing a little of that information.

NAN: Speaking of your customers, let’s talk about your target market. You were talking earlier about how that kind of shifted.

HEIDI: Defining our market has been another challenge for us. We started off thinking we were going toward commuters or travelers, and then found this market of senior citizens.

What I’ve learned from mentors is: You have to focus. You can’t be everything to everyone. But through various conversations, we hear all kinds of suggestions for our products: What if you’re wearing a uniform, or you’re all dressed up and you have to put on makeup? It goes on and on. See? This is exactly what our problem is. Yes, we want to focus, but then everybody starts suggesting other ideas.

We’ve also seen that on Amazon. There are uses we would have never imagined. For example, proms and weddings. And people make suggestions. So, we don’t want to limit ourselves. Because we do feel like we created a better product, and if it works in a variety of situation—go for it!

NAN: What does being an entrepreneur mean to you?

HEIDI: There’s an element of freedom. There’s also an element of responsibility. As they say, everybody can come up with an idea, it’s the process of taking that idea to fruition and that’s quite difficult.

Yet, when it works out, it’s invigorating. When you go to Amazon and realize you got a sale. Then you get a sale a week you’re ecstatic. And then it’s sales every day. And then it’s a certain number of sales every day and that number keeps increasing. That’s exciting when you feel like you’re getting something out there and it’s gaining traction.

To me, being an entrepreneur isn’t just about money. Especially with NEATgoods, it’s about creating better products for a market that needs it—and doing it in the right way. I researched the environmental aspects and we support 1% For The Planet to offset our carbon footprint. That’s important for us because we’re creating a disposable product.

We also donate to various charities we feel are important to us. I want to expand on that social message as I grow the business. That’s got to be integral to our purpose and process. With your own company, you have the freedom to do that. You have the freedom to craft it in the way you want the message to be heard.

Also, as a mother it allows me a lot of flexibility. I’m not saying it’s easier than going to a 9-to-5 job, but I can set my own hours and I don’t have to report to anyone. It does mean there are no weekends. That’s something I’ve had to think about it: Where do you put the limits on your life? I want my children to see that I’m working and creating a business; however, I don’t want them to feel I always have a computer on my lap.

NAN: It’s always about finding balance.

HEIDI: Balance is huge. Also, I think it’s important for my kids to see I’m doing something I believe in.

Learn more about NEATgoods

VISIT: neatsheets4eats.com
FOLLOW: Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter

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Hartford-Based Marketing Company Helps CT Businesses

June 29 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Startups 0 comments Tags: community, Connecticut, CT, CT startup, entrepreneur, Greater Hartford, Hartford, Hartford-based startup

Fitzgerald Council is CEO and Founder of Hartford-based marketing company Pathos Digital.

Fitzgerald Council, CEO and Founder Pathos Digital, spoke with Innovation Destination Hartford Website Curator Nan Price about the process of launching a marketing company, the importance of tapping into Connecticut startup resources, and how he hopes his business can add value to the community.

NAN PRICE: When and why did you start your company?

FITZGERALD COUNCIL: I officially started in 2016. However, the concept started around 2012. I took a few years to do some due diligence and make sure I knew as much as I could before I took the leap.

I had spent about six years in the retail space, so I was very familiar with customer service. I was already coming from a creative background and I’ve always been good with the sales part of things.

To me, a business model was a huge concept that was very intimidating, so I did a lot of reading and research and developed self-taught concepts.

I also asked a lot of questions. At networking events, I’d engage in conversations with people I considered more successful than me. I’d try to absorb as much information as I could.

NAN: Is your first startup? Did you always want to have your own company?

FITZGERALD: Yes, this is my first startup. Launching a company wasn’t always something I had in mind. One thing led to another, which led to me saying: You need to just do it yourself.

NAN: When did you have that “aha” moment?

FITZGERALD: In 2015, when I was living in downtown Hartford, I was doing side projects building websites, doing social media, and throwing events. I kept seeing one trend, which was a lack of communication. There was no cohesive branding or messaging with business owners or at events.

The dissonance wasn’t because the business owner was offering a bad product or service, or the event wasn’t run well. It was caused by a lack of communication, a lack of branding, a lack of consistency with branding, and a lack of preemptive thought in terms of thinking about how someone was going to experience an event, service, or product.

Around that time, I was encouraged and began researching how to do everything I was doing—how to integrate the creative and business branding—and figure out if I could make a business out of it. I started Pathos Digital a couple months later in 2016.

NAN: Let’s talk a little bit about the startup evolution. You have other people working for you. What has that experience been like?

FITZGERALD: When I first started, I was doing everything myself. I realized I need help. I wanted to bring in a sales person, a creative, and a technical person. It was difficult because I was in the process of learning how to run a business while I was running a business. I didn’t have the time to mentor or develop someone else. I needed people who had their own strengths.

So, I had a not-so-great experience at first. The consistency of the work wasn’t good and there wasn’t a good communication system. All of this was because I didn’t have the right processes in place.

NAN: What did you learn from that experience?

FITZGERALD: After a few months working like that, I decided to retract from that model. I implemented more of a subcontracting model instead of employing in-house, where I would hire people per project. I took the subcontracting approach because it was more flexible, and I could curate the work better and keep the quality more consistent. Now I have people I work with pretty much all the time. I’ve established relationships.

Through trial and error, I realized if you’re doing things on a whim without certain systems in place—whether it’s onboarding a client, making partnerships, creating a referral program, or developing a community outreach program—you can find yourself right back where you started and end up going in circles.

What I’ve seen with businesses is the more successful ones have better systems in place. With my own business, I noticed nothing was really progressing until I realized if I systemized things I could benefit from the results. If something isn’t working, I can see where in the system that something is breaking up.

NAN: According to your website, Pathos Digital is “run by millennials.” How do you think that sets you apart from the competition?

FITZGERALD: I put that in our bio because marketing and branding through social media has become part of a lifestyle. The business environment and the work environment have changed. So, the innovation has been woven into the millennial lifestyle.

In the past, branding and marketing were more segmented. We’re in a Renaissance kind of time now with technology, where we have to try multiple approaches because there’s so much to learn. That’s just a part of the millennial culture. We understand certain concepts about branding almost subconsciously. I think the reason why millennials have an advantage is because it’s been woven into our culture.

NAN: Your site also notes Pathos Digital is “Helping Connecticut businesses market smarter.” How so?

FITZGERALD: Earlier I was talking about the dissonance I would encounter. I was noticing business owners would hire a photographer, a graphic designer, and a copywriter. But they didn’t necessarily all work together. I kept noticing this pattern repeat. There was a huge efficiency leak between communication and having a consistent workflow.

And I noticed with other agencies downtown, there were either creative agencies that focused on storytelling and video or agencies run by retired corporate people who were in the data analysis and results field. They were more focused on ad management, scaling, and paid traffic. I kept seeing these two extremes and I saw, especially in Connecticut, that when businesses reached out, they go to one or other extreme.

That helped us develop our mission statement: “Where creativity meets purpose.” Creativity can have structure to it. And structure can be creative. Pathos Digital can help Connecticut businesses by providing that balance.

NAN: Are all your clients in Connecticut?

FITZGERALD: Yes.

NAN: What is your niche? Do you work with a specific industry?

FITZGERALD: That’s an interesting question. It’s changed a little bit. We started with food services, gyms, and one-off projects where the clients were general market service providers. Now we’ve niched into more healthcare clients. We’ve been in that field for about a year or so.

We still work with other industries. We never deny people unless were not a good fit for them in terms of what we can offer. But for the most part, we try to have a proficiency in a certain area. And we’ve noticed in the healthcare industry the services we can provide have a better return on investment for that market.

NAN: Aside from funding, can you tell us about any startup challenges you encountered?

FITZGERALD: For me it would be utilizing startup resources. They were right in front of my face! I just didn’t look hard enough to find them. I didn’t really tap into Hartford-area startup resources until the second year of my business. It wasn’t until I’d already established the business that people began telling me about tools like reSET and Innovation Destination Hartford. I remembering thinking: Those things exist? That’s so cool!

NAN: As a marketing company how are you marketing?

FITZGERALD: Earlier on, that was another challenge. When you’re learning how to be a business while being a business, you can lose sight of your own house.

I was investing so much time into clients, I wasn’t marketing myself. Then we weren’t getting as many leads and earning more clients and referrals. I remember thinking: Why is that? The answer was obvious: We weren’t really doing any outreach.

NAN: So, how do you address that?

FITZGERALD: That’s all a part of my motivation behind getting involved in more community-based activities, because it’s a win-win situation.

Looking toward the future, I want to try to build a platform in which Pathos Digital can provide value that directly impacts the surrounding community and local businesses, which people can then use to do the same for others. Doing that directly in the community, we’re indirectly and vicariously advertising ourselves. That’s the strategy I’m trying to work on right now.

I want to create a community in which businesses or those who want to build a business in this area can access information. It doesn’t have to be monetary. I want to provide free information that can help people perhaps through mentorship or courses.

It would be for people like me when I was starting out. Instead of doing hours of research wading through good and bad information, I think there’s a way to better present helpful information to startups and entrepreneurs. Because I think advertising and marketing shouldn’t be a closeted thing.

And for me, providing transparency and providing value to my clients is a good thing. If a client learns how to do something as well as we know how to do something, we did our job. That’s the aspiration.

Learn more about Pathos Digital

VISIT: pathosdigital.co
FOLLOW: Facebook | Instagram
CONTACT: business@pathosdigital.co

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Badger Medical Collar Founder Shares Updates About the Startup

May 04 2018 Innovation Destination: Hartford Startups 0 comments Tags: Badger Medical Collar, Connecticut startups, CT, CT startup, CTNext, innovation, medical device

Where Are They Now? Follow Up with Badger Medical Collar

Innovation Destination Hartford spoke with Badger Medical Collar Founder Timothy Andrew Kussow in October 2016, when the startup was called Bariatric Collar LLC (read the interview: CT Startup Provides Innovative EMS Solution).

At the time, the startup was in its early stages doing research to find out how to license and/or manufacture options for the Bariatric Immobilization/Extrication Collar. IDH recently checked in with Tim to find out what’s new.

INNOVATION DESTINATION HARTFORD: Give us an update.

TIM KUSSOW: Since we last spoke, I branded the collar as Badger Medical Collar. I also acquired a line of credit (LOC) and the product is now available for sale.

IDH: Have you experienced any major pivots since we featured your story?

TIM: Yes, the product was originally geared toward bariatric patients. It now goes beyond just bariatric patients and can be used in many situations to aid in maintaining a neutral cervical spine position when spinal motion restriction is indicated.

Watch a video to learn more:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiRrM25nbZ8

IDH: Have you been involved with any startup resources in the region?

TIM: I was one of 10 finalists at a CTNext Entrepreneur Innovation Awards event in 2016.

Also, in October 2016, I appeared on the Pulse of the Region, a weekly broadcast by the MetroHartford Alliance, along with Medframe LLC Founder Elizabeth Pouya and Innovation Destination Hartford Website Curator Nan Price.

IDH: How are you building a customer base?

TIM: Slowly. I’ve been working on advertising and marketing.

IDH: What’s the best advice you’ve either given or received?

TIM: My best advice is to trust your gut and keep pushing forward.

IDH: What does being entrepreneurial mean to you?

TIM: Pushing my dream and passion to get this life-saving device out to the EMS world.

IDH: As an entrepreneur, how do you prevent burnout?

TIM: Finding new positives and goals to reach!

IDH: What’s next?

TIM: We’re exhibiting at the International Emergency Medical Service Conference (EMS PRO) Expo, May 30 through June 2, 2018 at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT.

Learn more about Badger Medical Collar

READ: Innovation Destination Hartford interview with Founder Tim Kussow
VISIT: www.badgermedicalcollar.com
FOLLOW: Facebook | Twitter

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Social Impact Startup Is Building an Online Community

September 20 2016 Innovation Destination: Hartford Startups 0 comments Tags: community, Connecticut, CT startup, entrepreneur, small business, social impact

Yellowbrick.me Co-Founder Matt Connell, EDD says he’s been starting businesses his entire life. He still runs his own bookkeeping, teambuilding and executive coaching consulting company, where he works with Hartford-area startups helping them plan their strategy and vision and managing their financials. Connell also mentors at reSET and has judged some of the organization’s pitch competitions.

Connell’s background includes teaching education to Hartford-area at-risk students. His areas of interest include sustainable agriculture and energy, educational reform, and group emotional intelligence.

INNOVATION DESTINATION HARTFORD: How did you and Co-Founder John Christensen, PhD develop the idea for Yellowbrick.me?

Matt Connell is Co-Founder of social impact startup Yellowbrick.me.

CONNELL: John and I met about five years ago while I was working on my Master of Business Administration at the University of Connecticut. At the time he was a new assistant professor.

I saw John’s bio and realized that with my interests and my research for my doctorate and John’s research background we had a lot of synergy. I reached out to him and we’ve been doing research together ever since. That research, as we honed it, kind of landed us on the path to forming Yellowbrick.me.

For me, business doesn’t make sense unless it’s socially rewarding and there’s a social impact to it. The concept behind Yellowbrick.me is that parents are a much underserved population. Even though there are thousands of resources available, they’re very poorly put together. So we decided we could create a community that helps parents navigate information better and we could make the journey a little easier.

IDH: So you’re virtually guiding them down the Yellow Brick Road.

CONNELL: Right! Parenting is a crazy journey and at the end of the day we could all use support making our way down the Yellow Brick Road.

Your experiences in life could benefit me and help smooth my road out and vice versa. What we’ve found through our research is that parents want to provide information and knowledge to other parents and they want to receive that information, too.

IDH: Absolutely.

CONNELL: They are also looking for knowledge and information from credible experts, licensed professionals, academic researchers, and educators.

Yellowbrick.me provides that reliable information. We’re an educational community focused parents and families. Our goal is to connect parents to parents and parents to all of those resources. Another one of our goals is to be the leaders in educational technology.

Now we’re starting to develop online courses for parents and families around various topics. And we’re starting to work in the community to add community resources. We’re essentially working from the inside out to affect parents and families and working from the outside in helping agencies develop curriculum toward their mission and bringing those agencies back to Yellowbrick.me.

IDH: Tell us a little more about the site—do you have to become a member to use the resources?

CONNELL: Right now membership is free on the site. You can read anything on the site without creating an account. If you sign up for an account, you can actually engage with the site. You can post in a forum or respond to post. The free membership also enables you to respond to an expert in the Expert Corner.

IDH: If the membership is free how are you generating revenue?

CONNELL: Our goal is to generate revenue through online courses. Yellowbrick.me had a soft launch in October 2015. We launched live in January 2016, so we really spent the first seven months focusing on developing the content and building the platform. Now we’re shifting to our revenue-producing models.

Our first model will be online courses. Internally we are developing courses for the community. We’ve also got experts from around the world developing courses.

Our second revenue-producing model will be advertising revenue and the third model will be in the community, helping agencies develop curriculum specifically for their communities based on their missions and then helping drive them to a solidified platform.

IDH: How so?

CONNELL: A lot of agencies—nonprofits as well as businesses—go out and teach something to a target audience and it’s like a one-off; there’s no follow-up. By teaming up with Yellowbrick.me they get to bring that follow-up back to our site, engage the community further, encourage more conversation, and continue their mission.

IDH: There is a lot of focus on community. With worldwide experts, how do you maintain a local community feel on the site?

CONNELL: One of our taglines is “A global conversation with local resources.” We’re really interested in sharing parenting resources—understanding why things may be different in other countries, why that is, what works, what doesn’t work?

But at the same time, we understand the micro community is very important. We want to provide those resources so someone from a specific town can feel connected when they’re on the site and know that those local resources are available.

IDH: How does Yellowbrick.me find contributors for the site?

CONNELL: There’s a forum in which anyone can post—parents, experts, educators, and researchers. And if you’re signed up for an account, anyone can respond to your post.

Then there’s the Expert Corner, which is specifically for licensed professionals, educators, and researchers. We vet their credentials, they write content for us, and we post under their user account.

IDH: How are you connecting to the contributors and how are they finding you?

CONNELL: Lots of phone calls and social media. We spend a lot of time looking at people’s credentials.

IDH: So it’s really grassroots?

CONNELL: Yes, 100% grassroots. We try and connect with relevant experts, agencies, and organizations. We are always reaching out and trying to explain how we feel we can be mutually beneficial.

IDH: How are you marketing?

CONNELL: We just engaged Scott Phillips who has become our Marketing Consultant. Before that we worked with an agency that helped develop the site.

Most of our marketing is grassroots too—making phone calls and talking to people. We also use a lot of social media. We’re posting to Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter several times a day.

IDH: How would you describe your life as an entrepreneur?

CONNELL: On the edge. Out of all of the businesses I’ve ever started, this is the one I’m most passionate about. So that adds a level of anxiety, which is really interesting to me.

I feel like I’m always on the edge. As an entrepreneur you’re always living in this world of ups and downs. My whole life I’ve always lived on the edge and been a bit of a risk taker. As I’ve gotten older, I still have that mentality, but my risks are more calculated.

IDH: It’s interesting, you mentioned you’ve launched other startups in the past but you’re most passionate about this one. So, what took so long?

CONNELL: I’ve been passionate about education since I was a teenager. When I was younger, I believed I had to earn a lot so I could put my money behind education reform. I was just doing things to try to make money. Then I got into teaching. I ran a national healthcare company for about five years before I started my consulting business. Around the same time, we started developing Yellowbrick.me and it clicked that I could create education reform in my business, with my passion.

IDH: How do you define success?

CONNELL: Most people tend to define success as: You do your job, meet your deadline, and that is success. Or, if two people are working together on something and they accomplish a task, that’s success. But for me, that’s not necessarily success because success is all about the cohesion of the relationship.

IDH: It’s not always about checking off an item from your to-do list.

Yellowbrick.me Co-Founder Matt Connell and his family enjoy visits to Cape Cod, MA.

CONNELL: Right. To me success is a cohesive unit that can work through any problem together.

As far as success as an entrepreneur, there are certain milestones I’ve defined as successful. We just hit 1,000 signed up users, I think that’s a cool milestone. I would love to see 1 million times that, right?

Success would also be enough revenue coming to support my partner and I being able to work on Yellowbrick.me full time. That would be a major milestone.

But success is also waking up every day and knowing my family is safe and that I’m living my dream in a lot of ways, working on something I’m passionate about. So there are a lot of ways to look at success in that realm.

IDH: Any advice for those starting out?

CONNELL: In my consulting business when I advise people I tell them, if you want to start a business it’s not worth it if you’re not passionate.

I tend to advise startups within their first year or two. Most business owners come to me with an idea. They think: I’m going to sign the incorporation documents and tomorrow I’m going to have the fancy car in the driveway! A year goes by and they realize how much work goes into launching a business—all the minutia with payroll and taxes and everything else.

If you’re not passionate about what you are focused on, all of that minutia can completely overwhelm you. So, my advice to startups is be passionate and understand what you’re getting into.

Learn more about Yellowbrick.me at yellowbrick.me or follow on Facebook and Twitter @myyellowbrick.

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Startup Committed to Making a Social Impact

December 10 2015 Innovation Destination: Hartford Startups 0 comments Tags: Connecticut, CT startup, entrepreneurship, social entrepreneur, social impact

Michelle Stronz and Anthony Allen, Founding Partners of Formata, are social entrepreneurs and consultants working to build and strengthen business models and support systems for entrepreneurs looking to make income and impact through their companies. The two are also Co-Founders of the ARTTN Gallery, which is the first social impact enterprise they have launched in-house.

These busy entrepreneurs met with Innovation Destination Hartford to discuss what it means to be a social impact company and the ways they are working toward helping companies make impact.

Social entrepreneurs Michelle Stronz and Anthony Allen are Founding Partners of Formata and Co-Founders of the ARTTN Gallery.

IDH: Let’s get some background. How did the two of you come together?

STRONZ: Anthony and I have worked together for more than three years. He started as an intern for me. I invited him to be a consultant in my former consulting practice and then shortly after we started to talk about a space that we are both interested in, which we’ll broadly call the social enterprise ecosystem.

IDH: How would you define the “social enterprise ecosystem?”

STRONZ: Organizations that do good and do well. It’s a for-profit model that builds impact into the business model. In other words, impact is “baked into” the business model.

We believe we’re at the front of the wave on this—we are not alone—but we are at the front of the wave.

IDH: Tell us about Formata. When did you launch and what is the business concept?

STRONZ: Formata is a consulting firm that launched in January 2015. We provide strategy and leadership solutions to organizations of all kinds. We deal with companies of all sizes that want to make impact. We want to show them how to line up the business model and how to add value—usually financial value with impact—whether it’s social, economic or environmental.

We consult with companies and show them proven tools for growing their firms, which means they’ll grow both income and the impact. And we want to help them develop leaders who do the same thing.

IDH: How does the ARTTN Gallery tie in with Formata?

STRONZ: ARTTN (pronounced “art-tention”, as in art + intention) is our first enterprise out of the Formata idea lab. We want to show how to grow income and make an impact by launching our own initiative.

IDH: And why did you choose art?

ALLEN: That was Michelle’s idea.

STRONZ: Right, but I wouldn’t have come up with it without Anthony. We are a very diverse team. We are the ultimate millennial and boomer partnership. We have different ideas about a lot of things, but we also have a very similar motivation. We’re both at points in our lives where we are thinking: How can I do something to make a difference?

I’ve always been interested in art. Anthony and I were talking about it, and I said someday I really want to have a gallery. And he said: what are you waiting for?

IDH: Explain the online gallery concept.

STRONZ: The ARTTN Gallery is a premiere online-only gallery for sharing visual stories that may not be told elsewhere. We are displaying exceptional artwork; large-scale, original, signed work. We are encouraging change by sharing the stories through the limited edition work and by investing a portion of the total revenue from sales of the images in global projects.

Each exhibit serves a different impact cause, so we actually start with the impact cause. And the first one we talked about was human trafficking, which is really important to me.

Anthony is the chief impact guy and he found our target, which is an organization called Not For Sale, a leading global organization committed to ending modern slavery in our time. Then we find photographers whose pictures depict women and kids who have lost some or all aspects of their freedom. These photographers are world-renowned. Most have shot for National Geographic and other global photography outlets.

IDH: How are you getting these photographers on board?

STRONZ: I called David Griffin, who is an old friend of mine I went to journalism school with. He is the former director of photography for National Geographic. I called him up and asked: Can you help us? And he did. David became our curatorial advisor, which is awesome.

IDH: And are these photographers volunteering?

STRONZ: No. We are trying to model the way for launching an enterprise that makes money and makes impact. So we are offering to exhibit their photographs and they’re going to get the same rate that they would get if they exhibited with a gallery. They earn the standard gallery fee for participating—it’s 50%, with the exception of a few who are donating some of their proceeds to the impact cause. And then out of that other 50%, at least 10% will go to our impact partner. So it’s coming right off the top. It’s part of our business model to fund this project.

Anthony why don’t you explain the impact partner.

ALLEN: So for the impact side of things, I was looking for an organization that helps with human trafficking. I found a bunch of organizations but nothing with a specific project that we could really fund.

I reached out to my friend Melissa Levick Lake who works with ONEHOPE Foundation. She assesses nonprofits based on their ability to measure the impact that they’re making. She put me in touch with the Not For Sale campaign out of San Francisco. The work they are doing is sensational.

The project specifically that we’re funding is in Romania, they’ve partnered with an organization on the ground that’s called Generatie Terana Romana.

IDH: So how does what you’re doing make an impact?

ALLEN: We wanted it to be baked in, so as Michelle said, at least 10% of gross revenue comes from the sale of the photographs and funds specifically this project. It’s helping women and children transition either out of a high-risk area or out of the life of human trafficking.

IDH: The ARTTN Gallery will be rotating, correct? So how long will each exhibit remain on the site?

STRONZ: It depends. We will probably display each exhibit for a few months, so we are building relationships with the photographers. The “artivists”—this is Anthony’s term because they’re artists and activists—once they form a relationship with us they can stay in the gallery as long as they want.

We’re hoping to have our second exhibit up in the first quarter of 2016. I think it will have a more environmental focus. We just don’t know what that’s going to look like yet. But we want to give meaningfully to the impact. We want it to fund tangible projects so, for example with the current exhibit, we can say at the end we served “X” number of women and children and their lives have changed in the following ways.

One of the hallmarks of ARTTN is we’re using a lot of the core markers for successful enterprise, one of which is collaborative networks. So we are collaborating with Checkmate Creations and with our photographers and with folks who are helping us scale the site.

So just to tie the link to Formata again. Formata is a social impact action lab. We want to show how you can do it by doing it. In this way, our consulting solutions demonstrate real substance and experience.

And we’ll continue with Formata to consult with people who want to make impact. This is what I meant by “front of the wave.” Companies are just beginning to see what it means to do good and do well and how that impacts the bottom line in a positive way.

It’s more than corporate social responsibility, it’s more than having a foundation that gives to some local thing—not that that’s not important— but we want to show you can make a big, meaningful change as a for-profit enterprise.

ALLEN: And have it align with your strategy.

STRONZ: Right.

ALLEN: Michelle did a good job explaining how Formata and ARTTN tie together. There is an opportunity in the social enterprise ecosystem for companies to actually scale the income and the impact in a way that’s financially viable for the long-term and that will allow them to grow organically for as long as possible.

IDH: You obviously do a lot of consulting, but do you have specific advice for those who are pursuing their entrepreneurial goals?

STRONZ: I always tell the CEOs I work with: Don’t wait on your dream. Do the dream. What are you waiting for? Do the dream now.

And of course, when we were coming up with the idea for Formata, Anthony said to me: We need to do the dream. And I said, of course we do.

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Making Yourself Known as a Startup