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CrowdSPRING

CROWDSPRING – THIS IS HOW ROSS AND MIKE BUILT THE VIRTUAL PLATFORM FOR DESIGN SOLUTIONS

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The design solution has become the fastest growing and the trendiest business ideas in today’s time. There are various sites, apps and even companies available for this. But it was not trendy back in the days. In 2007, Ross Kimbarovsky and Michael Samson founded CrowdSpring, a design solution company and it was officially launched in 2008. They noticed the problems with the design & graphics industry and how individual designers find it difficult to get clients. This was basically a waste of creativity and that’s why the idea of Crowdspring came into his mind. Also, small businesses always struggle to create their unique identities.

Crowdspring – A new perspective on creativity

Ross and Michael started CrowdSpring, a virtual platform to find the best design solutions with the motive of helping small businesses and start-ups to create their own identity by extending service of creating logos, designing the products and sites and naming their brands. Their motto was very clear that ‘creativity knows no border’ which means no matter how small or unconventional the business is, Crowdspring is ready to help with all the kinds of design solutions.

To protect the intellectual property of the companies they received while designing process, Crowdspring signs a legal contract. Another feature of Crowdspring is, they help non-profits NGOs with free design projects to enhance their visibility and empower them to help the unprivileged.

This is how Crowdspring works

If you have a design project and need sourcing from Crowdspring, you need to state a creative brief and your requirements. You get the options as per your budget. You get many options as the designers and freelancers submit their samples to you as per your specifications. The final choice is yours. At the end of the project, the best designer gets the agreed price and you get your designs. While doing this, both parties signed a legal contract. So that they can protect intellectual rights.

How Ross and Michael built Crowdspring together despite being from different backgrounds?

Ross and Mike came from totally different backgrounds. Ross is born in Kiev, Ukraine who initially studied law from the Illinois College of law from 1992-95 and then completed his political science and philosophy degree from Northwestern University from 1999 to 2002.

Currently, Ross Kimbarovsky is the CEO of the company. Before starting Crowdspring, he was a successful lawyer, but his evergreen dream was to start his own tech company. He observed that the market at that time was in dire need of good designs and that’s how Crowdspring emerged. After starting the Crowdspring, his desire to build different business models was still unfulfilled hence he started start-up foundry in 2014 where he helps different start-ups to grow.

Education

Mike came from a totally different field. He completed his MBA from North-western University – Kellogg school of management. With impressive Emmy Award nomination for producing and production management and holding a place with the Director’s Guild of America. He worked for 22 years at IMDb.

The Backstory of Foundation

Both, Mike and Ross were dealing with the same problem before starting the Crowdspring. Mike was finding a way to subcontract video post-production work to India because of India’s very fewer labor costs with the use of the same software as that of the US. Ross was having a problem with the procedure and money involved in getting his company’s website redesigned.

In the beginning, they engaged them in the research. They came across a bunch of Malaysian students who participated in print design competitions. They were impressed. Looking at this, Mike realized that the problem of Graphic design was substantial, and very few people were to solve this. Then they wanted to build something which gives the design solutions.

Bottom Line

The start wasn’t easy, and it was clear that companies with less revenue face problems with hiring a designer or staff to create logos and graphics which make their companies stand out. Now Crowdspring has almost 220000 creatives from around 195 countries. Overall, Crowdspring has helped more than 60000 entrepreneurs, start-ups and agencies with unique and affordable solutions. Not only this, but Crowdspring has given the opportunity and monetary rewards to many talented designers, printers, and freelancers.

tesla model y

Regardless of coronavirus outbreaks Tesla to deliver its Model Y in the US?

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Highlights

Tesla Model Y deliveries begin in the US though WHO declared coronavirus outbreaks as a global emergency.

Just before one year, the company unveiled an electric SUV as well, Tesla announced the unveiling of Model Y at that time.

First Tesla model Y delivery ahead of the original schedule

The coronavirus outbreak is declared as a global emergency. After China, many countries including Italy, Australia, and now even India is fighting with the coronavirus. Also, many other countries becoming wrapped up in the grips of coronavirus pandemic. In such a situation, Tesla has officially begun the deliveries of the first Model Y to US customers. To share this information, Tesla tweeted a video yesterday. It shows the small electric SUV going through the production process also, being tested on a different part of the world. As well, the company shared a link to the order page. Some Tesla focused YouTubers including Teslanomics’ Ben Sullins spotted the first deliveries of Tesla Model Y.

Tesla Model Y could be an even bigger hit?

The company’s Model Y, first unveiled last year in the month of March is the fifth all-electric car to go into production. As per the report, the small SUV is built on the same technology platform as Model 3 Sedan. In fact, two cars shared about 75% parts. But there are few main differences like a motorized full hatch door at the rear, extra headroom. Also, having an optional small third row with two shotgun-style seats. However, Model 3 has proved to be a huge success for Tesla. Now Tesla Model Y is on its way.

The CEO Elon Musk said he believes the Model Y could potentially be an even bigger hit given the growing preference in the US (and, increasingly, the world) for the increased ride height, size, and functionality of SUVs.

Tesla Model Y configuration

New Model Y comes in two key configurations. However, both of them are all-wheel drive. The Long Range version of Tesla Model Y starts at $52,990 and offers 316 miles of range. As well, it can go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 4.8 seconds. Also, Tesla is selling a Performance version that starts at $60,990. This performance version can travel 315 miles on a full battery, as well go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 3.5 seconds. Moreover, to order Tesla Model Y, different options are available for each version. For example, Autopilot, advanced driver assistance package, various wheel covers, and paint colors. As per the report, in early 2021, the standard range version can be expected to enter production.

Will Coronavirus outbreaks affect the Model Y deliveries?

During Model Y unveiling, Tesla already announced that the shipping of Electric SUV will in Fall 2020. But the year 2019 was fairly successful for the company, and Tesla announced in January that it was able to get a vehicle into production faster than predicted. Now, the company begins the Model Y deliveries in the US, but the question is whether the coronavirus outbreaks would affect the deliveries. As we can see, the deadly virus affected many sectors and had a huge impact on new car sales in China. Ad well, it started to freeze up the economy of the US too. Because as a preventive measure, citizens isolate themselves so the spread can be a break. Also, many leading automobile companies like Hyundai and Ford started rolling out great recession era programs. Thus, trying to keep sales from completely catering. As well, it delays a customer’s first car payment for weeks or even months. Especially, if customers are jobless or affected by coronavirus outbreaks.

We cannot say what kind of impact the coronavirus will have on Tesla Model Y deliveries. Not only this model, but it’s unclear about sales of any other models of the company. Regardless of all this, Tesla announced to release first-quarter figures in the first week of April.

Does Tesla taking special care to stop Covid-19 spread?

It’s unclear about what the company is doing for the workforce in US factories that are located at three different locations. Though, the recently leaked memo clear that the company is restricting international travel and asking employees to seek medical advice if they feel Coronavirus symptoms.

But Tesla not shared any information if it’s taking preventive measures to limit the spread of coronavirus during these deliveries. Also, no such information mentioned about other car deliveries of the company. Coronavirus outbreaks are at its peak, while the Model Y deliveries of the company begin in the US. While Tesla has not responded to multiple requests for comment.

Boost Media Logo

BOOST MEDIA- Providing High-Class Digital Marketing Services since 2011

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By now we have already become familiar with the term SaaS and the term SaaS stands for Software as a Service. In this kind of service, the company makes software whose license is given to other companies on a subscription basis. IT sector has various needs and in every company, smaller or bigger, an IT department is mandatory. It is important for the proper functioning of the business.

And, all these have eventually topped our priority list once the internet started becoming affordable by everyone. Speaking about SaaS, Boost Media is one of the largest and fastest-growing B2B SaaS companies that exist. Rob Lenderman and David Greenbaum founded the company in 2009 and since then it is excelling in the creative marketplace. Boost Media provides one of the best services in the sphere of digital marketing meeting every need of the clients.

Boost Media Logo

Boost Media Founders

Rob Lenderman went to North Carolina State University to acquire his bachelor’s degree in Nuclear Engineering. He completed his graduation in 1995. In 2000, Rob joined LendingTree as a Lead Developer and eventually, he received a promotion as SEO Architect. He left the company in 2007 and joined Interval International-IAC. He worked there as a product developer for three years.

In 2010, Rob joined Clearwire as the Director of eCare and left it for co-founding Boost Media. He was the Chief Product Officer of Boost Media until Adlabs Technology acquired the company in 2019. Currently, he is holding the same position at Adlabs Technology.

David Greenbaum went to the Yale School of Management for completing his MBA. His career started as an analyst in Goldman Sachs after which he started working for Plum Capital. In this company, he worked with many start-ups handling finance operation of them. It gave him a clear perspective of how he should start one.

David also worked at Interval Leisure Group as the Director of Strategy and M&A. After co-founding Boost Media, David also founded OnPlan.

Funding to Boost Media

Both the founders were well experienced when they founded Boost media. David, by then had already mastered the art of managing finance. The company received its first funding in the year 2011. In the seed funding, Boost Media raised $1.6 million. Some of the major investors included David Frankel, Jed Katz, etc. There was a total of eight investors that led this funding round.

The early Series A funding round took place in September 2011. Webb Investment Network led the funding round. There was another funding round in 2012 and the company raised $1.4 million. Javelin Ventures Partners led another funding round in 2013 and the company raised $2 million.

In 2013, the company raised $8 million in Series B funding from Western Technology Investment, Javelin Ventures Partners, and Battery Ventures. This year, the company also carried out its Series C funding round where it raised $19 million. Within a few years of founding the company, it landed many big investors.

Growth and Success

By this time, Boost Media has already become a well-acknowledged digital marketing service provider in the industry. From displaying advertising to social video, Boost Media released many platforms for better reach.

One such platform was released in 2016 and it was called Boost Media’s Express Platform. It was released in 2016 to help users have access to a marketplace with more than 1,000 professional copywriters.

Within 2016, Boost Media landed more than 200 customers including some big businesses like Jockey, Shutterfly, Liberty Mutual, etc. The team of Boost Media comprises of more than 1,000 experienced copywriters and designers. The company has its headquarters based in San Francisco.

Acquisition by Adlabs Technology

Adlabs Technology is a company working in the field of paid-search ad creations, optimization, and analysis which are powered by AI. The company announced the acquisition of Boost Media in 2019. The agreement included top to bottom of Boost Media’s assets including customer contracts, patents, trademark brands, software platforms, websites, etc.

The key employees of Boost Media were also accepted in the company including Rob. Currently, the company is performing all its operations under the name of Adlabs Technology. Before the acquisition, the company showed excellent results as an independent entity landed many lucrative clients.

google assistant

Google all Set to Lose Legend-ary Voiced Assistant

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Google is one of the world’s most recognized brands and is a tech-superstar due to its huge presence. We have all been helped by the search engine at some point in time in our lives. It answers everything from simple questions regarding words, to sports updates when we are stuck at work. Slowly, yet surely, the tech-giant has branched out into other ventures. With several highly successful applications like Google Maps, Google Keep and even their cloud-storage service Google Drive, the company has become an integral part of our lives. One major part of Google’s services is their voice assistant which helps us do tasks without actually touching the phone. We can use this assistant to run searches, open the camera or even call someone without lifting a finger. Since voice search is touted to be the next big thing in the years to come, Google has never spared any expense when it comes to developing its search interface.

Wonderful Marketing Strategy Behind Google Assistant

One seemingly brilliant way it has made the assistant more relatable and approachable is by replacing the usually robotic and monotonic voice, with the voice of someone we appreciate and love. Fans went crazy last year when Google announced that the new update would have the assistant upgrade to All of Me fame John Legend’s voice. However, the collaboration seems to have ended because the tech giant announced that the voice would be removed from March 23rd onwards. Here’s a look at how the unusual pairing came to be.

Unlikely Pairing

In case you got used to having John Legend pick up your chores and assist you in your everyday life, you might have to brace yourself for the news. The celebrity cameo will come to a stop on March 23rd, after almost a year of great service. News regarding John’s voice being added to the Assistant’s settings had come out last April, much to the delight of Google users around the world. Most people do not identify with or particularly like the robotic voice that is associated with voice assistants. John Legend, therefore, came as a whiff of fresh air to most users, but, unfortunately, the unlikely, yet successful pairing is coming to a close. But to be fair, Google had mentioned at the time of release that this would be a limited feature, though they had not specified the duration of the tenure.

The addition of Legend’s voice brought a lot of joy to the ears of users around the world, because it brought with it several Easter eggs, very specific to his personality. For instance, you could get a personalized Happy Birthday song, sung by Legend himself if you asked him to do so. Similarly, fans were greeted to a part of All of Me, anytime they mentioned or asked about Chrissy Teigen, who is his supermodel wife. However, it is not all bad news for users, since Google still offers comedian Issa Rae’s voice. But it would be best not to get used to her witty one-liners or sarcastic remarks because you never know when Google will take her off the list.

Special Surprises

While Google Assistant has featured celebrity voices for quite some time now, users might want to make the best of them while they still can. John Legend, however, will always be remembered for being the first celebrity to lend his voice virtually to a plethora of devices all around the world. The singer’s smooth voice, which is sinfully filled with emotion and grit was a huge hit with fans all across the United States.

Google announced the removal via a tweet that urged users to use Legend to the maximum in the time they have left and encouraged them to request more serenades from the crooner. However, though you might miss the Legend-ary voice, rest assured because the Assistant will continue to function the way it used to. The only problem being that you won’t be able to belt All of Me along with the singer himself without accessing YouTube. Also, let us hope that owing to the success of this new endeavor, Google keeps surprising us with new celebrity voices in the future.

Tradesy

How Tracy DiNunzio Helped People Build Wardrobes on a Tight Budget?

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Every business requires the entrepreneur to put in countless hours of hard work because it is no easy task. It takes countless hours of sweat, sleepless nights and long-drawn flights and travels to make your dream a reality. Most entrepreneurs work harder than most of their employees to ensure the success of their company. Tradesy CEO Tracy DiNunzio remembers her early years, wherein she worked over 18 hours a day and gave out her bedroom on rent to make ends meet. The founder got candid about how she slept on her couch for months to make sure she is able to pay her bills on time. Here’s a look at how this woman grew Tradesy into the stellar success it is now!

Foundation Behind Tradesy

Before starting out with this endeavor, Tracy was an artist who was looking for a career change. In 2009, once she finalized her idea, she launched a trial version named Recycled Bride. She then taught herself how to manage a website, maintain a blog and even SEO Optimisation. As Tracy herself lived on a shoestring budget while trying to set up her fashion empire, she realized how important it is to be able to create a good wardrobe while on a budget. It is exactly this need that Tracy tried to fulfill with her company Tradesy.

The company essentially acts as a bridging platform between buyers and sellers, making it easy for women to buy and sell their clothes. The company handles all the logistics involved in such a trade, such as online payment, return, exchange, and even shipping. Tradesy’s growth was a result of several years of hard work and commitment, and it wasn’t easy by any means. Tracy grew the company on her own, from a one-person venture to a successful business that employs over 100 people and serves more than a million people. The best thing about this being that Tracy did all this within a meager span of three years.

Story Behind the Success

The first step for Tracy was identifying her strengths, weaknesses, and passions. She then looked for how she could use her strengths to capture market share and solve a problem that exists, and in this case, it was building a good wardrobe at a low price. So, from the get-go, Tracy’s primary goal has been to help women like herself dress well at affordable prices, and this is one thing that hasn’t changed, even when the company grew. Once she knew which problem she wanted to help solve, she began researching the fashion industry to understand the market better. She began to identify key interest areas, market trends, and opportunities for her business, thanks to her qualitative research. She also went out and spoke to women from around the country to understand their needs better, and to figure out how she better the consignment industry.

Biggest Factors for Success

Tracy grew Tradesy from zero to a 10-million-dollar company within three years, and she believes this was solely because of the hard work of her staff. Tracy believes that luck favors the tenacious, as she recalls early days wherein she worked 18-hours a day, trying to figure out how to run a digital business, without knowing much about web design and development. In order to save money, she rented out her bedroom and slept on the couch for months! The biggest challenge she faced was self-doubt and secondly, fiscal deficit as she didn’t have much money on her.

To manage her self-doubt, she broke down big tasks into smaller, more manageable ones so that she could channel her energy more positively. Furthermore, to earn more money, she sold her car and some of her clothes and even took up data entry jobs. Founder of Daily Candy, Dany Levy was Tradesy’s first investor, and over the years, she has become an integral mentor for Tracy. Another important guide was the man who handled Tradesy’s first investment round, Jim Andelman, who is involved with Rincon Venture Partners.

What started as a small project in 2012, has grown into a multi-million-dollar business headquartered in Santa Monica. The company raised over $75 million through funding, with Richard Branson being a major investor. They recently acquired Fitz, which helps with closet organizing and has launched the service in New York. Tracy plans on expanding the model to other states and even wants to try her hand at men’s and children’s clothing soon enough. Furthermore, they are expanding their listing, in an effort to make the experience more customer-friendly. With global sales amounting to over $1 billion, it is quite safe to say that Tradesy is here to stay for some time now, thanks to the grit, hard work and commitment of its leading lady.

Bol.com

Daniel Ropers’s Entrepreneurial Journey Takes A Pause After Springer Nature

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Daniel Ropers says it becomes a great commitment towards professional work especially when it comes to education. The former CEO of Springer Nature captured the attention of one and all when he decided to step down. Daniel Ropers is very famous in the business world especially as the former CEO and co-founder of Bol.com other than Springer Nature. He stepped down from his position at Springer Nature in September 2019. We come across a lot of great personalities in our daily lives. And, in the business world, it has become quite common to spot business tycoons rising from nothing. Daniel Ropers, the former CEO of Springer Nature, has created a very significant position for him in the business world. He has recently left the company and his resignation took place very smoothly. So, let’s have a look into his entrepreneurial journey.

Education of Daniel Ropers

Daniel went to ESSEC Business School in 1995 to study Global Economics and Business Studies. He also completed his master’s in Business Economics and graduated in 1997. He always a niche for business development and thus established his career by serving infamous companies around the world.

Professional World

Daniel started his career with McKinsey & Company. In 1997, he joined the company as a Management Consultant and continued for a couple of years. In 2000, Daniel after co-founding Bol.com joined the same as the CEO of the company. He worked at the company for seventeen years. In 2010, he became a Supervisory Board Member of the Telegraaf Media Groep.

After leaving Bol.com, he joined Springer Nature which he left after two years. Daniel witnessed the growth of Bol.com from the beginning as it was founded in 1999. While he served at Bol.com, it emerged out as one of the most popular retailers in the Netherlands and Belgium.

Daniel’s Leadership in Bol.com

The newly built company of 1999 excelled under the leadership of Daniel Ropers. Daniel showed great interest in companies related to academics. Bol.com started its business as a company that sells books online and Springer also encompasses academic publishing.

When Bol.com was established in 1999 it only had a handful of customers which after three years turned to millions. Once landing bigger customers, the company decided to expand its business and started selling electronics as well. So, in 2004, the company expanded its product range and witnessed more than 5 million orders in total.

The company didn’t entertain a huge number of employees. Bol.com comprised of fifty team members in 2006. This year, the annual revenue of the company summed up to €100 million. In 2008, the company launched its first personalized newsletter. Bol.com expanded its business to Belgium, thus collaborating with the local retailers and expanding their products.

Once Bol.com started going international, they needed more employees for the abroad offices. In 2014, the companies employees increased by twenty times as it was ten years ago. Eventually, the company also introduced same-day delivery. This was a good strategy for a company like Bol.com as it also started selling products needed in everyday life. Under the leadership of Daniel, the company went international, expanded its products, improved its delivery timings, etc.

Springer Nature

Springer Nature is a company or rather academic publishing exclusively for journals, academic researches, scholarships, etc. Daniel joined the company in 2017, two years after its founding. Springer Nature was formed by merging more than a couple of companies. It includes Nature Publishing Group, Palgrave Macmillan Education, Springer Science, and Business Media. The merging was finally completed in May 2015 and the maximum shareholder was Holtzbrinck (Macmillan Education).

Daniel was already a business mastermind when he joined Springer Nature. So, it was expected of the company to grow bigger under his supervision. Under Daniel’s rule, the company developed excellent group strategies and planning for the future.

Daniel said that education is the foundation of every step we take today. We might have become huge business tycoons, but without proper education, it wouldn’t have been possible. Within two years, Daniel was greatly attached to the company and more than that with the purpose served. He said it is hard to leave the company. But, at the same time, he needed a break from twenty-five years of this life.