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BidMyAtoZ.com Announced as a Finalist in SDVG PitchFest 2008
Last night our CEO, Ray accompanied by our CTO, Gavin did a 10 minutes presentation for the SDVG judging panel together with the 10 other semi-finalists. Earlier today we got the great news that we have made the finals of the SDVG's annual PitchFest. Three companies were chosen to present at the final round to be held on December 3rd in La Jolla, San Diego.
The final round is a 10 minute pitch to an large audience at a dinner to be held at the Hyatt Regency. The winner will be decided by an audience vote and will be presented with a $20,000 check that night. In these tough times, every young company would be very happy to receive $20,000 and at www.BidMyAtoZ.com we are no exception.
The other two finalists are LifeModeler, Inc. and www.TheSportsTV.com. The semi-finalists did not get to sit in on the last round of presentations so we look forward to getting to see their stuff at the final round.
The final round is a 10 minute pitch to an large audience at a dinner to be held at the Hyatt Regency. The winner will be decided by an audience vote and will be presented with a $20,000 check that night. In these tough times, every young company would be very happy to receive $20,000 and at www.BidMyAtoZ.com we are no exception.
The other two finalists are LifeModeler, Inc. and www.TheSportsTV.com. The semi-finalists did not get to sit in on the last round of presentations so we look forward to getting to see their stuff at the final round.
SDVG Pitchfest 2008 Semi-Finalist
We were recently chosen as one of 10 semi-finalists in the San Diego Venture Group's ninth annual Pitchfest. The competition was open to any firm based in Southern California that has raised less than $2.5 million in institutional venture capital. We were required to submit our business plan and a powerpoint presentation which was reviewed by a screening committee of local business advisers and venture capitalists whose selections narrowed the field to the 10 semifinalists and we were very excited to see our name BidMyAtoZ on the list of 10.
Peter Shaw, Pitchfest committee chairman says the competition is "an opportunity for young companies in Southern California to present their business plan to leading venture investors, fellow entrepreneurs and business advisers - you simply can't buy that kind of access."
Three companies are selected for the final round after all 10 of us pitch to a panel of judges on 10th November 2008. Raymond will be delivering our pitch with Gavin supporting him on the technology demo. The pressure is on though because we have only 10 minutes to tell our story and convince the judging panel that we deserve to be one of the final three. There is a 10 minute Q&A session after the pitch. The judging panel is comprised of highly respected venture capital and angel investors so we are excited to have this opportunity to engage with them even if it is for such a brief period.
The final round is an event on December 3rd where the three finalists will present to an audience expected to be about 350 people. Based on a ballot vote from the audience, the winner with receive a $20,000 check.
This is an amazing opportunity to be seen by all the right people and if we win to get some great exposure so check back on November 11th and December 4th to see how we did!
Peter Shaw, Pitchfest committee chairman says the competition is "an opportunity for young companies in Southern California to present their business plan to leading venture investors, fellow entrepreneurs and business advisers - you simply can't buy that kind of access."
Three companies are selected for the final round after all 10 of us pitch to a panel of judges on 10th November 2008. Raymond will be delivering our pitch with Gavin supporting him on the technology demo. The pressure is on though because we have only 10 minutes to tell our story and convince the judging panel that we deserve to be one of the final three. There is a 10 minute Q&A session after the pitch. The judging panel is comprised of highly respected venture capital and angel investors so we are excited to have this opportunity to engage with them even if it is for such a brief period.
The final round is an event on December 3rd where the three finalists will present to an audience expected to be about 350 people. Based on a ballot vote from the audience, the winner with receive a $20,000 check.
This is an amazing opportunity to be seen by all the right people and if we win to get some great exposure so check back on November 11th and December 4th to see how we did!
First Blog Post - Hello and Welcome
Hi and welcome! BidMyAtoZ in now officially live with our website and blog. We've been operating for quite a while already but were mainly focused on our first service, BidMyCleaning.com that launched in April 2008.
My name is Candice and I will be the most frequent voice on our blog, although I will be joined from time to time by Gavin who will blog about our technology and new feature launches, Ray our CEO who will share his insights into the online service industry and our place in it and O'Brian who is our provider and operations expert.
With the launch of BidMyCleaning.com we became the first online marketplace for services that allows you to receive instant bids from several local service providers, review them by reading their profile information and customer reviews and then schedule online immediately.
The internet had made finding and reviewing service providers easier, but there had been little improvement in the process of getting comparative pricing, scheduling the services and making payment certainly compared to the point, click and wait for delivery that we enjoy when purchasing products online. Living in an eBay and Amazon world where books, clothes, music and a host of other physical goods can be found and purchased in just minutes, we have come to appreciate the convenience and time saving the internet can offer. We have come to expect the ability to log in to our account at any time to make changes, view our transaction history and update our preferences.
So, why was there no similar online offering for services that combined comparison shopping, ratings and reviews and immediate transactability together with the convenience of 24/7 account management. When Craiglist launched they provided the ability to find many providers with a quick search but you'd still have to e-mail or call each of the providers to get a bid and then after choosing one, to schedule a service. There was also no easy way to know whether you were dealing with a reputable provider that would render a quality service. Sites like AngiesList, Yelp, Kudzu now provide the ability to find providers and read customer reviews but once you find one you like you still have to complete the rest of the process offline. Recently some new sites began to offer you the ability to schedule and make payment online but you can only do this with one single service provider so you have to know who you want to use.
Our vision for BidMyAtoZ is to make it quick, easy and convenient for anyone to connect with a service provider and provide the tools to schedule an appointment and manage an ongoing relationship over time. We set out to build a marketplace where you can go to find any one of a whole host of services and from one account manage your relationships with all your service providers whether it be your maid, your gardener or your pest control provider. If you move, your account will move with you and it will be as easy as logging in and doing a new search for local providers to get you all set up with your regular services.
We hope you join us as we grow our marketplace from our first service, BidMyCleaning.com (maid service, window cleaning and carpet cleaning) to a marketplace where your every service need will be represented. Watch this space for announcements about new launches, new features and any other news and insights we have to share. Visit us here to join in the conversation about how we can make our marketplace truly meet your needs.
My name is Candice and I will be the most frequent voice on our blog, although I will be joined from time to time by Gavin who will blog about our technology and new feature launches, Ray our CEO who will share his insights into the online service industry and our place in it and O'Brian who is our provider and operations expert.
With the launch of BidMyCleaning.com we became the first online marketplace for services that allows you to receive instant bids from several local service providers, review them by reading their profile information and customer reviews and then schedule online immediately.
The internet had made finding and reviewing service providers easier, but there had been little improvement in the process of getting comparative pricing, scheduling the services and making payment certainly compared to the point, click and wait for delivery that we enjoy when purchasing products online. Living in an eBay and Amazon world where books, clothes, music and a host of other physical goods can be found and purchased in just minutes, we have come to appreciate the convenience and time saving the internet can offer. We have come to expect the ability to log in to our account at any time to make changes, view our transaction history and update our preferences.
So, why was there no similar online offering for services that combined comparison shopping, ratings and reviews and immediate transactability together with the convenience of 24/7 account management. When Craiglist launched they provided the ability to find many providers with a quick search but you'd still have to e-mail or call each of the providers to get a bid and then after choosing one, to schedule a service. There was also no easy way to know whether you were dealing with a reputable provider that would render a quality service. Sites like AngiesList, Yelp, Kudzu now provide the ability to find providers and read customer reviews but once you find one you like you still have to complete the rest of the process offline. Recently some new sites began to offer you the ability to schedule and make payment online but you can only do this with one single service provider so you have to know who you want to use.
Our vision for BidMyAtoZ is to make it quick, easy and convenient for anyone to connect with a service provider and provide the tools to schedule an appointment and manage an ongoing relationship over time. We set out to build a marketplace where you can go to find any one of a whole host of services and from one account manage your relationships with all your service providers whether it be your maid, your gardener or your pest control provider. If you move, your account will move with you and it will be as easy as logging in and doing a new search for local providers to get you all set up with your regular services.
We hope you join us as we grow our marketplace from our first service, BidMyCleaning.com (maid service, window cleaning and carpet cleaning) to a marketplace where your every service need will be represented. Watch this space for announcements about new launches, new features and any other news and insights we have to share. Visit us here to join in the conversation about how we can make our marketplace truly meet your needs.
