Although 30 percent of iPhone users in the United States are Hispanic, less than 5 percent of Hispanic newspapers and radio stations have an iPhone app or a mobile website. Through the support of Digital Sandbox KC, Bluejacket Technology will take the next steps in developing its product, Mi Zócalo, for the U.S. Hispanic market and help Hispanic publishers move into the mobile era and create new revenue streams.

The Mi Zócalo platform allows the publisher to share existing content on mobile devices and increase revenue through additional advertising streams. For users, Mi Zócalo is a bilingual guide to the Hispanic communities of America. The app helps users find local bilingual news, events and buzz-worthy places to eat, shop and have fun based on the informed opinions of local Latinos. 

Mi Zócalo is the brainchild of a talented management team. Christina Frazier, CEO, is a serial entrepreneur who raised venture capital in China and sold her second company, Alianthus, Inc., to Galaxy Glory Holding Ltd in 2010.  She co-created a very popular top-20 android app that generated more than 500,000 downloads. Ed Reyes, CMO/Sales Director, is a member of the Reyes Media Group, which owns and operates Spanish language newspapers and radio stations in Kansas, Missouri and Texas.

Support from the Digital Sandbox will assist in the development of a “dashboard” user interface, critical for the implementation of beta testing.  

When selling a home, the seller can often get little consideration. Real estate veterans Liz Zimmerman and Jaimie Macoubrie noticed that problem, and created a solution that’s on its way to becoming a thriving company.

TrackTi came as a result of brainstorming a solution for eliminating the scheduling chaos associated with selling a home.  Digital Sandbox KC provided additional resources that streamlined the steps needed to complete their product in order to successfully launch.

The #1 complaint from home sellers is the time lost waiting for scheduled showings. A buyer’s agent schedules showings for several homes in one day. The showing service allows for 1 – 2 hour windows for each home, which gives the buyer plenty of time to travel between homes. The burden is then placed on the seller to leave the home for a specific window of time, not knowing if the agent either arrived or left during the scheduled time. TrackTi constantly updates the seller as to the estimated arrival and departure time of the showing agent.

The patent and application not only covers real estate, but also other markets where waiting for a service call is an issue. Think cable company, refrigerator repair or package delivery.

DivvyHQ (Alluresoft, LLC) has received funding from Digital Sandbox KC and Dundee Venture Capital of Omaha, Neb., to ramp up marketing and operations for the cloud-based content planning platform.

DivvyHQ was initially launched as the content marketing industry’s first spreadsheet-free editorial calendar application built specifically for professional content producers. Today, DivvyHQ helps organizations plan and facilitate their marketing and social media initiatives, and communicate more efficiently than ever. Within one easy application, customers can manage content ideas, their editorial team, production workflows and deadlines.

Dundee’s investment follows proof-of-concept funding from the Digital Sandbox that helped fill the IT management void in the company. Digital Sandbox support also provided resources to develop the proper corporate structure for the company, better positioning DivvyHQ for follow on funding.

“We are very excited about how these partnerships will allow us to build a rock-star team that will accelerate the development of our application and provide your content team with a more robust and customizable set of tools,” said Brody Dorland, co-founder.

DivvyHQ was launched in September 2011 at the first Content Marketing World in Cleveland, Ohio.

“We were so excited to see our tool fill a big need and eliminate much of the pain that has been tolerated by so many content practitioners,” Dorland said.

Funding Match

DivvyHQ was a great fit for Dundee Venture Capital, given its focus on Midwest-based companies with a SaaS solution in a rapidly growing market. “We are excited to invest in Brock and Brody to help push DivvyHQ into the mainstream,” said Michael Wetta, principal at Dundee Venture Capital. “DivvyHQ’s unique approach to planning and executing sophisticated content marketing strategies combined with the team’s expertise in the increasingly complex and growing market created an attractive investment. ” 

The company also fit the Digital Sandbox profile of a company on the cusp of something big. “DivvyHQ is a great example of how the Digital Sandbox KC can help fill a gap and get a company fully prepared for their first real round of equity funding,” said Jeff Shackelford, director, Digital Sandbox KC.  

Digital Sandbox funding for DivvyHQ was made possible by the Missouri Technology Corporation through a matching grant to the Digital Sandbox program.

The Next Chapter of DivvyHQ

With a solid foundation and a notable customer base in place, the company looks forward to introducing customers to the new DivvyHQ, a fast-growing company with a targeted focus on building the best tool for big brands, agencies, publishers and media companies who produce high-volumes of content. 

Founders will head back to Content Marketing World in September to give attendees the first introduction to the new DivvyHQ. Friends of DivvyHQ can use the promo code “DIVVYHQ” and get a $100 discount on registration.

“What’s going on in Kansas City this weekend?”

That’s the simple and core question that spawned Local Ruckus, a Kansas City, Kan., startup and the first nationally viable, local events platform.

“Local Ruckus’ shift to a business-to-business model positions them well to capitalize on what they’ve built and developed,” said Jeff Shackelford, director of the Digital Sandbox KC.  “They’ve already made great strides in positioning the company for rapid growth.”

Doing the Local Thing

Local Ruckus was founded in January 2011, launched with its current platform in August 2012 and will release the next version this fall. A web-based tool for discovering and sharing local events, Local Ruckus cuts to the entertainment chase, helping users who are hunting for local events find and share them faster and easier than the newspaper trawl or overly complicated event sites.

“Being a part of the Digital Sandbox will help us acquire the appropriate resources to elevate our platform to the next level,” said co-founder Adam Arredondo. “With our new business-to-business platform, which aims to be the ‘Associated Press’ for local events, we’re looking to enhance our system for efficient, mass distribution of our local events content.  Support by the Digital Sandbox will be instrumental in helping us achieve our immediate objectives.”

Trellie’s first product, a wireless device disguised as a women’s fashion accessory, aims to help keep women better connected. As one of the first six companies ready for funding in Digital Sandbox KC, founders Claude Aldridge and Jason Reid hope the Sandbox will help them do the same.

“Our goal for the sandbox is twofold. First, we want to make connections inside local corporations that will give Trellie the best chance for success,” says Aldridge. These include retail distribution, strategic partnerships, marketing and product development. “Second, Trellie would like to use the Digital Sandbox to ideate, prototype and market validate Trellie 2.0.”

The ultimate goal is to leverage their first product into a company that will revolutionize hardware-based technology solutions for families by creating a range of products for women that help them save time, provide peace of mind and enable better communication with those people they care about most.

A Missed Call, A Bright Idea

Nothing is more frustrating than when you need to reach your mom, wife, daughter, sister, right now—and her cellphone is lost to in the swallowing abyss of a large handbag.

Aldridge and Reid knew the pain of unreachable spouses—and understood the possible implications of missing an important call from your boss, husband, babysitter, aging parents or your kid’s school. Personal pain points aside, they also had a market: 80% of all women carry their phone in their purse and consequently miss more than half of their incoming calls.

In 2012, they created Trellie, a Bluetooth-enabled, patent-pending solution to missing important calls from those who depend on you. Worn as a fashion accessory on the outside of a handbag, Trellie visually notifies the user of an incoming call to a mobile phone through a flashing LED light.

The first prototype for Trellie was funded with the help of Kickstarter, an online crowdfunding platform for creative projects. Aldridge and Reid attracted more than 515 backers, who in turn raised $33,168 for the Kansas City startup, 110 percent of their published goal. A week later, Trellie closed a $500,000 financing round.

“Trellie is a great example of how the Digital Sandbox KC can help local entrepreneurs make meaningful and valuable connections with some of KC’s largest companies,” said Jeff Shackelford, director of Digital Sandbox KC.  “As Trellie continues to refine and develop new products, the ability to reach for meaningful market data or assistance in product distribution is critical to their rapid growth.”

With the help and connections of Digital Sandbox KC, LimeLight Technologies, LLC is providing the visibility to secure the safety of meat production across the food supply chain, from rancher to retailer.

Improve Tracking, Improve Safety

Founded in 2009, LimeLight captures and exchanges key information on each animal as it moves through the meat production / food supply chain. Built off a licensed and proprietary software platform that is currently used to track patient healthcare information, LimeLight’s cloud-enabled mobile technology (SmartTraak) simplifies data capture using off-the-shelf devices, including smartphones, tablets and laptops. LimeLight and its SmartTraak software platform are compliant with the global traceability standards from GS1-EPCIS providing the interoperability to secure the safety of meat production across the food supply chain.

Ranchers and retailers can trace animals throughout the food chain, read VID and RFID ear tags, simplify data capture on their smartphones, exchange essential data in real-time—all leading to improved traceability, visibility of food safety data and consumer confidence.

Playing in the Digital Sandbox

 “Marv Jahde has many years of experience in the animal health space and through his real world experience has developed a more efficient and thorough process for tracking an animal’s origins throughout the food production process,” said Jeff Shackelford, director of Digital Sandbox KC.

With its corporate partnership and connections, Digital Sandbox KC will help LimeLight take the next steps to commercialization.

“Our goal is to raise seed round capital investment,” says CEO Marv Jahde. “Digital Sandbox KC’s  resources can help us achieve that goal by funding market research and legal expenses and connecting us with accredited investors.”

LimeLight will use the Sandbox’s resources and connections to validate market conditions, determine their positioning and finalize the private offering, USPTO trademark application and intellectual property agreements.