Blog about marketing, startups, online assets, and properties

Personal Branding DOs and Donts for Founders

8/11/2017

As a startup founder, I constantly ask myself, how can I create more valuable content to increase our exposure at Handshakin, without compromising the integrity of the content.

Do you ask yourself the same? Are ghost writers okay? Are you spending too much time reposting your blog to 3rd party websites? Is consistency or quality more important?

Here's my list of the Dos and Don'ts for personal branding for founders.

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Assets & Entrepreneurship: Online Assets (Part 3/3)

8/7/2017

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Today, I'm most excited to tell you about a couple different ways I'm making money online. In case you missed Assets & Entrepreneurship Part 1 (Automotive) and Part 2 (Real Estate), fear not, as these are by far the most exciting strategies with the most opportunity.

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Assets & Entrepreneurship: Real Estate (Part 2/3)

7/30/2017

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Last week, you may have seen my blog post detailing the various ways you can make money and build your net worth in the auto industry. You might have also noticed that, although it's the easiest to get into, I don't recommend it because A) they are depreciating assets, and B) they are small assets. You'd have to own a lot of cars to make enough for one persons salary from them.

Let's talk about Real Estate and how to leverage debt (mortgages) in order to make money off appreciation of assets that are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Not including monthly cash flow and rental income. When building assets, let's ditch the auto industry where any asset over $100,000 is going to cost you tens of thousands instead of make you tens of thousands.

Photo & Link to my most recent fix and flip

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Assets & Entrepreneurship: Automotive (Part 1/3)

7/24/2017

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I recently bought a 2008 BMW 335xi that is inspiring me to write this post.

I plan to use it as my daily driver and rent it out on Turo for a premium (if rented, I'll just drive my work truck).

It was a smoking deal, and has some serious appeal being black on black, all-wheel-drive, and 300 hp. Now if you're not a car person, I'm still writing this for all entrepreneurs out there.

All aspiring entrepreneurs should put a lot of thought into the assets and their net worth when considering launching a business.

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Domain Names & Startups: Where to start

7/16/2017

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It's been almost 6 months since I attended NamesCon, and I'm still on fire about domain names, small websites, and how to make money online. But it all starts with 'owning the land.'

If you think about the internet as real estate, it really becomes clear where the opportunities lie, and where you're able to make money.

Here's some important insights I've learned after being a domain name investor and online entrepreneur for 3+ years.

Oh, and the photo is of course a handshake with the Founder of NamesCon, Richard Lau. I'm already getting excited for January 2018 just uploading this picture.

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Actionable Personal Branding Tips from Billionaire Entrepreneur Kimbal Musk

7/9/2017

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I sat down with Kimbal Musk last year to talk about the enthusiasm that drives his personal and entrepreneurial success.

While his brother Elon is focused on space and energy, Kimbal is crusading against industrialized food and its negative impact on health and the environment, and social media has been invaluable for generating support for his efforts.

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How to use your blog and Instagram to Meet Influencers

7/3/2017

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Last Friday, I was invited to give a talk to Social Media Day Denver. There was almost 250 paid attendees, and they were an amazing group of social media enthusiasts and bloggers. I was surprised by how many people already had their blogs up and how many used Wordpress (I recommend Weebly).

But I definitely got everyone's wheels turning on interviewing influencers to accelerate your career and current goals...

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How to Pitch Your Startup in 5 minutes like a boss

6/26/2017

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I recently read "Tips on Crafting a Top-Notch Startup Pitch" by Techstars, and had to share some of their insights with you, as well as what I've learned from hosting pitch events for almost 3 years with Startup Denver.

And, this is after my own experience pitching after graduating Founder Institute and making my own pitch from their pitch deck recommendations and templates.

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How a Strong Personal Brand can Drive More Business

6/19/2017

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For businesses comprised of free agents working on their own initiative, each team member's personal brand could be contributing to the power of the team as a whole. The clients they are popular with, the positive comments and reviews each member has attained, can all be leveraged toward greater outreach and prestige for the entire team and company as a whole.

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Why You Need a Personal Brand and How to Get Started

6/14/2017

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The term "brand" is thrown around a lot these days, generally in reference to a company. But personal branding is just as, if not more, important than company branding, especially for early stage entrepreneurs.

Here's why you need a personal brand and how to achieve it.

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5 LinkedIn Personal Branding Hacks

6/7/2017

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LinkedIn is one of the largest social media sites and the number one choice for business professionals. Except Facebook... someone told me the Gen Z kids are using that like we use LinkedIn.

But hey, they haven't graduated and don't own businesses just yet like us. And I'm writing this for you--readers that have businesses, startups, and small shops with less than 5 team members.

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The 15 Best Websites for Founders

5/23/2017

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Back in September 2014, it was estimated that there are now over one billion internet sites on the internet, keeping that number enhancing every second.

It's harder than ever to actually find the exact tool you need because so many tools do many different things and the small tool that you're looking for is beat by it's competition that does a better job at SEO.

So sad. But fear not, here's a really powerful list...

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What I Learned Interviewing PHil Sanderson with IDG Ventures

5/16/2017

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Almost a year ago I interviewed Phil on the Handshakin Video Series in San Francisco.

As I prepare to head out to SF to host Start SF's Pitch Battle (think mini shark tank event), I revisited my interview with him and wanted to share one of the best things a mentor has ever told me.

When I asked him about what makes a successful entrepreneur he mentioned three things:

Management

Focus

Execution

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Top Secret Hacks to Grow Your Instagram Following Without Advertising

5/8/2017

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Starting a new Instagram account or growing your following on your current account can be a daunting task.

With an average of 95 million new photos and videos posted on Instagram daily, there's no shortage of competition for your customers' attention on the platform - but with 500 million active monthly users, it certainly pays to invest in producing quality content and growing your audience.

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Is your work suffering because your office sucks?

4/24/2017

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Some would say our environment and productivity are inconsequential, claiming that they are productive and happy anywhere.

High five to you, you’re killing it and this article probably isn’t for you.

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How to Hire your First Virtual Assistant

4/17/2017

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I've worked with two Virtual Assistants (VAs) since the start of handshakin.com who have helped immensely behind the scenes. Recently, we hired two more full-time Philippino team members.

And, as a bootstrapping entrepreneur, I can only grow as fast as I increase sales, without taking significant monetary risk investing in payroll.

Now I've hired US based team members before, and let me tell you, that can put a big dent in your checking (and savings) account should you hire too soon, or hire the wrong professional. And that dent will not always come back.

Want to hire a full-time outsourced employee for a few hundred per month? Then this is for you.

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How to Increase Your Blog Following Organically

4/10/2017

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Your blog is a powerful tool to build your business, gain new leads, and establish yourself as an expert in your niche.

Many bloggers, however, struggle with attracting new followers. Not all new bloggers have the budget to invest in paid advertising.

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Journey from 0 to 10,000 Instagram Followers in 200 Days

4/3/2017

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Anyone who has met me knows that Instagram and LinkedIn are my two favorite social networks to market on. Here's how I did it with the Instagram account @pitchbattles.

By the way, I've grown 4 others to 10k+ followers, and now I need to learn how to take it to 100k followers, so feel free to comment if you're an expert of experts with tips.

My goal is to share actionable steps that we took to accomplish this, and I also interviewed two other Instagram marketers to bring even more tips for you to consider.

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3 Tips to Get Started On the Right Foot When Creating Video Content for a Blog

4/1/2017

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More and more blogs nowadays are starting to publish video content of their own – chiefly

because of how useful it is in attracting interest, increasing engagement, and even boosting

conversions.

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Why a Website is Key for Personal Branding

3/20/2017

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If you are looking for a new job, one of the most effective ways to approach your job search is by networking.

However, if you haven't worked on building your personal brand, there is a good chance your efforts might not be as successful as you hoped.

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How to Establish Credibility by Creating Online Content

3/13/2017

There are two parts to the creating credibility in online content, the first is widespread prominence and the other is credibility.

Establishment of prominence can be translated into getting hits on your business website and getting cited by other websites so your name gets out there into the public.

Credibility is the hard part. The word "credibility" has a lot to do with reliability, authority, honesty. And several other characteristics as internet users look for something they trust online.

How to Get Started with Guest Blogging

3/6/2017

Guest blogging is an easy way to expand your professional network and showcase your writing abilities.

It exposes you and your work to new audiences. The following guidelines are guaranteed to help you become a successful guest blogger.

Why People need to know your name: The power of a Strong Personal Brand

2/27/2017

Imagine, for a moment, a saloon in the Wild West. It's a bunch of regulars, and a few out-of-towners, and things are all right. Then someone walks in through the bat wing doors.

Someone in a broad, flat-crowned hat, with silver spurs. The room goes quiet, and the whispers start.

He might be just a man, but people have heard tell of him. They know those low-slung guns, and that scar along his right hand. Before he even opens his mouth, everyone in the room is thinking about shaking his hand.

Just kidding, that's just what I have dreams about, but you get the idea.

How to Pitch your Startup Idea for Funding and Feedback

2/19/2017

For those of you who only know me from Handshakin.com, you may not realize that we also own and organize the Startup Meetup Pitch Battle groups around the US (and we totally just passed 10k followers on Instagram!). We're in Denver, Boston, Atlanta, Austin, Phoenix, LA, San Francisco and more...

What is a Pitch Battle you ask? An event where 4 startups pitch to a panel of investors and judges for 5 minutes. Here's how to prepare and make the most of these events:

How to Become a Freelancer

2/13/2017

Being a freelancer can be quite a rewarding career. You can write, consult, build websites, and really customize what you do for your clients based of your passion.

You can almost do whatever you want, employing others by assigning the things that you don’t necessarily enjoy.

<<Previous

Forward>>

Personal Branding DOs and Donts for Founders

Assets & Entrepreneurship: Online Assets (Part 3/3)

Assets & Entrepreneurship: Real Estate (Part 2/3)

Assets & Entrepreneurship: Automotive (Part 1/3)

Domain Names & Startups: Where to start

Actionable Personal Branding Tips from Billionaire Entrepreneur Kimbal Musk

How to use your blog and Instagram to Meet Influencers

How to Pitch Your Startup in 5 minutes like a boss

How a Strong Personal Brand can Drive More Business

Why You Need a Personal Brand and How to Get Started

5 LinkedIn Personal Branding Hacks

The 15 Best Websites for Founders

What I Learned Interviewing PHil Sanderson with IDG Ventures

Top Secret Hacks to Grow Your Instagram Following Without Advertising

Is your work suffering because your office sucks?

How to Hire your First Virtual Assistant

How to Increase Your Blog Following Organically

Journey from 0 to 10,000 Instagram Followers in 200 Days

3 Tips to Get Started On the Right Foot When Creating Video Content for a Blog

Why a Website is Key for Personal Branding

How to Establish Credibility by Creating Online Content

How to Get Started with Guest Blogging

Why People need to know your name: The power of a Strong Personal Brand

How to Pitch your Startup Idea for Funding and Feedback

How to Become a Freelancer

Handshakin Blog
By: Matt Holmes

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Handshakin BlogBy: Matt Holmes

As seen on:

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Get Involved

Work for Handshakin'

Legal/Other

Handshakin Blog
By: Matt Holmes