About Renee Blodgett

Recent Posts by Renee Blodgett

Women on Entrepreneurship and Mentorship

Elizabeth Tinkham, the Global Lead at Accenture moderated a panel this afternoon at the AlwaysOn Stanford Summit on ‘entrepreneurship.’ They discussed the venture community, raising capital as a woman in the current landscape and the kind of mentorship (with examples) that led to their success today.

On the panel was Donna Wells, President and CEO of Mindflash, Victoria Ransom, Founder & CEO of Wildfire Interactive, Lisa Stone of BlogHer, Hilary DeCesare, of Everloop, Carol Realini, CEO of Obopay and DoubleTwist’s Monique Farantzon.

Metrics & Peer Pressure: The Road to Real Efficiency

“Save Energy!” You’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a million times before; but what does it mean, and how do we do it? “By 2020 we will have 50% of the nation run by alternative energies”; “By such-and-such a date we will have done this great thing…” Nothing is tangible or personal, and if we want to garner, witness and achieve progress in the energy world, that has to change.

Numbers give a lot of folks headaches—and without the proper context, it’s no surprise they are dizzying. The world shouldn’t be surprised that we are running around in counter-productive circles instead of achieving forward motion in energy efficiency.

Progress fuels invested action. People won’t pour effort into a fruitless venture, but they are willing to work harder for something when they can see direct results budding. When it’s not easy to interpret your real-world impact, it’s even harder to measure your progress. For these reasons, a well-defined, comprehensible and accurate metric system should be the backbone of any energy-saving crusade.

People need to have real data presented to them in an easy-to-understand format that lets them know exactly what their personal role in the effort is. More importantly, this information needs to tell them hard and fast or not whether they’ve gained that gold star of efficiency, or if they’re going to have to work a little harder the next go around. Tangible metrics are the key to progress.

If metrics are your motivational tool, peer pressure should be your propulsion system. Harvesting all of these blooms as a result of working hard to save energy is satisfying for a while, but a bouquet is much nicer when you can show it off to someone else who appreciates beautiful blossoms.

The people that believe in and work for energy conservation need a community in which to share their successes, failures, tips and passions. This will keep the flames of those who have already caught the fire burning bright.

As for gaining new recruits to the environmental army, these facts and figures need to have a place to sit on display for outsiders to see; and get them interested in planting a few seeds of their own. If people can see the successes of others, they are more willing to follow suit.

There is a higher perceived chance that they will be successful than if they were to strike out on their own. Mostly, people want to fit in. They don’t want to be left behind. People want to be at least keeping up with the Joneses, if not joining the family themselves. Several companies are doing a great job leveraging the power of social context with the several utilities they currently serve. OPOWER is a perfect example.

Analytics will define the future of energy efficiency by providing both blunt measureable results and a community of encouragement and competition.

The above post is from guest author: Rahul Prakash, COO, EarthAid.net

—–

EarthAid.net is a free online platform that allows people to link their utility accounts and watch their house-wide consumption as it shifts from meter reading to meter reading, and gives people a window through which to see their progress or regression. The platform awards points for reducing your usage, which can be redeemed as coupons for local businesses.

What’s the Anatomy of a Successful Start-up?

AlwaysOn kicked off at Stanford last night and Guy Kawasaki moderated a panel entitled The Anatomy of a Successful Start-up in 2010. In the discussion was Mike Lee, co-founder of Tapulous, Chris Barbin, CEO of Appirio, Barry Silbert, Founder/CEO of SecondMarket, Treb Ryan, CEO of Opsource, and Doug Knopper, CEO of Freewheel.

Guy asked the panel whether it was a good time to start a company and what were each of the entrepreneurs doing differently today than they did in 1999.

A few random insights and thoughts that came from that thread:

Cloud computing is just starting to sort itself out through all the hype and monetize, so while challenging, its just starting to get going and there are lots of opportunities here to ‘get it right.’

Additionally, the sentiment was that “there’s a ton of capital but not a need to take it hastily….there’s so much more you can do on your own today — you just don’t need a lot of infrastructure anymore, even for an enterprise business.

Says Doug,”the world has gotten a lot smaller.” Others agree and have outsourced, tapped into resources outside the U.S. One had a resource in China with a 415# and between local numbers and Skype, there’s no reason not to be connected any time of day or night.

What about the role of the VC moving forward? It felt like the whole panel was opting for ‘any other way.’ In other words, with how easy it is to build infrastructure today, why get a VC on board unless you absolutely have to, although a VC does play a role outside of hard capital of course. A great VC can do pattern matching really well.

They also noted how much smarter prospects and employees are getting – today, they wan to “see a plan – they want to know the metrics and see a vision; its not good enough anymore to hear that the CEO has one.

Guy asks, “so how do you roll out a launch today? Mike says, “you need to think about how you build a company that the big boys are going to be interested in….how do you make your solution or service more compelling than anyone else….in other words, make something that someone like Apple CAN’T ignore. He says, “if you have something that resonates with users, they’ll use it, tout it and give you the buzz you need.”

Building buzz and testing things out with consumers is still key. Treb says, “the only friend you have when you’re a Series A start-up is buzz – you need to find out early on what works really well and what doesn’t.”

And Guy ends on a humorous note: Two things – “never surprise your board,” and at the end of the day regardless of what else is happening, “sales fixes everything.”

Below are two videos highlighting the majority of the panel.

Search, PR and the Social Butterfly

Social media continues to spread its wings with the advent of Google Social Search, Bing, Twitter Search and Yahoo’s Twitter-like moves. With the demise of traditional media outlets and the rise of search and social, PR firms have also gotten a big lift and muscled in on the territory once ruled by advertising agencies.

Time to eighty-six the anachronistic press kits and media lists and hand over the keyword-rich online status updates and Twitter feeds. A panel at Marketing Week will discuss the best of both worlds while influencing SEO via Profiles, Fans, Tweets, Friends and Follows.

A panel moderated by Susan Bratton will discuss these issues and more. Connected Marketing Week is from August 16-20, 2010. More info here.

Lovin’ Cars in Detroit

Last week, I went on one of the fastest trips to anywhere “new” quite possibly in the last ten years. Quick trips are something I typically avoid; I try to stay several days after my business purpose for being there – to meet up with friends, scour the destination, shoot (my Canon is never very far away) and sample restaurants, cafes, bars and venues.

There are some places on this globe you really have no reason to go unless something about that destination that the whole world knows about, draws you there. Memphis for Elvis, Pisa for its leaning tower, Stonehenge for “stones,” Orlando for Disney….you get the idea. So, if you ever find yourself on a plane to Detroit, just because I’d be surprised, although I’m sure people have done it.

People typically head there – at least on business – because they are involved in some way, shape or form to the car industry or might want to partner with a player in the car industry. In fact, I ran into a former client I had not seen in awhile and of course they too were heading to Ford for a meeting the next day.

Because of the fact that I’m blogging more ‘lifestyle’ these days, in Detroit, I found myself on a plane to Detroit and then a shuttle to Dearborn Michigan for a dog-and-pony with Ford with over 75 other journalists and bloggers brought in from around the world. (Reason: advance look at the 2011 Ford Explorer – my coverage of the news here).

One of the things I immediately noticed was the ‘air’ – a quick reminder that we were closer to East Coast summer climate. For example, I saw a lightening bug, a wonderful reminder of my childhood in upstate New York where we’d run around and capture them for late night viewing in glass jars set next to our beds.

Because the trip was so short, I didn’t have time to explore Detroit or Dearborn, but the Dearborn Inn is worth noting because it ‘wears’ the auto industry on its sleeve, with photos of automobiles on the room walls, the hallway walls and in the pub, which is decked out with a burgundy pool table, plenty of TV screens blaring with sports, antique wooden tables and comfortable chairs covered with decorative paisley Victorian-style material.

After an outside buffet dinner which included burgers, salads, salmon, and chicken, several of us headed to the pub. Others headed to their rooms to work or call their families — I quickly learned that more traditional automotive reporters spend a lot of time on the road traveling to car shows and various manufacturers who do dog-and-pony shows like the one Ford set up for us this week.

Many were not returning home but to LA for another gig. I learned about a recent shindig in Montreal, another in the Bay Area, the list goes on. Most of the reporters knew each other from the repetitive trips to all the usual suspects which they have done again and again for years. One guy from Texas and another from Oklahoma spotted me and said “you’re new. We don’t know you.” It wasn’t done in that secluded “you’re not one of us kinda way; it was done in an endearing “wanting to know what you’re about and are interested in” kind of way.

A lot of these guys are more interested in the nuts and bolts, the factual details, the stats of new car features, whether it be about fuel economy, technology, safety or things that make the car better. Others were really into the engine – and I mean, really into the engine. Everyone from car radio and TV talk shows and the Detroit Free Press to Kelley Blue Book and L’Automobile out of Canada were there.

Some lifestyle folks were there and a few bloggers, although adding bloggers and social media types is relatively new for them, largely due to the impressive efforts of Scott Monty, Ford’s head of social media, who I’ve met over the years at events like BlogWorldExpo and SXSW. He’s prolific and everywhere, eager to explore, engage and listen.

What was most intriguing was how regimented it was – not specifically the way Ford does things, since most corporate giants run press events in a fairly structured way, but how regimented the process was for the ‘industry.’ It’s an industry these guys take seriously and after all, why not? Cars are one of the most expensive purchases we tend to make after a home. People are so interested in cars that some traditional press despite circulation declines, still have a significant amount of space set aside for auto coverage. Tim Spell from the Houston Chronicle writes for a daily column dedicated only to cars and trucks.

The second thing I noticed was how passionate everyone was about cars. It’s a lifestyle for those who live and breathe automobiles. I grew up in a family who tinkered with cars when you could still tinker with them. My grandfather had several cars hanging around at any given time and my male cousins and uncles had the same. Ford was a favorite in the 1950s and 1960s when ‘buying American’ and supporting an American car manufacturer wasn’t just trendy, it was the “right thing” to do.

I’ve had my fair share of cars over the years and they’ve ranged from Chevys (my first two), a Fort Escort, a Fiat Uno, Toyotas and then Hondas. I stayed away from BMWs and Saabs for the most part because I didn’t want to have to rely on a man to tinker with a mess (at the time when you could still tinker).

I just wanted the damn thing to run for as long as it could without a lot of maintenance. I voted less with my pocket and more for what was going to give me the best endurance and reliability. A close second was design, color and inside functionality. For my grandmother, oddly enough, it was both speed and safety. She had a ‘lead’ foot, so that is likely why safety was her close second.

I ran into Bob Tasca Jr. from the infamous Tasca Ford, a name you’ve probably heard of if you’ve spent any time on the East Coast. He’s based in Rhode Island and his father, who passed away in January at 83, is known as a Ford racing legend. He spent more than two hours trying to convince me to give up my Honda and buy a Ford and seemed committed to getting me into a Ford Mustang convertible before the year was up.

Not only is he passionate about Ford, but he feels pretty strongly about buying a vehicle that supports the “motherland.” As for Ford being the most reliable car on the market, he’s convinced that they are ahead of other players and lived and breathed this conviction in a way that was addictive. I did a video interview with Bob which you can tune into here.

Also milling about the pub were others in town who were not part of our tribe, but who also lived and breathed cars. Ford dealers in from Texas, Colorado and other parts of the country were talking shop over beers and martinis. The pub albeit a traditional and cosy pub that reminded me more of British pubs than American ones in many ways, had a surprisingly diverse wine selection and they also served monster sized shrimp cocktails with spicy rangy sauce and thousand island dressing.

Flights to and fro were packed and the air was hot and muggy and had that mid-summer thickness about it, something many people flea from, but I love. I wouldn’t be surprised if I return to Detroit for more ‘car talk’ at some juncture for once the car bug hits you in some way, I have a feeling it either sticks around for awhile or returns at another juncture in your life.

Meet the 2011 Explorer: A Social Media Unveiling

Last week, I was flown out to Detroit to join a group of over 75 journalists and bloggers to hear a dog-and-pony embargoed briefing on Ford’s new 2011 Explorer, due to hit the market in Q1 2011. It’s a winter launch for those wanting to dive right in as soon as it is available to test out its improved ability to handle both mud and snow.

Traditionally, car manufacturers have launched new cars at auto shows, but this time around, Ford has chosen to launch their new Explorer, officially announced today, to its Facebook friends in a unique social media initiative. This will subsequently followed by reveal events throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Ford’s VP of Global Marketing Jeff Farley shared his excitement of how they plan to share the new car with their nearly 200K Facebook fans and the importance of getting feedback from fans and skeptics. “You can’t myth busy if you don’t know the myth,” said Farley. I had to laugh when he added, “I love auto shows, but the Ford Explorer deserves more.” They’re planning an online campaign at launch to hit 50 million people through social media – this is an effort to connect with and start a dialogue with customers who have an interest in Ford and want to learn more.

Since I had never been to Dearborn Michigan, the home of Ford and in many ways, a symbol of all things American, I was itching to experience the auto heartland and meet some of the people who had lived and breathed the auto industry for more than a decade.

Mark Fields, the Executive VP and fields President of the Americas, kicked off the official product briefing. Dressed in a beige suit and tie and sparking shiny black shoes, he was gleaming as he geared up for unveiling the details of their new Explorer to a room of press, which they see as the “SUV reinvented.”

He revealed branding stats among American consumers: a whopping 96% had heard of the Ford Explorer brand. We then move into trends. According to their latest, yanks still want SUVs but the number one reason they don’t buy one is fuel economy and efficiency. “It’s the primary reason people are saying NO to SUVs,” says Fields.

The new Explorer, which will seat 7 passengers, offers a 237 horse power engine, a 13% increase in power from the previous model. Its V6 power is expected to deliver more than 20% better fuel economy than the 2010 model, shattering conventional expectations for SUV fuel efficiency. When equipped with the available 2.0-liter EcoBoost I-4 engine, Explorer fuel economy is expected to improve by more than 30% and exceed the 2010 Honda Pilot and 2010 Toyota Highlander V6.

In addition to putting a full force effort into improving fuel efficiency, they have focused their attention on better quality, keeping it “green,” safety aspects and incorporating smart technology.

Ford’s Group VP of Global Product Development Derek Kuzak hit the stage to cover each of those core areas, at the time, still without any of us seeing a visual of the new Explorer, still covered by a blanket behind the Ford execs.

Moray Callum, Ford’s Director Designer for the Americas shared the latest in design improvements and then at last, (drum roll please), the moment the auto geeks were waiting for, the blanket lifting. They chose a white vehicle and through years of practice, the polish and shine was just about as perfect as you can get……it glistened, it shone, it sparkled as it spun around on the flat stage with two Ford spokespeople in front of its glory and massive wall banner behind it. (A Ford Explorer sitting in a rugged setting with tall trees surrounding it).

The engineering team spent a significant effort on new features, such as safety, recycled materials used in the car’s interior, uncompromised towing and the terraine management system. This model allows you to go through four “driving” shifts on-the-fly, so within minutes, you can change from sand settings to snow to mud and ruts to normal every day driving.

They are also launching the first inflatable safety belts for the second row seat, a dramatic improvement in overall passenger safety. And, the materials used in the carpets are made of 25% recycled material.

Another cool feature is something they’re calling Hill Descent Control, which manages hill descent for you so you don’t have to manage the break and accelerator pedal manually. Also included is beefed up smart technology – their combined Sync and MyFord Touch, which I covered in more detail last week here.

Touting over 10,000 voice commands and a new ‘flattened command structure,’ you can get the same desired result from using different words and phrases to get what you want, i.e., play song or play track, find nearest shoe store or find shoe store, find nearest restaurant or I’m Hungry.

The team enhanced noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) control for the new Explorer using an advanced technology called NoiseVision.

A ball with hundreds of tiny cameras and microphones, NoiseVision allows engineers to pinpoint and address potential noise issues earlier in the development process. Explorer is expected to be superior to in-segment competitors and rival premium SUVs in quietness and NVH control.

On safety, they have added enhancements there as well. Apparently, there are 50,000 curve related crashes each year related to speeding. As yet another safety feature addition, the new Explorer also has added curve control to its 2011 model.

Explorer’s EPAS system allows for variable rates of assistance based on speed, turn-in and direction. In addition to optimized steering feel, tight on-centering and appropriate resistance, EPAS provides a fuel economy benefit in comparison to traditional hydraulic power assist systems. EPAS also enables a competitive turning radius for optimum maneuverability in parking situations, combined with increased assistance at low speeds for parking ease. EPAS allows for the addition of Curve Control, a new feature that senses when a driver enters a turn too quickly and applies brake pressure to stabilize the vehicle.

Additionally, their inflatable rear belts spread impact forces across more than five times the area than conventional seat belts, reducing pressure on the chest while helping to control head and neck motion.

Ford’s Jim Holland addressed aerodynamics. The team logged over two million CPU hours on aerodynamics alone, which has resulted in a 12% improvement over the 2010 Explorer.
The new 2011 Explorer is being assembled at Ford’s Chicago manufacturing facility. Production begins late this year, and Explorer will be available in dealerships this coming winter.

Madison Wisconsin: Land of Cows, Cheese, Beer, Fairs & Whoaah Start-Ups

There’s a cool post over on TechCrunch about the growth of technology start-ups in Madison Wisconsin, soon to be the Silicon Valley of the Midwest? Madison-based GeoHuddle Steve Faulkner wrote a guest post sharing the latest and greatest from some of the start-ups in the area, including his own, which is a start-up that develops community geothermal heating and cooling systems.

When I visited Madison (only once in my life), I was taken to a county fair and given a ton of cheese, although I couldn’t find a nice glass of wine anywhere to go with that fabulous mid-west cheese. Beer baby beer, along with cows, farms and sports. Now, entrepreneurs are emerging, and start-ups are launching. I learn from their overview that “Madison was recently ranked as the 7th most innovative city in the country by Forbes magazine – just above perennial powerhouse Boston, MA.”

As for technology specifically, below is a summary of the companies Faulkner lists that are worth knowing about:

Entrustet: It’s about security baby…..get it from the fact they have ‘trust’ baked into its name? With Entrustet, you can store your digital assets — online accounts and files on your PC — and either have them transferred or deleted when you pass away. Kind of cool – they pitch it as Will for your digital life. Sounds really useful.

Virent: The Virent team is commercializing a proprietary sugar to hydrocarbon conversion process developed at the University of Wisconsin. This means they can take biomass and directly convert it to gasoline, which has attracted a lot of interest from the oil industry. Most recently, they received a $46 million dollar investment from Shell.

PerBlue: Ahhhh, blue. I tried hard to get ‘blue’ into a company name once. Perblue is all about social gaming in a mobile world, mostly known for their game Parallel Kingdom, which currently has over 150,000 players worldwide and was the first location based RPG for the iOS and Android platforms. What’s very cool is that PerBlue was founded by University of Wisconsin students with their own limited cash, and continues to grow organically without traditional funding.

Alice: This service allows you to purchase home essentials directly from the manufacturer and have them shipped, for free, to your door. Based on your user profile, it will also remind you when it is time to restock on common items. (egads, now a service that knows how wquickly I use things but hopefully not how as well. Useful for busy people who want things automated but at some point, it will all hit us how much personal information we’re giving away to vendors – this isn’t about Alice, it’s about the growing trend that all services are creeping into our personal data and lives).

Metworked Insights: They do social media analytics, largely for big brands such as Kraft, Omnicom, PG&G and others in its league. Their tool listens to conversations, analyzes them and then gives you data based on that analysis, narrowing down what is most useful for the brand.

Original post here.

Travel Writer’s Workshop in China

A Travel Writers Workshop is being held China’s Southwest Himalayas from March 3-14, 2011, a forum for writers who want to overcome creative and spiritual challenges in order to push their works to the next level. Combining focused workshops with local excursions and encounters, this 11-day retreat is designed to help writers refine their skills, while challenging them, as the Nobel laureate Gao Xingjian did in Soul Mountain, to reaffirm their existence in a new setting, with a new focus.

The program is being held in one of Asia’s most popular intellectual retreats—The Linden Centre. Located on Tea Horse Road, on the estate of a former merchant, the Centre is nestled at 7,000 feet, between the 14,000-foot Azure Mountains, and the 35-mile-long Lake Er. The complex is owned and managed by Americans Brian and Jeanee Linden, both longtime residents of Asia. The complex offers the perfect blend of comfort and intellectual support, and provides writers with a safe base from which to explore the China of Pearl Buck and W. Somerset Maugham.

Don George, chair of the annual Book Passage Travel, Food, & Photography Conference, will lead the workshop. The former Global Travel Editor for Lonely Planet Publications, Don is currently Contributing Editor and Columnist for National Geographic Traveler and Special Features Editor for Gadling.com.

The cost of the program is not cheap — $4,589 — even though it includes all in-country accommodations, food, tours, and workshop fees. On top of it, international airfare is not included. So, it’s an expensive endeavor but there for the taking for those who make the trek and afford it. (Let’s really call it ‘tuition’ for 11 days).

Meet Bob Tasca Jr., Son of Ford Racing Legend Bob Tasca

I was in Detroit last week and bumped into Bob Tasca Jr. at the Dearborn Inn pub one evening. Like everyone else in the pub at the time, I was there to visit Ford’s headquarters for a media day. Bob is the son of Ford racing legend Bob Tasca Sr. who passed away in January. He is credited with bringing us the Cobra Jet 428 engine. In the 1960s, he became frustrated at watching potential buyers leave his Rhode Island dealership because they thought the Mustang “just wasn’t fast enough.” So, he made the car faster by creating its own engine: Cobra Jet 428. Tasca is also credited with helping create the Ford Thunderbolt drag racing car. More about them at Tasca.com and TascaRacing.com.

Below are a few videos I shot — me directly asking Tasca questions and also observing conversations at the Dearborn Inn pub where other Ford dealers who came in and other car industry folks recognized Tasca. Every industry has their legends. Learn more about this one and Bob’s passion for Ford cars – he seemed committed to seeing me in a blue Ford Mustang convertible this year.

The Travel Blogger Show

The Travel Blogger Show is coming up on September 12-14, 2010 in Orlando, Florida.

They’ll cover everything from the basics, as well as approaches bloggers take and don’t take. For example, some travel bloggers depend on publicists for access to travel information and experiences to write about, and value their news tips. Other bloggers dismiss publicists and marketers as time-wasting spammers.

Also on the agenda are the do’s and don’ts, how to keep the content fresh if you’re only covering one subject.

Next Page »