Silicon Prairie News Awards 3 KC Startups with Golden Analog

Throw together 400+ entrepreneurial enthusiasts, 48 incredible startup nominees and one giant golden prairie dog and what do you get?  The Silicon Prairie Awards.

Last night, the first annual Silicon Prairie Awards honored those startups and Silicon Prairie members who have greatly impacted our Midwest community in a positive way.  With awards ranging from Mobile App of the Year, Startup Service Provider of the Year and the greatly-anticipated Startup of the Year, 12 lucky and talented nominees from Omaha, Kansas City and Des Moines walked away with a golden analog, appropriately shaped as SPN's mascot, a prairie dog.

I was lucky enough to trek across the heartland with two partners from Think Big to partake in the Silicon Prairie Awards.  And after we climbed the stairs of the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, glided across the orange carpet, got "paparazzied" by a SPN photographer and interviewed with the "Joan Rivers" of the event (Michael Stacy), we finally arrived at the Silicon Prairie Awards.

One thing is for sure--there was a lot of entrepreneurial energy in the room.  Lawyers were chatting with startups, sponsors were clinking glasses with executives and even David Cohen, CEO of TechStars, was making his way through the crowd.  It took everything in SPN's power to actually stop people from networking to sit down for the awards ceremony--obviously, we have a lot to talk about!

The awards ceremony was equally as impressive.  It was all smooth sailing for the SPN team as awards were given to startups, entrepreneurs and service providers from across the Silicon Prairie (namely Kansas City, Omaha and Des Moines).  Kansas City alone had 17 nominees, three of which went home with a golden analog.  Those teams and individuals awarded were Front Flip (Mobile App of the Year), Jake Johnson of Divshot (Startup Designer of the Year) and Greg Kratofil (Startup Service Provider of the Year).  The cities of Omaha and Lincoln seemed to walk away with the most analogs, five in total, and Des Moines claimed four (three of which were awarded to Dwolla!).  Don't worry Silicon Prairie, we love a little healthy competition!

After the awards ceremony, guests were invited to an after party in the Joslyn lobby which was sponsored by Lincoln startup Hudl.  Guests had the chance to walk down Startup Alley, a showcase of nine Silicon Prairie startups including eCreamery, MindMixer, Goodsmiths, Vestn, RAZ Mobile, Stackify, RareWire, Obsessive Software and Bulu Box.

Think Big would like to congratulate all winners and nominees at the 2012 Silicon Prairie Awards.  And another big congratulations to Silicon Prairie News for pulling off an event for anyone passionate about startups in the Midwest area!

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iKC Answers KC's Question: How Do You Build a Startup in the Midwest?

Kansas City has that "something".  It's hard to put my finger on exactly what that "something" is...but one thing is for sure: it's there.  I was lucky enough to sit in on an iKC panel this morning called How to Build a Start and Stay in the Midwest, where 3 panelists and one moderator talked about what that "something" is and how we can improve upon the entrepreneurial scene, not only in Kansas City, but in the Midwest. 

Tom Boozer (UMKC), moderator of the panel, started the session by asking the following question: What makes us different than Boston's tech hub?

And what about Silicon Valley?

What about Austin?

These three cities have truly utilized their growing tech and entrepreneur scenes and have become brands.  Can Kansas City, the Midwest (or in an entrepreneurial scene, Silicon Prairie) do this as well?  Can our geographical location become a brand as well?

Panelists from some of Kansas City's most well-known startups including LiveOn, Front Flip and Farms Tech, seem to think so.

Some of the key take-aways I left this session with:

• Why do we go to Silicon Valley, Boston and Austin?  Startups go there for the money, the technology and the talent.  Does Kansas City have these 3 characteristics as well?  
• Kansas City's best entrepreneurial trait is its support of entrepreneurs in general.  According to Jason Tatge of Farms Tech, "Entrepreneur organizations in Kansas City get you around other people who are extraordinarily successful in this community.  There is not another city that provides advice like Kansas City does.  The people here are generous and willing to give."
• Kansas City is a great place to start a new business because of its cost of living.  The cost in other places (like Silicon Valley) is high compared to Kansas City.  Tom Boozer was correct when he said, "there are things you can do here that you can't there." 
• Silicon Valley is known for technology, so that's what you talk about when you're out and about in SF or San Jose.  But in SV, people are more honest about entrepreneurship too.  Here in Kansas City, everyone pretends like everything is perfect.  In the Valley, people talk about the problems that they're having.  Kansas City needs to become more open in saying that we are trying and that we may fail in a few areas.  "There is a beauty in entrepreneurship," said Jonathan Whistman of LiveOn.  "There are companies that are successful and those that fail.  We should be comfortable in telling people that we are struggling.  That happens in Silicon Valley; why can't we do it here and help one another with these problems?"
• The Front Flip panelist that filled in for Sean Beckner felt the same way: "When I put an investor hat on, I would turn away from someone who says that everything is under control.  You're fooling yourself!"

So what's missing in Kansas City?  According to the panel (and many opinions from the vocal audience):

• A roadmap for who to seek advice from 
• The willingness to exchange honest information
• Unstructured, unplanned conversations that tackle certain entrepreneurial problems
• Entrepreneur-focused classes (i.e. coding, development, etc.) in schools (from elementary to university) 

Stay tuned for more updates about what's going on at iKC!

Follow me! @AllisonThinkBig