Opp Biz Dev

Feeding The World and Healing Earth At The Same Time

Is it possible to farm land, generate tremendous output in terms of food for our species and heal the Earth at the same time?

According to this talk on TED (a video site worth visiting if you never have), the answer is a resounding "YES!".  Farmers are going "beyond organic" and doing just that right now.

Watch this!

PS: He uses a couple of words which might be new to you.  If so, I recomend either Googling them (type in "define: [word]" in Google, or using www.onelook.com so you get the full benefit of this video.  It's worth it!

Virtual Asistants--Some Feedback

Been meaning to do a post on this virtual assistant phenomenon lately.  If you don't know what I mean, there are firms offshore (and individuals in the States) now that will let you have an assistant for 20 or 40 hours a week, let's say, at a very affordable rate.  They are committed to your business for the contracted period.

Typically these are MBA-quality people in the case of those in India.  They are adept at research, digesting information, preparing it for presentation (powerpoints, etc.) and that sort of work which would not require their physical presence.  If you consider it for a moment, this could be an awful lot of things which traditionally can get in the typical executives hair and distract them from income-producing activities, such as:

• Travel arrangements
• Copywriting
• Various creative services
• Legal work
• Administrative duties of almost any shape and size
• etc.

This is a growing profession and according to Wikipedia, has between 5,000-8,000 members (VAs) in the States.

A business partner and friend recently used an offshore VA for a month.  I was dying to know how it went since I had just read a book about VAs and it seemed very innovative as a way to get more done without having to take on a lot of salary.  Greg, my friend, said you can get a VA overseas for about $1,000 for 40 hours of work, if I'm not mistaken.

We caught up today and had a quick Skype chat where I asked him how it went. Here's what he had to say...

Crowd Clout

There is a new trend afoot which is called Crowd Clout.  It's using the web to expose the intentions of individuals (usually consumers/purchasers/investors) and then aggregating like-minded ones to accomplish a specific objective (bulk purchase, social change, launch a band, etc.).  Here's a blurb from Trendwatching.com giving an example of this movement.  The whole article is worth reading, though. 

Link: CROWD CLOUT | Groups of consumers exercising their collective (purchasing) power.

SellaBand has created a platform that enables fans to sponsor bands and get a piece of the action in return. This is how it works: fans, dubbed 'Believers', find an artist they like on SellaBand.com. For USD 10, they can buy a share, or 'Part'. Once the band has sold 5,000 parts, SellaBand arranges a professional recording, including top studios, A&R managers and producers. Believers receive a limited edition CD of the recording. The interesting twist is that the songs are then made available as free downloads. Income comes from advertising revenue, which is split three ways: artist, believer and SellaBand. Since both believers and artists benefit from getting 5,000 parts sold, both are likely to actively promote the band (and SellaBand) everywhere musicians and music fans are active: on their blogs, on their MySpace pages, in online communities, to their friends, etc. Once the recording has taken place, the same goes for SellaBand's download portal: artists and believers profit from ad revenues created by driving traffic to their download page. So far, bands Nemesea, Cubworld and Second Person have reached the USD 50,000 target and have started recording, while a further 20 artists have racked more than USD 5,000.

Opp: Home Health

Parks Associates produced a white paper "primer" which caught my eye today.  It suggests that there is an opportunity presenting itself as a result of the innovations in medical and other technologies in the area of home healthcare.  It's an interesting look.  I'm sure they won't mind if I offer you just the tip of the iceberg here and then suggest you get the rest on their website (scroll down to "Digital Home Health--A Primer).

Home healthcare enters a new stage in the digital age. Previous care delivery models included paid nurse visits, traditional phone-based telemedicine applications, and assisted living/nursing homecare, each with its own problems. Traditional telemedicine has been marketed as a substitute for the other two models but with mixed results. The models using home visits by registered nurses and nursing homecare have been challenged by factors such as a nationwide shortage of experienced nurses and varying and uncertain reimbursement policies in both private health plans and public sources.

But technological advances are making over the home healthcare industry.

Ecolonomics

The topic "green", meaning the use of enviromentally-friendly products in the home or business, is gaining more and more attention these days.  And it's about time, too.  If we're lucky, we might yet reverse Earth's ecological tailspin, set into motion by our collective disregard for what is right not just convenient for ourselves this very instant.   

The good news in all of this may be there is probably tremendous opportunity in the green movement.   

Opportunity Fodder

There is a list of opportunities which I track on this blog and it just occurred to me I don't think I have made mention of it other than as a link on the right margin of the site.  So here it be. 

Hottest Electric Car Ever

                 

Autoblog Green attended yesterday's Tesla Event, unveiling the hottest new electric car on the market. Check out this exclusive video of the event.

There's A New Lawyer In Town

This young attorney is disrupting the world of legal advice and its methods of billing.  If what he proposes is actually true, we should see better legal advice at a cheaper rate over the coming years.  And maybe even less disgruntled lawyers in as an added bonus. 

Link: Inside the Firm of the Future.

What most people don't realize is that the modern complaints about corporate law practice can actually be attributed to the billable hour model. In this post, I will specifically address how the billable hour model causes low professional satisfaction, low morale, minimizes communication and mentoring, and produces high rates of attrition in firms. ...

Wired 14.08: The Laptop Crusade

My first introduction to Nicholas Negroponte was when a friend had me read Being Digital back in 1995 or so.  It was was a prescient work and even though I was  at the time very unfamiliar with the Internet (since it barely existed publicly),  I practically had an out-of-body experience reading the book. 

Looks like Mr. Negroponte is still flying at 50,000 feet while keeping his eyes to the ground. 

Link: Wired 14.08: The Laptop Crusade.

"After Negroponte announced the plan at the World Economic Forum in January 2005, the critics descended: Most scientists said a $100 laptop was unbuildable, many development experts said it was out of touch with the needs of poor communities, and a good number of educators wondered about giving computers to kids who go without modern textbooks. Steve Jobs dismissed the idea as 'a science project.' Intel’s chair, Craig Barrett, called it 'a gadget.' Bill Gates mocked the idea of its battery-charging crank. Behar [the designer] saw their point. 'I grew up as a designer in Silicon Valley,' the Swiss-born Behar says, 'but I’m not one who sees computing as the remedy for everything.'

"There was something about the project that appealed to him, though, something that almost sounds like nostalgia. “Computers were supposed to be a democratizing tool. You used to see that boundless optimism from Silicon Valley hardware companies. I’m not sure it’s still there,” he says. “One Laptop per Child is the first thing I’ve seen in many years that is in line with the original goal of the PC.”

Blogger's Quest Ends With Keys to House

This is a story about resourcefulness, seizing opportunity and, above all, giving--all  bundled up in a happy little wrapper of fun.  Good stuff!

Link: Blogger's Quest Ends With Keys to House.

Taking a paper clip and turning it into a house sounds like a cheesy magic trick or a phony instance of resourcefulness on the 1980s TV show ''MacGyver.''

Kyle MacDonald, however, has pulled it off. ...