On television today, you can find just about any type of channel ranging from Spanish and DIY to home gardening and tech.  Heck, they've even got knitting shows for those die-hard knitters.  So my question is if we have G4 Tech TV, DIY Network and Bravo, why the heck don't we have an Entrepreneur channel?  What's up with that?

There's definitely not a shortage of viewers for this niche and typically Entrepreneurs make a nice living, so I doubt it would be difficult to interest advertisers.  In fact, I bet you'd have plenty of advertisers knocking at your door.  Oh well, until that happens(maybe I'll just do this my darn self), I guess I'll keep digging around for the good shows.  Thanks to my beloved Digital Video Recorder(DVR), it's as easy as "Set it and forget it". 

Periodically, I'll let you know what my personal favorites are.  Maybe I'll call it "TV Tuesday"… who knows.  Yeah, I think that's what I'll do.  A little cheesy, but it may help develop a good routine for my blogging.  So to kick things off, here's my first official pick for "TV Tuesday": 

SHOW TITLE: Your Business on MSNBC
HOST: JJ Ramberg
WHEN: Sundays at 7:30am-8:00am(ET)

OVERVIEW: The weekly, half-hour program, hosted by JJ Ramberg, which focuses exclusively on America's small business entrepreneurs, will be the place to go for news, advice, guidance, and tips for small business owners. Entire press release… -Source: MSNBC Press Release Aug 2, 2006.

PROS

The main reason I enjoy this show is because of the amount of content they are able to fit in this 30 minute show.  Too many shows are guilty of focusing on one issue the entire show and sometimes that's a good fit, but Entrepreneurs are hungry for information and inspiration.  The more you can throw at them, the better(in my opinion).

Host & Guest Panelists: The host has lots of energy and her personality fits right in with the show.  She does a good job of keeping conversations and interviews under control and keeping her guest panelists on topic instead of allowing them to get out of control plugging their business, service or product.

The Fish Bowl: During the show, JJ pulls out a fish bowl filled with questions from viewers of the show.  Random questions are pulled and are presented to the guest panelists to provide their insite.  

Viewer E-Mails: During the show, JJ reads a few e-mail questions from viewers of the show and are presented to the guest panelists to provide their answers.

Weekly Polls: Each show, viewers are encouraged to participate in a poll ranging all topics in the world of business.  Results are announced the following episode.

Elevator Pitch: Each week, the show allows one of their viewers to present their Elevator Pitch to the guest panel and is given feedback of his/her presentation and product or service.  Not only does the person pitching the product get to work on his/her skills, the exposure is surely well worth the effort

 

CONS

Like I said, the show is great.  I guess I only have two complaints:

Length of Show: 30 minutes isn't enough.  At a minimum I think an hour would be great.

Frequency of Show: Your Business should air every day.

QUESTION: What business shows do you watch?

I just received the November issue of Business 2.0 Magazine and started my traditional routine of skimming through and flipping the corners of any article that immediately catches my interest(more on this tip later).

One article, in particular that caught my attention, titled "When Crocs Attack", was all about the almost accidental success of those oddly designed shoes known around the world as Crocs. You’ve heard of these, right? Soft… squooshy… lots of holes in them..? Well, if not, you’re one of a small percentage that has yet to catch on to this fad.

Diane Anderson, the contributor for this article, writes this company went from $1 million in revenue in 2003 to a projected $322 million this year. That’s not all; here are a few additional interesting tidbits of information from the article:

• IPO in February was the richest in footwear history
• Crocs, Inc. has a market cap of +$1 billion
• Crocs is expected to move 20 million pair this year, triple from 2005 sales
• Crocs currently operates manufacturing plants in China, Italy, Mexico and Romania
• 1 in 6 people in Israel owns a pair of Crocs
• Revenue for first half of 2006 was up 255 percent from 2005
• 30 percent of Crocs sales are made up of foreign sales
• Crocs are now sold in over 40 countries
• Crocs expects to sell over 20 million pair during 2006
• Special branded Crocs for Disney, Google, Tyco, L.A. Lakers and other brands coming soon
• Currently over 20 Crocs models available and growing
• Recently acquired Jibbitz for a reported $10 million in cash and additional $10 million in earnings(Amazing success story, as well).

Crocs Lovers: After doing a little searching on the internet, I soon realized that Crocs wearers do love their Crocs. So much that there’s even a website dedicated completely to Crocs wearers. The website is called CrocFans and what originally began as a small blog for one Crocs lover has now exploded into a full blown Crocs lover community. CrocFans are proud to show their love for these shoes and it’s evident in the photos and posts at CrocFans.

And just when you think you’ve seen it all…

Crocs Haters: Of course, what would you expect? You can’t please everyone and judging from this site called IHateCrocs, these people definitely hate Crocs. It’s either that or these people are just really bored. Take a look for yourself and you be the judge. Personally, I think it’s a little bit of both.

Although this company is publicly traded, there’s so much you can learn from their story. Once you read through the entire article, you’ll learn how this company was able to bring the material, manufacturing and distribution process under one umbrella, enabling them to have complete strategic control of their product from start to finish and everything in between.

Ron Snyder, former Flextronics executive who helped "light Crocs’s fuse", had one inspiring thing to say in this article, "Think bigger than you are". Wow! Well said Mr. Snyder… well said. With that being said…

I have a question for you: What are some ways thinking bigger than you are can make/has made a difference in your Entrepreneurial ventures?

Biz/Entrepreneur News: Current and helpful news that is relevant to the Entrepreneur and soon-to-be Entrepreneur.

Tips/Resources/Tutorials: Helpful tips, resources, tutorials and any information that will benefit the Entrepreneur and soon-to-be Entrepreneur.

Interviews/Podcasts: Exciting, insightful and informational interviews/podcasts with Entrepreneurs, organizations and business resources.

Community: A strong and lively online community through message boards, chats and interviews.

Events/Meet-Ups: Prepare, plan and coordinate local events and meet-ups to serve as network and business opportunities. If possible, schedule guest speakers and presentations for those interested.