We have entered a PayPal Developer’s Contest. First prize is $50,000 cash and $50,000 credit from PayPal. As you know, startups can ALWAYS use money like this and we need your help to get it.
To win, we need you to vote for our demo in the contest before 11:59 PM Friday night, March 5th. Sounds easy, right? It is.
You need to have a PayPal account to participate. If you don’t have one, click here and you can set one up. Pick Personal. It is fast, easy and free.
Once you have your PayPal account, click here or on the screen shot below to be taken to the contest. The first screen will look like this:
Click on the VOTE NOW link to start. You will be prompted to login to PayPal. Honest, this won’t take very long…
Enter your account name and password and then click Log In. If this is your first visit to the PayPal Developers Network, they will automatically redirect your browser to a screen like this.
Please enter a screen name (usually in the format firstname.lastname), check the Java and Social networking boxes and click Submit. You will then be directed to the contest page (finally!) shown below.
Please enter our contest entry number D1039 in the search box in the top right corner and click Search.
You will see our video demo (entry) into the contest on a screen like this:
Please click on the Vote button in the top left corner and you are done!
Except, of course, if you really want to watch the video. If so, click on the Play icon in the middle of the screen.
Please send us your feedback on our (very short – we were only allowed 2 minutes) demo. We’d love to hear from you.
We should have let you know sooner but our FundRazr website launched in December. You can visit it at www.fundrazr.com
We’ve started a new blog to ensure that our customers and future customers know what’s happening in the world of FundRazr. This includes product feature updates, latest news, tips and tricks on how best to use FundRazr and information around social media and social commerce.
Rob Lewis recently wrote a TechVibesarticle on the dismal state of venture capital investment in Canada. It seems that the VC investment model is under severe pressure and many tech businesses can no longer enjoy the benefits of VCs doling out easy money to their startup.
We don’t see this as a huge threat and, in fact, believe it is an opportunity.
Frankly, VCs made some stupid, follow-the-leader investments in the late 1990s. If one invested in a certain type of Internet application, a bunch of others jumped right in with similar (but not visionary) companies in the hopes of being a “fast follower”. For the most part, this didn’t work very well for the companies involved and killed off the VC’s investment.
However, it did do a good job of confusing some markets for a while making it all that much harder for the original visionary startup to execute their plan.
If a bunch of VC money has dried up, the “fast follower” group is less likely to get funded as there is only so much money to go round. This makes life easier for the visionary who will likely get funded regardless – that is what strong entrepreneurs make happen. We are entering another growth stage of innovation in web applications – that is what recessions initiate. That means new market opportunities are emerging – and that is what entrepreneurs love to see.
We are visionary. We’ll get funded. We’ll ride this next wave with skill and create fantastic value for our shareholders.
I like the idea of not having to fight off a bunch of fast-followers with VC money to burn.
We welcome any comments or feedback too! This poll ends tomorrow at 5pm so get your vote in now (these are not final but design concepts we want your opinion one before we pick one to work further on).
Almost our entire start-up team attended PayPal X Innovate conference last week.
It was a considerable cost to fly five of us there for three days but one we considered worthwhile.
It proved to be a very smart investment.
We were the first company in the world to go live with both new PayPal technologies integrated into FundRazr. We got to showcase this on stage as a PayPal partner three times over two days, to a crowded room of developers & press who were intrigued to see a real live example of the new technology in action.
So what does this mean for you, our customer?
This means you receive the benefits of these new technologies just by using FundRazr. Let us tell you how you benefit:
Adaptive Payments: This new API will allow us to make:
Split fees – allows us to take our commission, PayPal’s fees and pay you all in one transaction
Recurring fee and donation payments – automate fees you have to pay on a regular basis
Aggregated payments – you can pay multiple organizations from one payment
Adaptive Accounts: This new API allows you to quickly and easily set up a PayPal account, if you don’t already have one, when setting up your FundRazr organization. Creating an account now seamlessly integrates into the set up process.
FundRazr making headlines
Along with delivering great presentations on stage during the conference, Daryl managed to get interviewed by Mashable via Ustream TV. Both Daryl and I got video interviewed numerous times during the two days whilst at our FundRazr kiosk, catch a mention in this video below.
PayPal’s hard-working PR team meant we were featured on several major sites and even made the Wall Street Journal. That was totally exciting. We got featured on ReadWriteWeb and also connected with some excellent bloggers who will hopefully be featuring us over the next week.
It was fantastic coverage and exposure for us. We did demo after demo at our kiosk which was manic but really satisfying. The invaluable feedback we got from so many people has helped shape our thoughts on what capabilities and areas we can improve on next.
We totally believe in our FundRazr solution and that Social Commerce is the way of the future!
The amount of beta code requests we’ve been receiving means that you do too. Thanks and keep the feedback coming.
We had the privilege of being the World’s First Company to showcase the new Adaptive Accounts Technology for PayPal to a packed room.
Just over an hour ago at PayPalX Innovate Conference, Daryl did us all proud by doing a fantastic presentation and live demo on stage. See for yourself below!
It’s been one amazing day and we’re looking forward to meeting many more great people tomorrow, making great connections and showcasing FundRazr and PayPal technologies.
Thanks to Dana Oshiro for her great write up on ReadWriteWeb on FundRazr too – made our day.
It’s a rare day indeed when I get another integral part of our team to tell me why he loves FundRazr – and he’s one of the talented people who built it!
So here’s Christian live from the PayPalX Innovate Conference. Broadscasting from our FundRazr Kiosk – no #14
PayPal X’s Beta Adaptive Accounts API makes it even easier for FundRazr users to leverage their social networks for fee and donation collection.
Innovate 2009, SAN FRANCISCO – Nov. 3, 2009 – ConnectionPoint, launched its groundbreaking FundRazr Facebook application, built with PayPal X’s Adaptive Payments APIs, at TechCrunch 50 in September. Today they announced that FundRazr is one of the first applications to implement PayPal’s beta Adaptive Accounts APIs.
FundRazr allows anyone to quickly and easily collect fees and donations through a simple Facebook page. Customers can manage and collect membership fees, sell tickets and raise donations – all via Facebook with no need for technical skills or a merchant credit card account.
“By integrating PayPal’s new Adaptive Accounts APIs, we’re now able to provide a seamless sign up experience for our users,” said Daryl Hatton, CEO of ConnectionPoint. “Users never have to leave Facebook to quickly and easily set up a PayPal account, allowing them to carry on with making or receiving a fee or donation payment.”
ConnectionPoint has been working closely with PayPal as part of their exclusive closed beta program since July 2009. FundRazr provides unique functionality that harnesses the powerful sharing features of Facebook to help groups engage with members, supporters and donors. Unlike registration software or donation-based websites, the visitor stays within the group’s Facebook page and the administrator controls any videos, images or messages that the visitors experience.
“FundRazr is a great example of how developers can use PayPal X to do things that were simply not possible previously,” said Osama Bedier, PayPal’s vice president of Platform. “PayPal X makes it easy for developers to monetize their great ideas and we’re thrilled that ConnectionPoint is taking advantage of the new Adaptive Accounts beta APIs to improve the experience of their users on Facebook.”
