What is a specific issue that you faced in business but the youngest generation, who has grown up within reach of technology, won't have to?
The following answers are provided by the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world's most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, the YEC recently launched #StartupLab, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses via live video chats, an expert content library and email lessons.
A. Faxing
I can't believe faxing is still a thing. It's inefficient and a waste of valuable time that could be spent elsewhere. We do hear the word less frequently nowadays, and I anticipate in a few years the fax machine will be vaporized from the face of the planet -- just in time to save the youngest generation from dealing with fax transmission issues.
- Fehzan Ali, Adscend Media LLC
A. Desktop Applications
I can't count how many times a cloud-based service would have been a life saver when starting my previous businesses. There's no need to have a remote desktop or a specific computer in my possession. Now, most services are cloud-based and can be accessed from any computer with an Internet connection.
- Peter Awad, GoodBlogs
A. Effective Marketing
With the explosion of social media marketing, it's now much easier for an entrepreneur to extend the reach of his or her company and potentially connect with customers all over the world.
- Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance
A. Meetings in Person
People love to have meetings, and that's one thing I learned early on. Some meetings will always need to be done in person, but you can save a lot of time and money by hosting Web meetings in today's business world. Why drive across town, sit in traffic and banter for an hour about something that can be resolved in a 10-to 20-minute online meeting? Thankfully, we have Skype, join.me and many more.
- Andy Karuza, Brandbuddee
A. Internet Issues
Moving the entire business to a different town because the Internet is too slow in your current location can waste a lot of time.
- Andrew Angus, Switch Video
A. Issues With Group Video Chat
The issues involved in group video chat are quickly becoming resolved. Google Hangouts and WebRTC are making it really easy to talk to and collaborate with people anywhere in real time.
- Peter Baumgartner, Lincoln Loop
A. Mailing Documents
In the past, I've always had to remember to keep a printer, stamps and paper on hand to do most business transactions. While I still like filing everything so it's organized physically, it helps to have everything stored online where I can find it.
- Russ Oja, Seattle Windows and Construction, LLC
A. Social Media
Do you know how hard it is for a business owner to understand the use of Pinterest? Growing up communicating with social networks will give the younger generation a huge digital communicating advantage. Quickly changing technology will also be the norm for youngsters.
- Brendon Schenecker, Travel Vegas