Innovation News

Cincinnati-based Infintech partners with Liturgical Publications to grow client base

By Newsroom

●

March 19, 2013

At the end of last year, Liturgical Publications acquired Infintech’s PledgeConnect service, which is the company’s online donation division for the religious world. Through the partnership, Infintech will continue its work with its current clients, but will also be offering credit card processing to the 100,000 businesses that advertise in LPi publications (mainly church bulletins). Over the next eight months, Infintech will be converting its customers from PledgeConnect to LPi’s WeShare, which has more bells and whistles than PledgeConnect, says Ryan Rybolt, president of Infintech. “We want to see our company grow through marketing our services and getting into the organizations that LPi supports,” says Rybolt. “It’s the perfect partnership because it allows Infintech to do what we’re best at—credit card processing—and it allows LPi to do what they do best, which is its new donation platform.” WeShare doesn’t just allow for donations to multiple bank accounts, but it also allows churches and other nonprofits to sell event tickets, to accept credit or debit cards without the cost and risk associated with managing a merchant account, and to simplify financial reporting for the church and the individual who made the donation. Milwaukee-based LPi was founded in 1972, and since then has offered churches and nonprofits across the United States custom communication solutions. It has worked with over 4,000 congregations and organizations, plus 100,000 businesses around the country. Infintech, founded in 2005, is ranked as one of Inc. Magazine’s Fastest Growing Companies. Infintech’s payment processing solutions include retail, commercial card, mobile and online processing, and supports integration with nearly all POS systems, smartphone payments and e-commerce and shopping cart integration. If you’re a current PledgeConnect customer or you’re interested in learning more about online donations, visit LPi’s website, where you can sign up to attend a webinar about WeShare. By Caitlin Koenig Follow Caitlin on Twitter

Latest in Innovation News

Spotted Yeti Media captures the best on film

By Sean M. Peters

●

Innovation News

●

March 19, 2013

The idea for the name came from a Mitch Hedberg joke that claims Bigfoot is naturally blurry, so it’s not the cameraman’s fault that the image isn't in focus.

Intern in Ohio program launches today, connects students with internships

By Newsroom

●

Education + Learning

●

March 19, 2013

Today, Detroit-based Digerati launches its Intern in Ohio program to the public, which is sponsored by the University of Toledo. Like eHarmony, the program uses an advanced matching algorithm to match students with internship opportunities. Intern in Ohio is free to both students who are looking for internships and businesses who want to post internships. To register, students and employers visit Intern in Ohio’s website to sign up and create a profile or post internship opportunities. Students fill out a short questionnaire about their preferences, and employers share information about the position. The system then identifies the top seven matches for each student, as well as for each position. When the match is made, both the student and employer are notified, and they must show interest before any contact information is shared. “We encourage diverse companies—large and small, for-profit and nonprofit, government and corporate,” says Wendy Pittman, director of Digerati’s Classroom to Career. “It’s a great chance for employers to broadcast their company and internship program across the state and reach a larger pool of applicants.” Only companies in Ohio can post opportunities to the Intern in Ohio website, but all types of internships are welcome. There are posts for marketing, engineering and social media, among others, says Pittman. The program is open to all students who live in Ohio, whether they’re in-state or out-of-state students. Research shows that not only do internships often lead employment offers after graduation, but that students are more likely to remain in an area where they held and internship. “This is the first replication of the Classroom to Career technology from Michigan to Ohio,” says Pittman. “Experiential learning is a game-changer; and we’re looking forward to working with smaller communities to make a difference.” In 2011, Digerati launched its Intern in Michigan program, which has resulted in more than 127,000 matches and introductions between students and employers. Over 1,000 Michigan businesses have posted 4,824 internship opportunities, and 1,049 colleges and universities in the state use the site. Full disclosure: Soapbox’s parent company, IMG, supplies content to Intern in Ohio on a contractual basis. By Caitlin Koenig Follow Caitlin on Twitter

Differential offers knowledge to new businesses

By Sean M. Peters

●

Entrepreneurship

●

March 12, 2013

In a city recognized as an ideal location for startup businesses, an increasing number of resources are sprouting up for burgeoning entrepreneurs.

PublicSchoolWORKS offers software solution for meeting public school mandates

By Newsroom

●

Education + Learning

●

March 12, 2013

Public schooling is multi-faceted, and each state legislature has a particular way of governing its districts. Public schools are a large part of state budgets and efforts, and most years, there are new regulations for administrators and teachers to comply with. Many new rules—implementing an anti-bullying program, for instance—comprise of educational and professional development and reporting and tracking. Taken together, each mandate can take up a lot of time, which leaves teachers struggling to do what they to best: educate children. One Cincinnati company is growing by making it easier for K-12 schools to manage those mandates. PublicSchoolWORKS offers schools a suite of web-based software and ongoing support in the areas of staff and student health, safety compliance and behavior programs. Founded in 1999, the O'Bryonville-based company has two software suites: EmployeeSafe and StudentWatch. PublicSchoolWORKS has clients in the Cincinnati area, but it also serves schools across North America. Its resources include written plans, forms, training courses and other content that school districts need in order to succeed. PublicSchoolWORKS was developed by a team of actively employed school administrators. It's CEO, Steve Temming, has more than 22 years of experience working in public schools, including administration. "We create complete programs that address the needs of a district, not from a strategy standpoint but from an implementation standpoint," says PublicSchoolWORKS' Vice President Tom Strasburger. The company is constantly monitoring state legislatures to assure its custom-content software continues to meet school districts' needs. PublicSchoolWORKS also offers ongoing service support to help districts get the most out of the software, Strasburger says. "We provide a signature product that completely addresses school issues," Strasburger says. "By knowing legislation and meeting that legislation, the system is built to manage what is expected of the school. It's virtually hands off, so (teachers and administrators) can do their jobs." It's because of the system's automation and completeness that the company rarely loses a customer. Public School Works is growing with its own sales, support and research groups, in addition to IT. Not only are its services growing, but PublicSchoolWORKS is also physically outgrowing its current office space, and could soon move into a new, larger facility. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter

Cincinnati enters wearable tech market with Nugg-it recording band

By Newsroom

●

Architecture + Design

●

March 5, 2013

Wearable tech is emerging as the "next big thing" in consumer technology. And a trio of Cincinnati entrepreneurs are developing Nugg-it, a wristband that will easily record snippets of everyday conversation, and investors are taking notice. Nugg-it has raised $600,000 in seed investment, including a total of $250,000 from CincyTech and Design 2 Matter, a Silicon Valley-based industrial design firm. Design 2 Matter is also designing and building the device. "[Design 2 Matter] has a very successful track record of bringing products from concept to shelf," says Nugg-it's co-founder and social media entrepreneur Matthew Dooley. Nugg-it is meant to be worn 24 hours a day. It records live conversations on a 60-second loop, continuously saving them in one-minute "nuggets." To save a memorable part of a conversation, the user touches the device to save the last minute of buffered memory. That recording can be sent to a smartphone, and through an app can be edited, saved and shared. "It's a smaller, lighter weight band," says Dooley. "Right now, we are trying to focus a lot of attention on design. It has to be something that is stylish and comfortable to wear. A lot of the functionality is off the shelf, but we're putting it together in a new way." Dooley is working with former Procter & Gamble brand marketer and engineer Mike Sarow to develop the device. Plans are to deliver the final concept in March, and introduce it to the market by December, Dooley says. “It occurred to us that there are a lot of circumstances in life where we want to remember and share something that was just said—a clever phrase in a meeting, something adorable from our 3-year-old, words of wisdom from a mentor—but we can’t ‘capture’ it,” Sarow says. “Now you can.” Nugg-it is CincyTech's first consumer electronics device investment. “With the rise of the Nike FuelBand and smartwatches such as Pebble, wearable technology is projected to be a $7 billion market by 2017,” says CincyTech's Executive-in-Residence Doug Groh. “We expect Nugg-it to help drive that growth and to do for short audio files what Twitter has done for 140-character content.” By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter

Markiplier attracts millions of YouTube gamer views

By Sean M. Peters

●

Talent

●

March 5, 2013

Mark Fischbach of Milford, Ohio, launched a successful career playing video games and yelling at his computer as a YouTube partner.

HCBC opens new CoWorks space for entrepreneurs, startups

By Newsroom

●

Architecture + Design

●

March 5, 2013

The Hamilton County Business Center is Cincinnati's oldest incubator, and has evolved over the decades as the economy has changed. Startups are leaner and meaner now than ever before, and HCBC is piloting the region's latest coworking space, where small businesses can get many of the benefits of being in an incubator without the higher overhead. HCBC's CoWorks had a very quiet launch late last fall. With three businesses in the space, which is located in Norwood, Executive Director Pat Longo is now getting the word out about HCBC. "This has grown out of our affiliate program," Longo says. "There were companies that weren't yet ready to apply for the incubator but they wanted to be around it." HCBC has recently upgraded its conference room space, which has been attractive to small companies like SCORE, SBDC and Meetups that want to present themselves more professionally, says Longo. HCBC has 45 companies that last year generated over $18 million in revenues, accessed over $8 million in capital and created nearly 50 jobs. Renting CoWorks space on a month-to-month basis starts at $75 per month, and includes: 24-hour, 7-day-a-week accessWiFiConcierge and receptionist servicesFree parkingFax, scanner and copier servicesKitchenUp to four hours per month of conference room useA mailing address"We talk about having an entrepreneurial ecosystem, but I like to think of (HCBC) as a coral reef," Longo says. "We have a lot of life, people can grow, there is lots of nourishment and places to go and hide if you need a quiet place to work." CoWorkers will have access to the incubator entrepreneurial atmosphere, programming and resources. Some are free, while others have a fee attached. "They'll get the benefits of being a client," Long says. "And we hope when they are ready, they'll move into the incubator." Currently, there is space for about 12 companies, with potential room to grow. Interested businesses can find out more on the CoWorks website, where interpreters can fill out an application. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter

Post-iTunes launch, Impulcity is hiring

By Newsroom

●

Architecture + Design

●

February 26, 2013

The discovery of a great local act or a hot new bar should be shared, says Impulcity founder Hunter Hammonds. Immediately. And it is. Thousands of smartphone users have downloaded the mobile application of the Brandery-trained startup since it launched on iTunes early last week. An update to the app could drop as early as Wednesday, which would bring significant improvements to the mobile aggregator of entertainment venues. And the new company is hiring, too. They're looking for an Android app developer and an "artist content intern"—someone to write content about venues and events. Hammond’s team, which includes co-founder Austin Cameron and iOS developer Eric Ziegler, is fine-tuning a VIP program, which will Impulcity users to check-in at a venue and avoid cover charges or receive other VIP benefits. They’re working on more robust context for events, including the ability to play the music released by a new band and produce background on an entertainer or a venue. The app will offer rankings and suggestions based on users’ past choices and an interactive calendar for entertainment-seekers who plan ahead. Hammonds and his team maintain strong partnerships with venues—they're always asking how they can make the app more useful. “People are tired of the traditional ways of finding stuff to do,” he says. Impulcity will evolve until it captures each city’s unique culture. Impulcity's short history is one of long-into-the-night planning. Hammond’s team scrapped the first version of the app in September, and rewrote it in a four-day marathon coding session. Their retooled version received Brandery approval in October, and they continued to tweak it until their Feb. 12 launch in the iTunes App Store. They've raised a reported $400,000 and are seeking new office space. “Our goal is to build, and to last,” Hammonds says. “We have no plans to be absorbed into anything else.” He’s still not sharing his revenue model, but said Impulcity will approach profit-making differently than other social media products. “We’d love to hire fresh college kids, but universities are teaching them outdated stuff,” Hammonds says. Advice from Hammonds: Learn to make use of Objective-C, Java and jQuery. And hurry. He really wants to find an Android developer to help them expand their reach. By Gayle Brown

Miami University student wants to make The Ultimate Lip Balm

By Newsroom

●

Education + Learning

●

February 26, 2013

Miami University junior Samuel Frith was on vacation three years ago, and spent a little too much time in the sun. Today, when the rays get a little too intense, he relives a painful part of that vacation. "My lips are very sensitive when I'm out in the sun," he says. "I get really bad sun poisoning and blisters when I go out in the sun." Frith went through all of the cosmetically available lip balms around, especially those with high SPF levels, but they just didn't work. "I wasn't getting any relief," he says. "I even tried the brands that were SPF 30 or 40." Last summer, he decided to take things into his own hands, and create The Ultimate Lip Balm. It's a balm that would help sun-sensitive people like Frith. Active outdoor types could also use it, and it even has medical applications—chemotherapy patients often get severely dry lips during cancer treatment, and they could benefit from Frith's balm as well. Frith, a finance and entrepreneurship student, was one of the top winners during this month's Innov8 for Health business pitch event. He was one of four $1,000 prize winners in the student track. Frith's past experience includes working on a cosmetic lotion project for GA Communications in Chicago, which helped him learn about the process of getting a facial care product to market. "I did a lot of reading and research about the FDA and regulation of product claims," he says. "While I was there, I learned about SPF, sun care products and the facial care industry." After doing further Internet research, Frith decided to work with a Cedar Rapids, Iowa, company—Raining Rose—to develop the lip balm. Raining Rose is a small, custom lip balm manufacturer known for using organic and natural ingredients. The company and Frith are working to develop a formula aimed at making the lip balm last longer, and therefore, be more effective, Frith says. "After SPF 30, [sun protection quality] plateaus," Frith says. "You have to come up with other ingredients that will stick better on lips, or attributes other than SPF to make a higher quality lip balm." Currently, he's working to raise $15,000 for product testing. He hopes to get The Ultimate Lip Balm onto lips by late fall. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter