Introducing Startup Sioux Falls

Hey guys. Matt Paulson here. In this video, I am pleased to announce the creation of my newest project, Startups Sioux Falls. Startup Sioux Falls is a digital hub that connects entrepreneurs to the startup ecosystem and the startup community in the Sioux Falls area. You can think about it as a website that is a one stop shop to learn about the different resources that organizations make available to entrepreneurs. You can use it to find educational and networking events for entrepreneurs. And you can also read the latest news and information about different startups in the Sioux Falls area, as well as the organizations that make up the startup ecosystem in Sioux Falls. So our initial focus is going to be creating awareness of different resources and events that make up the startup ecosystem. So we have a big events calendar that kind of aggregates different startup events from the Chamber and from Zeal and from a Million Cups and different organizations that do networking and educational events that are relevant to entrepreneurs. So those are now available in one place. And we're also going to create content that educates and inspires entrepreneurs. So we are going to hire a writer and we are going to interview about 25 different nonprofit organizations, state agencies, community groups, venture capital firms, economic development organizations. We are going to interview all of them and kind of highlight the different services they offer to entrepreneurs in the area. I'm also happy to announce that the Startup Sioux Falls Brand is also going to be the new home of the Sioux Falls Story, or, excuse me, the Sioux Falls Startup Stories podcast that Josh Sopko hosts. So he is going to do two seasons of the Sioux Falls Startup Stories podcast in 2019 as part of the Startup Sioux Follows brand. I kind of think that these efforts are going to be kind of the first step into kind of connecting and growing the startup ecosystem in Sioux Falls. We have so many different organizations. There's zeel, there's the Chamber, there's the Development foundation, there's the Small Business Development center, there's goed, there's the sba. And I don't think most people know what these organizations do. And my intent is not to replace or supplant any existing event or organization or group, but really startups 2 follows is an effort to support the broader startup ecosystem. Growing a startup ecosystem really is a collaborative effort among different businesses. Startup founders, individuals, nonprofits, government agencies. It's really a team effort to create an environment where it's easy to start and grow a business. I certainly took the lead on this project. I put the blood, sweat, tears and dollars into this. But I kind of done it in collaboration with a lot of different people. I've gotten a lot of feedback from the people over at Zeel. I do serve on their board, so that was easy. But I've also kind of ran it by some of the people at the Chamber and the development foundation and different kind of thought leaders in the startup community. Because I really want this to be a website that is for everyone and not just something to promote Z or promote myself or promote a million cups. I really want to grow and promote the startup ecosystem as a whole. Yeah. So this is going to be a big deal. I'm actually building a team to kind of maintain this website. Right now that team is myself. So I'm kind of the founder and then Josh Sacco is going to host the podcast and then we've also brought on Becky Squire to do some of the content in terms of maintaining the events calendar and she's going to do the weekly newsletter that we publish. And we are in the process of identifying a freelance writer, one or more of them, to interview different community members and organizations. And you know, I really want startups who follow us just to be something, an organization that really stands the test of time. And that's not going to happen without solid team in place. The other thing that you may notice if you're part of my Facebook group, which is Entrepreneurs of Sioux Falls, we have about 5,900 people in there right now. We are going to adopt the branding of Startup Sioux Falls. So the Entrepreneurs of Sioux Falls Facebook group is now going to be called the Startups Sioux Falls Facebook Group. And really people are using that to. That group's been around a while, it's been around a couple of years now. But people use it to discuss business ideas, discuss business strategy. People have used it to find employees and business partners. I'm just really pleased about the kind of collisions that have happened because of that group. So that group is going to be a big part of the Startup sue follows brand moving forward. This is a project that not a lot of money went into, but a lot of time and a lot of blood and sweat went into in terms of making this. It's really been my life for about the last month. I've kind of let Markaby take the back seat and I've really been focusing on Startup Sioux Falls. Andy Chaub, he spoke at our five year anniversary party for a Million Cups a few weeks back and he kind of challenged us. Don't worry so much about what you don't have or don't stop comparing yourself to Fargo and Omaha and all these different Places, take stock of what you have and really think, celebrate what's already there. And really this is an effort to do that. There are many different organizations, groups, events that make up the startup ecosystem, but they've been kind of disjointed and nobody's really been able to point at one place and say, yeah, that's probably the hub of the startup ecosystem in Sioux Falls. And I'm hoping Startup Sioux Falls maybe can take that role. Obviously, it's a new website, it's a new, not really even an organization yet. It's more of a brand right now. But I'm hoping Startup Sioux Falls can kind of be that. So when somebody says, hey, where's the startup community in Sioux Falls? You can point to Startup Sioux Falls and say, that's a good place to start. You can find the different organizations that make up the ecosystem. You can find events to attend, you can participate in the online community you really want. You can order a T shirt just for fun of it and you can kind of go there to learn about what's available and to get inspired by hearing stories of startup founders on our podcast. So, big project, a lot of time, a lot of effort into it. Hopefully you guys will find it valuable. Right now, this is kind of the first step, the first attempt to get this going. I don't really know where it's going to go for in the future. I don't have any grand vision for it or big plans. I just really wanted to get this going and have kind of a step one and then based up how people react to it and the feedback we get, you know, maybe it'll evolve into something more. But it's kind of early at this point, so hopefully you guys will enjoy it. The domain name right now might change is Sufolks Eco. So Eco for ecosystem in this book or I guess, or in this brand, the domain starfsuphawkes.com I don't own it. A buddy of mine owns it and we're still talking about it. So I don't know if I'll get that or not, but right now it's going to live on Siouxfiles Eco. And that may change at some point in the near future. But right now go to siouxfiles Eco. Click around, see what's all there. There is quite a bit there already and just encourage you to check it out and see if you like it and certainly encourage love to have any feedback that you might have. What's missing? What can I add? I just added everything from, from my brain, but My brain doesn't have a complete knowledge of the ecosystem, so feel free to help me fill in the gaps. Thanks for watching this video. I think that's all I got for right now.