Posts tagged startups
JANN SCOTT and Channel One Networks
Mar 23rd
Posted by Jann Scott in Jann Scotts Journal
When it comes to being ahead of his time, the man is Jann Scott of Boulder, Colorado.
In 2005, he created The World Channel 1 Network, ( now C1N.TV) one of the first web-based TV networks. This came after launching on University of Colorado servers in 1997 and is still seen on geocities.com.
“As early as 1998, I saw that newspapers were in decline and all TV and newspapers were moving to the web and wanted to cover all of it.” He calls his network “YouTube meets Craig’s List.”
The purpose of his networks is to provide each community with local TV and news on the Web.
“We want the networks to be the “go-to” place for both local TV and print news on the web.
He said his networks have come into their own with 30 up and running, reporters in various locations like Florida, Boulder, Seattle and Denver to name a few. Boulder and Denver act as both the content and financial model for the entire network he said.
On C1N.TV viewers can see his Route 66 travel series on the Travel Channel, Restaurant section news, home and garden, fashion and the popular auto section. Scott’s news team covers numerous events live on location. He has brought together a team which contributes to the news and feature content of his network shows.
And, Scott admits the networks are profitable since day 1. “Our sales department sells ads locally in each city. We don’t take any third party ads and we compete with Google, for example.” He said they staff their phone lines and have people available to take calls. He said we bring a “humanness” to the business of buying online advertising” He said while Channel 1 networks can exist without social media, they do use them to promote their programming. “We are integrating web into main stream population while the social media is aimed only at the millenniums!”
While Jann Scott’s off-beat sense of humor developed as a TV talk show host is considered controversial by some his popularity as a Boulder icon make him a pillar of the community. Scott’s serious side has proven him to be community orientated. He has helped 100’s of disenfranchised people in need.
Do we dream big? He said. “We want to build the world headquarters in Boulder with 20,000 employees worldwide, bigger than CNN or Comcast, for example.” “We’re the biggest media company in the world,” he said hesitating, “But we aren’t fully actualized yet!” The C1N network is there. The advertisers are there and we have stayed consistent with the vision.”
Thinking further, Jann Scott said, “We would probably like to partner with Ted Turner, for example, and have offices all over the world.”
Donna Marek is a Boulder free lance writer and has contributed to Boulder Channel 1 since it’s inception
Search Engine Optimization companys Google Facebook Bing Yahoo ligitt Trada Don’t waste your money
Apr 6th
Posted by Jann Scott in Jann Scotts Journal
In this Jann Scott’s Journal Jann talks to small business and explains to them how they are being ripped off bu big SEO companies. He talks about how they don’t care about advertisers and why they are all failing. He gives you a solution on how to advertise for less locally and win,
First of all we have been in the online advertising business longer than any of these companies. And we have been in traditional advertising longer than that. So we know of what we speak.
If you are a small business you cannot afford the crap shoot that the aforementioned companies try to sell you. They don’t and can’t produce results. They take all of your money and you hope business improves. But it doesn’t. If it does it does out of your own sales departments or local tried and true advertising that you know works.
All of these online advertising companies including Twitter sell you smoke and mirrors. But you’re lucky if you make a sales because of them. American business is smartening up and pulling their ads. That is why SEO companies are all losing money. They are all on the bubble, well except for Google. And Google makes money because Eric smith made sure he owns the internet. but Google is ripe for a Federal anti trust act law suit. When that comes, they will collapse because they don’t really make anything or do anything.
Bing which is owned by Microsoft is a loser, but since Microsoft does a ton more that search engine optimization they can absorb the loss. What about Face book. Their ad programs are expensive and they don’t sell product. Face Book sold the auto manufactures until they realized Face book was a dud. Look at “miss Lean In” Cheryl Sandburg. She brought her brand of new age advertising hustle from Google to Face Book with terrible results. She is losing accounts faster than she can get them. Her IPO was a disaster and now with her new bullshit book she is about to leave the company before it fails . In her own words she said ” I have no idea what I am doing ” No she doesn’t. She is living in the second tech bubble.
Look I have bought ads from all of these companies and tracked them. They are a waste of fucking money pure and simple.
If you want good advertising results, you should buy from local advertising concerns with a proven track record. So if you have a store in Boulder you should never buy Google, Twitter, Facebook, or Bing adwords. Never! And you should never buy adwords through Trada or Liggit in Boulder either. Just because they are located in Boulder, they are not going to help you. They are res sellers of Google and the other players. They don’t have a magic solution. They’ve got a bunch of hype. The whole social media and online advertising movement is there for one reason : to take your money for as long as they can and to hell with you.
Here in Boulder and in every other city where we have a channel what we do is take your advertising dollars and spend it right in your city. We don’t do any revenue sharing with Google or FaceBook. We will not do business with them . We compete with them. we are cheaper , faster and better. What we do is create TV campaigns, put up our own Banner ads on our channel, our own Twitter and facebook ads and campigns. We write your blogs, build your Face Book and Twitter pages; We write about you, shoot video about you, we use You tube to promote you but we sure as hell don’t pay them. We don’t pay any social media to promote you. We play by our rules not theirs. Here in Boulder we have Boulder channel 1 set up as a newspaper and TV channel. We have several hundred sponsors and advertisers. We have people here, who all they do all day and night is push sponsor product all over Boulder on Boulder channel 1. End result. We bury Google, Bing, Facebook, Twitter, Trada , Ligit, Yahoo and every other Search engine opt company. We also beat The local Daily Camera and Boulder Weekly. How and why ? Because we find their holes and fill them. If we have an advertiser who has tried everything local you know like Biff, Boulder Magazine, Comcast Cable, etc, we use all of that failure to our advantage. We fill the hole with packages on our channel that pay off.
We not only do that here in Boulder, we do it in every city . So we have very little Advertiser turn over. Our advertisers stick with us year in and year out. That is not the case with these other companies. They loose everybody. We are in fact a billion dollar company waiting to happen. We are more successful than any company mentioned here. We have successfully integrated News papers and Television. That is something no one has done.Then we successfully applied old media and new media to advertising and made adverting customers happy. Advertisers are are the Number 1. Not the community of viewers and readers or sm followers. Not content. It’s our advertisers. Changing the world is secondary keeping advertisers happy.
We are not living is some kind of jerk off dream world of a Boulder Utopian start up entrepreneurial society. We were at Woodstock. We started the revolution. We were in the First Whole Earth Cataloger and Keseys Garage sale. So we know how to save the world and build community. But what we know that the big SEO companies don’t know is how to get results locally. Now would somebody please acquire us so we can help fix your financial woes.
Jann Scott
from the Bridge in star Fleet command
Boulder Colorado
Jann Scott’s Journal is the story and life of Boulder Icon and talk host Jann Scott. He has been in print, on radio and on TV in Boulder since 1989. Some consider him the voice of Boulder’s soul.
Jann Scotts Journal: Boulder Startup Week 2012: Speed Bootstrapping 101 at the Chamber
May 19th
Posted by Jann Scott in Jann Scotts Journal
As I previewed the schedule on line in Plancast, Speed Bootstrapping at the Boulder Chamber seemed like the best option for me for several reasons. I am a busy executive and my time is limited. The event was being hosted by a law firm who specializes in Startups, security laws and presumably they had been to the show. Joyce Colson from Colson Quinn emceed the event and she kept everybody on a timer. Thank God! ( seriously, it works best) The event was being held at the Chamber which is neutral ground so I wouldn’t be hassled by BSW organizers for being “press” which happened last year. Also, I am a Chamber member and I knew I could count on Angelique for access. There was also no alcohol being served so this was was going to be a sober nuts and bolts workshop where I could learn something It was not going to be the constant college party scene which consumes much of the Boulder Startup scene.
I was not disappointed. Speed Bootstrapping 101 was a series of check-ins by 7 business organization experts. Matt Fargo from Kurtz Fargo a cpa firm which specializes in tech corps gave a blistering litany of dos and don’ts for business financials. The most memorable being use quick books and outsource your book keeping to a specialist so that it gets done right. This way investors will understand what the hell you have when the time comes. Thank God we did both at Channel 1 networks.
Then the lawyers spoke. Rob Quinn almost had a pained look when he spoke of some basic mistakes startups make which hurt them badly down the road. This was another way for me to check to see if we did our preliminary work correctly. Protection of intellectual property ? check. Signed sub-contractor agreements? check. Signed no compete non disclosure statements? check. Set up LLC cause it is simplest? check Pay people cash and not in stock so company is not diffused? check. Paying in stock are big mistakes made by early startups.
Of course I have been in business for over 20 years, grew up in a business family so I can thank my father and family for some of my business ac cumin In 2006 I had the guidance of Bob Greenley and atty Amelia Tantilla early on in Channel 1 Networks, so I avoided big mistakes. Ray Skibitsky told me not to take venture capital since we were already making money.
Then a commercial real estate broker talked about complicated leases and who to trust and who not to. Very valuable. We will need a broker when we move, that’s for sure. Liz Ryan talked about how to hire good employees. Ideas I had never heard before. The Chamber talked about all of the SBA loans available. Did you know that there are loans available that will pay for 90% of commercial real estate? Why lease when you can own for the same money??
Also, there was a banker another accountant and another lawyer who spoke. They covered all of the bases.
So How did I do? I hate to be smug. But I scored 100%. Not one pitfall in the area of big stupid business mistakes. I feel more ready than ever to move on and sell our company to Google. One thing is for sure, I need to hire this team assembled at Bootstrapping 101 to help sell my company. For this I have to hand it to Boulder Startup Week, there was a gem among the beer cups. lol 🙂 ( an a good time was had by all)
The event was well attended by serious minded business people and I feel fortunate to have been there. If this event was repeated monthly at the chamber it could only help all Boulder business’s succeed.
From the Startup Capitol of America
Jann Scott
Boulder Colorado