Google's tips for successful entrepreneurship in the digital age

by Monique Montagnese
September 25, 2012

This morning we attended a keynote on Entrepreneurship in the Digital Age withGoogle’s Bridgette Sexton to kick off our coverage of Social Media Week. Sexton is the Global Entrepreneurship Manager at Google. This position allows her to stay on top of up-and-coming entrepreneurial companies around the world while providing them with mentorship and connections to talent. During her mission to facilitate Google’s entrepreneurial impact on a global scale, Sexton has helped expand Google’s reach to about 20 countries.

She has seen first hand the recent evolution of entrepreneurship and how the digital revolution has changed the entrepreneurial community. The digital age has redefined what an entrepreneur is—You no longer need money or backing to succeed. Today the market is increasingly global and competitive.

The pace of innovation has never been faster. An explosion of digital information, combined with lower barriers to enter the entrepreneurial community, has leveled the playing field. It's easier to get started on the entrepreneurial track and find business partners thanks to events like Startup Weekend and co-working spaces like 1871 in Chicago. Due to the increased ease of entry, it is more important than ever that entrepreneurs work hard to differentiate themselves and their business.

Here are some tips we gathered from Sexton on how to succeed as an entrepreneur in the digital age:

1. Take advantage of the resources a co-working space provides
A lack of office space often prohibits people from starting a business. Co-working spaces solve this problem while giving you a place where you can easily collaborate. “This is changing the pace that businesses are created and how quickly businesses iterate because they have access to great resources,” Sexton said.

 2. Use free services to monetize your business
Sexton encourages entrepreneurs to promote their businesses though one of the many free services that have recently cropped up. “Now there are platforms for every entrepreneur to get out there and be successful without hiring a salesman and a team to build their website,” she said. Sites that help anyone monetize or sell their skills online (like TaskRabbit and ModCloth) are examples of these new platforms.

3. Use crowdfunding to keep your equity
These aspiring entrepreneurs can also benefit from crowdfunding, a platform that gives your product a global stage and lets the world be your funder. Sexton points out that crowdfunding can help with later investment because it lets you keep your equity and stay in control. “You are going to have a harder time scaling your business and getting investors if you have given away your equity,” Sexton said.

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