Social Media Workshop tomorrow

Presenting our Social Media Workshop at GVSU, Grand Rapids tomorrow from 1 to 3 pm; just updated with the latest info on Google+ and its implications for business.

Google+ Test Drive

Just signed up to test drive Google+; Circles appear to offer a more intuitive way to manage "who sees what" compared to the leading brand. It looks easier to use and manage overall. Can it beat FB? Not sure, but it's a far stronger competitor than Buzz.

Voice Search for Chrome Browser

Google is now in the process of rolling out "voice search" for its Chrome web browser; I've been using this feature on my Android phone for months now with gradually improving results. Their voice recognition software is getting smarter all the time. The technology has obvious value on a smartphone and tablet; perhaps less so on a desktop. Worth trying if you have a microphone hooked to your computer.

Tickets Available for Summer Event Series

 As WVPE Corporate Underwriters, we (Precept Partners) have a number of tickets for the various Summer Events that kick off this coming Friday with “Meet Me on the Island” featuring jazz guitarist Bill Burris. Over the summer, the series will feature a variety of outstanding jazz, blues and folk artists. I’ve copied details on the dates, locations and links where you can sample the music below.   

If you’d enjoy attending one or more of these events, just send me an email with the name of any or all event(s), how many tickets you need and the address I should mail them to. My email address is stephen@preceptpartners.com

In any case, enjoy the summer; it’ll be gone before we know it!

 

1. Meet Me on the Island

Century Center, South Bend
June 3, 2011 | 5:30 – 9:00 pm
The Bill Boris Group
http://www.billboris.com
Presented by WVPE Public Radio and South Bend Museum of Art

2. Warsaw Blue Friday

Spikes Beach Grill at Noa Noa Wood Grill & Sushi Bar, Warsaw
June 17, 2011 | 5:30 – 9:00 pm
The Elwood Splinters Blues Band
http://www.elwoodsplintersbluesband.com
Presented by WVPE Public Radio

3. Meet Me on the Island

Century Center, South Bend
July 1, 2011 | 5:30 – 10:30 pm
Half Pint Jones
http://halfpintjones.com/
Presented by WVPE Public Radio and South Bend Museum of Art

4. Envirofest

Wellfield Botanical Gardens, Elkhart
July 8, 2011 | 5:30 – 9:00 pm
Sons of the Never Wrong
http://www.sons.com
July 8, 2011 | 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Indiana Wild animal shows
http://www.indianawild.org
Presented by WVPE Public Radio and City of Elkhart Environmental Division

5. Fernwood Friday

Fernwood Botanic Gardens, Niles
July 15, 2011 | 5:30 – 9:00 pm
Typhanie Monique
http://www.tmonique.com/
Presented by WVPE Public Radio and Fernwood Botanical Garden & Nature Preserve

6. Music in the Gardens

The Center for History, South Bend
August 5, 2011 | 5:00 – 9:00 pm
The Whistle Pigs
http://www.whistlepigsband.com
Presented by WVPE Public Radio and City of Mishawaka Parks & Recreation

7. Mishawaka Blue Friday

Beutter Riverfront Park, Mishawaka
August 12, 2011 | 5:30 – 9”00 pm
South Side Denny
http://www.dennysnyder.com/main.php
Presented by WVPE Public Radio and City of Mishawaka Parks & Recreation

email trends

Are social media, texting and pervasive spam rendering plain old email obsolete? Before drawing that conclusion, it's worth considering that in 2010 there were over 100 trillion emails sent. Even relative to the more than 600 million Facebook users, and billions of tweets posted, this is a very BIG number. Notwithstanding the reality that spam makes up the larger part of emails sent, we see targeted, well designed email as a practical, valuable business tool. 

LinkedIn stock option risk

Looking through the LinkedIn S-1 filing I noted that there are about 18 million stock options issued. The low exercise price (relative to the IPO price or better) will make it very tempting for the employees and insiders to cash out once the six month lock-up period is over. Expect downward pressure on the stock price when these options get exercised.  

The latest LinkedIn S-1A, dated May 17, 2011 shows the break out of Options Granted, when and at what price:

Option Grant Dates		Number of Shares Underlying Options				Exercise Price Per Share				Common Stock Fair Value Per Share at Grant Date
February 2009			5,166,362	(1)		$	2.32			$	2.32
April 2009			75,500				2.32				2.32
June 2009			387,000				2.32				2.32
August 2009			609,000				2.32				2.32
September 2009			719,500				3.50				3.50
November 2009			2,556,000				3.50				3.50
February 2010			1,361,450				4.80				4.80
June 2010			1,654,522				6.20				6.20
September 2010			1,459,266				8.27				8.27
November 2010			361,675				8.97				8.97
December 2010			445,820				14.46				14.46
February 2011			1,951,880				19.63				19.63
April 2011			1,559,080				22.59				22.59

(1)

Includes 2,429,750 stock options that were repriced on a one-for-one basis to $2.32 per share. Please see the section below titled “Stock Option Repricing.”  Based upon the assumed initial public offering price of $43.50 per share, the aggregate intrinsic value of options outstanding as of March 31, 2011 was approximately $610.6 million, of which approximately $208.8 million related to vested options and approximately $401.8 million related to unvested options.

While I think the business fundamentals and long term prospects for the company are strong, the number and price of these stock options may create a high level of price volatility for the company’s shares in the short term, especially since the float is thin; i.e. the IPO put less than 10% of the company’s equity in play.  

Proceed with caution!

If you want to read more (and there’s a lot more), here’s a link to the S-1 on the sec.gov site: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1271024/000119312511142213/ds1a.htm

Another Internet Bubble?

LinkedIn closes at $93 a share and change; indication of another Internet "bubble"? Could be in the short term; don't think so longer term. While the relative valuation of LinkedIn could be debated (based on traditional valuation methods), the long term prospects for Internet companies that offer scalable solutions to real world problems may be underestimated by looking only at current EBITDA.