Airbnb CEO Asks Twitter What His Company Should Launch in 2017
Airbnb CEO Asks Twitter What His Company Should Launch in 2017.
Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky spent Christmas night on Twitter after he posed a question to his followers: “If Airbnb could launch anything in 2017, what would it be?” The tweet transformed into a thread of brainstorming, troubleshooting and partnership-building for the home-sharing marketplace.
@bchesky @Airbnb A feature that tells you if the hosted place has a private bathroom, unfortunately none of this info does so accurately ?
@moaazsidat you are right, will fix — Brian Chesky (@bchesky) December 26, 2016 He was one step ahead of some users.
Chesky said “sure” and replied with his email address.
@bchesky wanna do a @ProductHuntLIVE sometime and group together all the 2017 ideas?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 9, 2016 Twitter co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey highlighted Chesky’s use of his company’s product, quote-tweeting Chesky’s thread and giving it more exposure and momentum.
?jack (@jack) December 27, 2016 Less than 24 hours after his initial callout, Chesky tweeted that the experiment had exceeded his expectations a hundredfold.
1,000 ideas have been submitted.
https://t.co/DbrBSTDlCl — Brian Chesky (@bchesky) December 26, 2016
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Panasonic to Invest More Than $256 Million in Tesla’s U.S. Plant for Solar Cells
Panasonic to Invest More Than $256 Million in Tesla’s U.S. Plant for Solar Cells.
Panasonic Corp. will invest more than 30 billion yen ($256 million) in a New York production facility of Elon Musk’s Tesla Motors to make photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules, deepening a partnership of the two companies.
Japan’s Panasonic, which has been retreating from low-margin consumer electronics to focus more on automotive components and other businesses targeting corporate clients, will make the investment in Tesla’s factory in Buffalo, N.Y.
The U.S. electric car maker is making a long-term purchase commitment from Panasonic as part of the deal, besides providing factory buildings and infrastructure.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, the two companies said they plan to start production of PV modules in the summer of 2017 and increase to one gigawatt of module production by 2019.
The plan is part of the solar partnership that the two companies first announced in October, but which did not disclose investment details.
Tesla is working exclusively with longtime partner Panasonic to supply batteries for its upcoming Model 3, the company’s first mass-market car.
Panasonic is also the exclusive supplier of batteries to Tesla’s Model S and Model X.
(Reporting by Taiga Uranaka and Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman) Latest News and Headlines from Reuters
How Virtual Reality Will Change Storytelling and Marketing in the Next Decade
How Virtual Reality Will Change Storytelling and Marketing in the Next Decade.
Virtual reality is no longer some futuristic concept from a 90s movie with bad CGI effects.
Consumers will grow accustomed to immersive brand experiences, requiring businesses to create campaigns that are more interactive.
Storytelling helps businesses connect with customers in a way traditional marketing can’t.
People generally become interested in the story behind a business or its products and they purchase based on the connection that creates.
For you as a brand, this means finding ways that your own products or services can be applied to a virtual reality experience.
This is especially valuable if you sell high-dollar items that customers generally like to try before buying.
It could be used in place of a prototype to let customers and potential investors learn more about a product without actually seeing it in person.
Businesses and consumers are likely to use the technology to tour a hotel or other rental property before making reservations.
When marketers find a way to use the technology to engage customers, brands can get the word out about their products and services and consumers can learn almost everything they need to know about a business from the comfort of their homes.
Multimillionaires Share 7 Steps to Structure Your Day for Success
I have spent upwards of 4,000 hours studying success in under two years, which puts me in a unique position to dissect success for the rest of us.
Though they each have a unique story and perspective, the one thing they undoubtedly have in common is these people know how to structure 24 hours for maximum success.
Here are the top seven keys to success for the rest of us when it comes to structuring your day in order to produce your best work and become your best self.
The unique key is that there is power in being alone and getting focused at the start of the day.
“If you jump right into your email,” explained Brendon Burchard, founder of Experts Academy and New York Times bestselling author, “you automatically set the frame in your mind to react to other people’s needs.
“I really focus on the things that I do the best, which is content creation.
One more unexpected note on time blocking is to make sure you have time to think.
I always ask my guests how they structured their day when they were just starting their careers.
How can he run 12 companies and work out each day and meditate and much more?
“How hard was I working in the early days with my business?
8 Security Tips for Small Businesses Accepting Online Payments in 2017
When customers make a purchase from your online storefront can they trust you to protect their credit card information?
If you accept, process, store, or transmit credit card data then these regulations apply to you in order to ensure that your customers’ payment information is kept safe and secure.
Don’t store customer payment data.
And, that’s because 95% of credit card breaches come from small businesses.
If you do need to store information, such as a customer’s name and account number then take measures to protect this information like using a private network or cloud-based storage or encrypting the data so that intruders can’t read it.
Despite the regulations that have been put in place, not all eCommerce platforms and processors take security as serious as others.
Even if you comply with regulations and have top-of-the-line security systems in-place, you’re still putting your customers information in jeopardy if you and your employees aren’t trained in basic security measures.
Update all of your systems.
According to Adrian Lane, data analyst and CTO for Securosis, the main difference between tokenization and encryption is how they handle the data that they’re attempting to replace.
You may also want start accepting payments via digital wallets, which encrypts data, or cryptocurrencies like bitcoin which uses tokens instead of a credit number or bank account.
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These 10 startups showed how their innovations are helping build a better future, at IBM’s Smartcamp for Smart Cities
These 10 startups showed how their innovations are helping build a better future, at IBM’s Smartcamp for Smart Cities.
This story is sponsored by IBM The recently-held IBM Smartcamp for Smart Cities organised by the IBM Global Entrepreneur program in association with Sterlite Technologies saw participation from startups with solutions in the space of Energy & Utility, Transportation, Sanitation, Water, Citizen Management, Safety and Surveillance.
The Indian government is implementing the startup’s patent-pending road-based encoding technology across the country through a closed-loop ecosystem.
Using the app, the driver gets real-time visibility and information about parking at his destination including the time needed to park the car at the indicated spot.
Oizom’s solution “Polludrone” is a solar powered IoT air-quality monitor which is also low-cost, compact and eco-friendly.
The findings are made available through a cloud analytics platform and mobile app.
Polludrone is capable of measuring all the parameters included as compliance by the Central Pollution Control Board.
While smart grids offer a respite, existing solutions in this space consist of standalone applications that address only a small part of the problem.
This startup is working on a robust, integrated and scalable smart grid solution that manages the entire data and workflow and converts it into actionable business insights.
IBM Smartcamp for Smart Cities From 115 applications, 30 were shortlisted.
Snap doubled its acquisitions in 2016 as it builds toward IPO
20 Management Tips That Will Transform You Into An Amazing Leader
A successful career doesn’t just require great ideas and a good work ethic — it also takes the right people.
In order to work well with others, you’ll need to become a pro at leadership and management.
Find the best people possible for your project, and once you do, do anything and everything in your power to keep them.
People have a hard time believing in leaders who don’t quite seem to believe in themselves.
Acknowledge that while you may already be a good leader, you can always become a better one.
Managing people through change is the hardest job you’ll have.
With a second-rate team, you might as well compete on your own.
Instead, strive to share what your business takes in, and use what you have to better your community.
No one wants to follow a grouchy leader, so slap on a smiley face and stay positive, no matter the obstacles you encounter.
As you build entrepreneurial experience, you’ll learn how to lead and manage teams.
Google’s New Mobile-First Index and the Death of Desktop SEO
It’s going to change the way that your site gets ranked in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
What is the mobile-first index?
Now, however, Google will crawl your site as a mobile user.
Why is Google using a mobile-first index?
Mobile is everything.
What if you don’t have a mobile site?
If you own one or more websites, you might wonder how your sites “look” to the Googlebot that uses a mobile user agent.
During the rollout period, though, there will be two indexes — the mobile index and the desktop index.
A small subset of users will see results from the mobile index, while other users see results from the desktop index.
As Google becomes more confident with the mobile-first results, the company will slowly phase out the desktop index.
You Could Fly to France on Solar Powered Plane Then Drive on a Solar Panel Road
You Could Fly to France on Solar Powered Plane Then Drive on a Solar Panel Road.
Solar energy is finding its way into innovations big and small all over the world — and the sky’s the limit.
The 48 hour, 37 minute flight from Cairo, Egypt, to Abu Dhabi, UAE, was piloted by Solar Impulse co-founder and chairman Bertrand Piccard.
The #solar airplane has now successfully made it full circle around the world https://t.co/9DABXSg8AG pic.twitter.com/VNv3wqosht — SOLAR IMPULSE (@solarimpulse) July 26, 2016 Piccard and his co-founder André Borschberg began their journey in March of 2015 in Abu Dhabi and have traversed more than 26,000 miles without traditional fuel.
Solar Impulse isn’t the only innovator trying to harness the power of the sun in an unexpected way.
Just this week, a group of researchers at Belgium’s University of Ghent announced that they have created a solar-powered machine that converts urine into fertilizer, and most important, potable water.
The scientists put their machine to work at a 10-day music summer music festival in Ghent earlier this month.
The machine made 100 liters of water that will be used to make, naturally, beer, but the scientists also see the project as a way to aid regions where water is in short supply.
For more about how solar technology is making a major impact in a wide range of industries, from architecture to animal conservation, check out our slideshow below.
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What’s Right For You? A Comprehensive Guide to Funding Options for Every Startup
It will cover the following: Bootstrapping Government grants Angel investing Crowdfunding Equity Crowdfunding Venture Capital
Other may never need an outside investor.
Know what you’re getting into before you take the government’s money.
Takeaway Government grants are a great way to get money to grow your business.
Those investors want their money back, and then some.
Below are the pros and cons of equity crowdfunding for startups.
Pros Access to capital: New rules have opened up the number of people who can invest in your startup, which potentially means more dollars to back your big idea.
VCs are deep-pocketed investors who put their money in startups they believe have the potential to scale, quickly.
What’s more, it’s your money.
It’s all business.