Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast

Season 2 Episode 5 - Command Control Power - Find your Niche

Be an expert and find your niche

Happy Thursday everyone.  Today on the Appitalize On Your Idea podcast I have Jerry Zigmont and Sam Valencia, who are both Apple Consultants and 2 of the three members of the Command Control Power podcast.  The CCP team was at ACEs Conference this year to both do a presentation on Managed services and also taped a live episode of their wildly famous podcast.  

Today we discuss why they started the podcast.  In their mind there wasn't a niche filled for Apple consultants.  They bring on other experts to not only share their experience but the hosts themselves even learn new things from their customers.  Much like how ACEs allows me to bring experts in, the goal of the conference was really to learn how to run my own consulting business.  We also discuss monetization.  Many people believe that if they start a podcast, like CCP and the Appitalize On Your Idea podcast, that the money starts rolling in. 

Joe, Sam and Jerry actually figure out who would be a good fit for their show and target those sponsors specifically.  They also, as they say in the interview, never allow a sponsor who they haven't used the product from in some way first.  The team is supposed to be the expert, and hence they need to provide the most correct and truthful answers to the Apple community.

Ok enough reading - start listening to the episode!

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Command Control Power's home page

The Live show - first Tuesday of every month at 8pm

CCP on Twitter

Mac Geek Gab

Season 2 Episode 4 - Amy McKnight - Empower your Customers

Empower your Customers

Hey Hey everyone!  It's time for another great episode of the Appitalize On Your Idea podcast.  Today we have Mac Spa owner Amy McKnight on.  Amy was an attendee of the 2015 ACEs Conference who then turned into a speaker for the 2016 conference.  Amy has a great angle on empowering customers.  Many of us would believe that teaching a customer how to do something would eliminate the need for us, but not with Amy.  She believes (and rightfully so) that if you empower your customer the return is 100 fold.  Not only will that customer keep coming back, but they will more than likely spread the word about you and bring you new customers. 

So many of us believe that we need to sell hard to get the sale done.  "Get the product into the customers hands", as it were.  But honestly that's the wrong philosophy.  

Listen to Amy discuss passive income for her active job, and also about empowering your customers.  

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Mac Spa's home page

Free trial of Mac Spa MD

Season 2 Episode 3 - Randy Krum

Visualize the Spoon

Happy Tuesday everyone, and welcome to another episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast. Today we have Randy Krum, author of Cool Infographics and owner of InfoNewt, a company dedicated to data visualization and infographics.  

Randy and I discuss the reason for using infographics.  So many times an infographic is incorrectly listed, as many just thing if it has pictures it's an infographic.  On Randy's blog Cool Infographics, he posts about different types of graphics that are the right kind. 

So why use an infographic to tell your story?  You know the phrase "A picture tells a 1000 words"?  Imagine telling 1,000,000,000 words with just some simple graphics.  Now there is a caveat (when isn't there one?).  The story must be 1 cohesive story articulating 1 particular set of data.

But don't just take my word for it.  Listen to todays interview with Randy Krum.

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

InfoNewt

Randy's Blog

Cool Infographics - Randy's Book

Season 2 Episode 2 - Peter Shankman

Know Thyself

Happy Tuesday everyone, and welcome to another episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast. Today we have Peter Shankman, most famously known for the founder of HARO (Help a Reporter Out), and now a public speaker.  Peter has a great grasp on customer service, and even has written the book on it - Zombie Loyalists. Peter's golden rule is to "hire for people". Hire people who can deal with people first and then teach them the technical aspects of their job.

Peter has a new podcast out Faster Than Normal, where he discusses how he deals with ADHD in business.  What's great about this is Peter being a public figure is bringing ADHD to the foreground, and helps entrepreneurs deal with their mental issues.

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Peter's home page

Faster Than Normal

Zombie Loyalists book

Shankminds

The Mortons Story

Season 2 Episode 1 - We are back!

Season 2!

Ok so it's been a year or so since my last episode, but its are back!  It could be worse.  I could have followed the Sherlock seasons on BBC (for those who don't get it, there are 3 episodes a season and they are like 2 years apart!). 

So here goes again.

Welcome to the Appitalize On Your Idea Podcast.  This short re-introduction episode is to just explain what's been happening in the last year.  Why I haven't produced the show, and what's been happening to me personally.  Now that it's all out on the table I feel like a weight has been lifted off and we can speak more freely.

In the last year I was diagnosed with clinically depression.  It took a toll on my work, my relationships, and my body.  I'm happy to report that I have been receiving treatment, and I'm in a MUCH better place now. I'm sharing this information because I want us to be honest with each other.  The only way you can succeed is if you are honest with yourself and everyone around you. I urge you to check in with yourself. Get help if you need it.  Don't bottle it up.  Believing that if you push those feelings down will not make anyone or anything you work on any good.

I also touched on my conference, the ACEs Conference which I just did for the second year. Once I starting having a healthy lifestyle, I was able to clear my mind and put on what I think was the best work I could do for this conference.  With great content, over 100 entrepreneurs will now be able to increase their IT businesses.  Topics ranged from IT related, to marketing, legal and customer service.  I couldn't have asked for a better turnout.

Welcome back to the Appitalize On Your Idea podcast and enjoy the ride!

Interested in being on the podcast? Contact me!

Episode 37 - Victor Agreda Jr - Tell the Story

Tell The Story

Happy Monday everyone, and welcome to another episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast.  Today we have on Victor Agreda Jr, of Angry Dad Gamer and SuperPixel studios.  Victor has done a lot of things in his life that has brought him to where he is now.

Having started as just a commenter on a blog, turned him into the Editor-in-chief (yes I'm skipping a lot of that story here) and when that blog shut down he continued on telling stories with his comedy, his magic and now his new gaming web series.

Victor mentions a great thing I want to share with everyone: Test, observe, and course correct.  So often in business we think we know the path of least resistance.  We know our product, we believe there is one clear way to get to the end goal, and go with blinders.  That's usually never the case.  Many times we have to be able to pivot.  Pivoting is all part of the story though.  Remember the last time you saw a horror movie?  There was for sure a pivotal turn in the movie flipping your thoughts of what was going to happen on its head.  That's telling the story!

My thanks to Victor for not only being on the show but for letting me be a part of the The Unofficial Apple Weblog while it lasted. 

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Angry Dad Gamer

Super Pixel Studios

Twitch.TV

Connor Franta's You Tube Channel

Episode 36 - Tony Ubertaccio - Give Value Up Front.

Be a part of the process and give value up front.

Welcome back Appitalizers.  Now that the ACEs Conference is over, I'm back to bring you some great content and podcast episodes.  We kick off the return with my good friend Tony Ubertaccio.

Tony is a business strategist and consultant.  He helps businesses by figuring out how to add value to the business.  This could be anything from showing them how to capture emails, to social media strategy to brand positioning.  Tony's goal is to help you as a business owner and entrepreneur keep your company fun and easy.  He specifically targets people who love what they do.  If you don't love what you do, you are in the wrong line of business.  

I like Tony's story because he talks about how he took his skills as a salesperson and was able to convert that into selling his knowledge.  Tony read a lot of business books, and finally when the opportunity arose to use that knowledge he inadvertently sold himself on his first client.

Tony talks about how companies need to share their story - and I believe this episode is a great way for Tony to share his story.  You can see just how Tony add's value to his clients.

Listen all the way to end as Tony gives away some goodies to the Appitalize listeners. Tony's Giveaway

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Tony's homepage

Tony's Twitter page

Tony's Giveaway

Episode 35 - Ryan Cash - Alto's Adventure

Alto's Adventure
Today we have Ryan Cash from Snowman software on the podcast. Ryan and his team built an amazing game for iOS called Alto's Adventure. Ryan and I discuss how the game came to fruition, and the marketing strategy. I know a lot of you have been asking about how to go about building a game, so here's the episode for you!

As in previous episodes, we discussed treating the app like a movie — releasing tidbits of the game in teasers and trailers, and then showing some behind the scenes such as how the game was built. Ryan learned how to build his audience using this method. Having posted a few things on the website, he was able to build up the anticipation for the game, much like a producer would for a big Hollywood blockbuster.

My thanks to Ryan and the entire team at Snowman for releasing Alto's Adventure. Go play it today!

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:
Snowman - Ryan's company
Alto's Adventure - game site. Check out the easter egg with the bird flying around.
Ryan's personal home page
Ryan's Twitter page

Episode 34 - Doug Fluckiger - Advance your idea

Help advance your idea

With today's episode, I have brought on Doug Fluckiger from Silver Creek Studio. Doug happens to be my outsourced graphic designer, but I didn't have him on to talk about us. I brought Doug on today to talk about how to find a graphic designer. With some great tidbits, Doug talks about finding someone who will not just do the graphics and be done, but will help you advance your idea.

When you are outsourcing anything, you want someone who will be a partner on the project not just a "yes" man/woman. You want someone to ask questions about how the system is being constructed, or why do this instead of that. Doug isn't just a graphic designer — he's an idea man.

As with choosing any outsourcing personal, look at things like feedback, ratings, and the portfolio. Doug happens to have a 4.92 rating with over 1000 job hours logged on oDesk so it was pretty easy for me to want to use his services when he bid on the project.

I have to apologize in advance, we had to use a conference call system to have the interview, so it's not as sharp as previous episodes.

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes.

Links Mentioned During the Show:
Silver Creek Studio - Doug's company
Doug's oDesk Profile - you have to log into oDesk to see it.

Episode 33 - The Global Intellectual Properties Law Symposium

Lawyers across the world!

Today is a special episode of Appitalize On Your Idea the Podcast. We have on first time returning guest David Postolski, and his partner Susanne Somersalo on to talk about The Global Intellectual Properties Law Symposium The GIPLS is the first of it's kind. A three day event taking place March 30th-April 1st. The Symposium, being put on by Gearhart Law will bring nine lawyers from around the world together to answer questions about IP protection from around the world. 

Thinking about building a product? Think you want it to go global? You need to protect yourself. You need to make sure no one can steal your idea, or your design and sell it themselves. That's what patents are for, but you need a patent in every country.

Lucinda Longcroft from the World Intellectual Property Organization will be on the panel - which I think is absolutely amazing. 

This is your opportunity to go and ask questions to these global lawyers for FREE! What can be better? Oh there will be food of course. Register today to sign up for the event. You do not want to miss it. 

If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes. 

Links Mentioned During the Show: Global IP Law Symposium Registration page.

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 32 - Bruce Zutler - Be the Captain

Zen of Consulting
Bruce Zutler of Venn Products Group joins us today on the Appitalize On Your Idea Podcast. Bruce is a mastermind when it comes to manufacturing, marketing, intellectual property and financing. Essentially if you want to start a business building a product, Bruce is the person to speak to. Bruce and I discuss the challenges of manufacturing. Using sites like Alibaba are great but there's so much more than just posting your idea and hoping someone across the world will make it. There are issues like materials, tooling, anticipated market and quantities. Bruce goes into the three elements of any new product. They are:

• Productization
• Montization
• Commercialization

If you were ever interested in manufacturing a product, this is the episode for you to listen to. If you like the content in this episode please do leave a review in iTunes. 

Links Mentioned During the Show: 

Bruces' Company - Venn Products

Inventors Association of Manhattan Meetup Page

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 31 - Michelle Tripp - Have a Plan!

Ideas are not cheap
On todays episode we have the wonderfully talented Michelle Tripp on to talk about how to market your product. Michelle's number one rule? Have a plan! A great line from the movie One Crazy Summer — "Without plan there is no attack, without attack there's no victory!"

Michelle comes on today to talk about having a plan and the three tiers of them: 

• Objectives 

• Strategies 

• Tactics

Michelle goes on to talk about how to tailor your message for the appropriate platform, and to not be cheap on social media. You need to share high value content. It's not about just spewing garbage (where have we heard that before? Oh right! Martin Waxman from episode 22 said the exact same thing. Two professionals are now telling the audience the same thing. It can't be a coincidence. It's true - share good, quality content. 

Michelle brings a lot of knowledge to the game, and I'm very excited to see her presentation at the SXSW V2V event this coming summer.

Links Mentioned During the Show: 

Michelle's Twitter Page
Michelle's LinkedIn Page
Reyes Global

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 30 - Claudia Altucher - Ideas are the currency of the 21st century.

Ideas are not cheap 

It's episode 30! Today we have on special guest Claudia Azula Altucher. Claudia is a two time best seller, and her latest book Become An Idea Machine has just been published. Claudia talks to us today about how to come up with ideas. "The Idea muscle is like any other muscle, it must be worked out." Claudia, and her husband James Altucher, make it a point to say that you need to come up with 10 ideas a day. It seems like a lot of work but it's not really. Claudia says, get it out of the way early in the morning, like going to the gym and be done. If you keep it up, you will not only have a list of ideas to work from, but you will be able to come up with new ideas at any time.

Want some help with coming up with ideas?  Claudia is giving away her book Become An Idea Machine. How much easier can it be to come up with a new idea?

 I've always said, the idea section of Appitalize On Your Idea is both the shortest and hardest chapter. Thanks to Claudia, it doesn't have to be! My thanks to Claudia for being on the show! 

Links Mentioned During the Show:
Claudias Home Page
Claudias Twitter Page
Become An Idea Machine - Claudias book - free for you to download.

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 29 - Jeet Banerjee - Serial Entrepreneur Extraordinaire

The 22 year old Serial Entrepreneur 

Today I bring on Jeet Banerjee. Jeet, at 22 years old, has started multiple successful business, wrote a book, and has even spoke at TEDx! It amazes me how Jeet even has time to sleep! Jeet and I discuss how he gets through his days. Jeet talks about prioritizing your tasks. Figure out your day. What important things MUST get done first? Then he delves into something I think a lot of struggle with - figuring out your strengths and weaknesses. It's ok to be weak at something - but the goal would be to figure out how to find someone to fill in those weaknesses. I usually outsource, but Jeet doesn't always do that. Sometimes he actually hires someone temporarily. Jeet has some great experience even at his young age. I'm super glad to have had him on the podcast.

Links Mentioned During the Show: Jeet's Home Page

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 28 - Annie Scranton - The Jigsaw Puzzle of Marketing

The Jigsaw Puzzle of Marketing 

Happy Monday! Today I'm glad to have on Annie Scranton of Pace Public Relations in NYC. Annie, whose name you heard back in episode 26, has graced us by bringing her PR knowledge to the Appitalize On Your Idea Podcast. Annie and I discuss the need for a Public Relations firm. 

While Annie's firm only works with media relations (which in my opinion in the most important type), there are firms out there that do everything from corporate communications to crisis control to social media. Annie's years of experience in TV has allowed for her to not only make a great network of connections, which can benefit each entrepreneur, but also the skills to pitch her network to get you on the shows you need to be on. While anyone can attempt to email their favorite bloggers, there's a point where those emails look less like pitches and more like begging. Annie's skills have allowed her clients to be on shows such as Good Morning America, The Today Show, Dr. Drew and be interviewed by famed Tech blogger David Pogue. 

 Think you don't need a PR person? Think again! And when you are thinking about it - think about Pace Public Relations. 

Links Mentioned During the Show: Pace Public Relations Home Page 

Pace Public Relations Twitter page 

Annie Scrantons Twitter page

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 26 - Micah Baldwin - Light Your Money On Fire!

Light Your Money on Fire! 

I'm so excited to bring on my mentor, Micah Baldwin on today's episode of Appitalize On Your Idea podcast. I wanted to bring Micah on to discuss something I have been asked a lot about. "How do I raise money for my company?" As someone who has only bootstrapped my ideas, I have never been able to give the right advice about it. Micah, who is a multi-successful entrepreneur who has raised money on many occasions. Micah talks about the things investors look for. This includes understanding the market, making sure the team is smart and operate inside the market. The last item is the product. Note how the product is the last thing an investor looks at. Knowing and understanding the market and the team are more important for investors. My thanks to Micah for taking the time to talk about this topic. 

Links Mentioned During the Show: 

Micah's About Me page 

Hackers and Hustlers - Micah's blog post about building a team 

Happiness is Not a 9 Letter Word - Micah's SXSW V2V presentation from 2013 

Learn to Duck - Micah's Blog

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 25 - Michael Sorrentio - eyePatch case

A secret Appitalizer 

Happy New Year everyone, and welcome back to the Appitalize Podcast. Today I have on my friend Mike Sorrentino. Mike is a secret Appitalizer. By this I mean, he followed all the ways to Appitalize on his idea without even knowing it. Mike is the inventor of the eyePatch case, a physical case for your mobile device with a slider to cover the camera. Mike came up with the idea while listening to the radio one night. He got a patent, and then outsourced the design and manufacturing and is in the works to outsource the sale and storage of the case. Can you be more of an Appitalizer?! 

Links Mentioned During the Show: 

eyePatch case 

Headfunder - Crowdfunding platform Mike used 

How Alibaba Works - making 280 pairs of pants

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Holiday Episode!

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Just a quick note from me to all of you, happy holidays and have a safe new year. This weeks podcast is a special one because I was able to get some of the past guests on to wish everyone a merry christmas, happy hanukah, happy kwanza and happy new year. Thanks to:
Jason Womack
Elizabeth and Richard Gearhart
Martin Waxman
David Postolski
Jason Frasca
Allen Hancock
Michael Sorrentino
Eyal Amir
Warren Whitlock
Matthew Hintz

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 24 - Richard and Elizabeth Gearhart - power couple!

An entrepreneurial law firm for entrepreneurs

Welcome back to another episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast.  Today I have on Richard and Elizabeth Gearhart of Gearhart law.  I know we've had on a lot of lawyers lately, but the reason I wanted to bring these two on is to talk about how Gearhart law in and of itself an entrepreneurial venture.  Gearhart law was born on the internet.  After a move from Georgia, Richard (with the help of Elizabeth), opened the practice and took to the internet to find clients.  Opening his doors to allow anyone to contact him regarding patents and protection questions.  From there Richard, and Gearhart law took off.  The practice has established itself as the leader for entrepreneurs in New Jersey.

Elizabeth brings her knowledge of patents to the firm to help strength and convey not only the idea in question, but other ways to protect it.  During the interview you will hear her talk about adding Wifi to a skateboard!!!

I'm very excited to bring you todays episode with Richard and Elizabeth Gearhart. 

  

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Gearhart Law Website

The Patent Puzzle - The Gearhart Law IP blog

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 23 - Warren Whitlock - The Power of Twitter

The Humanity of Twitter

Hope everyone is doing well this chilly December day.  Today I have Warren Whitlock on the the show.  Warren, #8 in Forbes top 50 social media influencers, was the author of the first book about Twitter.  Having an account from Twitters inception, Warren has been able to experiment and test how to best use Twitter for your business.  

While many people think Twitter is just a place to promote their products, there's a much better way to use it.  Answer questions!  The majority of twitter accounts are actual humans.  Be human about it!

I was really excited to have Warren on for him to share his stories.

Listen to the whole thing the jump.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Warren' Daily site

Warrants Business site

Warren's Twitter page

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 22 - Martin Waxman - The Zen of Content Marketing

Content is King!

In today's episode I have on Martin Waxman, digital communications and strategist.  Martin and I discuss one of the biggest parts of Appitalize, marketing.  More specifically, content.  Martin explains how content is such a big thing when it comes to any company.  Content isn't just blog posts, it's also pictures, videos, white papers, etc.  

Martin gives some great examples of how and where to post your information.  Using tools like Slide Share, writing an ebook, and making videos are all things that don't take a lot of time but allow you to reuse content to get yourself the marketing boost you may be looking for.  

Worried about how to create content? Listen to Martin's interview

Listen to the whole thing the jump.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Martin's Home Page

Martin's Twitter account

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 21 - Happy Thanksgiving y'all!

What's up everyone!!!

It's the week of Thanksgiving, and I wanted to give you all my thanks for reading, listening, and commenting on all the stuff I've been doing this past year.  With you, my loyal audience, I wouldn't be able to continue to put out this material.  

Because it's Thanksgiving week, I wanted to reshare with you one of my favorite episodes of Appitalize On Your Idea:The Podcast.  I picked Jason Womack's episode.  Why?  Because I think that as we come into the holiday time, people tend to stress out about time.  Jason's episode will help you with that and allow for all of us to enjoy the upcoming holidays and new year. 

From the bottom of my heart, thank you all for listening and I can't wait to do another 21 episodes!

-Justin

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 20 - Jason Frasca - Google+ and Evernote

Google+ will raise your SEO ranks!

Today I bring on my friend Jason Frasca to talk about two very different, yet still connected, technologies: Google+ and Evernote.  In the world of both Google+ and Everynote, Jason is considered an expert - but the reason he is, is the reason why they are connected.  Jason used his Google+ skills to promote his knowledge of Evernote.  Thanks to the way Google ranks Google+ information (such as posts, +1's and comments) it allows your profile and your brand to move up the rankings with ease.

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Jasons Blog

Evernote Success - Jason's Book

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 19 - Pia Silva - Emotional Connections

Create an emotional connection between your customer and your company.

Today Pia Silva joins us to discuss branding for your company.  Branding is the one thing that will leave your mark on your customers.

We discuss a few of Pia's favorite websites and how they brand to position themselves.  Branding is the very start of your marketing efforts.  Once you've established your brand your products will be associated with them, allowing people to understand where they come from.  People remember companies easier when their brand is something that resonates with them (that emotional connection).  

Think about a few brands you like.  How do they pull on your heart strings?  Is it a sports company reminding you how competitive you are?  Is it a cleaning product that you can relate to when desiring a clean safe environment?

Branding allows you to take a deep dive into customers hearts.  Make it count!

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Worst of All Design - Pia's company.

Contact Pia

Nasty Girl clothing - as discussed on the episode

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 18 - Matthew Hintz - Your trademark tells what your company is going to be!

What is your company going to be? It's your trademark!

Today I have Matthew Hintz, a trademark lawyer from New Jersey, on to talk about trademarking your business.  What's the difference between a trademark and a patent?  A patent is protection on a method or a system, where trademark is protection on the word (a.k.a. Wordmark).

Trademark's come in a few variants, such as trademarks, servicemarks, and trade secrets.  A trademark protects your name, whether your company or your business.  A trademark protects the actual product name.  Where as a servicemarks protects a service (such as Chase Bank services).

You need to look at trademarks in advance before you try to name your company or product.  Using the USPTO, you can search for free to see if the product name is already trademarked. This goes for URL's as well.

Matt gives some great advice on how to protect yourself, and some examples of how larger companies have positioned themselves to make sure their trademarks are listed properly.  

Links Mentioned During the Show:

Above The Law - Slütsof In Stagram - One of the stories Matt and I discussed during the episode.

Servilla Whitney, LLC - Matt's companies page.

Contact Matt

Matt's on twitter

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 17 - Hostful - What's up Justin!

What's been happening lately?
I know it's been a while since I've posted a podcast episode, and today's episode is a little hostful episode describing what's been happening lately. While many of you know I've been super busy with Virtua Computers, building new apps with Autriv, and my wife and I are expecting our first child. Today I discussed some new cloud tools I've been using such as ZenDesk, Freshbooks, and AirPair.com, and prepping you guys for upcoming episodes.

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 16 - Carmine Gallo - Tell Your Story

Tell the story. Share your vision.


I'm super excited about todays episode with Carmine Gallo. Carmine is a communications coach. He helps large (like Fortune 100 companies large) tell their story. He talks to CEO's, Sales Teams, and all in between showing them the right way to tell their story and share their vision. Today he talks with me, so you Appitalizers can hear him first hand.

Carmine mentions some great tips in our conversation - such as the "Twitter Friendly Headline". He explains that if you can't share what you do in less than 140 characters - you can't explain what you do. He explains how you, when presenting either to a group of investors or even your family, need to make your story have 3 big components:

• 
  
• Emotional
• 
  
• Novel
• 
  
• Memorable
• 
  

Truly listen to Carmines words of wisdom, and remember them next time you go to pitch your product tell your story to investors.

Links Mentioned During the Show:
Carmines site - Go here to check out his book offerings, including his newest book Talk Like TED
Bill Gates at TED - Bill Gates releases mosquitos on his audience at TED
Steve Jobs introduces the iPod - a great example of using Carmine's three rules
Steve Jobs introduces the iPhone - another great example of the three rules. Watch the difference between the iPod introduction and this one.

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 15 - Mindy Bickel - USPTO education.

USPTO meets College!


Today we interview Mindy Bickel from the US Patent and Trademark Office. The USPTO and Cornell have teamed up to help entrepreneurs get informed and to learn about how to patent their ideas.

As an Appitalizer, you should now be plenty aware that you need to protect yourself and your ideas. We have had lawyers on before to explain how to getting protected, but with Mindy we learn it from the other side. Mindy's goal with the program is to teach Appitalizer's how to educate themselves with the process of patents.

Education is the best way to not only to learn about patents, but also to protect yourself from others, such as patent trolls.

Listen to the interview with Mindy to learn where and how you can learn and get yourself protected.

Links Mentioned During the Show:
US Patent and Trade Office Website - Go here for massive information
Email Mindy for help

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 14 - Dennis Bone - Do it yourself economy

Entrepreneurial Students


On this episode I've interview Montclair State University's own Dennis Bone. Dennis was the former CEO of Verizon New Jersey before being tapped to be the director of the Feliciano Center for Entrepreneurship at MSU. Dennis instituted a new 3 class program that will help students become entrepreneurs.

I say this a lot during the actual episode, but do I wish this was around when I was a student. Having this kind of hands on experience really allows students to learn about how to succeed in todays ever changing world. No longer are we groomed to get jobs at big corporations but we are starting to be taught how to come up with our own ideas and make them a reality while in school!

The whole program that Dennis describes in todays interview really brings a smile to my face knowing that students are being taught this and they are learning what it takes to Appitalize!

Listen to the whole thing the jump.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Montclair State PR - Naming Dennis Bone as Director of Entreprenuership
The Entrepreneur Program at Montclair State Univeristy.

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 13 - Luis Giraldo - Scratch Your Itch

Scratch your own itch!


Today I'm talking with Luis Giraldo, owner and CEO of Monkey Box in Canada. Luis who's an Apple consultant by day (like me!) found something in his day to day that he needed. He took that idea (what he calls his itch) and made it happen. He was able to Appitalize on his idea.

Why I love what Luis did has nothing to do with Monkey Box (despite it being a great app), but more with how he got it built. Luis is a very smart person, but knew where his limits were. He not only outsourced the programming, but he outsourced the marketing. He brought in a marketing company to help write the "copy" on his website. These small touches provided by the company helped Monkey Box appeal to not only other Apple consultants, but to individuals as well.

Luis really understands the Appitalize movement, and it's very evident in his wonderfully built product.

Links Mentioned During the Show:
Monkey Box - Luis's company site for Monkey Box
Ook - Luis's IT consulting company site
Luis's Twitter Page
We The Collective - One of the marketing companies used for Monkey Box
6S Marketing - The other marketing company used for Monkey Box
55 Minutes - Web development team

Subscribe in iTunes

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 12 - Jason Womack - Your best just got better!

Your best just got better!


I'm super excited about todays episode with Jason Womack, of The Jason Womack Company. Jason wrote a book, and current has a podcast called Your Best Just Got Better, in which he discusses ways to help you transform. Whether it's networking or just simple time management, Jason gives great tips towards just doing better in life.

Jason's company helps entrepreneurs, CEOs, even stay at home parents the ability to achieve more. With his Get Momentum company, he helps figure out the ways you can create better results with everything.

I am super excited to have had Jason on the podcast for you to listen. Also I guest posted for Jason's blog discussing how to gain momentum to come up with the next big idea.

Links Mentioned During the Show:
The Jason Womack Company - Jason's company website
Get Momentum - Jason's other company
Jasons's Twitter Page

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 11 - David Postolski - Patents, Patents and more Patents

Lawyers are your friends!


Today I sit down with David Postolski of Day Pitney, LLP. David is an Intellectual Properties lawyers in NY and today we discuss how, what and who should patent and protect their idea (the answer is everyone who has an idea!). David and I talk about the need for protection. How do you keep people from stealing your idea and making money when you should be!

David breaks down the three major intellectual property types:

• 
  
• Copyright
• 
  
• Trademark
• 
  
• Patent
• 
  

All three items have their own specific requirements, and protections with them. You can protect your "property" using one of these three. You should hire a lawyer to help, but listen to David explain what the difference is and how to get your self covered.

Listen to the whole interview below the jump.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Day Pitney, LLP - David's law firm company website
David's LinkedIn Page
David's Twitter Page

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 10 – Liana Knudsen – Time and Passion

Be Passionate!


In todays episode we have Liana Kundsen, CEO and master baker of Auntie Liana's Bakery. Liana and her company really hold up the ideals behind Appitalizing on Your Idea. Liana has a full time job (disclosure: she works with my wife), and a part-time entrepreneurial track. In her after hours she runs Auntie Liana's Bakery and makes this delicious cakeballs.

Liana and I discuss time management in this weeks episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast. Her day job is very demanding, and she works very long hours, yet she still has the time and the passion to come home and bake, scoop, and glaze cakeballs. By giving up some things she likes to do, like watch TV, she is able to run her business. Her time management skills have given her the ability to succeed where so many have failed. If you have a passion, and an idea, there's no reason to make sure you know what's happening on the latest episode of The Blacklist.

Listen to the whole interview, and how Liana has risen her business up and what her plans are for moving forward.

Links Mentioned During the Show:
Auntie Liana's - company website
Auntie Liana's on Twitter
Auntie Liana's on Pinterest

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 9 - Chris Hawker - Ideas and Inventor!

Need an Idea?


Today's episode is an amazing one with inventor Chris Hawker. Chris, owner of Trident Designs and inventor talks about how he comes up with ideas. Chris' company has produced hundreds of products to be sold in the likes of Wal-Mart and Target. Chances are you have something he thought of in your own home! Chris really delves into how he started, and how you can come up with ideas just looking around. "Every invention solves a problem," he says. I can't agree anymore!


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Trident Design - Chris's company
Chris Hawker on Twitter
Invetors Mind - Chris' blog.

For more information check Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 8 - Hostful – MVP and Vetting

Create a value helping position, not a marketing position.

Today I decided to a do hostful episode. I wanted to share with you two things that have been on my mind lately.

The first is MVP - Minimum Viable Product. When developing an idea you need to learn your core competency of your idea. Build just that in your first version and get it out in the wild. Don't fall subject to "feature creature". Not sure what your core competency is? Describe your product in 1 sentence, that's it! For SignMyPad our core competency is "Sign PDF documents", and SignMyPad allows you to do just that! Many people want the product they build to be super polished but when there are over a million apps out there, being first is very important.

The second thing I discuss this week is vetting a programming team. Using Guru.com, I have been able to find programmers such as my team in India and Eyal Amir. Guru.com has a lot of potential freelancer on the site so how do you weed out who's good or not? You need to be able to ask the right questions to the potential freelancer and look at their portfolio. In the case of programmers, look at the apps they've created. Look at the reviews of those apps and look for stand out reviews such as 'app crashes'. If you see a lot of that, don't hire that team!

All of these tips and tricks are available to help you bring your idea to fruition. What idea are you work on this week? Share it in the comments below or in iTunes.

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 7 - David Murray - Value Marketing via Social Media

Create a value helping position, not a marketing position.


March is upon us! Todays episode is a great one for people who need marketing help. David Murray, social media directory at Blue Cross Blue Shield joins us to discuss how to use Social Media to communicate with your audience. David talks about how to get started by listening to your customers. Listen to what issues they are having, and then answer them. It's not always about a sales pitch.

"You need to create a value position." Social Media should be used a communication channel, not always a "marketing" channel. Communicating with your customers by listening and participating. Hitting people over the head with the "use my product" concept doesn't work. You need to show your potential customers the value of your product or even better let them get to know you. Letting your customers know you changes their feelings towards your company, and sometimes customers feel a strong bond to your company since now they know about you as a person.

He continues to dive deep into these topics.

Listen to the whole interview below the jump.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Building Your Content Bubble
Dave Murr on Twitter

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 6 - Pam Lefkowitz - Personal Needs

Everything we do is out of our personal need.


Today is a great day to get something done. Let's start it off right by listening to todays Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast episode 6 with my guest Pam Lefkowitz from Core Computing in Chicago.

Pam is an Apple Consultant, who in her spare time likes to knit. She tells us how there were no good ways to make graph paper patters digitally. So what did she do? She went out and made an app! She found ways to outsource the coding and even bartered for the design work inside the app. Pam talks about the struggles of getting the app out there, and the downsides to apps ("buy once own forever").

What I love about this interview with Pam is that despite that her app isn't making a ton of money - she went out and did it. She took a risk with it. I applaud Pam's tenacity for jumping in and I think every can learn a valuable lesson from the episode.

Listen to the whole interview below the jump.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Core Computing - Pam's company
Info on DesignKNIT
DesignKNIT on the App Store

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 5 - Michael Robin - Bootstrap Marketing

DIY Marketing!


In today's episode I talk with Michael Robin of Rocksauce Studios. Michael explains how anyone with an idea can market their product using social media. Even some of the most basic rules of marketing such as tell the story before the product launches. What I love the most about this interview is Michael's story about one of their clients who had a notebook app. I don't want to give away the secret (you should listen to the episode!) but what the creator of the app did was SUPER creative.

Not everyone is a "marketing" person, but that can't stop you from getting your products out there in peoples faces. Using social media is such a great way to jump right into the world of marketing. Posting on the big named social sites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube allow you to potentially reach millions of people. You have to have your strategy right, and be ready to take risks.

You'll hear some great ideas from Michael, and she even gave me a great idea to start an Appitalize On Your Idea pinterest board with some motivational quotes. I started that, so check that out here.

There are some really great tips in the interview, and I hope you enjoy it. Listen to the whole interview below the jump.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Rocksauce Studios
Rocksauce Studios on Twitter
Michael Robins on Twitter
AppDev chat interview with me

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 4 - Eyal Amir - Invest in yourself

Outsourcing is not a bad thing!


Eyal Amir, owner of Hammertech Engineering solutions, joins us on todays Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast. Eyal is a programmer that I've hired to do some work on apps for me in the past. In todays episode we discuss how you can find and hire outsourced personnel, and what to look for when vetting someone. One big thing we discuss is being able to explain what you want to the outsourced employee.

We cover the whole process from once you have the idea to getting it made. Outsourcing is a great way to find someone to help bring your idea to fruition. Outsourcing doesn't necessarily mean giving up jobs and going out of country. The stigma of outsourcing is going away, allowing people who have ideas to make them become a reality.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Hammertech Engineering Solutions - Eyal's company
Guru.com - A resource to post your project online, and hire a freelancer to outsource the work.
Freelancer.com (Used to be vWorker.com) - Another resource to post your project online, and hire a freelancer to outsource the work.

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 3 - Dr. Roy Bachar - Know Your Idea!

Don't be afraid!


Today's episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The Podcast, I bring on a childhood friend, Dr. Roy Bachar, who has become a very distinguished psychiatrist in New York City. I wanted to bring Dr. Bachar on to help people realize that fear can be overcome when building your idea. We talk about how you can overcome fear by finding places to go to focus on your work, and realizing that while you project your passions on your ideas, you are not your idea as a person. Dr. Bachar explains that a failure on an idea does not mean you are a failure as a person.

We also discuss how to be motivated. Finding something you are passionate about allows you to be motivated to move forward with your idea to make it become a reality.

I hope that the lessons that Dr. Bachar share helps you realize that it's ok to take on the challenge of Appitalizing On Your Idea.
Listen to the whole interview below the jump.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Do! - iOS based To Do list

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 2 - Allen Hancock - Watchman Monitoring

Two in a row!!

Super happy to be posing the second episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The PodCast. Today's guest is Allen Hancock, founder of Watchman Monitoring.

Allen and I discuss how Watchman Monitoring came to fruition. In his day job, Allen is an Apple Consultant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. During his day he found an issue that clearly needed to be solved. How can we check to make sure users backups are running? At the time there was no clear cut answer, so Allen went out and devised a way to do so. He had an employee who was able to help and when it got too much, he reached out to hire someone. While that person was going to teach Allen how to program, Allen ended up just outsourcing all the programming to him - SMART!

Allen saw an issue and was able to solve it with a great program. If you are an IT consultant you should totally check out Watchman Monitoring. Listen to the whole interview below the jump.


Links Mentioned During the Show:
Watchman Monitoring - Allens product
Background Backup - Offsite backup

Subscribe in iTunes

For more information check out Appitalize On Your Idea.

Episode 1 - Kyle Samani - Pristine.io

It's our first episode!

Welcome one and all to the first episode of Appitalize On Your Idea: The PodCast. In this episode I give a quick review of what the podcast is going to be, before interviewing our first guest Kyle Samani of Pristine.io.

Kyle and I discuss Pristine's product, which is a video streaming tool for the medical industry. Thanks to Google Glass, doctors, nurses and paramedics can now stream medical issues to any other device. An example from the show is a paramedic who is streaming and communicating with the hospital getting real time information, as well as sending it back to the hospital via video.

Kyle got Pristine.io up and running by blogging 3 times a week. His motivator? Stickk.com. Stickk is a site that motivates you by giving money from your account to a charity that you hate. A great motivator for so many people. Thanks to his blogging Kyle caught the eye of a doctor who wanted to invest in Kyle. Hence the beginning of Pristine.io.

For our first episode, I think we did pretty outstanding!

Links Mentioned During the Show:

• Pristine.io - Kyle's company


• Pristine on Twitter


• Kyle's Blog


• Meta-View SpaceGlasses


• Atheer Labs


• Leap Motion - Motion controller

For more details check out Appitalize On Your Idea.