The story of David and Goliath as told in the Bible is one of the underdog overcoming tremendous odds and winning a critical battle. In business, many times people and companies think that they must work with the biggest firm in town to get the best quality end product. While I think that it sometimes makes sense to work with the “big dog” it can often times be more beneficial to work with a small company.

Unless you are “buying IBM” for fear of losing your job for a bad decision you will be paying for bloated overhead, on-the-job-training of newer personnel, and sacrificing innovative thinking.

So why go with a small, boutique communications agency? Well, for starters there’s the concept of personal service. Many times when a big agency “comes a courting” they will bring the principals of the company who will wow you with their years of experience, their beautiful suits, and their big vocabularies. Take it all with a grain of salt because that’s probably the last time you’ll be seeing these people. Once your contract is signed (which will likely be a hefty monthly retainer) you will be relegated to teaching the junior jump-ups at the agency all about your business. You are paying for their education so be sure you are getting your monies worth.

Small firms offer:

Scalability without high overhead (strategic partnerships are key to taking on larger projects)

Minimal layers (decision-makers are part of your account team)

Better thinking (out-of-the-box solutions and ideas)

Personalized service (a core team will get to know you, your company and your products)

Responsiveness (flexibility and a willingness to partner where needed)

Financial flexibility (while retainer agreements are typically the best way of ensuring focused attention on your company the smaller firms may be more
flexible in the payment terms and retainer amounts)

Give the Davids of the world a chance and give your business an opportunity for fresh thinking and outstanding client service.

Read more: How David Beats Goliath. When underdogs break the rules. by Malcolm Gladwell
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/11/090511fa_fact_gladwell#ixzz0f
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Local entrepreneurs, Sean McCullough and Adam Duffy of Ping.fm are joining forces with Seesmic. Seesmic acquired Ping.fm and plans to integrate Ping.fm into all of its applications in the near future. Ping.fm is a status update services, which allows users to updates posts on over 50 social networks through SMS, mobile apps, IM services and third party applications that support the services.

“Ping.fm is a Tulsa start-up success story. They showcase that great ideas can be discovered and funded and location is not a deterrent for success. The Collaboratorium team and members are proud and wish them the best in the next chapter of the Ping.fm story,” said Sean Griffin, Collaboratorium Chair.

McCullough and Duffy have been members of the Collaboratorium, an entrepreneurial resource center located in downtown Tulsa since it’s opening in May 2009.

“The Collaboratorium played a critical role in our success. The dynamic and supportive environment allowed us to focus our business model and create greater value for our customers and investor. We look forward to giving back to the Collaboratorium and the City of Tulsa as we continue down our entrepreneurial journey,” said Sean McCullough, Ping.fm co-founder,

Ping.fm’s founders Adam Duffy and Sean McCullough will join Seesmic as full-time employees and continue to work on Ping.fm. For more information about Ping.fm and Seesmic, visit seesmic.com

Properties Plus announced the opening of the new corporate headquarters at 7040 S. Yale in Tulsa on Thursday, June 24th. The new headquarters is located at the NW corner of Yale Avenue and 71st Street and the 14,000 sq. ft. space reflects Properties Plus’ progressive culture from floor to ceiling, and offers the resources, amenities and real estate needed for future business expansion. (more…)

Ihloff Salon and Day Spa announces the opening of its new full-service salon in Bookhaven Village in Norman, OK, located at 36th St. NW & Robinson.

The 2,300 square-foot Aveda Lifestyle Salon and Spa is Ihloff’s fourth opening since 1980. The new salon and spa has 12 stations, two spa rooms and offers a full line of Aveda products. For additional information visit: www.ihloffspa.com.

About Ihloff Salon and Day Spa:
Celebrating 28 years of bringing balance and beauty to life, Ihloff is nationally renowned for its commitment to the environment, the Tulsa community and their clients’ well-being. Recognized for four years by Salon Today as one of the 200 fastest growing salons in the nation, Ihloff is a designated Aveda Lifestyle Salon & Spa – devoted to bringing clients back to balance with products and services based on Aveda’s pure flower and plant essences.

Everywhere you look, a new kind of energy is emerging from the Tulsa business community. On Thursday, April 2, the 3rd annual Mayor’s Tulsa Entrepreneurial Spirit Award business model competition, sponsored by SpiritBank kicked off at the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame.

The evening celebrated with the past year’s winners including, SeekingSitters and Grocio.com. They shared their stories of growth over the past year, and how the Spirit Award has continued to support and encourage their businesses.

On June 4, 2009 the top 25 Executive Summaries will be announced and invited to their submit their full business plan. The business plans will be reviewed, and each business will have seven minutes to pitch their business model idea to the panel of Spirit Award judges on July 8 – 9, 2009.

The top 12 will be announced Thursday, July 16, and will have the opportunity to be “coached” by local business professionals on areas that they improve their pitch techniques and business plans. The top 12 will have five minutes to pitch their idea on September 12 with hopes of making it to the final seven.

The seven finalists will be announced on Sunday, September 20, 2009. For the final time, the finalists will work with the coaches to before prepare for their last pitch, which is only two minutes, to the panel of judges.

The winners of the Spirit Award will be announced during Global Entrepreneurship Week on Tuesday, November 17, 2009. SpiritBank will present checks to the winners: $30,000 for first place, $5,000 for second place and $2,500 for third place.

So what are you waiting for Tulsa? Unleash your Big Idea!

The call to entries are open, business executive summaries can be submitted to the website, www.tulsaspiritaward.com until 11:59 p.m. on May 15, 2009.

Need more reasons to enter the 2009 Mayor Taylor’s Tulsa Entrepreneurial Spirit Award? Check out the top ten list at www.tulsabusiness.com