Benjamin Elmore

🌱 Ecosystem builders, it's time to unlock the power of federal funding! The latest the ecosystem builder's edge newsletter is a game-changer. This in-depth guide demystifies federal funding opportunities, including: ✨ Top federal agencies to know (EDA, SBA, NSF more!) ✨ Strategies for securing matching funds ✨ Step-by-step tips for grant newcomers ✨ Building a sustainable funding mix Whether you're new to federal grants or a seasoned pro, this newsletter is a must-read. Subscribe now and gain the insights to fuel your ecosystem initiatives! 👉 https://lnkd.in/eMMFfm6r Stay ahead of the curve and unlock a world of possibilities with the Ecosystem Builder's Edge. Funding freedom is just a click away! #EcosystemBuilding #FederalGrants #FundtheFuture

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C3 Technology Advisors AIaaS KickaaS Tip of the week: A.I. for the win! Want to get ahead of your competition? Sly Rye the C3 UC & AI guy explains how to get in on the best A.I. conference in the region. And it is free to attend. Here's the scoop.

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Exploring Yelp’s Response to Google’s Monopoly Status 🤔 Yelp’s CEO, Jeremy Stoppelman, recently weighed in on Google’s long-standing monopoly, highlighting the distinction between general and vertical search engines. Yelp, for instance, specializes as a vertical search engine, focusing narrowly on areas like restaurant reviews and local businesses, unlike Google’s broad scope. Back in 2011, Google acquired Zagat, a strategic move that showcased its intention to dominate general search and specific verticals such as restaurant reviews. This acquisition was part of Google’s broader strategy to keep users within its ecosystem by providing extensive information directly on its properties. For example, Google’s “zero-search” approach enables users to see restaurant menus, reviews, and other details directly on Google, reducing the need to visit vertical search engines like Yelp or the actual restaurant websites. With the rise of AI-driven search tools like OpenAI’s SearchGPT and PerplexityAI, which aim to directly answer users’ queries, traditional search engines like Google could face real competition. This shifts the landscape for specialized platforms like Yelp. ❓ Should Yelp build higher walls around its content and profit from licensing its data, much like it does with Apple Maps?

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I appreciate Bob Higgins’ leadership on all things AI. Thrivence has a simple plan for how to put AI to work for organization. Please reach out and ask about the AI Advantage program!

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Pricing and Pricing Strategy are more important than ever! Have you: 1) Updated Category Roles in the last 18 months? 2) Confirmed your Competitive Price Position? Who is your true #1 or #2 competitor? 3) Updated KVI and Background Items? 4) Validated your Margin investment? 5) Updated your Private Label Delta to Brand pricing. 6) Communicate and educate, your shoppers on the values you provide. If not, let Columbus Consulting International update your pricing strategy to maximize sales and profits!

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What does product development have to do with the theater? I’m a former theater guy, and a 20-year veteran of the digital product development space. They have more in common than you think. With both product design and development and the theater, you’re building an immersive world for your users or audiences to inhabit. For the experience to work, it needs to be cohesive, considered, and consistent. And ideally, it needs to make a connection to them - catharsis. In other words, they both need to tell a clear story to be successful. I recently saw a kickass play that achieved this perfectly: "An Enemy of the People." by Henrik Ibsen. This powerful drama, set in Scandinavia, revolves around a man who uncovers a serious issue with his town’s water supply. I was familiar with the story, having performed in this play during my student days in Chicago - though I'm more of a Strindberg, "The Ghost Sonata" man myself. What makes this production truly immersive is its approach to audience interaction. [Spoilers] In a pivotal scene, there’s a town hall meeting about water quality. In a creative twist, a bar is lowered from the ceiling, and the audience is invited to step onto the stage, order a drink—water or akvavit, a traditional Scandinavian liquor—and join the town’s discourse. For a few moments, you're not just watching the play; you're part of it. This blend of engagement and entertainment creates a memorable, enriching experience that parallels the very best in product design. Effective digital products craft immersive universes where users feel genuinely valued and supported. On the other hand, think about how it feels to hear a cell phone going off in the theater. You’re ripped out of the experience, jerked back into reality. A bad in-product experience - like a slow load time, inaccurate or inconsistent results, bad design - does the same thing to your users. It jolts them out of the experience you’ve worked so hard to try to build and makes them lose trust in your product. You don’t want to do that to your user. At Dom & Tom, we’ll help you make sure you don’t. Learn more in my recent blog: https://lnkd.in/gaES8HZv 🤖

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A friendly reminder of my article on AI’s power dynamics and regrettable regulatory needs remains a critical read for tech leaders. Don’t miss out, read it here: https://buff.ly/3yfNO8t #AI #CLevel #TechStrategy #Governance

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