Archive for the ‘iRent2u’ Category

Expert Opinion - Kimbul Musk
CEO of Me.Dium.com, Renowned Chef, Angel Investor

Our next ecommerce expert and rising star is Kimbal Musk, the CEO of an exciting new startup and application called Me.Dium (http://me.dium.com). A lifetime entrepreneur, Kimbal is also a renowned chef with his own restaurant in Boulder, and a successful angel investor having funded successes like PayPal and X.com.

Kimbal’s current venture, Me.Dium.com, promises to change the way you browse the web. It’s a browser add-on that gives you a continual overview of what websites your friends are using, allowing you to spot popular sites and events with your friends. It is a bold new way to use the internet, and has incredible potential. We wish Kimbal the best of luck with his new service.

Here was Kimbal’s response to iRent2u.com (shortened for publication):

“My first impression of the site is that the home page is nice, and it has a clear message. It’s easy to navigate, and the UI is good and simple.”

Thanks again Kimbal!

.

Popularity: 9% [?]

Expert Opinion – Michael Sheridan
President at Global Debt Exchange, LLC

Some of our best feedback yet came from fellow Pepperdine MBA alum Michael Sheridan. Michael has been involved in finance and startups for a long time. Beginning work in the capital markets, he was a Risk Manager and Derivatives Trader, achieving the position of Senior Equity Derivatives Trader for TD Waterhouse. After that he earned his MBA and returned to the market to help startups.

Since then he has been a partner in two different companies, Blue Waters LLC and Venature LLC. Both are organizations focused on helping startups acquire funding and the management expertise to manage that funding the maximum success. Working so close with VC’s meant that many wanted to work with him, so he was recently recruited to launch his own startup, the Global Debt Exchange (http://www.gdexauto.com).

The Global Debt Exchange is a VC-Funded web based software company working to change the way Banks, Hedge funds, Credit Unions and Financial Institutions purchase asset-backed debt. Sound complicated? It is, but it’s just the kind of thing the finance guys at big banks are going to love and it has incredible potential.

Here was Michael’s response to iRent2u.com:

“I have been spending so much time on designing our own web site and working with different web 2.0 entrepreneurs. Your site has a crisp, clean design. It is web 2.0 for sure, meaning it is very friendly and legible. Some of the things I really like are your aggregate listing page, user ratings and actual item listing pages, which are excellent.”

Then he added those magic words we love to hear…

“I truly believe this is going to be fun to watch takeoff.”

Thanks again Michael!

.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Expert Opinion - Mark Ranalli
CEO of Helium.com

As our experts weigh in, we will be publishing their comments. One of the first to respond was Mark Ranalli, CEO of Helium.

We feel especially lucky to have Mark’s input, as he has also created a two-sided market like we hope to do. In his market, people on one side are selling their ability to write, while the other side offers their need for good content. Having been in business for over 2 years now, they have been very successful and I am sure will continue to do so.

If you are a writer, or in need of good content for your site, we definitely recommend heading over and checking out Helium.com’s “Helium Marketplace”. It is a top notch service.

Here were Mark’s answers to our questions (abbreviated for publication):

“My first impression upon entering the site was that it was clean and clear. Maybe a little too ‘basic’ in look and feel, but I’d always err on the side of simple. I like that it is an interesting concept, and the intro and FAQ’s were simple, easy to find, and helpful. I think you need to be ready for people to start uploading items you never expected.”

Then Mark added something we really appreciated:

“You have a great idea. I think it’s a winner. I look forward to tracking your success.”

Thanks again Mark!

Look forward to seeing other comments from Industry Experts over the next week until we launch November 15th!

.

Popularity: 10% [?]

Expert Opinion - Joel G. Block
Founder of Growth-Logic Inc.
(www.Growth-Logic.com) & JoelBlock.com

One of our many experts to weigh in his opinion was serial entrepreneur, author, speaker, and “Growth Architect” Joel G. Block.

Joel has a long history of success in business. Starting at Price Waterhouse, he has since founded and sold a successful property management firm, and three separate successful fax publication businesses. After this string of success he founded his most recent venture, Growth-Logic Inc.

Joel uses Growth-Logic as a way to help startup companies develop the correct ‘architecture’ to be successful, as well as a venue for him to teach proper business principles to clients and motivated entrepreneurs all over the world.

Here was Joel’s response to iRent2u.com:

“This is a very user friendly web site. I like it and found it easy to register and get set up. As you increase your inventory it will be great!”

Congratulations.

Thanks again Joel!

.

Popularity: 9% [?]

Industry Experts to Review Site Pre-Launch

In the march to our upcoming launch, we have had a number of people sign up for early access to the site.

Here is a sample of the Industry experts who will be given access to the site Thursday:
(listed in order of sign-up)

Michael Fox-Rabinovitz: Member of Advisory Board at Grunwald Capital Management; Vice President, Portfolio Management & Investment Analysis at Citigroup Private Bank; President at Risk Analytics

Roger Hamilton: Vice President, Sales and Marketing at Contact Science

Dan Garvin: Account Manager at Garvin Media Group LLC; Member, 2007 Board Of Governors at American Biofuels Council; RNIA Advisor at Relationship Networking Industry Association; Co-Founder and VP Sales at Seamless LLC; Advisor - Process Efficiency/Effectiveness at Society of Industry Leaders; Co-Founder at Upstate Entrepreneurs Forum; Lead Moderator at LinkedIn Consultants Yahoo Group; Consultant at Stellar Group Recruiting LLC

Kevin Crosthwaite: Founder & Principal at The Crosthwaite Group, Inc.

Bill Stankiewicz: Vice President and General Manager at Shippers Warehouse Distribution Services; Managing Director-Principal & Owner at Atlanta Supply Chain Inc

Paul Bellon: Internet Business Development Resultant at Kingfisher2

Nina Camp: Independent Distributor at Send Out Cards (Sole Proprietorship); Business Development at Beacon Technology Enterprise Corp.

Marvin Corea: Real Estate Professional at Fairfax Realty; Director of Investment Research at MDCREI; Founder at Intellipedia.NET; Idea Dude at Vocess.com; Member at Active Angel Investors; Investor at TerraCycle; Partner at Corea Ventures; Founder at sharedIntel.com; Founder/Chief Idea Dude at The Succeed Network!; Managing Partner at Corea Restaurants; Principal at Corea Properties, LLC; President/CEO at Esenai Corporation

Joel Block: Owner at Growth-Logic, Inc; Author & Speaker

Abir Bhattacharyya: Co-Founder at Rentalanalytics.com; Co-Founder/Investor at Fasterflats; CEO at A++ Talent Inc.; Recruiting Consultant at A+Talent (A-Talent.com)

Rod Nazari: Regional Recruiter at BT (British Telecom) INS

Giorgio Occhioni: Co-Owner at Vacance à Abidjan (Holidays in Ivory Coast) [temporary name]; Team Leader at Engitech Ltd

Kevin Shepela: VP, Business Development at Ripple (RippleTV.com)

Stefanie van der Poel: Partner Macallan Search Partners

Josh Stomel: Business Development at Low.com; Sr. Business Development /Strategic Recruiter at Oversee.net; Founder at Neohire.com; Commercial Real Estate Investor/Manager at Felfam LTD

Marty Secada: Managing Director at Broad and Wall Advisors

Michael Sheridan: President at Global Debt Exchange; Director of Finance at Management Partners Leadership Committee

Warren Sukernek: Senior Strategist at VML

A big Thank You to everyone who is participating. The names are still rolling in, and even this list is incomplete. We will add a few more names before Thursday for sure.

.

.

Popularity: 13% [?]

We are looking for about ten volunteers in the Inland Empire to try our site, by renting out things you own.

We are looking for volunteers who will let us go with them through their home and choose things to lend out. Anyone willing to videotape the process could be featured on our website. This should be great fun, while also giving you a new way to make money & help people.

To volunteer you need:
1) A computer & Internet connection.
2) Own things you don’t need everyday, that you would be willing to lend to other people for money.
3) You must be at least 18 years of age & have a credit card to use the site.

Please contact us at (805) 617-4654 to volunteer. Ask for Tim.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Inviting 25 Industry Experts to our latest Web 2.0 Start Up: iRent2u.com.

Do You Qualify?
We’re Inviting 25 Industry Experts to a sneak peak of our site.

iRent2u.com is in Live Private Beta set to launch publicly November 15th. We will allow a select group of people early access on Nov 8th. This is your chance to be the first to view this exciting new site.

What is iRent2u.com?
It’s the solution to a problem we all have. A way to get more from less. Its an EBay for Rentals, an Online Rental Marketplace. A two sided market that allows people to lend and borrow private assets from each other. Launching with over 1 million items online, it is sure to make a dramatic impact on the over $100 Billion US rental market.

We are Seeking:
Industry experts in Web 2.0; Online Sales and Marketing, Legal Affairs, Business Development, Venture Firms, Avid Online Users, and of course Bloggers & Podcasters.

Would you like to participate? All recommendations and feedback welcome.

Email: feedback@irent2u.com (subject: industry expert) or reply to this question.

Thank You

Popularity: 11% [?]

iRent2u Prepares for Nov. 15th launch…

November 15th is coming up fast, and we are very excited about it. This is the day that we open up iRent2u.com for the whole world to see. Of course we want to show off our baby a little bit, because we think it looks pretty nice (here’s a screenshot), but we are much more excited for its potential to help people.

With this site we have big plans. Specifically we are going to give people a way to change their worlds. Many people would like the chance to change the world, but it is hard to know where to begin. Well we say, start in your garage. Start by taking all those valuable items that you purchased but are now just waisting away in storage and put them online. Take that power drill, that bike you never use, your super 100 foot hose you bought last year, and your extra set of golf clubs. Take those items, and about ten minutes of your time, and put them online for the whole world to use.

By allowing other people to use your valuable but rarely used possessions, you not only make a little money for yourself, you also help your friends and neighbors save a lot of money. Then someday in the future when you need something, you can also borrow it from one of your neighbors saving time and money. The website makes it easy to find what you need, and helps everyone get more from what they already have, be that money or possessions.

Change Your World

A lot of people talk about changing the world. Usually it is a big idea that has the potential to make everyones lives better. We hope to create a system to do this, but in reality it is not a big change, it is a series of many small changes. Last night I saw ‘Evan Almighty’. In the movie, a politician campaigns that if he is put into office he is going to change the world, but when he wins and gets into office he doesn’t know where to begin. At this point God speaks to him and tells him that the way to change the world is by one random act of kindness at a time.

This is what you will be able to do through iRent2u.com. Each time you create a listing for your items on the site you are doing a small act of kindness, creating a way your neighbors can benefit from what you own. Then every time someone borrows something they save money, and you know you helped someone. Add to this the safeguards that ensure your item is returned in the same condition you lent it, and the bonus that you get paid for lending your items, and you have the perfect system. Everyone is helping each other, and they all are better off for it.

People Helping People

We call this our ‘People Helping People’ lending network. And it is our little way to change the world. And once many people start to use it, together we can take all these little changes and create a real movement, and truly make the world a better place to live.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. In some regards the launching of this site is the end of one thousand mile journey, as we have been working on this a long time. On November 15th we start another journey though, and this one will be a lot more fun because we get to take all of you along with us. We can’t wait to hear your stories of how you used the site, or your ideas for how together we can make it better.

Just the Beginning

The site, as it will launch in a couple weeks, is only the beginning. It will shape and grow over time into whatever you want it to be. We know that people are inherently good. They enjoy being able to help their neighbors, reduce pollution, and save money. They enjoy finding ways to meet new friends, and share their experiences. We know that if we give people the right tools, and then give them the power to improve them, we will all be better off for it.

We already know that ‘Together We Have More’. On November 15th, we finally get the chance to put it into action.

Popularity: 34% [?]

California Wildfires

iRent2u.com would like to take this moment to tell everyone in California our hearts are with you through these terrible wildfires.

This appears to be some of the worst fires our state has seen in a long time, too long to remember. The amazing thing about these horrible situations is the ability for people to band together and help each other. While it is hard to see now, as everyone is too busy evacuating and worrying about their homes, all across the state heroes are emerging to help their fellow man.

The true heroes of your community are the people that go out of their way to lend a hand in your time of need. We may be millions of people living separate lives, but during hardships we come together in an instant bond of friendship, united in a single goal - helping each other.

It is a bit of this power, this spirit of giving and help, that we hope to capture with our new business set to launch next month. By creating a powerful People Helping People lending network, we give a way for people to help each other everyday, to get items they need and save money for what is more important.

Of course it is hard to think about our website when fires are looming down on your property. For those in the path of those horrible blazes we wish for the best, and know that your wonderful community of friends and neighbors will be there to get you through.

A special thanks as well is due to our heroic firefighters, who time and time again go to the most dangerous places, battling on the front lines to keep us safe. To all of you we are truly grateful.

…

Popularity: 12% [?]

Save the World…

October 15th was an important day for bloggers, an important day for the environment, and an important day for the world. It was “Blog Action Day”. One day when bloggers around the world unite to write about one topic, the environment. It was organized from this site http://blogactionday.org/, but is supported by thousands of people who care all across the globe.

Over 15,000 blogs united to address an issue that should be important to all of us, taking care of the planet and the eco-systems we depend on for survival. It is exciting and inspiring to see the world coming together on such vital issues, issues that are core to iRent2u’s mission and values.

These issues are the potential for global warming, as well as many other negative side effects of pollution & the increasing world population. The direct impact of our growing population is the fact that as more people live, they take up more space, and displace the land and resources that previously had been used by not only other species, but also systems which keep this world running smoothly. Of course we all recognize that this planet is in a constant state of change, but it needs to happen at a pace that allows the systems to balance themselves in a peaceful and orderly manner.

iRent2u is working to help restore some order to the system by reducing the necessity for people to buy things, while still giving them the ability to use the items they need. A perfect example is that drill you own yet rarely use. Resources were used to create the drill, and someday you will throw it away, creating waste. By creating a system that allows people to share and rent items from people nearby, we effectively can reduce the number of drills needed in a neighborhood by as much as 75% or more. This saves everyone money, reduces the resources needed to make drills, and reduces the waste from the drills that are thrown away.

Everyone needs to do their part to help out. Luckily, when everyone is focused on helping a problem incredible things happen. Together we will learn overcome any obstacles in our path and be better for it. Together we will find new types of energy and new ways to increase efficiency. Together we can save the world.

Together we have more, and that’s all were fighting for.

Popularity: 9% [?]