This post is to capture a great ‘lessons learned’ running a 99Designs competition coming from the Quixey team.

1. Research – The key to a great competition is understanding how 99designs works. We highly recommend reading the information provided by 99designs along with doing some online research of your own. It also doesn’t hurt to read other peoples’ briefs, how they interacted in their competition, and what people wrote as feedback. Having a good handle on what to expect will make the competition run smoother and you’ll be better prepared.
2. Game Plan – Once we researched the hell out of it we realized that to do it right we needed to be dedicated, put in a good amount of time, and make our prize compelling enough to attract top notch designers. We ensured we had the time and were willing to make the commitment before ever launching the competition.
3. Correct Pricing – Ensure that you price your competition competitively and pre-pay to show determination. We can’t stress enough how important it is to price your competition appropriately to the difficulty of the project. Since our site is dynamic and has an added layer of complexity, we were going to price it on the higher end of the spectrum.

You can read the full post here.

DocStoc is Invaluable to a Startup…here’s why.

If you run a startup or have anything to do with the operations, you understand that searching online for boilerplate documents is a tedious process full of spammy sites that try to get your info and sell as lead gen to companies like DocStoc or other professional service company like a lawyer, accountant, or agent.

While no two deals are ever alike, it never hurts to start with something that has passed a legal redline before. Save cycles by starting with a boilerplate, and add in your own terms. A LOT of documents on DocStoc are free, but they have a paid version as well. If you think of the amount of money you spend asking your lawyer to pull some docs for you, the premium version of DocStoc pays for itself.

Morgan Lewis has a great resource for early stage companies around legal and organizational decisions that can be critical to the success of your company. Check it out here…

Good legal resources by a great law firm...

After a trip to Jordan’s Lobster Dock, its time to get these tasty creatures to the grill. Teach a man to fish…