The team at Vend, a San Francisco, CA based point-of-sale software company in the USA, has built a multitude of features into their retailer software that can be confusing to the average person—from inventory management and digital receipt generation to customer loyalty capabilities and an analytics dashboard.

Such abundant functionality is great for users, but can be a headache for the marketing team. How do you convey all those benefits in a short presentation that doesn’t lose the audience’s attention?

Vend seems to have found the answer, as evidenced by a brief video it shares with prospects via YouTube and other channels. Using in-house talent, including writers Simon Pound and Nick Houldsworth and their Director of Design, Michael Ramirez, the segment earned the company its second Gold Stevie® Award in three years.

The goal: communicate everything the app can do, in just two minutes. That’s no easy task when your product’s prime benefit is being an all-in-one solution that retailers can turn to for their sales optimization needs.

The creatives at Vend developed a video that laid out the software’s top five selling points, but also imparted a lively feel that keeps the viewer engaged. To do that, they used animation that quickly bounces from one scene to the next. Underscoring the narration is buoyant music—a contribution from James Dansey—that gives the work a lively, playful feel.

One of the virtues of the video is that, for its considerable scope, it never loses the viewer. The uncluttered graphics certainly help. Throughout the piece, for example, the team uses the same flower pot to represent the merchandise it can help users manage.

The resulting production is proof that you don’t need an off-the-wall idea or gimmicks to make a great video. Sometimes a simple idea and solid execution will do the trick.

The payoff: a Gold Stevie in The 2017 American Business Awards for best video in the sales-technology category—not bad for a $5,000 internal production. Considering the company brought home a Gold in 2015 for a product overview video, the creative team is clearly on a roll.

Reflecting on that initial win, Pound says the impact was significant. “That was great. It helped us recruit, get media attention, and double down on a creative approach,” he says. “It opened doors with partners and led to us winning other awards in Stevies around the world.”

The Growing Role of Video 

Since its founding in 2010, Vend’s cloud-based point-of-sale and retail platform has become the tool of choice for sellers around the globe. It’s now used by more than 20,000 stores in over 150 countries. Through its mobile platform, the company likes to say that users are able to run “the next generation of retail.”

In addition to its San Francisco headquarters, the company now has offices in Auckland, Toronto, London, and Melbourne, and has raised more than $45 million (U.S.) from top-tier investors.

A smart marketing strategy has certainly helped hasten that growth. Online video, in particular, has proven to be an effective medium, Pound says, because it’s being used in a way that marketers can easily track.

“We are loving that with new retargeting and audience creation tools available to us we can now measure and convert from video, meaning it is back in the front of our plans,” he explains.

This latest video, entitled “5 ways Vend will transform your business,” has proven to be a particularly powerful tool. People who have seen the video on Vend’s website are twice as likely to request a demo and take a trial.

The production was also key to a re-engagement campaign for older leads that it was trying to convert. The effort led to 200 trials, simply by showing how the software has evolved in a compelling way.

It’s not the only video for which the company has received attention of late. Its recent e-commerce and PayPal videos have also won awards for their ability to drive results.

What’s the formula for success? “Quality, creativity, and originality,” says Pound. “And trying to make complex things simple.”

It’s a recipe that seems to be catching the attention of business owners, not to mention a panel of experienced judges. “Winning Stevie Awards have been huge for our business to ensure we are at a world-class level,” Pound says.

Media owners look for technology they can trust to help them gain complete control over monetized content with video advertising. SpotX is a company in the United States that considers themselves to be a one-stop solution, offering modern ad serving and sophisticated programmatic capabilities with an entire suite of integrations and ad units across all devices. This work has led them to win the Gold Stevie® Award for “Maverick of the Year” in The 2017 American Business Awards

Getting the message across

SpotX is a video advertising and monetization platform with 20 offices across the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific. Their technology powers modern ad serving, programmatic enablement, and other advanced video monetization tools for a variety of different media owners, such as PBS, Spotify, E.W. Scripps, Zynga, and Conde Nast. In October 2017, RTL Group, a leader across broadcast, content and digital, completed its 100% acquisition of SpotX which is currently combining its business with smartclip, a sister company. SpotX was founded in 2007 by Mike Shehan and Steve Swoboda, CEO and CFO respectively, and has nearly 600 employees.

Exceptional leadership

Publishers use SpotX to connect all of their demand sources—ad networks, DSPs (demand-side platforms), trading desks, and exchanges—creating a single place where media owners have complete control and actionable insights to maximize revenue. Mike Shehan is excited about the attention they’ve received.

“This award has helped us elevate our Chief Revenue Officer in-market and highlighted his exceptional leadership across members of our global team.”

Shehan continues on about how the Stevies specifically impacted their Chief Revenue Officer.

“Our Stevies winner, Sean Buckley, was named Chief Revenue Officer at SpotX last year at the age of 29, making him the fourth C-level executive at our company. Sean's tenacity and deep knowledge of the complex ad tech industry have contributed to his rapid rise and we're thrilled to have such a dynamic leader as a member of our team.”

Adapting to the Future

SpotX is deeply involved in the ongoing industry discussion around the rise of OTT video and the rapid adoption of programmatic advertising across desktop, mobile, and connected TV devices. “We've gained an early foothold in the burgeoning Asia-Pacific region, where mobile adoption over the last few years has spurred enormous growth in video advertising,” says Shehan.

As a leader in the over-the-top (OTT) video space, SpotX continues to drive home the importance of understanding how media buyers and sellers think about OTT advertising. In February 2018, the company announced detailed insights about the current state of video advertising on OTT in a report called “TV is Total Video: Predicting OTT and the Future of Video Advertising.” SpotX also announced a strategic integration with JW Player to launch Video Player Bidding, a new way to help reduce video latency and improve monetization for publishers with just one click.

SpotX is also a strong proponent of the server-to-server bidding model for ad inventory, aiming to educate the industry on the many benefits and efficiencies that it provides for media owners. Shehan comments on an organizational change they made that helped solidify their success today.

“We united the departments that serve our two distinct groups of customers under central leadership, spurring collaboration across our global teams.”

The adaptability of leadership in making sure that you’re always innovating and staying ahead of the competition is crucial in the world of video, and SpotX is all about “X marks the spot.”

For companies looking to hire a marketing agency, making a decision is usually dependent on accepting certain tradeoffs. You can either get the boutique provider that’s energetic and responsive to your needs, or go with a bigger outfit that has more resources and a recognized brand name.

Strunk Media Group has tried to eschew that binary choice, and it’s proving to be a winning formula. The American firm prides itself on providing the full menu of options that clients need, from website design and digital advertising to print and billboard marketing. But the eight-employee team also conveys a unique, playful attitude that’s in line with its young, tight-knit staff. “We’re different on purpose,” says co-founder and CEO Matthew Strunk.

Since its inception in 2015, the agency has already garnered over 40 clients who have bought into its “all of the above” message. Based in Kutztown, Pennsylvania, a town in the United States with just over 5,000 residents, the burgeoning company has found success by recognizing trends and finding creative ways to adapt.

“There is no doubt that the marketing industry will continue to transform with the evolution of the internet, but successful and proactive marketing professionals evolve with it,” says Strunk, who continues to serve as a U.S. Air Force reservist, even as he steers the company through a period of swift growth.

“While traditional advertising methods are still relevant, Strunk Media has been using online methods such as Facebook advertising, Google AdWords, YouTube, Pandora commercials and ringless voice drops delivered directly to consumer cell phones,” he says. “These methods have proven successful through higher impression rates, more involved customer engagement and specific targeting capabilities.”

Whereas marketing companies are sometimes seen as places where creativity is valued more than strategy, Strunk and his team are trying to meld the two. Each marketing campaign is created specifically for the needs of a given client and based on extensive research, he says.. For example, customers who hire the group for digital services receive a web audit that addresses weaknesses in their internet presence, something that helps the agency design a targeted action plan.

Realizing a Dream

In 2017, Strunk Media took home not one, but two Stevie Awards at The American Business Awards in New York City. The firm earned the Silver Stevie for “Startup of the Year” in the Business Services category and a Bronze Stevie for “Veteran-Owned Business of the Year.”

“As a new company, winning the Stevie Awards has given Strunk Media Group validation that its marketing methods are working,” Strunk says. “These awards are the first nationally-based recognition Strunk has received, which is a tremendous accomplishment.”

“Recognition from these awards will grow awareness of our brand, helping it meet new potential clients and become a better-known company,” he added.

For all the acclaim the company has received in a short period of time, the company nearly didn’t get off the ground. Strunk recalls having to think twice before leaving a steady job overseeing marketing for a local auto dealership.

“The biggest challenge we faced was gaining the courage to leave safe careers and risk everything for a business that could become amazingly successful or be a tremendous flop,” he says. “It’s easy to talk about your dreams, but implementing action to achieve those dreams takes an immense amount of energy, time and money. But once our plan was in motion, the needed energy to continue pushing forward has not been lacking in the slightest.”

In Strunk’s case, starting a new venture involves an added challenge: having a CEO who could be called into active military duty on short notice. Strunk says he’s tried to develop a team that’s as committed to the organization’s success as he is, something that will certainly pay off should his reserve unit ever be deployed.

“Each member of the company cares about delivering the highest quality work for clients while pursuing innovative ways to obtain new business and help the company grow,” he says.

Building chemistry amongst employees is a key part of that enthusiasm, and it’s something staff members try to do outside the office as well, whether it’s a weekly happy hour or a team lunch.

“These casual bonding moments help the team get to know their co-workers, strengthening the Strunk bond,” he says.

It is two minutes and fifty-three seconds of simple, but remarkably effective storytelling.

A silver-haired man, dressed in a dark sport coat, walks through the streets of Norman, an unpretentious American town in the heart of Oklahoma. As he slowly meanders down the city streets, he recites a poem in his measured, slightly raspy voice.

The first verse describes a frazzled gentleman who, upon visiting a friend, begins to open up about his latest difficulties. If not for its business slant, like worries over “negative cash flow,” it would be easy to confuse the nuanced lines for those of Robert Frost.

Eventually, the friend he’s come to see changes his fortunes. Now, he has systems “designed with vision and purpose” that provide better insight into his operations. He and his wife start doing more travelling, thanks to generous dividend checks.

Watch McMahon's video here.

So it is that McMahon Marketing helped its client, a local business coach, address one of its biggest challenges: a lot of prospects simply don’t know what these coaches do, or why they need one.

“Small business owners feel isolated and stressed and believe others are thriving while they’re failing,” says CEO Korey McMahon, whose U.S.-based agency produced the video ad. 

McMahon says the spot’s success shows that there’s a viable way to address those challenges. “The message is: Others have done it. You can too, and here’s how.”

The resulting work, entitled “The Owner & The Coach,” earned McMahon’s agency a Gold Stevie Award for best Service Sales Video in The 2017 American Business Awards.

A compelling message

A big part of the ad’s appeal is its stripped-down, authentic vibe. It stars the client himself, Martin Holland, who intones a poem he originally wrote while taking his dog for a walk.

In it, Holland, who works for Las Vegas, America-based ActionCOACH, finds a way to demystify his industry, turning the business owner-coach relationship into a uniquely personal interaction.

“The thing about coaching is people don’t know what it is,” Holland told his hometown newspaper, The Norman Transcript. “Or if they do, they have misbegotten ideas about what it is. We were trying to show before and after of the stresses small business owners go through and how their lives change.” 

McMahon saw Holland’s rhyming verse as the perfect way to get his client’s message across. With a budget of just $1,000, he enlisted a local film director, Cooper Williams, to turn it into an ad.

“We created something that we felt like was top quality, that we were really proud of,” McMahon told the newspaper. “We took a shot, not really expecting to win anything because of the nature of the competition and the quality in the Stevie awards. It was very exciting for our team and all of the hard work that they do.”

Making an impact

Already, the video has been having a big effect. Holland says he recently spoke with two business owners in northeast Oklahoma who are perfect examples. The husband saw the need for a coach to help revitalize the company, but his wife was hesitant.

Upon seeing the video, that immediately changed. “She said, ‘I get it now. I’m all in.’”

The spot is also a huge shot in the arm for McMahon Marketing, a five-year-old inbound marketing agency with a staff of just seven full-time employees. Despite their lean budget, they were proud to win the Gold with several multinational firms with billions of dollars in revenue as their competition.

“It’s so important for not only our credibility, but also the talent we recruit,” says McMahon. “I feel we have the most talented team around, and this is just validation that we are creating nationally recognized videos and marketing services,” he said.

Integrating clients’ needs with a targeted solution while developing a mutually beneficial partnership can be a challenge. Meet Trowbridge & Trowbridge, LLC (T&T), a Stevie® Award-winning, women-owned and -managed small business headquartered in the Washington D.C. area. Its innovative IT solutions include cloud computing, cybersecurity and unified communications services to the federal civilian, defense and health markets. The company has empowered cloud computing, information assurance and unified communications. That’s why it won the Gold and Silver Stevie Award for Best Support Staffer and Bronze for Best Support Team in the 2017 American Business Awards.

Center-stage talent

Not just another federal integrator, T&T provides agile, leading-edge technology solutions and support for the DoD and Civilian agencies. Tyrone Bachus is the Senior Director of Communications & Quality of T&T, and he’s excited about the spotlight on them and what it means to them.

“The impact was huge to raise the visibility of our quality initiative, which won two awards, and the extraordinary efforts of our Quality Manager who won the gold and silver, and was certainly part of our bronze award.”

T&T has been a longtime winner in the Stevie Awards—they were one of the first teams to win gold for Support Team with RS Information Systems.

It’s never ‘not interesting’

In the realm of government contracting, it's never a dull moment. With the changes in economy, the president and the focus on new agendas, service quality is more important than ever to keep the company on the right course. Bachus comments on what’s important to focus on.

“Quality is baked into the culture of our company, but with rapid growth comes an increasing influx of new staff, so it's imperative that they become part of our culture of quality as quickly as possible.”

They also make sure to encourage team building with quarterly cooking competitions and happy hours.

“If you see coworkers as people and not employees, you'll treat them with more respect and have a little more fun,” Bachus continues. “We also foster a culture of community enrichment and participate in at least one volunteering event as a group each year.”

Vibrant, dynamic and women-owned

T&T is a great example of a women-owned business providing amazing value in their community. Coming from an EDWOSB and growing through strategic hiring of intellectual capital, Bachus tells of the internal thought process that plays a big role in how they decide what needs to be nurtured and what needs to go.

“An exponential growth trajectory has forced us to focus on our staff and their growth and development. Multiple industry awards for culture, growth and Inc. 5000 placements have kept us in the public eye.”

As they continue to try and increase their expectations, communication is key among their staff. This comes in the form of an employee newsletter, monthly CEO and Values posts on their employee portal and quarterly all-hands meetings.

“We've fought our way through a tough industry to earn our place around the beltway and our name on the building.”

Nonprofit organizations can face challenges when it comes to planning and executing successful communications and community engagement work. But Family League of Baltimore (FLB), an intermediary nonprofit, has uniquely positioned itself to invest in initiatives that provide access to resources and opportunities not readily available to children and families in many city neighborhoods. Their deep collaboration and capacity for building with local leaders, community-based organizations, funders, and other stakeholders have all contributed to their Gold Stevie Award in the Communications Department of The Year category in The 2017 American Business Awards.

Positive Changes that Align with Community Priorities
Each year, FLB makes collaborative efforts, and targeted investments to help open doors to education, health care, and economic opportunity for tens of thousands of children, youths, and families living in Baltimore, MD USA. Amy Bernstein, Director of External Relations at Family League of Baltimore says winning a Gold Stevie has made an immediate impact on their organizations.

“It prompted a meaningful conversation with our CEO and COO about the true strategic role and potential reach of communications as an organizational asset; validated our professionalism; and gave us an opportunity, through Facebook, to link the recognition with our dedication to sharing stories and progress about people and programs in the communities where we invest public resources.”

FLB occupies a unique niche in Baltimore's nonprofit landscape. In large part, as a hub organization that's able to braid together federal, state, city, and private dollars to ensure these funds are invested in programs and services that align with community priorities; direct resources towards the needs of the “whole” child, from prenatal and family health care up through college and career; strengthen the capacity of existing service providers across the City; and advocate for meaningful policy changes to improve lives and build equity.

Vigilante Efforts

Since FLB relies on government funds, a great effort in working closely with elected officials at the state and local levels is necessary for continued success. Bernstein keeps a close eye on their, “value proposition and ability to achieve results that matter to children, families, and their communities.” This requires constant and vigilant efforts to educate and inform leaders on an almost daily basis.

Trends in personal and institutional usage of technology -- Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Periscope, etc. -- also helps them deploy the right mix of tech to suit. Bernstein believes access to internet services plays a huge role as well.

“Our message and our target demographics depends more and more on online communications, it's increasingly challenging to reach people who do not use the Internet regularly.”

Constantly Learning From Each Other

Bernstein is a big fan of their three-person team aimed at reflecting diversity in terms of age (GenX, Millennial, and Baby Boomer), work experience, and core skill sets. In many workplaces, navigating inter-generational relationships is a source of tension and conflict.

“For us, it is a source of strength; we constantly learn from one another. We approach every communications campaign with clear goals in mind; we listen closely to our internal "customers" as to what is needed”

Staying as creative and integrated as possible is the name of the game. Whether in their graphic design, social media or print and video campaigns, “striving for authenticity in our work--using real images, voices, and testimonials of real people from our local communities, as much as possible is a significant predictor of success.”

Bernstein acknowledges how important experiences in collaborative efforts are when the time comes to sway partnerships to their path. Inexperienced professionals may or may not be ready.

“Our team has over 50 years of combined experience in almost every communications niche--ranging from corporate PR to journalism to executive speechwriting. There is hardly a challenge that comes our way that we have not dealt with before, in some way, which helps us find the best solutions. Together, in less than a year, we have built a versatile, proactive communications shop virtually from scratch.”

Enterprise apps should stop forcing people to think like machines. That’s what Skuid believes and has been working on since they were founded in 2013. They believe apps should behave more like the humans who use them, so everyone can thrive in a digital world. With Skuid’s simple-to-use but incredibly robust tools, anyone can build highly complex, bespoke enterprise apps. More than five million users in 32 countries use Skuid to engage with each other, with data and with new customers in meaningful ways—all without writing a single line of code. That’s why they won a Stevie Award in a New Product of the Year category of The 2017 American Business Awards.

More Human, Less Machine

Skuid helps customers quickly build a user experience and adapt it on their own, without expensive code or engineering resources. Instead of coding a unique solution for every customer, Skuid empowers the customer to customize. Skuid CEO Ken McElrath is a designer and an entrepreneur. Ken's background in design has a significant impact on how Skuid operates.

“Skuid is founded on the belief that software should be more human and less machine—that software should work the way people work instead of forcing people to behave like machines.”

Skuid gives customers the individual components to create the impressive structures of an app, while at the same time making the structure easy to change and to scale.

Consistent Results

Skuid recently commissioned Forrester Research to do a study on the value customers get from using Skuid. The study found that Skuid delivers an ROI of 365%, has a payback period of just one month and has a 73% faster development time than other solutions. Ken says they quickly grew into a platform that would give anyone (not just an IT professional) the power and ability to assemble bespoke apps without writing code.

“Companies are demanding better ways to develop apps and employees are demanding that their enterprise apps be as intuitive and easy to use as the personal apps on their iPhone. Skuid has been successful because we deliver solutions that work. That's why we're working with 10% of the Fortune 100.”

Major Validation

Skuid believes they’ve been successful because they consistently deliver results. These results have attracted attention from Fortune 100 companies to SMBs and non-profits. Skuid has over five million users across 30+ countries and in various verticals. Skuid’s customers are diverse in many ways, but they’re united by a dedication to greatness. When the Stevie Awards caught wind of Skuid, Ken says they also helped validate their hard work.

“A Stevie Award has helped add to Skuid's third-party recognition and validation. Having won such a prestigious award and up against more than 10,000 entries from other organizations is a huge honor. The fact that more than 190 professionals worldwide, including industry analysts, journalists and other industry experts, participated in the judging process is major industry validation.”

They don’t settle for “good enough” in the way they do business, which is why they use Skuid—to create exceptional user experiences that accelerate sales productivity, supercharge customer service and amplify efficiency.

Not Like Anything Else

When it comes to enterprise software, one size doesn’t fit all. No company is exactly like another, and each company needs different systems to support their unique business process. Those with the resources spend millions to try to customize with code, but this slows everything down and creates significant maintenance overhead. Writing code to customize a generic solution is expensive, inflexible and far from optimal. Ken believes Skuid has figured out how to service this intricate challenge.

“Because apps built with Skuid are bespoke—made to order—they align to a user’s business needs perfectly. This means that rather than forcing a user's business processes into an off-the-shelf enterprise software solution, Skuid users can tailor their business apps to unlimited degrees without writing code.”

Because each app is tailored to user needs, Skuid customers have seen massive productivity gains to drive success. Skuid is perfectly positioned to meet this need. 

From identifying the target audience, to planning the event concept and preparing the logistics, Parker Sanpei loves creating promotional events to help companies broadcast their message effectively. They’re a luxury, lifestyle firm focused on public relations, advertising and marketing, celebrating their 10th anniversary this year. They focus their creativity, ingenuity, integrity and energy into positive results for clients. This work ethic led them to win the Silver Stevie Award for Travel and Tourism in The 15th annual American Business Awards.

A Complete 360° Approach

Finding the right audience for product promotions with diverse ideas for each product can be a satisfying challenge. Vanessa Igel is the Account Executive at Parker Sanpei—she leads strategic media relations campaigns across multiple industries, including the food and beverage, travel and lifestyle industries. She’s excited about her team’s win in the Travel and Tourism category for the International Chardonnay Symposium project that was a smash success.

“International Chardonnay Symposium has allowed us the opportunity to re-engage with many local community partners, and this award could possibly allow us approval from the board to host another event of its kind in 2018.”

Parker Sanpei’s expertise in media outreach lead to widespread pre-event coverage of the Symposium and of the Alliance as a whole. The firm measured 28.6 million media impressions in nine months and reception into regional and national publications such as: Examiner.com, The Modesto Bee, The Press Democrat, WineBusiness.com, Wine Enthusiast, Wine Industry Advisor, Food & Beverage magazine, Napa Valley Register, The SOMM Journal, The Tasting Panel magazine and others. As a result of these efforts, the second year Symposium sold out within a month of opening registration.

Meaningful Success

The Parker Sanpei team knows that passion drives performance and it is this knowledge that compels them to seek a partnership with select clients. Vanessa used an example to speak to their strategy to make meaningful connections in their community.

“With the International Chardonnay Symposium: we took a dead, one-day event and turned it into an international, must-attend, three-day event, partnering with the local community for lodging, food, etc.”

For Parker Sanpei, communication is as much about hearing what’s being said as it is about saying something. Whether you’re referring to public relations, marketing, website design or account management, success is only achieved with open dialogue.

10 Years of Shared Success

Parker Sanpei has been advancing the standard of lifestyle, public relations and marketing since 2007. They’re now excited to be celebrating their 10-year anniversary with interactive and educational events. Vanessa details how you can get involved with their upcoming workshops.

“In celebration of our 10-year anniversary, we're giving back to the community with 10 communication workshops in 10 months. Seating is limited, so register early to participate in these interactive and educational events.”

Winners were announced today in the 2017 People’s Choice Stevie® Awards for Favorite Companies, a feature of The International Business Awards, the world’s only international, all-encompassing business awards program which is now in its 14^th year.

The worldwide public vote was conducted this summer, with the highest number of votes deciding the winners in a variety of industries. More than 14,000 votes were cast. All Stevie Award winners in the Company of the Year categories of this year’s International Business Awards were eligible to be included in voting for the People’s Choice Stevie Awards.

The crystal People’s Choice Stevie Awards will be presented to winners at The International Business Awards banquet on Saturday, 21 October at the W Hotel in Barcelona, Spain. Tickets for the event are now on sale. The winners of peer-adjudicated Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Awards will be presented with their awards along with the People’s Choice Stevie Awards. Stevie winners were selected from more than 3,900 nominations received from organizations and individuals in more than 60 nations.

The winners of the 2017 People’s Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite Companies are:

• Advertising, Marketing & PR: MWWPR
• Banking: Odeabank
• Computer Services: Datapipe
• Computer Software: Syncron
• Consumer Products/Services: davero dialog GmbH
• Financial Services: Union National Bank
• Health Products/Services: NMC Healthcare
• Insurance: PJ Lhuillier Group of Companies
• Legal: Property Exchange Australia Ltd
• Manufacturing: Australian Innovative Systems (AIS)
• Non-Profit or Government: Dubai South
• Real Estate: Stockdale & Leggo
• Telecommunications: Globe Telecom, Inc.
• Transportation: IETT General Directorate
• Other: PT Petrokimia Gresik

Humble beginnings, staunch discrimination and a massively successful career—that’s the story of Jenny Q. Ta, cofounder of VCNetwork.co. It’s a startup funding network that has been described as a virtual Shark Tank meets eHarmony.

Its database of independent international venture capitalists (VCs) finds startups who have what it takes to succeed. Facilitating such connections, both large and small, entrepreneurs are given the opportunity to submit their business plan through VCNetwork.co for the chance to be considered by one of more than 1,000 VCs. They won the Silver Stevie Award in the 2017American Business Awards for helping deserved entrepreneurs achieve their goals.

Matchmaking Heaven

So how does VCNetwork.co work? Entrepreneurs create a profile on VCNetwork.co, which includes the founder's and team's information, as well as how much funding the startup is seeking. Once they submit a business plan and select the industry they're most closely related to, VCNetwork.co's intelligent system pairs them with the best business match for their funding needs.

Jenny Q. Ta is the cofounder of VCNetwork.co and former founder of two Wall Street broker-dealers and investment banks. She says VCNetwork essentially plays “the role of matchmaker, bringing together aspiring entrepreneurs who need funding and venture capitalists with the means to provide that funding.” Jenny took everything she learned from her experiences and teamed up with Shinta W. Dhanuwardoyo (founder/CEO of Bubu.com) to create VCNetwork.co.

The Price of Progress

As both tech and finances continue to grow dependent on each other, Jenny and Shinta are seeing huge returns and industry transformations as new companies grow and continue to be profitable. Jenny feels she has had to grow a lot in terms of overcoming unfortunate challenges that many women in her industry experience. She recounts the little to no support received whenever she came across repeated discrimination.

“I was told that as a woman it would take me years to advance and become a broker."

She decided to open her own firm, and promised colleagues better pay if they worked for her instead. It worked—Jenny launched Vantage Investments in 1998 at age 27 with 30 brokers.

Recognition

Both Jenny and Shinta have been recognized for their work in huge ways. Jenny mentions their 2016 win for the Women In Business Award from the Los Angeles Business Journal, and this year they're expected to win in a similar category from the OC Business Journal. She comments on why it’s important to be recognized for their hard work:

“Recognition demonstrates our dedication to quality and innovation in the internet, new media and financial services industries.”

When you’re trying to bridge a gap to dissolve barriers traditional funding models place between VCs and entrepreneurs, if done right, chances are entrepreneurs and companies can avoid common pitfalls of venture funding. Investment banks are always looking for ways to venture into the investment arena due to lucrative fees they stand to collect from investors. These difficult bargaining tactics used by today's investment banks are what VC Network is looking to change, and they’re making a name for themselves wherever missed opportunities need better solutions.