Please watch the video above!
For any of you interested in the final vote counts, we received a total of 951. Over the first 8 days of voting, we received a total of 410 votes, but in the last two we got 541!
To celebrate our win, our friends at ideablob.com will be joining us at Hanover Day 2008 on Saturday, June 21st. The event runs from 10am -4pm at Sylvester Field, which is located on Rte 139 in the center of Hanover.
At 11:45, ideablob.com will present STAY VOCAL with one of those commemorative “big checks.” Afterwards, they will stick around to serve refreshments to our friends and family. So, if you’re in the area, please come join the party.
Below is the official press release available on ideablob.com
SPRING HOUSE, Penn., (June 10, 2008) — Advanta Corp. (NASDAQ: ADVNB; ADVNA) announced today that Alex Eaves of Norwell, Mass. is the May winner of ideablob.com’s monthly contest for the best small business idea, as voted on by the ideablob community.
Eaves’ company, STAY VOCAL, began as a skateboard company focused on producing positive messages about social and environmental awareness. The company recently transitioned to focus solely on its line of ReUse products, which include clothing and accessories made from used materials, as well as being a source of information about music, news and events.
“With natural resources diminishing, and so much ‘stuff’ already available, it’s imperative that people learn to reuse more,” said Eaves. “With this award from ideablob.com, STAY VOCAL can expand and I can bring the ReUse line of products to new customers.”
Eaves plans to use the award money to revamp the STAY VOCAL Web site to make it focus more on ReUse products, and to inform people how to be more environmentally conscious in their daily lives.
“Boston has become a leading hub in the social entrepreneurship movement, with three social entrepreneurs from Boston winning the ideablob contest,” said Ami Kassar, Advanta’s Chief Innovation Officer.
Previous winners from the Boston area include John Struder and his idea to expand his sweatshop-free clothing company, No Sweat Apparel, and Naomi Bar-Yam and her idea for the Mother’s Milk Bank of New England, an organization serving babies, hospitals and families throughout New England.
Because Eaves is an Advanta Business Cards customer, he is eligible to receive 1,000,000 rewards points on his Advanta BusinessCard (or the $10,000 cash alternative) in addition to the $10,000 monthly contest prize. Advanta will present Eaves, who chose the cash alternative, with his $20,000 award at a special event later this month in Boston.
Ideablob.com is an active community where small business owners and entrepreneurs are sharing business ideas and receiving feedback, advice and support from the community. Experts from various industries take part in the ideablob discussions and offer their input on how burgeoning entrepreneurs can capitalize on their ideas.
Advanta, one of the nation’s largest credit card issuers (through Advanta Bank Corp.) in the small business market, awards a $10,000 monthly prize to the best eligible idea, as determined by the votes of the ideablob community. In recent months,
Advanta has awarded the monthly prize to software developers, non-profit leaders and several social entrepreneurs.