Good morning from 30,000ft en route to 🇺🇸 !
Last week, after Budapest with Vulpine, I was in Stuttgart & München with Alternative 138 for Recon Instruments. Even managed to make a cameo on their twitter too. Unfamiliar with Recon? Check this out.
This week in the States, I'll be on the road with my family but working & riding a bit too. Here's where we'll be & where I'll be riding:
- Largo, FL – May 16-22 (local training rides & visiting Vélo Champ)
- ATL – May 23-25 (potential #earlytobedearlytoshred ride on 25th)
- Outer Banks, NC – May 26-31 (24miles North of Cape Hatteras)
- New Jersey – June 1-3 (central Jersey, likely no time to ride)
Jat-lag be damned and despite the travel schedule, work demands and quasi-vacation relaxation intentions, I'll still be waking up early throughout the trip. Here are some tips on how to get up early when mornings make you cry. (tip 5 relates to Cocoon in the startup section below!)
As always, thanks for reading!
Cycling
À BLOC Bicycle Beer
“à bloc” is French cycling lingo for “full gas”. No matter how strong or how fit you are, the feeling of riding full gas is the same for all of us.
à BLOC Beer launched this weekend here in Holland and is the result of a passion for cycling and celebrating friendships. It is an unfiltered and unpasteurised craft beer, rich in naturally occurring proteins and vitamin B and enriched with natural minerals for better hydration and muscular recovery. Like the guys on FB.
How a Full-Time Law Professor Beat the Women's World Hour Record
Molly Shaffer Van Houweling came out of nowhere to decimate the women's UCI World Hour Record, without putting the rest of her life on hold. Here's how.
Want a power meter? Team ZWATT looking for testers
Be part of the world wide virtual test team for power meter technology. Team ZWATT is run by SENSITIVUS gauge – a danish start-up developing advanced electronics for bike brands. Sign up for a smokin deal on a power meter to measure your watts.
Startups
Want To Grow Faster? Spend More Time Talking To Customers
Talking to customers. The original growth hack? "At the end of the day, great sales and marketing really just comes down to understanding your customers." This topic has been coming up in our office recently and I'm all about it.
Hat tip Niels for the inspiration!
Rethinking the Value of Customers in a Digital Economy
"look at how businesses can give users new capabilities and skills that collectively create virtuous cycles of value creation." Check out this Triple-S framework– Segment, Socialize, and Skill-ify.
Did You Follow Your Heart? - Cocoon
Honored to be in Cocoon's Inspiring follow your heart video! This local Amsterdam startup intent on making job hunting easier fro everyone just made their iOS App Store debut: http://bit.ly/GetCocoon_iOS & Android too http://bit.ly/GetCocoon_Android!
Sales
What does a Relay Race Have to Do With Sales Readiness?
Sales readiness determines the sprint speed of the final lap to deal closing. Master the critical handoffs between sales engagement and sales readiness.
"don’t sell, instead disrupt." – Jim Ryerson
I first heard for Jim's book First 100 Days of Selling back in Dec. 2011. Required reading before beginning my new job of selling Ruby on Rails app consulting. His most recent post on linkedin is the kind of gold I remember him for:
"what do you do?" Always begin with the statement “good question” and a slight pause. It’s called a “pattern disrupt” Read the post.
This Marketing Tactic Is Making Traditional PR Obsolete
TL;DR? Don't beg for a story--tell the story.
Instead of asking other publications to write about your brand, focus on developing your own storytelling channels. THIS. (applies for sales _and_ PR) And follow this rule when writing those mails.
Radness
My colleague Guy (remember he managed to get a gig DJ'ing in Peru a few weeks ago?) Well he is one of five finalists in the Exit Festival DJ competition. He could win an all-inclusive trip, accommodation and a gig at Exit Festival in Serbia!
He needs your help! Log in with twitter or FB & vote for Guy aka Josh Dupree here: djbroadcast.net/article/134469/finalisten-exit-festival-dj-competitie-bekend Do it today! Voting ends tomorrow!