Vator Splash start-up winner: Flowdock

Krystal Peak · February 2, 2012 · Short URL: https://vator.tv/n/240a

Flowdock wants to bring your team and tools together; Astrid wins People's Choice Award

Enabling engineers and development teams with tools needed to get a group project done was worth the winning spot at Vator Splash this year. The judges commended Otto Hilska, the founder and CEO, for creating a tool that could fold well into any enterprise system and allow for better communication. 

It was a tough call to pick a winner in this group of 10 great startup companies. This year we experienced a three-way tie between Flowdock, Geeklist and RollSale. Vator Splash judges were forced to vote in a tie-breaker where Flowdock came out the victor. 

As winner, Flowdock won one-hour sit-down meetings with three venture capitalist firms, including Javelin Venture Partners, Shasta Ventures and CMEA. Flowdock also won a $3600 Box enterprise package for one year, a $250 gift certificate from Zozi, an Apple iPad and a magnum of champagne.

Congrats to Astrid as well for winning the People's Choice Award.

(Editor's Note: We're now taking applications for Vator Splash LA. Apply here.)

 

Flowdock: Flowdock is a new way to group chat. You are able to upload files, paste blocks of text, use #hashtags to make notes or create lists and mention others’ names to get their attention.

This Finish-based company's service can also be used much like a shared inbox. As a group inbox, users get notifications from Web tools, apps and services in use and can then share in various ways.

SImple focused on the chat functions and integrating with different enterprise brands that want to improve their communication functionality. 

Otto Hilska, Mikael Roos and Tuomas Silen founded their first company, Nodeta, in 2004. Since then, the group has continued to innovate and build new businesses such as a Ruby on Rails hosting company, the leading Ruby on Rails consulting shop in Finland with $1 million+ projects, and helped the development community by writing APIdock, a social documentation site with more than 170,000 MAUs.

Flowdock a subscription-based Software as a Service. After a free 30-day trial period, companies pay $19 to $159 per month, depending on the team size.

The Finalists

The top 10 companies were chosen mainly based on peer voting held in the Vator Splash competition, where more than 100 companies entered in the competition. Here's a brief rundown of the 10 finalist startups.

RollSale: RollSale is a social network for car dealers. On RollSale, instead of status updates, dealers communicate the inventory they have available.

Their Web and mobile apps assist dealers in finding needed inventory faster and without the added margins brought in by auctions and wholesalers.

By broadcasting deals about inventory, vehicles needed could actually get filtered to the dealers that need them in real time so that time and money are lost, much like the normal wholesale channels function.

RollSale's user-defined, localized trading networks provide a better idea of trade-in values and allow dealers to pocket more profit than the traditonal channels used to have cars change hands.

 

 

QLess: QLess is a virtual line management system that allows guests to stay in queue via their cell phones. 

Guests enter the virtual line for a table or appointment from their phones, the Web or via a hostess, and then receive phone call or text message updates alerting them of when they are expected to be at the front of the queue. 

QLess also allows guests to call or text at any time for on-demand updates, or they can push themselves back in the line if they need more time, and even leave the line. Mobile queueing services local companies that would benefit from mobile, highly-targeted, local & timely marketing and data collection.

 

MyStand Inc.: MyStand is a transformational gaming platform that connects real world actions people and take them into the virtual world.  

Each user will have a MyStand "Impact Score" that represents the value they're creating in the world. For example, if you manage to reduce the amount of paper you waste or the electricity that you use, you will get points to reward those earth-saving efforts.

Big brands can get behind a particular set of challenges in order to combine marketing and eco-conciousness.

MyStand's has utilized technology that will verify hundreds of different actions people are taking in the world, and synthesizes the information into social networking, social gaming, online fundraising and viral marketing.

 

Geeklist : This chievement-based site was created for developers to share their work with their peers.

In Geeklist developers are able to build their achievement history and build relationships with fellow geeks and hiring managers.

It is a service that not only tells hiring managers what you built online, but what tools you used and what people you worked on the project with.

Finding engineers and developers that can do the project that you want could be made easier if you can connect all the work-projects that a person has in their resume.

For example, a developer could create a social page that says that Bob worked on the Yammer 3.0 project, he used X,Y,Z services and was part of a team of these nine people.

SocialFolders: SocialFolders is a way to manage social online content — from Facebook to Flickr — all in one place. Once SocialFolders has been connected to all of the networks you are a part of, it build a directory you can manage locally.

The service also lets you organize, sync and even back up anything you want from the social web.

Currently in beta, the service has 6,000 users, 2.2% of of which have subscribed to a paying plan.

The company is the US spin-off of ftopia, a European company providing SaaS file-centric collaborative services.

 

 

Growers First Coffee: Growers First Coffee is designed to leverage the power of consumer choice to promote long-term economic sustainability. 

By helping farmers establish their goals and addressing the needs of their communities first, this company hopes to bring more coffee from fair-trade and working farming communities around the world to market.

Through rigorous data collection, Growers First Coffee traces the transformation happening in the lives of farmers and enables consumers to establish a relationship with the source producer of their premium cup of coffee.

In a space where informing and empowering the comsumer, Growers First Coffee wants to spread the farmers market experience everyewhere. 

 

Astrid: (Which won the Vator Splash's People's Choice Award!) Astrid is a social productivity platform that helps people accomplish their work with engaging reminders and social pressure.

While to-do lists can be helpful, they are only a service if you look at them, and frequently. Astrid can be utilized by college students to share course work to busy mothers and business teams to manage companies.

Users share their goals from an iPhone, Android or Web app privately to friends or colleagues, or publicly on Facebook or Twitter. Invited guest can add or complete tasks, comment via email and monitor progress with mobile notifications.

Tracks Media, Inc.: Tracks is building the experience graphby letting users make micro-social networks around real world experiences. Using the social actions called 'tracks,’ users can map their family cruises, football season activity, or an entire year in college.

Each track created is a living social network based on thematic experiences in the real world. Tracks are framed around rich media and made over time and across locations.

 

 

 

 

 

TouristLinkTouristlink aims to offer low-cost group trips for young, urban travelers specifically in Asia.

These experiences are structured similar to existing daily deal sites so that if enough members buy the deal it will be active.   

The company also plans to offer an additional 10% discount to all the members of the deal if the deal fills to capacity -- this gives members an incentive to share the deal throughout thier personal network.  

Members will also be able to propose a travel deal on a wish list (Reverse Buy Model) and if enough other members express interest we will source the deal.

 

Note: TheComplete.me dropped out of the competition early due to a possible conflict.

TheComplete.meThis is a social graph for dating on the existing social networking environment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Related Companies, Investors, and Entrepreneurs

MyStand Inc.

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Mission Statement: To create the most powerful platform for positive global change that has ever existed.

Business Description: MyStand is the world’s first all purpose transformational gaming platform.  A platform that connects real life actions people can take in the world to make a difference... to a fun, engaging game where players quantifiably see the difference they're making in real time.  Each user will have a MyStand "Impact Score" that represents the value they're creating in the world. ex: pounds of plastic reduced per year, tree's saved, co2 reduced, electricity saved, etc. MyStand's unique technology can now verify hundreds of different actions people are taking in the world, and thus for the first time quantifiably PROVE with scoring the global difference each player is making. Mystand synthesizes social networking, social gaming, online fundraising, & viral marketing into a first of it's kind platform... with a mission to inspire millions around the world to stand up, & create the future for life they want on this planet.

Company Background: MyStand was co-founded by Jonathan Budd, an internet marketing prodigy who earned his first $10,000,000 online by age 26, & the renown organization "Pachamama Alliance" co-founded by world leading global activist & best selling author Lynne Twist, Bill Twist, & international best selling author John Perkins.

Products/Services: MyStand delivers the world’s first REAL LIFE transformational gaming platform… making it fun, easy, & quantifiably PROVABLE that each user of the site is making a REAL difference in the world. Levarging the rapid growth of social games, users will now have a social game to play that makes a meaningful difference not only in their real lives, but in the world.  Each user can see that difference reflected in their personal "impact score", which is literally a true indicator of the good/impact they are having on the planet. The core MyStand game is only one component of the MyStand product line, as well as a whole suite of additional products geared towards the social gaming, online fundraising, green advertising, & social networking market spaces.

Technologies: MyStand possesses breakthrough verification technology in the world of real life gaming. The MyStand verification processes are core to the company's unique intellectual property, and provide a signifigant advantage over all other gaming platforms emerging in the industry. For the first time... we can actually verify that people are truly doing the actions they say they are doing, & compute REAL LIFE scores of the difference people are making in the world.  MyStand is pioneering global metrics based systems that will revolutionize the gaming, & caused based industries.

Markets: MyStand’s target market is divided into several categories.  The "low hanging fruit" of people already interested in caused based activities, online fundraising, environmental sustainability, personal growth, & social gaming. With over 170,000,000 members now on CAUSES.COM, we estimate there are over 300,000,000 people worldwide in this market, who are HUNGRY for a real life game to play that makes a meaningful difference in their lives, & the world.  This market wants to see the impact they're making, they want to see change happening, & they are frustrated with the rate of progress.  MyStand now makes possible quantifiable action steps anyone can take to make a difference, with real time feedback on how they're doing... inside a fun, easy to play game.  Beyond this, we estimate there are many hundreds of millions more people who are hungry for more meaning in their lives, hungry to not just 'pass time' but ENJOY the time they're passing, & eager to be a part of something bigger than themselves. MyStand is presenting an incredible opportunity to engage humanity in an extremely meaningful game/movement to change our world for the better. More info available upon request.

Revenue Models: MyStand makes money in a variety of ways. Through the kickstarter fundraising model (transaction fee of every dollar raised across the platform), the zynga model with a % gaming revenue going back to charity (virtual goods, avatar upgrades, secret levels, etc), pay-per-click advertising targeted to real time behavioral data generated by real actions people are taking inside the game, a "green marketplace", plus information publishing. (courses, programs, live events, etc.)

Distribution Channels: MyStand has secured enromous strategic alliances with joint venture partners around the globe. The core launch database of the MyStand launch partners totals 30,000,000 pre existing subscribers across multiple industries.  Examples of MyStand joint venture partners include Jack Canfield (author of "chicken soup for the soul" series), Jack's TLC network, dozens of the largest internet marketers, authors, several strategic celebrity relationships, as well as over 1,200 independent NGO's, including the Sierra Club.  In addition to the MyStand launch strategy, MyStand employs a viral growth strategy built into the game similar to Zynga games, as well as a team of expert direct response marketers targetting search, social, & media driven advertising.

Market Research. Independently, there are social networks with a cause (wiserearth.org, unthink.com, soulneeds.com), very few transformational games (Wetopia.com, carbonrally.com, greenifygame.com), and many emerging online fundraising platforms (kickstarter.com, stayclassy.org, movember.com, etc). Sojo Studios, the maker of the game "WeTopia" just received an $8,000,000 financing round, as well funding from Ellen Degeneres.  It's clear the "gaming for good" space is emerging, yet has NO market leader & no one who's truly cracked this massive audience. MyStand is the first of any platform to track REAL LIFE actions that make a difference inside a game... that can quantifiably prove just by playing it you make the world a better place.  MyStand synthesizes each trend above under one platform, with a superior management team to execute.

Solution Management:

Founder & CEO: Jonathan Budd, Internet Marketing prodigy, made first $10,000,000 online by age 26. Grew his first company to 40+ employee's providing information products, seminars, & coaching to over 125,000 customers in the small business training niche.  Left multi-million dollar per year business to grow MyStand & fulfill on his mission of a thriving, just, & sustainable future for life on this planet.

Daniel Schmactenberger: Founder & director of Strategic Global Solutions think tank, Scientific Virtuoso, Started college 13 years old, life long work across activism & many sectors, pioneering development of new systems for global governance & economics.

Shore Slocum: Content developer for Tony Robbins Seminars for 20 years, Founder of SoulNeeds.com (over 30,000 users in beta), user experience evangelist & company culture fanatic. Member of Bamboo Management team grew company from 50-1500 employee's in 14 months with successful IPO & a 2.2 billion market cap.  Global speaker, ted talk: http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/TEDxBerkeley-Shore-Slocum-Evolu 

Sunil Rawal – Chief Technical Advisor, PhD in theoretical physics (Cambridge, MUM), Ms in artificial intelligence. 15 years of software development and database architecture. Currently working in cloud computing, crowd-sourcing, and modeling with genetic algorithms.

Jim Bunch – Serial Entrepreneur, Founder of Ultimate Game of Life coaching company, with over 10,000 clients participating in Jim's 90-day happiness, health, & wealth challenge.  Also core team member of Bamboo Management team grew company from 50-1500 employee's in 14 months with a successful IPO & a 2.2 billion market cap.

INDUSTRY

internet media & Services, Gaming and technology

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

5-50 in angel round

FINANCING SOUGHT

$1.5 million in angel round

USE OF FUNDS

Programming and code development

Graphic design and interface

core internal staff (content, design, finance, executive assistants, etc)

technology costs

Office

video/media production

Legal

Promotion and marketing

**HOW DOES THE GAME WORK?**

Use Case Studies:

#1. The Starbucks Challenge – user is logged into mystand (or app), receives notification on right hand side of the screen for a new “Quest”.  A scroll pops up, or message saying… “A New Quest is Available for You, Will You Accept?”

They click on quest link, a scroll opens with description.  “Will you Accept the Starbuck’s Quest? – Every year 10,000,000 tree’s are cut down to make paper cups that are used once, & then thrown away.  Yet these tree’s… are gone forever.
 
Will you accept the quest to save the “Sherwood Forest”, by bringing your own reusable container to starbucks the next time you get coffee, or tea? Simply bring you own cup, and take a picture within the MyStand app to upload to your challenge area.
 
Will you Accept? (yes or no)
 

  • They accept.  Next time user is in Starbucks, they pull out their phone with myStand app on it, they take picture right then and there and hit upload.  Photo uploads tagged to that challenge.  Push notifications go out to the persons network immediately saying “Johnny x” just completed the star bucks challenge.  Will you verify his challenge is complete? Crowd sourcing verification is essential.

 

  • Once verified… DING DING DING. Johnny gets 7 points, he unlocks a new level, gets the starbucks badge, watches his impact score rise RIGHT on the screen, and see's the "Social ROI" for how many tree's hes saved, co2 he's sequestered, etc... all from completing this action.  He’s ready for another quest.

 

#2: The “Edison” Quest!
 

  • 115 years ago Thomas Edison invented the lightbulb... and changed how human beings live forever.  What Edison didn’t realize though... is that 100 years later his invention would be consuming XYZ amount of global energy per year, burning coal that’s causing devastating harm to all natural life support systems.

Lets pick up where Edison left off, with a NEW kind of lightbulb that’s takes much less vital energy from our planet.  Do you accept the “edison” quest... to change all the lightbulbs in your house to be ALIGNED with your values of a sustainable, & vibrant future?

Yes or no?

Simply photograph your new lightbulbs, in each new location.  You get 2 points for each new lightbulb you replace to be green energy savers!

 

-- These are very basic examples of the HUNDREDS of different evolutionary actions we can incentivize, & make fun & interesting for people to accomplish.  The verification process is what adds the integrity to the game, knowing we can truly calculate the quantifiable impact on the world players of the game will be having.

When you add in the corporate sponsorships of gifts, rewards, & real life incentivizes that can be built into the game for people "Making the Biggest Difference"... you can truly see how this is not like any of the other games existing out there.

MyStand users do not spend their time stuck in a virtual world... they are out in their lives, taking real actions, that make a real difference, & getting rewarded for doing so.


zozi

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Zozi believes everyone should experience all the amazing things this world has to offer through unforgettable experiences like ice climbing frozen waterfalls in the Catskills, introductory flight lessons, diving for abalone, exclusive celebrity and athlete experiences, wine tasting by horseback, and more. Zozi also features weekend getaways and vacation packages for customers nationwide. Zozi is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in New York City. For more information, visit http://www.zozi.com.

Astrid

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Astrid is a social productivity platform that helps people get stuff done with engaging reminders and social pressure. It is simple enough for the casual list-maker but scales to the GTD life-hacker. It is used by college students to share workouts, busy mothers to families, and business teams to manage companies.

Users share goals from an iPhone, Android or web app privately to friends or colleagues, or publicly on Facebook or Twitter. Invited guest can add or complete tasks, comment via email and monitor progress with mobile notifications.

 

Geeklist

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Geeklist is the first ever achievement based network for developers to showcase their accomplishments, share their resources and connect with companies. ( Here's a private beta invite for Vator/Splash geekli.st/invite/founders code: bloodymary )

There is no other place on the web where you can find out who built what, using which technologies, who they built it with, when and for whom.

Inside Geeklist you'll find the worlds leading developers sharing great achievements like:

http://geekli.st/rk/i-scaled-twitter

http://geekli.st/matz/i-created-ruby

http://geekli.st/ryah/i-work-on-node

http://geekli.st/ckindel

 

RollSale

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

RollSale is a social network for car dealers; instead of status updates, dealers communicate in terms of available inventory. Our uber-simple web and mobile apps help dealers take ownership of a faster, less expensive wholesale supply chain without the bloated margins historically driven by auctions and wholesalers. RollSale's user-defined, localized trading networks power a world with less depreciation, better trade-in values for consumers (who can trade more often), & more profit for dealers.

Flowdock

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Flowdock is a beautiful group chat. You can upload files, paste blocks of text, use #hashtags to make notes or create lists and mention others’ names to get their attention.

Flowdock is also a highly efficient shared inbox. You get notifications from all the different web tools, apps and services you use, be it project management, version control, wiki etc.

The two put together means you are always on top of your game talking about the things that matter. Working together does not require you to be in the same room. And even if you are, Flowdock still makes things easier and more fun.

TouristLink

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Social Media is fundamentally changing the way people travel. The meteoric growth of sharing and collaborative consumption in travel is fueled by a desire to interact with locals and experience cultures firsthand. We envision Touristlink as the world’s largest online community of frequent travelers, locals and small travel providers.

Touristlink is now one of the fastest growing “big” social travel sites. We expect to grow our member base from 30,000 today to 300,000 in the next 8 months. The number of daily active users has grown close to 100% month/month during the last 5 months.

Touristlink lets travelers connect with each other and with locals for tours, transport, cultural, language exchanges, friendships and more. Members posting trip plans and are matched with other travelers and locals based on shared itineraries and interests. Given the current traction we feel we have cracked a model that marries personalized travel itineraries and relevant local social content.

 

SocialFolders

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

SocialFolders is rethinking the way you can manage your dynamic, social online content — from Facebook to Flickr — all in one place. Here’s how it works: After downloading the app on your computer, simply connect to your favorite social sites and get going. SocialFolders will find the content — photos, videos, docs and other files — of your choice, create an easy directory you can manage locally, and let you organize, sync and even back up anything you want from the social web.

Over 6,000 users have subscribed to SocialFolders. We have tripled our (beta) users base since the official launch on Dec 15, 2011. 78% of our users are active (downloading or uploading files through SocialFolders). 2.2% of new active users have subscribed to a paying plan. 25% of new signups are invited by existing users.

SocialFolders leadership combines a unique experience in the cloud infrastructure, collaborative services and photo-sharing spaces. The company is the US spin-off of ftopia, a European company providing SaaS file-centric collaborative services.

 

QLess

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

QLessTM: The Mobile Queueing, Marketing & CRM Company

 

The average American spends more than 2 years of her/his life waiting in lines. A line is an age-old invention to move demand from a time when it exceeds supply to one in which it does not. It is a lossy and wasteful one, for many prospective customers leave while they wait, and many become frustrated. Selected one of the Best Business Innovations by the 2009 American Business Awards, QLessTM uses mobile phones to eliminate the need to wait in a particular place in space while waiting (in time), with no special-purpose hardware or software needed.

 

QLessTM is a virtual line management system that allows guests to hold their spot in line using their cell phones.  Guests enter the virtual line for a table or appointment from their phones, the web or via a hostess, and then receive phone call or text message updates letting them know when they are ready to be served.  QLessTM is interactive: guests can call or text at any time for on-demand updates, can push themselves back in the line if they need more time, or leave the line. Mobile queueing serves as an opt-in point for highly targeted, local & timely mobile marketing, and the data collected creates the new category of mobile CRM, opening up a wealth of service personalization possibilities.

 

Try one of our demos by calling 877-4-0-LINES877-4-0-LINES  (877-405-4637877-405-4637 ) . More information available at http://waitinginlinesucks.com .

 

We conservatively estimate the total available market for QLess at over $36billion/year. 2+ years of each American life lost waiting represents 6.9% of the average work-life expectancy, or $936 billion of the GDP lost yearly that could be reclaimed with QLess, an independent validation of the tremendous value of solving the waiting problem.

 

Benefits

End-User

>       Enables customers to join a line remotely.Join “virtual waitlists” by calling or text-messaging from their cell phones,by instant-messaging (IM), or through the Web.

>       Gives consumers room to roam.Pursue whatever activities they want, wherever they wish, while QLess holds their place in line

>       Promotes Public Health.By dispersing customers, there is less waiting in crowded environments where germs naturally spread.

>       Lets customer tweak their arrival time.Consumers can “push back” their place in line any number of minutes. Everybody else’s wait gets adjusted accordingly.

>       Plan ahead. Obtain estimated wait-times (which QLess calculates automatically, even factoring in no-shows and turn-aways along with other wait-time elements).

 

Business

·        Increased customer satisfaction.Our customers have experienced a surge in positive reviews in sites such as Yelp, and these mention QLessTM.

·        Increase revenues. Allow customers to shop while they wait. American shoppers spend about $1/min while shopping at a mall.

·        Reduce no-shows by 15% to 40% & turn-aways by 75%. Freedom increases patience, and QLess acts as a digital tether to reel prospective customers into our customers' businesses when the business is ready to serve them.

·        Brings the power of web analytics to brick & mortar shops. Average wait time, customer outcomes(served vs. abandoned, ...), customer geography, customer return rates customer by customer, per wait time, day visited, time visited, employee, unprecedented visibility into what makes customers tick.  

·        Mobile Marketing. 80% to 96% of QLess users provide us with their cell phone numbers. Users can opt in to SMS &/or voice coupons, news & more.

·        Personalization. QLessTM allows customers to personalize their every interaction with each patron, keeping track of previous visits and preferences (language, …).

·        Maximize throughput. Active dynamic scheduling eliminates appointment-based scheduling in favor of appointments updated in real-time based on the duration of prior appointments and real-time mobile communications.

·        Can be deployed anywhere lines form. No specialized software or hardware necessary. Because QLessTMis a hosted Web application, all a customer needs is a laptop, tablet or phone and an Internet connection. 

·        Learns over time.Gets smarter and smarter. Sophisticated algorithms allow QLessTM, to project increasingly accurate wait times based on real-time and historical data. QLess proved that wait time forecast accuracy predicts customer return rates. 

·        Allows simultaneous and remote viewing of the Queue. Any number of users can log on and manage the line simultaneously. Perfect for remote oversight. 

·        Environmentally Friendly. By shifting ticket generation from the physical to the virtual,companies no longer need to print tickets or keep physical pagers. 

 

Advertisers

QLess allows advertisers to reach customers:

Ø with unprecedented targeting capabilities, based on:

o  the customer’s exact location at the time of receiving the ad

o  what they are trying to do at the time of receiving the ad

o  their purchase history and lifestyle

Ø at a time when they are waiting, and thus receptive to distractions;

Ø as they are entering a point of sale (e.g. retail establishment).

 

Customers

QLessTM has been successfully deployed at a number of award-winning restaurants, DMVs, colleges, retail stores, healthcare, transportation, and government facilities, including the City of Austin, and has freed more than 100,000 users from standing in line. QLess will be soon deployed at a number of leading facilities in the gaming, theme park and beauty industries, too.

 

The Team

The team includes an award-winning Ph.D. and veteran entrepreneur from MIT, Caltech and McKinsey who's already grown another company from conception to profitability, an experienced technology leader from Yahoo who has already grown a number of successful start-ups and an experienced sales team.

 

Traction

QLess has grown revenues by an average of 200% per year since launch. Customers range in size from small independent restaurants to T-mobile. Testimonials include:

“I think overall it’s a very good system. Customers really like it. The day we had a really long wait, everything was perfect.. On a 1 to 10 scale, I’d give it a 9. Educating people [about their wait] helps tremendously. It’s perfect, it really is.”
--Patricia Rogers, Citizen Services Director, Office of the Mayor, City of Nashua, NH.

“Any simpler and it would do it itself!... At our Divisional Staff meeting Sherry had some very complimentary things to say about Qless and it’s staff as well. We would like you to consider us a strong reference for your firm should you wish to provide my contact info to any potential opportunity.” –John Barker, IT Director, Motor Vehicle Registration.

QLess is a great friggen idea!
--Mike Schroepfer, VP Engineering, Facebook

 

More testimonials can be provided upon request.

 

 Press

 QLess has been featured in Mashable, the New York Times blog by Freakonomics authors, Nation's Restaurant News, QSR Web (Quick Service Restaurants), the American Academy of Family Physicians, Mobile Marketer, Aviation Week, Chain Store Age and blogs around the world. See qless.com/press for details.

 

  

 

Save

TouristLink

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Social Media is fundamentally changing the way people travel. The meteoric growth of sharing and collaborative consumption in travel is fueled by a desire to interact with locals and experience cultures firsthand. We envision Touristlink as the world’s largest online community of frequent travelers, locals and small travel providers.

Touristlink is now one of the fastest growing “big” social travel sites. We expect to grow our member base from 30,000 today to 300,000 in the next 8 months. The number of daily active users has grown close to 100% month/month during the last 5 months.

Touristlink lets travelers connect with each other and with locals for tours, transport, cultural, language exchanges, friendships and more. Members posting trip plans and are matched with other travelers and locals based on shared itineraries and interests. Given the current traction we feel we have cracked a model that marries personalized travel itineraries and relevant local social content.

 

Tracks Media, Inc.

Startup/Business

Joined Vator on

Tracks is building the experience graph.  The Tracks mobile and web service that lets users effortlessly make micro-social networks around real world experiences. 'Tracks’ can be geo, temporal or last forever. Make tracks for a family cruise, football season, date nights, pub crawls, a year in college. Each track is a living social network based on thematic experiences in the real world. Tracks are framed around rich media and made over time and across locations. This lightweight concept lets users map fluid real world networks.

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Glenn Parrish

Joined Vator on

9963

Philippe Honigman

Joined Vator on

Founder of VC-backed SkyRecon (acquired by Arkoon) and ftopia, winner of HEC Entrepreneur Prize, collaborative/storage apps expert, UX designer.
103175

Vic Singh

Joined Vator on

Vic Singh is a two-time entrepreneur and venture capitalist in the mobile space. He is Founder and CEO of Tracks and a Founding General Partner with ENIAC Ventures.
106517

Reuben Katz

Joined Vator on

I'm building Geeklist. I founded my first VC backed company in '99 and sold it in 2002. Been building businesses since. This is by far my most exciting...
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Alex Backer

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Brian Bowman

Joined Vator on

102676

David Urmann

Joined Vator on

Founder of Touristlink.com a social network that lets travelers connect with each other and with locals for tours, transport, cultural, language exchanges, friendships and more.
104974

Otto Hilska

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Founder of Nodeta Consulting, Nodeta Hosting, APIdock and now Flowdock. 8+ years of software entrepreneurship, agile methods, huge Ruby on Rails projects, real-time web and scalable architectures.
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Mike Nichols

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Jon Paris

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Astrid Co-founder Graceful Tools Co-Founder Campus director IVCF at Stanford / MA Fuller Seminary BA UC Berkeley Physical Sciences
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Jonathan Budd

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