I also worked directly for Jason for nearly 3 years and have nearly an identical story as Adam. The entire Launch organization was built around Jason giving back to founders. All of his actions during my time working for him reflected this mission.
One of my favorite aspects of Uber is that the tip is factored into the price. Please consider just adding a $1.50-2 surcharge and specifying that the tip is included.
About Launch
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Launch (Launch.co) is a media company focused on startups, technology and entrepreneurship that hosts in-person events and produces web-based content and videos.
Our events include the LAUNCH Festival (http://festival.launch.co), now in its seventh year, which drew over 6,000 attendees in 2013. Other events include LAUNCH Education, LAUNCH Mobile and the LAUNCH Hackathon.
Online we produce the LAUNCH Ticker and This Week in Startups, which draw hundreds of thousands of viewers monthly.
Sales/BD
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* Researching potential partners for events, online TV show, and LAUNCH Ticker.
* Creating sales materials (Keynote primarily)
* Managing account through execution and insuring that you overdeliver on your promises
* Create & foster long-lasting relationships
* Help out running the events as needed
Conference Producer & Editor
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* Creating editorial themes for our conferences.
* Inviting speakers and startups to our events.
* Writing and editing our emails, website copy and other collateral.
* Working with sponsors at our events.
Ideally we’re looking for a full-time executive but would consider a consultant for the next three months as we prepare for the LAUNCH Mobile and Wearables and LAUNCH Hackathon events.
We’re looking for someone with three or more years in event production and editorial.
San Francisco or Los Angeles, CA. Full time - This Week In
Incredible opportunity for a Business Development / Sales Executive to help shape the future of independent media at the Web TV network ThisWeekIn.
Corporate cogs, this isn't the job for you. Fire-in-your-belly entrepreneurs, you'll fit right in.
== Responsibilities ==
* Drive online advertising sales; meet and exceed sales goals
* Starting, negotiating, and closing strategic partnership deals
* Develop strong contacts with agencies and directly with clients
* Assist in identifying and executing revenue-enhancing strategic partnerships
* Work with sales management to create strategies to develop new vertical markets
* Prepare proposals and respond to RFP's quickly, and with a high degree of quality
* Prepare insertion orders and negotiate contracts to satisfy both the company's and the client's best interests
* Maintain a thorough understanding of online advertising trends and major initiatives
== Requirements ==
* Bachelors degree
* One to five years of sales experience selling for trade shows, print, B2B and/or podcasting
* Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage your own agenda while working closely with others in a cross-functional role
* Proven track record of success, with quantifiable results in previous sales positions
* Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including proposal generation and presentation
* Desire to work in a team-based, entrepreneurial company
* Please include a resume and cover letter detailing why you're the best candidate for this position.
== About Us ==
ThisWeekIn, Inc. is a web television network covering a wide variety of topics from tech to entertainment. Produced out of our Culver City studios, our web shows feature expert hosts and guests who are founders, celebs, comedians, technologists and CEO's -- all keeping you on the bleeding edge of their industries. This position can be based in the LA or San Francisco area.
Thanks! I mentioned this below, but we're running a small test with essentially this approach. We're giving away the itinerary for free and then trying to upsell/cross-sell other related services -- such as a San Francisco CityPass, tours and p2p experiences. If you'd like to take a look you can check it out here (you'll have to enter your email address to get the free itinerary) -- http://bit.ly/enWxWz
My concern with partnering with restaurants and retailers is that I feel like it's a slippery slope to disingenuous recommendations. Plus, why would a restaurant offer a coupon to a traveler (at least a coupon of value)? There's no chance of repeat business. Just some thoughts, would love to get more feedback, if you have any.
> Plus, why would a restaurant offer a coupon to a traveler (at least a coupon of value)?
Because it brings in business. I see restaurants advertising for tourists all the time. Look in any in-flight magazine or any of the free guidebooks that are given away in tourist areas. They're full of ads and coupons for tours, restaurants, museums and attractions. That's a business model worth investigating.
The downside is it's a real boots-on-the-ground business that requires a heavy investment in sales effort to make it work. The upside is that once you sign up a customer (assuming they have a positive experience) it is highly likely they will repeat. You could start with just one city and if it works grow it from there.
I completely agree and we would love to partner with someone like this. Talking with others who have tried going down this road, I've heard it's difficult to impossible to land a partnership like that, so we've been hesitant to put a lot of effort into trying. Perhaps it's time to give partnerships a shot.
Test your biz dev skills on the smaller sites first and it will help you understand how it all works. They also won't want to dedicate massive amounts of time to implement so make it dead simple for potential partners to serve your data. All you need is one small break to boost your confidence.
Yes...you absolutely nailed the value we believe we're providing. Thanks :-). In fact, we've thought about re-marketing ourselves as "last minute travel guides" or something to that affect.
....ImpromptuItinerary.com? It's available. I don't know if I like it though. Too many vowel sounds, not enough hard consonants. Though the name is a pretty good description of the product.
