Photo by INQUIRER.net multimedia reporter Erika Tapalla.

By Erika Tapalla
INQUIRER.net

AS you can see from the link we have on the right sidebar of this INQUIRER.net blog, the official Morph Code website is at www.morphXcode.com, which will be updated within the week with today’s presentations.

Keep checking out that site, and e-mail accelerator@morphlabs.com if you have questions or concerns.

***

George Telenko, director for marketing for Morph Accelerator, gave more reminders on what to expect on Day 2.

He reminded the participants to just give an elevator pitch, meaning a presentation of about a minute, that will give an executive overview of their business. This will be followed by a 15-minute Q&A.

“Expect the unexpected. There will always be that one question to throw you off,” Telenko said.

He added that even if they are not presenting a business idea, people can still attend the event to watch the presentations.

FEDERICO GONZALEZ, president and CEO of Philippine Emerging Startups Open Inc., giving tips on how to deliver snappy elevator pitches.

Photo by INQUIRER.net multimedia reporter Erika Tapalla.

By Erika Tapalla
INQUIRER.net

ELEVATOR pitches, which originally referred to selling ideas within 60 seconds while riding in an elevator with a prospective investor or venture capitalist, have now become pitches you can deliver anywhere, whether on the street or at a cocktail party.

It must be presented in simple language, “like you’re talking to your mother,” Federico Gonzalez, president and CEO of  Philippine Emerging Startups Open Inc., said.

As the crowd laughed, he stressed the importance of chance and the opportunity of meeting anyone anywhere, which is why you have to be prepared at all times.

“Body language communicates more than 50 percent of the message you intend to give. Do more than give recitations,” Gonzalez said.

So, know your stuff.

By Erika Tapalla
INQUIRER.net

MORPH LABS CEO David Abramowski said software as a service (SaaS) is not so much about creating software from the ground up, but of “mashing up” existing Web-based services.

To better understand what “mashups” are, he cited the simple concept of file sharing for photographs. On a superficial level, it is just software that enables users based all over the globe to send, view, and get images from each other.

On a business level, however, he said one could go deeper into this software and look at it as a method for generating revenue.

After all, file sharing for photographs can also be a means for users to create products like books, mugs, and T-shirts. Name where you want your photo or your grandma’s to appear, and consider developing that software.

In the end, it’s all about mashing up the right functions to build your ideal software.

By Erika Tapalla
INQUIRER.net

MORPH LABS CEO David Abramowski’s talk gave us the lowdown on setting up a successful software as a service (SaaS) business.

He started by identifying the need to know your customer and your target market, otherwise you will be kaput.

Abramowski emphasized that it’s not just knowing the people involved, but also considering the bigger picture, which deals with regions, countries, and languages.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

By Erika Tapalla
INQUIRER.net

AFTER quipping that lunch may induce a “food coma,” Morph Labs CEO David Abramowski went ahead and talked about different strategies for growing software as a service (SaaS) businesses.

He said SaaS has four key aspects:

• They are Internet-based applications
• They enable anywhere, anytime access
• Users may rent instead of buying, so a great amount of capital is no longer a necessity
• They require patience for a long tail revenue.

As an example, he referred to a successful Australian SaaS company, Atlassian Software, which took its business slowly and generated revenue from $0 to $24 million.

Patience is key in developing SaaS, Abramowski emphasized.

“You can’t project revenue at the start of April and then expect this April the 30th,” he quipped.

By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net

DAVID ABRAMOWSKI, CEO of Morph Labs, explained that software as a service is about “stealing” business from the incumbents.

He said companies like Salesforce.com have captured the customer relations management market from giants like Siebel. Recently, more companies are even challenging Salesforce.com, such as SugarCRM.

Software as a service is also not about creating software from the ground up, he said. It could be a simple software application that mashes up existing Web-based services.