Archive for the 'Ideas' Category
Someone Invent This Already: A Telephone DNS
I don’t want to call your phone. I want to call you. Why do I have to look in my phone book (whether in paper, on my phone or computer) to find your number? Why do I have to guess whether you’re at home, at work, or in the car? Why do I have to [...]
Five North Dakota Sisters Make Reality TV Pitch
Boomtown Girls from Lucky Dog Filmworks on Vimeo. Grand Forks Herald: Five sisters from a North Dakota boomtown are looking to make a bang on reality TV. A trailer for “Boomtown Girls,” featuring five Williston sisters who work alongside men in the Oil Patch, recently became an Internet sensation locally. But few details are known [...]
Grocery Shopping Delivery Services
Knoxville News Sentinel: Chasity Shelby and her husband, Carden, were looking to start a home-based business. A former accountant at the University of Tennessee School of Veterinary Medicine, she wanted to be able to work for herself. In September, after about a year of planning and research, the Shelby family launched Mobile Market Knoxville, a [...]
Birchbox: The Netflix of Cosmetics
Mashable: While Harvard Business School grads Katia Beauchamp and Hayley Barna were looking for a business idea, they noticed that the beauty product industry was seriously behind the times on the online retail side. They discovered that some of the biggest pain points for customers included the overwhelming selection of products and the inability to [...]
Starbucks Augmented Reality Cup
Econsultancy: Yesterday Starbucks launched their new Valentine’s augmented reality (AR) cups. It’s quite a clever way to get customers to not only drink their morning coffee but to buy one for a loved one. All you need to do is download the app from Starbucks and you can “experience your valentine” as the heart on [...]
The Future is 3D Printed Manufacturing
Forbes: Now the economics of large-scale production runs carried out overseas are being disrupted by the possibility of making, selling and delivering millions of manufactured items one unit at a time, right next to the customer. The question most people ask when thinking about the possibilities of 3D printing is: which of our existing products [...]
Airline Baggage Fees Create New Businesses
Prepping for Doomsday: Turning a Profit
ABC News: The never-ending hysteria over a Doomsday cometh has sparked a growing movement of people called “preppers,” who prepare for the end of the world as we know it — and in some cases, make a profit. Tim Ralston, a married father of two from Arizona, is one such “prepper.” “There’s a lot of [...]
The Grilled Cheese Truck is a Los Angeles, California based food truck that sells grilled cheese. Inspiration happens when you least expect it! What started as a fun, weekend activity to enter our Cheesy Mac and Rib Melt into LA’s 7th Annual Grilled Cheese Invitational quickly became the idea behind The Grilled Cheese Truck. After [...]
When you think of photo booths, you think of young lovers kissing under the harsh flash, or passport photos, or kids making silly faces, but what you don’t think is luxury. Harcourt, is a famous Parisian photographic studio. At Cannes, last year, they introduced their first luxury photo booth. For 10 euros the machine creates [...]
Niche Website? Just Copy the Old Facebook
Do you have an idea for a website like Facebook, but targeting a specific group of people? Maybe members of a professional group, or hobbyists like beekeepers, or cowboy action shooters. Don’t reinvent the wheel, copy Facebook. Not the Facebook of 2012, of course, but the Facebook that started it all, the Facebook of yesteryear. [...]
OatShakes: Finnish Milk Made From Oats
Mika Manninen and Helena Lumme are immigrants to the United States from Finland. Because you always crave the food of your youth, after moving to the US, Lumme would continue to bring back suitcases full of food whenever she had an opportunity to returned to Finland for her work as a grocery consultant. One of [...]
Baristas: The “Hooters” of Coffee
Business Insider: Baristas Coffee, a sort of Hooters on caffeine, caters to those who like their coffee hot and their servers hotter — you know, customers who enjoy cheesecake with their java. Let’s not be coy about it, though, because the attention-seeking Seattle franchise certainly isn’t. The company freely admits that it distinguishes itself from [...]
Video: Augmented Reality Business Card
Maybe there is a future for the lowly business card after all. PSFK: Advertising agency JWT London has used image-recognition app Blippar to create a unique and innovative new business card that lets people view their showreel and receive directions to their office. Video below.
Rumor: Amazon.com Retail Stores Coming?
I’ve said before that this rumor from Jason Calacanis seems like the direction retail is heading: The store could just be a showroom with display units of appliances and “geniuses” running around showing you the top 25 vacuums in action. Or the top 10 juicers actually making juice. It could be Consumer Reports meets the [...]
Super Bowl Sunday: It’s About the Food
Super Bowl Sunday is now the nation’s second-biggest “food holiday,” trailing only Thanksgiving; and according to a press release put out by the National Restaurant Association, more than 48 million Americans will order takeout or delivery food from a restaurant during the game. Wow! The National Restaurant Association estimates that 48 million Americans will order [...]
Niche Restaurants: Mac & Cheese
Homeroom is a “macaroni and cheese restaurant” in Oakland, California. Homeroom specializes in macaroni and cheese made with artisanal cheeses from local cheesemakers, but we’re much more than a mac and cheese shop. We also carry nostalgic treats like homemade oreos and peanut butter pie, tasty veggie sides, homemade soups and a great selection of [...]
Small Biz Brings Angry Birds for Babies
CNN Money: A small Seattle-based company hit it big after snagging the first-ever license to make Angry Birds baby products. SwaddleDesigns, a company started by husband-and-wife team Jeff and Lynette Damir, sealed the deal with Angry Birds creator Rovio Entertainment last year. The company will be rolling out a line of baby clothes bearing the [...]
Self-Publishing Your Own Book is the New Business Card
Following up on my posts last week about business cards, according to James Altucher, if you self publish your own book, you’ll stand out against those with only business cards and you’ll make more money: If you’ve just given someone your business card then you failed. If you have a business card you might be [...]
Things You Learn Running a Bookstore
People are getting rid of bookshelves. Treat the money you budgeted for shelving as found money. Go to garage sales and cruise the curbs. While you’re drafting that business plan, cut your projected profits in half. People are getting rid of bookshelves. If someone comes in and asks where to find the historical fiction, they’re [...]
Should You Invest in a Sports Franchise?
With the Super Bowl right around the corner, it’s a good time to ask: What are the pros and cons of sports investing? Consider this investing proposition: You have a chance to invest in businesses that have been around since the 1920s and are growing in popularity. These companies have an intensely loyal consumer base; [...]
A Connecticut woman has started a mobile hospice service for pets the The Stamford Times reports: For pet owners, saying goodbye is one of the hardest things to do, but Stamford resident Mary Craig says her new mobile veterinary hospice service makes saying farewell a bit easier. “I have heard from many pet owners that [...]
Looking for Cheaper Medicine, He Found a Biz Idea
The Washington Post: They say there are markets for everything, but health care has historically been a tough one to navigate. Prices for services and drugs vary widely among providers, and it’s often impossible to know the final cost of a medication until the prescription has already been filled. Brad Bangerter, a health insurance administrator [...]
Video: This Is How They Serve Ice Cream In Dubai
Does anyone know what company this is? via Bits and Pieces.
The World: Advances in medical technology, combined with the fact that people are living longer, means that more and more of us pass away with some kind of surgical implant. Maybe it’s a steel pin here, or a titanium hip there. Have you ever wondered what happens to those metal implants after die? For almost [...]
Tater tots are a lunch or snack food made of deep-fried, grated potatoes. Now, a new food truck called Tot Boss promises to add them to to the roadside dining options in St. Paul, Minnesota. Tater tot enthusiast, Dan Docken (the boss), invites you to enjoy unique snacks and meals at a location near you [...]
This Hundehiet (“Dog Den” in Norwegian) sit unassumingly outside of a grocery store in Oslo, Norway. For just about $1.75, you can keep your dog safe and dry in a doggy-storage-locker while you shop. As I see it, the locker solves a number of problems that shoppers with pets-in-tow might have: Shoppers won’t be tempted [...]
Walmart’s Get on the Shelf Contestant Update: Lots of Videos!
Walmart’s Get on The Shelf contest is in full swing. The contest, if you don’t remember is a competition that anyone can enter for the chance to get their product sold on Walmart.com and Walmart stores. Any product in any category currently covered by Walmart is eligible ranging from housewares and electronics to toys and [...]
Bulk Dishwashing for Restaurants
Channel NewsAsia: Restaurants [in Singapore] may be doing brisk business, but that has created a headache for some bosses. That’s because they are finding it hard to hire people to clean their dishes! Well, one company has turned this into a business opportunity. Synnovate Solutions collects crates of dirty plates from restaurants across Singapore. The [...]
Professor Quits School, Starts an Education Company
The Chronicle of Higher Education: The Stanford University professor who taught an online artificial-intelligence course to more than 160,000 students has abandoned his teaching position to aim for an even bigger audience. Sebastian Thrun, a research professor of computer science at Stanford, revealed today that he had given up his teaching role at the institution [...]
Anachronistic Swiss Village for Alzheimer’s Patients
The Independent: Its detractors may end up dubbing it “Dementiaville”, but Switzerland is brushing aside a debate raging among geriatric-care experts with plans to build a mock-1950s village catering exclusively for elderly sufferers of Alzheimer’s and other debilitating mental illnesses. The newly approved 20 million EUR housing project is to be built next to the [...]
No More Resumes: Send Us a Link
WSJ: Union Square Ventures recently posted an opening for an investment analyst. Instead of asking for r’esum’es, the New York venture-capital firm-which has invested in Twitter, Foursquare, Zynga and other technology companies-asked applicants to send links representing their “Web presence,” such as a Twitter account or Tumblr blog. Applicants also had to submit short videos [...]
Low Cost Startup Biz Ideas: Image Consultant
Fox Business: If you want to start a business as an image consultant, you need to have an understanding of color basics, textiles and clothing silhouettes. Reed, who has a master’s degree in theater make-up and costume design, suggests taking courses in color theory and retail merchandising to sharpen your skills. She started out in [...]
Randwiches is a NYC based random sandwich delivery business. While ordinary sandwich shops takes very specific orders (you should see mine!), Randwiches only brings surprise sandwiches, handcrafted and full of unique flavors. Randwiches are $7 and deliveries are confined to areas served by the NYC subway system. Tips are not accepted, only social media referrals. [...]
How Does FreeConferenceCall.com Make Money?
FeeFighters.com took a look at how companies like FreeConferenceCall.com make money. Surprisingly, it’s not through up-selling to their premium, for-pay, product. It’s via an “outdated” telecommunication regulation from the telecommunications act of 1996, that’s still on the books, which requires small rural telephone companies to charge larger telephone companies a “termination fee” to access their [...]
Low Cost Startup Biz Ideas: Jewelry Designer
Fox Business: People like handmade, one-of-a-kind jewelry, and this hobby is a good choice for a home-based business. Settle on your signature style or specialty — whether you’ll create pieces with bead design or design molds for silver and goldsmithing or stainless-steel items. Then you need to name your business, create samples, produce high-quality photos [...]
Low Cost Startup Biz Ideas: Social Media Assistant
Fox Business: The social media world is growing, and most business owners don’t have time to keep up. You can create a business as a social media marketing assistant or strategist if you have strong writing skills and a working knowledge of the major social media networking sites. Copy editing skills also are in demand [...]
Low Cost Startup Biz Ideas: Personal Organizer
Fox Business: Clutter is stressful for everyone, and you can make a living helping people get their homes, offices and lives in order. Professional organizing is a perfect business for people with a knack for neatness and developing systems. You can charge hourly or set half-day and full-day flat rates for your time. Not all [...]
Low Cost Startup Biz Ideas: Personal Trainer
Fox Business: Many people’s New Year’s resolution is to lose weight, and many of these same individuals are looking for professional help to shed those unwanted pounds. If you are a fitness buff or avid runner, you may be able to make a living by teaching others what you’ve learned. You can be a general [...]
Low Cost Startup Biz Ideas: Mobile Notary Public
Fox Business: Despite technological advances, documents such as property deeds, wills and loan papers still require an official signature and stamp by a notary. Some banks and real estate agents have a notary license, but the current trend is using notaries who come to your home or business on call. Setting up this kind of [...]
Ars Technica: “Can you pick me up at my place in 15 minutes? Text me when you get here.” No, this isn’t a text message to a friend or a call to a car service—it’s a direct message sent through Twitter to a driver of a Chicago cab. Rashid Temuri, who goes by “Chicago Cabbie” [...]
Five Profitable Businesses You’ve Never Thought Of
The following is a guest post from Vit. How are you going about making money? What if you could make money with some of your craziest ideas? Here are five of my favorite off-the-wall businesses: Game Truck – In 2006, Scott Novis, fed up with the experience had at his son’s 4th birthday party in [...]
Low Cost Startup Biz Ideas: Baker
Looking for a business you can start for under $500? Here is one idea: become a baker. Cakes and cupcakes are the highlight of any party, and reality foodie shows such as Cupcake Wars have made baking a popular new business idea. Brooklyn blogger and cupcake expert Nichelle Stephens says you can start a cupcake [...]
$10 Mil Offered To Inventor Of Star Trek Technology
The Week: THE X PRIZE foundation, a non-profit foundation promoting technology, has offered a $10m prize to anyone who can make Star Trek’s medical “tricorder” diagnostic machine a reality. The Qualcomm Tricorder X Prize was announced in Las Vegas at the Consumer Electronics Show. The X Prize Foundation’s Chairman Peter Diamandis said: “I’m probably the [...]
The Fake Invention We Need: Space Scrubber
It may only exist in the minds of The Spoof writers, but space garbage does exist. What are your ideas for eliminating space waste? Although, I am sure it’s not going to be as simple as this spoof article makes it seem: Now Mr Shelf hopes to meet NASA scientists next week to demonstrate his [...]
A Problem, A Van and An Opportunity
Adam Humphreys wanted to visit China, but getting a visa was a buearacratic nightmare. All wasn’t lost though, because Humphreys found a business opportunity. NPR shares his story: It started simply enough. Adam found out he needed a visa to travel to China. He went online. Filled out a long, complicated form. And Adam showed [...]
Homeowners Can Rent Out Driveways
ABC News: Anthony Eskinazi, CEO and founder of ParkatmyHouse.com wants to bring convenience to drivers and dollars to driveway owners across America. More than 150,000 people in the U.K. have earned more than $5 million from the site, Eskinazi said. Its marketplace is supposed to allow anyone with an address or geographic point with a [...]
TicketBust.com: They Made a Business Out of Something Anyone Can Do for Free
Steve Miller saw a business opportunity when his brother received a speeding ticket. In California, there’s a process called “trial by written declaration” that makes it easier to get a speeding ticket dismissed or the charge reduced. Although the notice is on the back of every ticket, few people notice it, Miller said. And it [...]
Here’s an inspiring story from the National Post that is no longer available online: According to scrapbooking business maven Sue DiFranco, there are big bucks to be made assembling scrapbooks for busy, stupid rich people. Well, she doesn’t exactly put it that way, but on her Fun Facts Publishing Web site she explains that you [...]
How to Give Beer for Christmas: Rare Beer Club
Fast Company: Offering beer as a token of holiday goodwill can be tricky. It’s gauche to put a six-pack under the tree, and nothing says “I forgot” like a brown bag with a ribbon around its neck. The solution: the Rare Beer Club. Each month, members are mailed two, four, or six 750-milliliter bottles of [...]
