November 9, 2014.
AlligatorZone, is the free program where kids meet cool startups. The one thing that startup founders worry about is showing their product before it is perfect in their own minds. We would like to address that in this blog post. This introspective approach to recording each AlligatorZone session’s lessons helps us to arrive at the ideal set of criteria to curate the startups presenting at each session.
Our presenters this week were the founders of Mentorem and LetTheWorldJudge.com, respectively.
At today’s AlligatorZone, we encouraged the startup founders to show their beta site to our audience of youngsters and families. While its true that showing slideshows with words is not ideal for this audience, and to most audiences, when story-telling is combined with images and the opportunity to look at what the entrepreneur is describing, it helps the kids and teens and the families to provide better feedback. It also keeps them engaged.
Mentorem founder Hoang Nguyen kept the audience very engaged by demonstrating a deep understanding of the studying methods currently used by school-aged children. However, we realized that it would make for a richer conversation if he actually showed them the software that he and his team have been developing.
The second speaker was Cornell Wilder, Founding Owner and CEO of LetTheWorldJudge.com. Cornell was able to explain the concept of his business with real-world examples of civil lawsuits, although a working prototype was not ready for the audience members to play with. Regardless, Cornell was very successful in simplifying the message, while the questions for the kids and the suggestion from one of the parents about positioning the startup’s offering gave him and his team some food for thought as they prepare for the commercial launch.
Here are some more pictures for your enjoyment.
Cornell Wilder, Founding Owner/CEO of LetTheWorldJudge.com and, Hoang Nguyen of Mentorem strike a conversation as families start gathering for yet another session of AlligatorZone at the Jan PLatt Library in South Tampa on November 8, 2014.
Librarian Laura Doyle of Hillsborough County talk to kids who have just arrived to attend AlligatorZone. Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative has been a great ally in this endeavor, providing space and promotional support.
There’s something special about using the library as a venue of choice for AlligatorZone – it is not intimidating for the children.
The session begins with Hoang Nguyen, founder of Mentorem explaining about his startup’s offering.
Notice the photographer on the left? That’s the founder of CadeLancaster Photography, a high-school freshman who has started his own photography business, covering AlligatorZone through his lens.
Even he couldn’t help chiming in with some insights and questions.
Parents added to the conversation and provided further insights.
We encouraged the founder to show the audience his beta version, and he obliged.
At which point, at least one of the kids sought solace in his book after opining that another website gives “so many rewards” to users. Tough crowd!
After the entire session was over, Hoang Nguyen received more feedback from one of the parents …
… and from the kids. Startup founders really benefit when they care to pay attention to, and listen to the kids in the audience, because kids are after all “digital natives” (to quote Sean Murphy who attended the Sunnyvale debut of AlligatorZone).
The second presenter of the session was Cornell Wilder, Founding Owner/CEO of LetTheWorldJudge.com. His topic resonated with the audience as well.
The kids had many questions for Cornell and he took the time to answer each of them, while his Pearl from his team recorded the entire session on her iPad. AlligatorZone sessions are known to provide eye-opening moments and wisdom to the founders of startups.
Cornell Wilder of LetTheWorldJudge.com explains his business model to a 6th grader who asked how his company will make money.
Questions from a 5th grade girl in the audience, led to some interesting suggestions from one of the parents on the positioning of the business that gave the founder some serious food for thought.
Another incredibly successful session of AlligatorZone concluded with still more questions to be answered.
We’ll soon have videos of the presenting startup founders’ impressions of AlligatorZone. In our quest to find the best time and location for parents to be able to bring their kids to this exciting learning opportunity, we are going to be trying the Seminole Heights Library on a Monday evening, December 8th, 2014. Hope to see you soon at another session of AlligatorZone. Check out the running calendar at http://AlligatorZone.eventbrite.com
Follow AlligatorZone on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/AlligatorZone. Join us for the next session of AlligatorZone. A running schedule and reservations are at AlligatorZone.eventbrite.com. Mountain View Public Library will open their own registrations 2 weeks prior to the event. AlligatorZone is one of several impact-programs being designed at SiliconGlades. If you know of startups that would make for interesting presenters to an audience of kids, teens and families, please send your suggestion to events [at] siliconglades [dot] com.
This report was posted by a volunteer from SiliconGlades, an innovation firm that designs, among other things, hyperlocal social impact programs such as AlligatorZone. In other words, SiliconGlades designs programs that bring communities together for a common uplifting purpose, right in your neighborhood.
