The Background:

Jason Nazar just gets it.

The short of it is Jason knows how to raise a ton of money and create memorable products.

I had the fortunate opportunity to meet Jason through Neil Patel (who is an amazing connector bringing entrepreneurs together) and sat down for a two-part interview via Skype to discuss the art and science of raising money.

His latest venture Docstoc, a one-stop resource for pretty much every document you could ever crave, want or need,  has raised over 4 million dollars in OPM (Other People’s Money) and Jason has some insider information on how you can market yourself and your business to raise money even in the tough economy.

Raising Money Is Marketing:… Read More »

2010 is going to be an incredible year for marketing. Now, of course I don’t have a crystal ball (or do I…insert creepy music here) but the shift is unmistakable and can’t be ignored.

The days of hit and miss expensive marketing and advertising are OVER. I’ll pause for a moment of silence. But with this big change, comes a tremendous creative opportunity for small and big businesses alike.

Big brands, niche brands and entrepreneurs that survived the storm of 2009 are in an exciting position for 2010. It is going to be a time where innovative and change in marketing is going to flourish. Marketing is going to be cheaper, faster and smarter.

The following predictions aren’t made by … Read More »

I started The Rise To The Top in October 2008 for some simple reasons. After starting three companies, like many of us OCD entrepreneurs, I became frustrated that I could not find an entertaining and educational TV show and online hub that resonated with forward-thinking entrepreneurs looking to grow their businesses.

Like you, I found lots of practical information on how to START a business (how to set up an LLC for example), but a real lack of advice on how to GROW your business. Answers to questions such as:

How do I get from $1 to $1,000,000 in revenue or $1,000,000 to $100,000,000?
How do I market my business in this crazy fast-paced digital world?
How do I not … Read More »

So, why should you care about the new show?

1. RISE is 100% About You: The Entrepreneur Looking To Maximize Your Business:

Starting Monday, January 4th you can count on 5 minutes of easily-digestible practical tips, tricks, creative marketing ideas, How-To’s and more in our “web dome” which includes a white board for diagrams and other goodies (Thanks to Virtual Nerd for the inspiration). There will be action steps, resources and more.

2. You Won’t Be Bored:

Every day will be a little bit different. It may be 10 book reviews for entrepreneurs in 5 minutes or a dissection of how Chris Brogan does business and what you can learn from him or 5 simple things you can do on … Read More »

Enjoy the blooper reel above.

I learned a couple of valuable lessons last week when I posted 5 Entrepreneurial Lessons Learned From Proposing To My Girlfriend.

1. You guys like interesting out-of-the-box analogies that apply to your business.
2. You liked the personal touch.

First of all, thanks so much for the feedback. It means a lot. I somewhat avoided personal stories because I didn’t want the blog to be “too much David”, but now I’ve realized (and correct me if I’m wrong) that the stories help build parallels to your business.

Anyway, enough chit-chat, lets get down to business.

This past Sunday marked the end of the second season of The Rise To The Top and one full … Read More »

Sign up for HARO (Help A Reporter Out) absolutely free. It will be the best free investment you have ever made.

To check out Peter’s page and hunt him down on social media here is Peter Shankman’s Expert Profile.

Do you use HARO? How successful have you been at it?… Read More »

Find out more about Tara Hunt the author of “The Whuffie Factor” on her blog and on Twitter. She rocks. Seriously.

And if you haven’t picked up “The Whuffie Factor” yet, it is a must-read for entrepreneurs doing business online. Below is an Amazon link:

The Whuffie Factor: Using the Power of Social Networks to Build Your Business… Read More »

The fastest way to ruin a business relationship? Check that, the fastest way to never create a business relationship is to send a really, really, really horrible email. I sift through 400-600 emails a day, but this could be my favorite example which came today.

Below is copy and pasted with my commentary in bold/underlined. Name has been changed to protect the crappy.

Hi Website Administrator (Hi, random person. Wait you don’t even know my name?!), We are purely organic search SEO Firm; we can get your website on the 1st page of Google, Yahoo and MSN (Bing.com) (Do you have a company name? How do you know if I even care?).

We can increase your sales at … Read More »

Ever get a little side tracked when working on your business? Raise your hand. OK, put them down.
This weekend we had a GREAT new episode of The Rise To The Top with my special guest Bill Guertin showing you how to dominate your niche and a whole slew of other business building tips and tricks.
While the show was hitting the airwaves and Internet, I had a sneaky plan in place.

I proposed to Marcie on Saturday night at our condo.

But, what does this have to do with business you might ask (asking your soul mate to marry you and growing a company…ummm make a point here, David).

Well, here are the business lessons I learned from my … Read More »

Above is a clip from “Great Day St. Louis” on CBS (KMOV). I wish I could have talked about 5,00000000 minutes longer but here are some super easy ways you can get involved with Twitter RIGHT now.

Also, in case you missed it, we have a brand spankin’ new episode online to build your business.

You can of course hunt me down on Twitter @therisetothetop

(in case you are having issues with the embed here is the direct link.… Read More »