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    The web home of Scott Burkett: Serial-entrepreneur, tech-geek, dad.

    Blogging, opining, ruminating, and pontificating on entrepreneurship, venture capital, process improvement, technology, online communities, business networking, IT Management, online social networking, and other things that melt in the warm Atlanta sun.

    "Beneath the noble bird, between the proudest words, behind the beauty, cracks appear ..."


    Category: (e-)Business

    Web 2.0 for The Uninitiated (or Ignorant)

    19 March, 2007 (08:27) | (e-)Business, Technology | By: Scott Burkett

    The term “Web 2.0″ is (and has been for a while) one of the most over-used and misunderstood phrases in business. I always get a chuckle when someone says they are “all about web 2.0″, when in actuality, they have no clue what it even means. They often use it to represent the “generic comeback” of the tech startup. To some people, any company started after the bubble is a “web 2.0″ company. Funny.

    For those who really still don’t get the movement, you owe it to yourself to watch this video. It is a bit long, but be patient – the payoff is worth it. This is done in the style of Lessig and Dick Hardt. Click the video clip below to play it.

    Thanks to Michael Wesch, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State University for putting this gem together.

    Cheers.

    Time for a New “Black Friday” Yardstick?

    25 November, 2006 (23:22) | (e-)Business | By: Scott Burkett

    profit_chart.gifAccording to the latest news reports, consumer spending on “Black Friday” was up 5% from 2005. The only exception being Walmart, which didn’t have much in the way of positive news. Same-store sales in November were far below their already soft forecasts. Then of course, there was the debacle with Walmart.com’s web site practically being inaccessible for most of the day (I took some personal interest in this story, as the President of Walmart.com is a family friend – but I digress.) The point of this post is that I think it is time for a new retail yardstick during the holidays.

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    Five Reasons Why Georgia is Ripe for a Gaming Explosion

    24 November, 2006 (17:43) | (e-)Business, Atlanta Business Scene | By: Scott Burkett

    top_mascots.gifWhat you don’t know about the video game industry just might surprise you. Generating revenues in excess of $10B in 2005, it has well eclipsed the $9B Hollywood film industry. What if I told you that the conditions were ripe for an explosion in this sector in Georgia?

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    Scattered, Smothered, and Covered

    19 June, 2006 (01:14) | (e-)Business | By: Scott Burkett

    wafflehouse.pngIf you are from the south, you more than likely not only instantly recognize the unofficial Waffle House mantra of “Scattered, Smothered, and Covered”, but you probably also know what it means. Today’s entrepreneurial lesson is brought to you (unofficially, of course) by Waffle House. In today’s lesson, we will learn how not to bring a brick and mortar business along the chain of commerce progression. As an added bonus, we’ll discover nifty ways to piss your customers off!

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    Quasi-Death of a Web 2.0 Play

    11 June, 2006 (15:18) | (e-)Business, Entrepreneurship | By: Scott Burkett

    fruitcast.jpgAs the world moves merrily along towards roughly Web 2.26beta (by my calculations), we are seeing the beginning (I think) of the thinning of the ranks with existing Web 2.0 plays. I received an email the other day from the folks at Fruitcast. Fruitcast is/was a play that catered to providing integrated audio ads for podcasters. In the email, they outlined the reasons why the service was being shut down, albeit allegedly temporarily.

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    Offshoring for Startups

    22 May, 2006 (00:35) | (e-)Business | By: Scott Burkett

    offshoring.jpgIt was bound to happen sooner or later. It was only a matter of time before the subject of offshoring came up here at The Pothole. In today’s ramblings, I’d like to share my thoughts on offshoring from the startup or small business perspective. Do real savings exist, and is it worth it?

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    Community Monetization: Name Your Own Subscription

    8 May, 2006 (06:00) | (e-)Business, Online Communities | By: Scott Burkett

    pricing.jpgOne of the biggest challenges in operating a community-based web site also happens to be one of the age-old mysteries of the Internet: how can you monetize the site? You’ve got great content, and a growing base of members, but where is the cash? In this article, I’ll describe a rather unique method I patterned loosely after Priceline’s “name your own price” model.

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