IMAGINE a large group of users who write stories together one phrase at a time. That is actually the simple and yet brilliant idea from a startup simply called Octales.
Unanimously, the panel of experts said Octales is a “refreshing” idea after an afternoon of elevator pitches.
All in all, 15 startups presented their business ideas.
By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net
“THE LEVEL of carbon dioxide is high in this room,” Federico Gonzalez quipped, as he reminded the remaining startups to think about catching the panel’s attention quickly.
“Our attention span is getting shorter,” Gonzalez added, which made people laugh.
The panel of experts said that one of the important things to consider in doing “elevator pitches” is to convince investors in the first 30 seconds.
Eric Manlunas, partner at Global Gateway Venture Capital, suggested to a startup that they should work on their their PowerPoint
presentations, starting with the fonts they use.
“You lost me at the first few slides,” he told one startup.
Serious Gamers, a startup headed by Norman Goss, presented a business simulation game aimed at corporate clients who wish to train their sales managers in negotiations.
Goss is incidentally the father of Ranulf Goss, a local game developer.
Martin Lichauco, managing director of AO Capital, however, explained that the panel is meant to help startups “tweak their ideas.”
Outstanding Informatics, founded by doctors of the University of the Philippine-Manila, pitched the award-winning Community Health
Information Tracking System, which is now being deployed in local health centers in the country.
By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net
ON THE ONE HAND, the entrepreneurs here included “bored engineers” who wanted to have some fun and money, and overachieving students who hope to create a Facebook-like service that would help match students with their college or course using the idea of crowd-sourcing.
On the other hand, you also have more mature firms like Ascendant Technologies, which has been in stealth mode for the past two years and is now ready to “go to the next level” with the patient information system it developed.
So far, the ideas presented during the second half of the elevator pitches involved business ideas related to e-learning, e-health, and
e-government.
By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net
IT was like a press conference where each startup had to undergo grilling from a panel of experts.
Startups were given five minutes to talk, and more grilling followed.
One of the business ideas that caught the attention of the panel was a simple student information system developed by Integritas Data Management Solutions, which has already developed a product deployed in some local schools.
Following a short break, the panel reiterated that startups have to distinguish between the market in general and the “addressable
market,” which means the target market of a service or a product.
Morph Labs executive chairman Winston Damarillo said startups can opt to run deeper on a vertical market and dominate it.
Business ideas presented here included an e-learning solution that hopes to be an alternative to existing e-learning platforms. One group presented eDispose, which envisions a portal for selling the unused assets of local government units.
“We’re looking at recurring revenue base and [ideas that] can scale. I don’t mind me-too ideas,” one of the experts on the panel stressed.
By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net
SEVENTEEN startup firms have attended Day 2 of Morph Code, a bootcamp hosted by Morph Labs, Ayala Foundation, and the Philippine Emerging Startups Open Inc.
Each company will be given five minutes to present their idea to a panel.
“It’s going to be fast and furios,” said George Telenko, who is moderating today’s event.
The panel is composed of Winston Damarilo, executive chairman of Morph Labs; Martin Lichauco, managing director of AO Capital; Bill Luz, executive vice president of Ayala Foundation; Federico Gonzalez, president and CEO of PESO; and Eric Manlunas.
Damarillo also announced that Morph Labs is the first software company in the country to go public.
Xlang, a startup that hopes to help people learn a foreign language, started the ball rolling with its presentation.
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.
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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.
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.
