More than the Money: Two Important Elements of an Investment Pitch

One of my close friends, Mac, called me the other day to help him review his business plan for a tech startup. Although I could easily help with a referral, I thought it would be easier and more practical to provide him advice when pitching to investors.

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As a venture capitalist who has heard many pitches, I have discovered two important elements that entrepreneurs need to take into account when seeking funding. And trust me, most of the time, it is not really about the money and how you can grow my investment through your “grand” idea.

Remember, investors get hundreds of pitches every year, and the reality is, they can’t spend all their time sifting through all the proposals to find that needle in the haystack. So as an investor, here are two important elements to incorporate in your investment pitch:

A good story. Most investors base their judgment on your ambition and your story. Craft your pitch as if you are creating a storyboard for a movie. If you think your business is the next Facebook or Twitter, be confident, bold, and go for it. Inspire them in any way you can.

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A strategy. A good story must be backed by a solid strategy. Never forget, business is business. As investors, we always try to envision the end of a story and what the future will look like for us as investors. You should show investors that your best interest is their success. If you want your pitch to stand out, make sure that you have a good story and strategy to win not only the approval but also the heart of your investors.

Hi! I am Taihwa Terry Ho, a capital investor by trade. Follow me on Facebook to learn more ideas on venture capital investing.

Understanding the Risks Involved in Mobile Apps

 As with everything else, mobile apps have their own risks. These challenges need to be recognized, not to dissuade people from developing them but for both investors and developers alike to understand the industry. This would mean more educated decisions and a deeper knowledge of how to work within the market.

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The mobile app industry is quite different from other industries in that it has grown incredibly fast over a short period. It has blossomed into a worldwide phenomenon that has affected all other industries; and yet, when closely considered, it still relatively a child in terms of growth and potential. That said, people often fail to scrutinize the industry for the inherent risks and what can be done to mitigate them. Too many developers create apps without first considering these risks. For the new capital investor, this could also mean that apps may be supported without proper research.

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The main risk in mobile apps is security. The basic platform in mobile app development has been so refined that a person with an average amount of talent can create a rather basic app. These apps need not be ugly. In fact, the concept of the app may even have merits. Nevertheless, security is an often neglected area. So where the concept is acceptable, the integrity of the app may be questioned. This is highly important for an app that requires users to input sensitive or personal information. Both capital investors and developers need to acknowledge the necessity of a strong security measurement.

Even with sophisticated security barriers, there is still the risk of hacking. As the industry grows and develops, so does the criminal aspects of it. Again, these cautions are written not to discourage mobile app development but to impress the necessity of proper disclosure between an app developer and his or her capital investor.

Learn more about the mobile app industry by following Taihwa Terry Ho on Twitter.

Mobile trading: Best mobile apps for investors

Like driving, investing is best done with your eyes open. Luckily today, there are mobile apps designed to help investors make sound and reasonable decisions.

If you are planning to invest, here some of the best mobile apps that will surely boost your profits:

Acorns. One of the top choices for first-time investors, Acorns offers a simple and intelligent automatic investment system. Jeff Cruttenden, co-founder and COO of Acorns, describes the app as a unique application for both new and experienced investors who want a quick, easy, and automatic way to invest their money.

SigFig Investing. Listed as one of best personal investment apps for iPhone by iMore.com, SigFig Investing is an easy-to-use personal investment app that collates all your existing investment accounts. The app also shows the user’s current standing in the market and delivers breaking industry news that pertains to your investments. It supports over 100 different brokerages across the country.

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Stock Market Simulator. Compared to other apps, the Stock Market Simulator isn’t used as a decision-making tool for actual trading. Rather, it serves as a tool for first-time investors to learn how the stock market works without losing any actual money.

Image source: ygeiagroup.com

Today, there are many mobile applications that can help you get a comprehensive view of the market. Using these apps, you can get personalized news and updates on companies in your portfolio for more effective and efficient investments decision.

Hi! I am Taihwa Terry Ho, a Silicon Valley-based a capital investor with deep interest in app development. Like my Facebook page for more news and features on tech, apps, and social media.

Sightseeing in style: Mobile apps for travel buffs

With the unstoppable advancement of technology, the art of traveling has changed dramatically in the past decade. Today, data are readily available in everyone’s pockets, and for travelers, this means not worrying about losing out on ideas whenever they reach their destinations.

Here are some of the best and most useful apps for travel enthusiasts:

• Google Maps – Carrying a physical map is slowly becoming a thing of the past. Google’s free app allows tourists to get directions and commute suggestions for their next stop. 

• CityMaps2Go – An offline map, this free app is for travelers without access to Wi-Fi zones. They only need to download the maps ahead of time, and they can go out and sightsee worry-free. 

Image source: Bloomberg.com

• XE Currency – Need to compute currencies on-the-go? This app is your friend! 

• Gogobot – A social travel app, Gogobot helps users find restaurants and hotels in the area. By using this app, the user can access to photos, information, and ratings that other users have uploaded about different establishments.

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• Instagram – With millions of users, Instagram is the perfect app for tourists who love documenting and sharing their explorations via photographs. Furthermore, by following travel bloggers on this platform, users can gather information about the next travel destination they should visit.

 Taihwa Terry Ho here, a capital investor based in Silicon Valley. I invest mainly in app development startups. If you enjoyed what you’ve read here, feel free to subscribe to my Twitter feed to receive more updates on the world of technology.

Vine: How Six-Second Videos Create Lasting Impact

Social media is a fickle beast in which no one can predict what would go viral from time to time. Though there’s no distinct measure to determine social media’s next big thing, the new generation of Vine auteurs is stretching six seconds to infinity as a way to make lasting impact and increase content virality amid the Internet’s unpredictable state.

Image source: money.cnn.com

Skeptics may view Vine as another bastion of mundanity, but the social media app has the backing of most advertisers and users who see the potential in pushing the boundaries of creativity in the presence of constraints. Six seconds may not seem long enough to lay everything out on the table, but for brands and marketers that’s all they need to create something that the attention-deficient audience would loop multiple times and interact with.

Brands like General Electric and GAP are quick to seize the potential of the social media app to build awareness and push the brand at the top of the marketing funnel. Some of the campaigns are essentially animated GIFs and epic compilations of elements that dominate every platform of the Internet. Videos of cats and dogs tend to be among the most shareable items while sensational ones remain flexible enough to take on any new service. This viral component coupled with effective hashtag, aggregators, and easy-to-digest well-written message help make the video highly shareable.

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Filmmaker Orson Welles captured the very essence of stop-motion videos when he said that “the enemy of art is the absence of limitation.” If anything, the six-second limit of the video-sharing service compounds users to add new depth to every content, condensing what seemed to be an outcome of long-term marketing planning into few seconds of viewing pleasure that creates a chain reaction that grows exponentially across the social media landscape.

Taihwa Terry Ho, here, a capital investor looking for tech startups and app developers which show promise for the future of mobile devices. Follow me on Twitter for more news and features on tech, apps, and social media.

REPOST: Facebook unveils Anonymous Login for apps to improve user privacy

Security and privacy are crucial to establishing a fulfilling Facebook experience. Check out the following article to know what the social media giant has just recently launched to improve its security settings.

Users can choose to hide personal information from third-party apps. |
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Facebook in a move to further personalise user’s experience, has come out with two new features which allows people to have more control over their personal information. The social networking giant today announced -Anonymous Login and Facebook Login- on their official blog. While Anonymous Login will allow users to log into apps more privately, Facebook Login is aimed at providing its users with better privacy control settings. The announcement was made after some users complained of having to share their personal information with apps and wanted more control over the information received by apps.

“Anonymous Login lets people log in to apps so they don’t have to remember usernames and passwords, but it doesn’t share personal information from Facebook. People can decide later if they want to share any additional information, once they understand more about the apps,” said the Facebook blog.

Last year, people logged into apps and websites with Facebook Login over 10 billion times. This allowed them to log into the apps with the same usernames and passwords. The Anonymous Login is currently being tested and can be expect to be available soon.

Facebook also plans to roll out the new Facebook Login in the coming months. The new version of the login will allow users to choose what information they share with an app. The feature gives people an option of unchecking categories of information. “For example, if someone wants to share their email address with an app, but not their birthday, they can make that choice with a couple taps,” according to the blog.

The new Facebook Login also requires permission to post to Facebook wall. In order to keep a track of all the connected apps, Facebook has also modified it’s App Control Panel and has announced a newly designed dashboard where people can see a list of apps they use, manage specific permissions, or remove apps entirely. The redesigned app control panel is also expected to release soon.

As a technophile, I definitely want my social media accounts safe and secure. Follow me on Twitter for similar stories. Taihwa Terry Ho here.

Click to start fresh: How to spring-clean your mobile device

Winter is over, and the sun finally begins to ogle from the clouds. Soon, the crisp air of spring will arrive to summon not only day of cheers, but days perfect for cleaning your homes, offices, and other spaces. It's a good time to give your smartphones a thorough cleanup, too. Here's a brief guide to get you started:

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First things first, copy and store your files off of your phones. Both iOS (iPhoto, Image Capture) and Android (Windows Photo Gallery) have built-in applications to safeguard all items on your photo and video galleries. How about your contacts, call lists, music, and your current level or status of your favorite gaming app? You can either do file sharing from within iTunes or use third-party tools like DiskAid, Ecamm's PhoneView, or Macroplant's iExplorer, which allows restoring giant loads of data in a few clicks and swipes.

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Weed out unnecessary apps, files, and all other digital content that take up precious storage space. Mobile tools such as Clean Master removes spam content, speeds up the processor’s performance, and keeps existing data from viruses, system shutdowns, and other headaches. Likewise, CCleane and History Eraser give smartphones a thorough clean, sweeping off stray files, wiping cache data and empty folders, and deleting browser history and call logs.

Update your existing applications, or better yet, replace outdated apps with new, more responsive ones. Before shopping for new apps and upgrades, check if your apps remain active so that you will be spared from bugs and other issues the moment you decide to avail of the latest version of your operating system.

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Download apps that can keep your files and organized from hereon. CoBook and Contacts+ organize your phone and social media contacts and group them automatically based on the fields you have encoded. Attachments.me allows for easier search whenever you need to retrieve photos, documents, and other files you sent through Gmail.  

Seeing the promise that mobile technology holds, technophile and rising entrepreneur Taihwa Terry Ho has invested in the development of apps and similar capabilities. Follow him on Twitter to get tips on making the best use out of your gadgets and software.