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VCs Joy Marcus, Charlie O’Donnell And David Tisch Judging Women 2.0 PITCH NYC Startup Competition (November 14)

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Joy Marcus of DFJ Gotham, Charlie O'Donnell of Brooklyn Bridge Ventures and David Tisch from BoxGroup are judging Women 2.0 PITCH NYC Startup Competition on November 14, 2012. Get your ticket now! By Angie Chang (Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Women 2.0)

Vying for top prize, PITCH NYC 2012 Startup Competition finalists will be competing for $25,000 in cash, a prized investor meeting with Marc Andreessen and a host of startup-friendly services.

Today we are announcing the first three judges joining us for PITCH Startup Competition (Nov. 14 in NYV) - Charlie O'Donnell (Partner, Brooklyn Bridge Ventures), David Tisch (Managing Partner, BoxGroup) and Joy Marcus (Venture Partner, DFJ Gotham).

Here's some background on the investors who will be joining us on November 14 in New York:

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Financing Strategies For Women-Owned Businesses (Infographic: A Rising Tide)

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According to the Kauffman Foundation infographic, 88% of women-owned businesses in the U.S. in 2007 were sole proprietorships, and women-owned businesses accounted for 6.4% of total employment. By Angie Chang (Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Women 2.0)

Women-owned businesses play an increasingly important role in revenue and job creation. The U.S. Census Bureau reports 7.8 million women-owned businesses in the United States in 2007, generating revenue of $1.2 trillion and employing 7.6 million people.

The Kauffman Foundation released a book called A Rising Tide with financial strategies that have helped women entrepreneurs.

The book takes a lifecycle approach when discussing issues and strategies for women-owned businesses, from early-stage and home-based firms to high-growth and high-tech startups.

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Lean Startup Conference: Seeking Speakers

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We’re seeking people who can deliver great talks, whether they’ve ever spoken at a conference before. By Eric Ries & Sarah Milstein (Co-Hosts, The Lean Startup Conference)

Last week, we announced the date and venue for The Lean Startup Conference on December 3-4, 2012 in San Francisco.

Now we’re starting to reach out to speakers. We’re aiming for a mix of people: those well known for their work on lean startups and those who aren’t yet prominent but are applying Lean Startup techniques and have valuable lessons to share. And, although this should probably go without saying, we’ll say it anyway: we’re seeking people who can deliver great talks, whether they’ve ever spoken at a conference before.

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Ladies, Let’s Contribute To Wikipedia!

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There should be a deep cultural change in the tech field to value women’s contributions and make their contributions more visible to the outer world. By Netha Hussain (Volunteer, Wikimedia)

There is nothing else that changed my life like Wikipedia. It is not just that I "edit" Wikipedia, but I also "celebrate" it. Editing Wikipedia is a rewarding experience as it helps me gain a new perspective of things. It is also exciting to be able to share the bit of knowledge I know with the millions of knowledge seekers from around the world.

Women and Wikipedia

Like most other tech-related organizations, Wikipedia too cannot boast of high female participation. A recent research points out that only 9% of the editors of English Wikipedia are women.

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Why Entrepreneurs Need Angels – And How Angels Are Improving

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Many people assume that venture capitalists provide startup funding. But that hasn't been the case in the last decade - VCs usually step in with growth funding, after a new firm has proven itself to some degree... By Angie Chang (Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Women 2.0)

Here is an interview with Marianne Hudson, executive director of the Angel Resource Institute about the importance of angel investors to early-stage entrepreneurs:

Angel investors, or simply "angels," are high-net-worth individuals who provide money for startup firms with growth potential. Often former entrepreneurs themselves, angels can bring value to new firms through mentoring and industry connections as well.

Angel investing was long done in an informal, isolated fashion but is now becoming more systematic and organized

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How To Make Tiny Changes For Greater Career Success

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What small adjustment or change could you or do you want to make in your personal in professional life? By Rania Anderson (Co-Founder, Women's Capital Connection)

The idiom “Put your best foot forward” generally refers to making a great impression. But, watching Aries Merritt — the 2012 U.S. Olympic gold medalist in the 110 meter hurdles — made me think of different use for the phrase.

In an interview with NBC, Aries credited his arrival to the top of his game to a small change in the way he starts a race. Rather than starting his race with his right foot, he now starts with his left foot. This tiny adjustment, while not noticeable to most people, changed his stride, allowed him to “run to the best of his ability”

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3 Ways To Turn Your Competitors Into Assets

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Women 2.0 readers save $150 on Smarter Branding For Startups - an online class for creating a powerful brand for your startup - without breaking the bank. By Brenda Bence (Instructor, Udemy)

Business owners often say to me, “Brenda, there’s no way our competitors are brand-building assets. They’re more like liabilities!” Well, I’m here to tell you: Nothing could be further from the truth.

Your competition can help you build your brand more than you ever imagined. You can – in fact, you must – leverage your competition if you want to create and grow a strong brand presence. If that seems counter-intuitive, let me show you why and how.

First, you need to know which other brands really are your main competitors.

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Learning To Be A CEO (Create Your Own Network)

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As a startup CEO, you gain an independent and important perspective on many of the key activities you do yourself by serving on another board. By Laura Yecies (CEO, SugarSync)

There have been a couple of good posts recently about startup CEO’s serving on the boards of other startups. Brad Feld wrote one and Mark Suster continued the thought here.

The logic is that you gain an independent and important perspective on many of the key activities you do yourself by serving on another board. In particular, Brad lists these advantages:

  • “You’ll extend your network.
  • You’ll view a company from a different vantage point.... Read More...
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How To Launch A World-Changing Idea In 5 Minutes

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The simple act of writing, sharing and talking about your idea is the magic of the launch. This may seem trivial or “too easy” but until you’ve done these steps you won’t know what you’ve accomplished. By Sumaya Kazi (Founder & CEO, Sumazi)

I’ve been fortunate to have founded two companies. My first, a media publishing company dedicated to young professionals, won me the recognition by BusinessWeek Magazine as one of “America’s Best Young Entrepreneurs.” My second and current startup, Sumazi, was recognized by the Omidyar Network as the “Startup Most Likely to Change the World,” among other accolades.

Both ideas were launched in fewer than five minutes.

To be clear, there’s a very big difference between launching an idea and launching a startup. But I find the first five minutes

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Sparking American Enterprise In Global Entrepreneurs (Kauffman Foundation’s Global Scholars Program)

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How do entrepreneurs come to view the world as small, and the potential for their ideas very large? By Wendy Torrance (Director of Global Scholars Program, Kauffman Foundation)

When the Kauffman Foundation launched the Global Scholars Program in 2006, we envisioned a unique and world-leading opportunity that would teach and excite aspiring technology entrepreneurs. We planned to immerse them in entrepreneurial culture in the United States with a view to inspiring, building skills and knowledge, and turning their expertise in the direction of entrepreneurship and the creation of innovative businesses.

Guided by Benjamin Franklin's lessons from centuries ago about the importance of the transnational exchange of ideas

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Don’t Let Your Crowdfunding Campaign Fail Before Launching

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Historical data has shown in order for your project to be a success you must raise at least 30% from your own personal network — that takes time and preparation. By Ruth Hedges (Founder & CEO, CrowdfundingRoadMap & FundingRoadMap)

The passage of the JOBS Act and the legalization of debt and equity based crowdfunding is a very exciting proposition. The community may open their arms and wallets, giving your business the funds you need to thrive and investors a chance to profit.

Unfortunately, what many crowdfunding companies don’t realize is that debt and equity-based crowdfunding is a good deal more complicated then donation-based campaigns. It is not as simple as setting up a deal room on Kickstarter and emailing your network.

There is preparation that needs to be started now

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