By Brian Kovalesky, StartUp Beat Editor
Yes, it’s the time of year when we all look back and reflect on the past 363 days. While I’m not a fan of the ‘listicle’ (articles that are little more than a list), we’ve been fortunate this year to have featured a number of excellent guest columns on topics that have ranged from advice on raising money to questioning the conventions about the value of website traffic. So, in the spirit of end-of-year reflection, here is a selection of five of the most interesting and provocative guest columns that appeared on StartUp Beat in 2013:
1. Sifting through the noise of ‘unique visitors’: Focusing on what counts for startup success – By Kyle Gerrity of homework help website Slader
2. Healthcare startups in the age of the Affordable Care Act: opportunity abounds – By Mitch Rothschild of doctor reviews site Vitals.com
3. A blueprint for startups: Try to kill it before you start – By George Deeb of ‘excubator’ Ensemble and Red Rocket Ventures
4. Even lean startups need business plans – By Palo Alto Software CEO Sabrina Parsons
5. Innovation and the ‘new normal’ – By Claudia Fan Munce of the IBM Venture Capital Group
