It occurred to me recently that web companies, more so than non-tech companies, need to keep in mind that the scalability of their application can go beyond its intended locale.  Facebook, for instance, was rather shortsighted when it came to scaling its product internationally.  It took several years for them to develop an international, translated version, and even then it was available only in four languages.  As a result of Facebook’s delay, millions of users in China ended up signing up for a blatantly copied Facebook clone, and who knows how many other customers were lost worldwide.

The point is, the world internet market, especially in the developing world, is growing at a slower rate than that in the United States.  For a lot of businesspeople, this means that it is a less important target market.  But look at the numbers.  There are over a billion people in China and India; sub-Saharan Africa will have 1.5 billion people by the end of 2050.  These numbers, combined with spreading internet technology and a wealth of new entrepreneurial and technical talent from these countries, mean that the future market in “Web 2.0″ is not in Palo Alto, but in Nairobi or Bangalore or Hainan.

I read a recent article that, due to the fact that cell phones are the primary communication tool for Kenyans, cell phone programming is a fast growing skill in Nairobi, Kenya, and more importantly, the Kenyans who use cell phones are a fast growing market.  Meanwhile, thousands of companies in India’s Silicon Valley compete for prominence in the Western world, trying to sell their products to American and European buyers.  But pretty soon, the Indian population will be demanding these services, too, and it is only a matter of time before the “Developing” world market explodes–and explodes big.

So, it’s really important for “Web 2.0″ companies in the States to think big as well.  Developers should consider installing translation packs into their sites–even for English–so they can scale into other language in the future.  Most importantly, they should follow the example of Google and Microsoft and recruit global talent.  The untapped global market is a sleeping giant right now, but when it gets revved up billions of people will be looking for the same level of internet reliability and satisfaction that the “modern” world has come to expect.  When that happens, make sure your company is on top of it.

This is why I like the idea of midVentures.  As a global integrator of sorts, we are not only helping ourselves bridge into a 21st century, international internet community but we are bringing the international community into the fold as legitimate–and competitive–players in the American market.

Does college actually prepare you for entrepreneurship; and should you start a company while you are still in college? That depends on your entrepreneurial goals; but I’ll expand on those questions below.

What should I study in college if I want to pursue entrepreneurship? Being a philosophy major who taught himself how to program, none of my coursework directly helped my start-up career. If anything, that one adobe photoshop class I took in high school has had more of a direct affect on my start-up experience than all the Plato and Hobbes combined. But Business, Accounting, Finance, Marketing, Engineering, Computer Science, and Visual Art will all give you an obvious skillset. Skipping all of those classes; I took introductory economics and called it a day. Ask me about negative externalities.

Which colleges do entrepreneurs choose? Hot shot entrepreneurs will always gravitate towards prestigious schools (Harvard, Penn, MIT) where there will be no classwork specifically regarding entrepreneurship- but you build a power network of peers that will last you a lifetime. Other hotshot entrepreneurs get a concrete skill and join the workforce as fast as possible. Any university offering a business management or accounting degree; and maybe a 5-year mba- will suit you.

Does college really matter for an entrepreneur? No, not really. If you know how to sell, and if you have some semblance of a trade or skill- you already have an edge over all of those pampered kids who expect the world to be handed to them. In entrepreneurship- knowing how to sell is a more valuable skill than knowing a foreign language, knowing advanced math, or knowing ancient history. College is more of a networking event; as well as a place to reinforce existing math and grammar skills. But it is not necessary for entrepreneurship.

Should I start a company while in college? The strong yes answer derives from the fact that you do not have a full-time job, a family, or a mortgage to distract you during college. Also; you have a university full of resources available to you. But if you want to learn a concrete skill before you start your company- spend 4 years focusing on acquiring that skill. 4 years of computer science or finance classes can establish your confidence and fall-back career for your life. Also, it’s a bargaining chip when arguing over equity.

College taught me that there is no way for me to learn the skills I need to start companies except by starting companies. 4 years of guerrilla business is a more valuable entrepreneurial education than 4 years of humanities and social sciences. College makes you well-rounded and interesting; but it is not a measure of your entrepreneurial aptitude.

People keep asking me if Chicago has a tech start-up community. There are website design companies, website hosting companies, and hobby-preneurs in every city on the map; but here’s a visual of the geographic distribution of recognizable web companies.

http://startupsearch.org/map/company/

Chicago is in the top 6 (and we have the alphabetical competitive edge)

Apparently the rest of the midwest is a web start-up wasteland.

I hope someone puts Cleveland back on the map. Besides our forefather John Rockefeller.

Come to a meeting in flip-flops and your soon-to-be ex-clients will not be impressed. Why? Because you’re not going to the beach with them. You expect your clients will respect you, right? So why shouldn’t you respect them in turn?

Dressing well is only half the battle, though. Remember that the people you and your team will be meeting with regarding your start-up are just as excited about new ideas as you are. They too are entrepreneurial, and eager to get on board with a new venture if they think it will be successful. The fact that they are meeting with you in the first place means that you’ve managed to convince them that you are a passably competent start-up.

So don’t screw it up. Be confident and collected in your meeting. Don’t check your watch or “cut to the chase.” Have nice-looking business cards. Have a nice website (see tip #3). If you don’t know how to answer a question, say “That’s an interesting question that I haven’t considered. I’ll look into that” instead of simply “I don’t know.” The important thing is that you seem cool, rational and present yourself as an exciting potential business partner.

If you act the part, you are the part. There was a story recently about how Fox News labels people as “political analysts” or “experts” who are analyzing on television for the first time. Their labels are all about the image they present as the authority in the matters they report on. In business, you can do the same thing. You don’t have to lie, but you can present an image of success just by acting like you’ve got it.

If you act like a hot start-up, you are a hot start-up. Keep your image polished, and as long as your business is making money, you will attract lots of attention.

I spend about 3-5 hours a week searching for and buying domain names. Sometimes its utterly frustrating, and other times its the joyous hours of a start-up when the team resonates on the vision and brand identity. I use instantdomainsearch.com and bustaname.com to accelerate my domain searching.

I am no expert on choosing brands- but I have some guidelines that will help you hone down on your best domain.

1. Don’t just spin off another site’s domain. No more mynannyspace.com, freeamazon.com, bloogle.com- traveling too close to a famous brand makes you look like a cheap clone.

2. Don’t use more than 2- maybe 3- words in a single domain. Count your syllables. hotdogstands.com passes; favoritebooklistschicago.com fails.

3. You can make up words (“Google doesn’t mean anything” has been told to me at least once a week) but be careful. Made-up words are often hard to remember- hard to spell- or hard to pronounce. I owned agavian.com, izmus.com, and many other domains that are painful to spell over the phone. “Go to a-g-a-v-i-a-n dot com”

4. Google any domain you are thinking of buying. If streamlineglobal.com is available; but there is already a large brand in your industry called “streamline”, stay away. You don’t want people google searching your name and finding a competing site.

5. Don’t be afraid to spend $1k – $2k on buying a hot domain. See buydomains.com. You would be surprised how far $2k will go with domain buying.

6. Create your own culture. The logo design, your colors- icons- and layout- they can give your domain culture; think about what your domain will look like as a brand.

7. Explicitly state what you do. This seems obvious- but its often overlooked. If you let people pay for stuff with their iphone; call yourself paybyiphone.com. It works.

8. Don’t confine your brand by geography or industry if you have plans of scaling. You can’t launch chicagodaycare.com in san francisco.

9. Only buy dot coms. Dot net, dot us, dot org, etc- they are transparently second tier- and everyone will go to the dot com by accident. The only exception is to work your extension into your name, like del.icio.us

10. Toss the name around. Sometimes a friend needs to tell you your domain is bad. I will admit I’m better at finding professional domains than fun domains.