Earlier this month, Mashable’s co-editor Ben Parr wrote an interesting piece on the American Express Open Forum talking about some trends entrepreneurs should be aware of in 2010. Earlier, I had published a piece on insights from venture capitalists here in San Francisco. This time, I’m going to focus on what members of the media think about being an entrepreneur this year:
But first, let’s give you a background on Ben Parr and who he is to throw a bit of credibility onto the plate & put everything into perspective. As stated before, Parr is one of the editors for one of the largest blogs on the Internet and reports on practically everything happening online. He’s a web entrepreneur, author and a self-described “world changer”. To top it all off, Parr is an advisor to several startups and is also working on a new, unannounced startup.
So what are the trends Parr is seeing in 2010? Here they are as he wrote on his Open Forum post earlier this month:
There will more IPOs in 2010: In terms of exits, the initial public offering is often the granddaddy of them all. It is what turns a few innovative entrepreneurs into millionaires and billionaires. With the market recovering, you can expect more of them to occur this year, including several high profile ones. The big IPO highlight this year could be none other than Facebook.
Venture capital will continue to flow: As I said before, venture capital is recovering, but it’s nowhere near its previous peaks. $4.8 billion was invested in startups in Q3 2009, up from $3.32 billion in Q1, but still well shy of the $7.16 billion in Q3 2008. Several VC firms are already predicting that 2010 will be a buyer’s market, and unless we have another economic collapse, I tend to agree with that assertion.
More social media starts will find ways to be profitable: Profitability in social media and the web has always been a problem. In the last few months though, companies such as Twitter, Facebook, and Zynga have found ways to become profitable. This is a good sign for the rest of the industry: the online ad market is recovering and social media companies are finding innovative ways to earn revenue.
Industries to watch: Biotech, Clean Tech, Energy, Media/Entertainment: These four industries were some of the most-funded and rapidly-growing industries this year. Biotech raised $905 million in venture capital last quarter, while clean tech grew by 89% from Q2 to Q3 2009 alone.
More economic turmoil: While I’ve painted an overall rosy picture for 2010 (especially compared to the economic abyss of 2009), entrepreneurs are not out of the woods yet. While the stock market has made a comeback in 2009, banks are still closing and the U.S. federal deficit is still rising.
It’s interesting to hear these trends, especially since not everyone is thinking the economy is fully back on its feet yet. But as Parr notes, there are some shining moments for entrepreneurs.
What are some trends you’re seeing?
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