We plan to post video clips from the event soon. Here are some resources that entrepreneurs can benefit from.

• Pitching Hacks  - Venture Hacks (PDF)
• Book: Free Publicity – Jeff Crilley – Link
• Art of the Start (Presentation) – Guy Kawasaki – PDF
• Outline of the talk from JR Atkins on Selling for Non-Sellers

1. Sales 1.0 vs. Sales 2.0
2. Who are you selling too?
3. What are the needs of your prospect?
4. Pull vs. Push
5. The power of questions.
6. What is your value proposition?
7. Write and speak in the word of your prospect.
8. How do you like to buy?
9. KISS with details available
10. Use visual images
11. Use a simple leave behind.
12. How do you define selling?
13. What are the feelings associated with your product or service?
14. Be aware of feelings vs. figures
15. Be aware of Communication styles

Here’s the program summary.

As an entrepreneur you have often heard about the elevator pitch. There is more to pitching than 30 second pitches. It is critical for entrepreneurs to sell their ideas and products to customers and investors. Can you effectively communicate the value of your products and ideas? Do you know what does it take to sell to a CEO? What are the things that investors want to hear? Our panel of experts will share what works and what does not work.

Learn the rules for Effective Pitching with:
* Jeff Crilley, an Emmy award winning communication expert
* Laurence Briggs, President of InvestIn Forum, Private Investor Network
* JR Atkins, Sales specialist and social media speaker

Date: Jan 28, 5.30pm.
Location: Company|Dallas, Floor 2, 1701 N Collins Blvd, Richardson TX 75080.

About Jeff Crilley:
Jeff Crilley retired from TV news after 25 years in the business to start the country’s first “all journalist” PR firm. During his career he made hundreds of national news appearances including CNN, CNN Headline News, FOX News, The Discovery Channel, Good Morning America and The CBS Early Show.

He has been recognized by his peers with dozens of national and regional awards including the Emmy, the National Headliners Award,the Edward R. Murrow Award, the Thurgood Marshall Award and in 2004 was named by the Texas Associated Press, “The Best TV Reporter in the state.”

About Laurence Briggs:
Laurence is President of The InvestIN Private Investor Network. The InvestIN Private Investor Network is a company that:
a. brings the best deals to the investor network members ( smart money) around the world, and to its syndicate partners
b. advises early stage growth companies.

About JR Atkins
J.R. Atkins is a Social Media Speaker, Strategist and Sales 2.0 Consultant. As a speaker, J.R. is noted for “taking the mystery out of Social Media” and speaking in terms that “even a CEO can understand.” As a Sales 2.0 consultant, J.R. works with business leaders to understand the shift in selling that is occurring as more consumers and business turn to the internet for information before engaging in the sales process. How has selling changed?

J.R. began speaking publicly in 1994 and on social media in March of 2009. He holds an MBA from The University of Phoenix, Dallas Campus and a BBA from Texas A&M University. J.R. is an ASA certified sailing instructor and avid reader, as well as a musician.

Dallas Startup Weekend

Dates: Friday Nov 20- Sunday Nov 22, 2009.
Location: Infomart, 1950 Stemmon Freeway, Dallas 75207

As contributor to the Global Entrepreneurship Week, MIT Enterprise Forum is proud to support the first Startup Weekend in Dallas, scheduled for Nov 20-22. If you ever wondered about the startup scene in DFW or wanted to make connections with the entrepreneurs, this is the event for you.

Check out the video from Startup Weekend Dallas

Other November Events:

MIT Enterprise Forum DFW is supporting UTA, the local partner with Kauffman Foundation to participate in the week of “Unleashing Ideas” event.Nov 17 – Free event on Branding for Entrepreneurs. See details in this brochure.

Nov 18 – The Texas governor’s office is sponsoring a free, one-day event on November 18, 2009 organized by the Small Business Development Center for Enterprise Excellence headquartered at UTA’s ARRI campus. Details are here.

Here’s the complete video – about 35 minutes.

Produced for MIT Enterprise Forum by DaveCurlee Media

RSVP: online by Saturday, August 9th. After that please contact us.

Cost: $20 includes sit-down dinner

Online registration is closed now – please contact organizers directly for registration.

Schedule:
Thursday August 13, 2009
6:00-6:30pm: Dinner & Networking
6:30-8:00pm: Program & discussion

Where:
The Carlisle Suite – University of Texas at Arlington
300 W 1st St., Arlington, TX 76010
Map: http://bit.ly/K3o69

Parking information is available here (lot 11 or lot 12). Please make sure that you don’t park in a reserved spot.

Contact:
Babar Bhatti
babar at alum.mit.edu

Karl Fultz
kfultz at uta.edu

Panelists:

Paul Dickerson, Partner, Haynes and Boone, LLP
Formally a senior official with DOE and a clean tech expert. Paul is a recognized leader and sought-after speaker on issues of clean tech and energy efficiency, launched Haynes and Boone’s Clean Tech practice group in 2008. Paul, a partner who offices in the firm’s Houston and D.C. offices, returned to the firm to launch the group, a new concentration for the firm that builds upon the firm’s broad experience in intellectual property, litigation, technology, financing and many other legal issues that companies in the nascent industry must face.

Paul served as Chief Operating Officer of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) from 2006 until his return to Haynes and Boone (where he worked as an associate from 2000 to 2005). He oversaw the EERE’s $1.8 billion budget and helped move alternative and renewable energy technologies from the “vision” stage to real-world development.

Ed Ireland, Executive Director, Barnett Shale Energy Education Council
Ed brings a combination of academics, industry and business experience. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Texas Tech University and was formerly a professor and head of the Department of Economics at Clemson University. His career includes 20 years in the oil and gas industry in Houston, Texas. Ed spends a majority of his time working with the community, from community leaders to neighborhood associations and schools.

Victor Liu, Vice President, Hunt Energy Enterprises, LLC
Prior to joining Hunt Power in 2006, Liu was active in high tech venture capital as a general partner with Vortex Partners and at Sevin Rosen Funds. He was active in internet infrastructure and wireless investment decisions that included Cyneta Networks, Navarro Networks, ipMobile, RealManage and GlobeRanger. Liu earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA from Southern Methodist University.

Moderator:
Dr. Richard E. Billo, UT Arlington, Professor-College of Engineering, Associate Dean of Engineering for Research-College of Engineering.
Dr. Billo is a known innovator in engineering education, receiving a commendation from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology for his leadership in curriculum development. At Oregon State, he developed a new bachelor’s degree program in manufacturing engineering, created undergraduate options in information systems and business engineering, and modernized the graduate curriculum to include information systems, nanotechnology, management systems and manufacturing systems.

Also at Oregon State, Dr. Billo directed a $20 million fund raising campaign for nanoscience and microtechnology programs and secured more than $16 million in new research grants and gifts. Research expenditures tripled during his four years of leadership of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

About The Event

In today’s challenging business environment, it is imperative that leaders find solutions that can help with both cost cutting and the innovation needed to drive their business forward. Many leaders are turning to the “cloud” for solutions.

The cloud offers opportunities to leverage new productivity-enhancing applications quickly, lower ownership costs, manage risk, and better allocate internal IT resources. Within the cloud, there are many options for businesses of all sizes. Network with fellow thought leaders and join a discussion about emerging cloud options and how your business can put the cloud to work.

• Gain insight into available solutions and put its power to work for you
• Discover ways to boost productivity and interaction for your team while lowering costs
• Learn how different cloud options work with your existing technology

Moderated by Jason Pontin, Editor and Publisher of MIT Technology Review, and featuring Sean Poulley, VP for Online Collaboration Services for Lotus IBM, and Leon Kappelman, Professor of Information Systems, University of North Texas.

Location

IBM Innovation Center
13800 Diplomat Drive, Dallas, TX

Time

5:30 pm to 9.00 pm
5.30-7.00pm Networking & Refreshments
7.00-8.00pm Presentation & QA session

Fee

$30

Forum Date

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Speaker

Arnold Barnett – Mr. Barnett’s research specialty is applied mathematical modeling with a focus on problems of health and safety. His early work on homicide was presented to President Gerald Ford at the White House, and his analysis of U.S. casualties in Vietnam was the subject of a column by William F. Buckley. He has received the President’s Award and the Expository Writing Award from INFORMS in 1996 and in 2001, and is a Fellow of INFORMS. Barnett has been called “the nation’s leading expert” on aviation safety, and in 2002 received the President’s Citation from the Flight Safety Foundation for “truly outstanding contributions on behalf of safety.” He has written op-ed pieces for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, and USA Today. He has been honored with MIT Sloan Teacher of the Year Award for 2008, the eleventh time, for outstanding teaching.

Location

The Carlisle Suite – University of Texas at Arlington (map)
300 W 1st St, Arlington, TX 76010

Time

6:30am to 9pm
6.30-7.30pm Dinner & Networking
7.30-9.00pm Presentation & QA session

Fee

$15 for MIT DFW Club member; $20 for non-member/MIT Enterprise Forum/guest

RSVP Required by Saturday April 18, 2009 (Early registration is encouraged as seating is limited)

To register for this event, click here or email Aamer Charania or Babar Bhatti

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Event Description

In the best of times, entrepreneurs generally had several options to fund and grow their ventures. But in the current economic environment – with the credit crunch, the withering of investment portfolios, and the deepening recession – many of the traditional options have vanished. Enterprising entrepreneurs are on a new quest to grow their revenues streams without borrowing money or selling equity in this tough economy. One solution is “bootstrapping.”

Come join the Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter of the MIT Enterprise Forum for a five hour event on “Bootstrapping: Doing It Yourself.” The focus will be on starting and growing your own personal business with little or no outside investment. This event will be packed with practical knowledge about bootstrapping in tough times. Topics such as:

How to finance your business when traditional startup money is simply not available
How to generate revenue and sell your products and services with minimal resources
What are the operational challenges, and how to address them? Legal, accounting, benefits.
Who you need to start or grow your business and the available resources you can tap into.

Join us to network with successful entrepreneurs and service providers in the DFW area and get tips on how to bootstrap your business.

Speakers

Alexander Muse is a Dallas based serial entrepreneur with more than a decade of startup experience. His ShopSavvy application for Google’s Android phone won the Google Challenge in 2008. Alexander is actively involved with startups in area and has created Springstage, a network of community catalysts to promote entrepreneurship. See Alexander’s boostrapping presentation on slideshare.net.

Darlene Ryan is the executive director of Tech Fort Worth, a business incubator which helps entrepreneurs commercialize innovative technologies that will impact the environment, empower the community and improve healthcare. Darlene successfully bootstrapped a pharmaceutical manufacturing company. Darlene was named 2003 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in Life Sciences for North Texas and a 2004 Leading Woman Entrepreneur of the World.

Dan Owen is a Dallas venture capitalist and entrepreneur with extensive experience building successful digital media and technology businesses. Dan is a General Partner at HO2 Partners, which he co-founded in 1998. Dan is a senior advisor to EmFinders, a cellular-based emergency location service company. He is on the advisory committee for the North Texas Regional Commission for Innovation and Commercialization and is a member of World President’s Organization.

John Willding is an attorney with Haynes and Boone. John has a good deal of experience working with early stage start-up companies. See his presentation on Top 10 Legal Mistakes of Early-Stage Companies (pdf).

Brad Taylor is the principal at Ausum, a technology consulting and investment company. Brad will talk about low cost business, government and technical resources to jumpstart your business. Brad will be joined by Christian Ross who is managing director of TxGeeks.com, a web design and marketing firm. Presentation (~12 MB pdf)

Maryann Nichols is a business development specialist with the Small Business Administration (SBA) of DFW. Maryann is also SCORE liaison representative and has been with the federal service for 29 years.

Location

4835 LBJ Freeway, Suite 1000 (BravoTech)

Time

10am – 3pm

Fee

$25