Bring your corporate logo on a flash stick and get it custom laser engraved onto your Blackberry or Moleskine!  Etchstar will be customizing phones, dog tags and more during the entire event.  Etchstar recently launched sites for custom laser etched notebooks at JournalEngraver.com and custom military products at CustomMilitaryGear.com.  You can also find limited edition series of Simpsons and Family Guy iPods at FoxShop.com and CSI and TAR collectables at CBSStore.com.  Etchstar can laser engrave on just about anything as evidenced by this experiment in Laser vs. Food on YouTube.  Learn more about Etchstar and laser etching & engraving at Etchstar.com/blog.  Thru August, Twiistup fans & friends get free standard shipping at Etchstar.com by entering the code Twiist4 at checkout.

That’s because ADISN is a next-generation ad network that uses relationship data from the social web for ad targeting.   They aggregate all the stuff that more traditional ad networks ignore:  web conversations, profiles, blogs, and behavior.  And they use this data to mine the relationships between seemingly unrelated topics.  The payoff?  Ads that are targeted to the right audiences, in the right places, at the right times.

Please come visit ADISN at Twiistup4, where we’re delighted to welcome them as a sponsor.   If you drop by early, you might score one of their limited-edition t-shirts or a CD full of heart-tugging breakup songs.  Listen to what they have to say, then go write your own Dear John letter to your current ad network.

AOL has always been an Internet innovator, starting with its humble origins as a revolutionary networking service called Quantum Computer Services.    With headquarters in New York, it has now become a leading global advertising-supported web company, with an average of 110 million domestic visitors monthly to its network of web properties.

We’re delighted to welcome AOL as a Twiistup4 sponsor.  Please come see them by the pool, or stop by their developer network website to learn how AOL can enhance your web services offerings and help you make money.  But hurry — if you stop by the booth and ask about their social networking apps, you just might score one of their limited-quantity AOL Developer “social” t-shirts.  You’re sure to be the belle of the ball if you do.

Growthink is a leading strategic consulting, advisory and investment banking firm to growth companies.  They’re headquartered right here in beautiful LA, with offices in SF, SD and NY.  They’ve been in business since 1999, and have helped more than 1500 companies with strategic planning, growth and capital raises.  (That’s quite a track record.)  Not all of the businesses they service are tiny:  their roster includes Deutsche Bank, Hooters, and McKesson Corporation.   But don’t fret:  they still take care of the little guys.

As a matter of fact, to show how much they care, they’re offering a free business plan consultation or business plan review to Twiistup4 attendees.  (They’re also providing services to all the Showoffs and a full strategic review to the Twiistup4 winner.)  They have specialty practices in digital entertainment, technology, green and biotech, in addition to general services.  Please stop by and see them at the event to make arrangements.  And tell them “thanks” for supporting our community, and for the great party by the pool.  We’re delighted to have them as one of our sponsors.

Why is this important?  Because DMX empowers small and medium-sized web publishers:  they offer a free, hosted ad server with built-in monetization that allows publishers to connect to ad networks who compete for their inventory.  That’s right, they let people like you and me compete with the big boys for ad dollars. Furthemore, DMX automatically sells your inventory to the highest-bidding advertiser every time.  Let’s hear it for free markets!

DMX offers ads from 13 DMX networks, as well as networks in the Right Media Exchange; monetizes more than 19,000 sites; and serves more than 10 billion (yes, BILLION) impressions a month.  They offer complete creative control, multiple reporting options, active forums and super-proactive support.  They’re also backed by a little company called Yahoo.

Despite their big-boy backer, DMX is a small company based in Eugene, OR, where everyone who works there seems to have a great time.  We’re delighted to welcome them as a sponsor for Twiistup4, and, if you’re a web publisher, highly encourage you to try out their services.   You may find yourself running your own, independent publishing empire as a result.

With Magnify360, it’s all about the user.  The company offers a software-as-service (Saas) platform that allows websites to adapt in real-time to the behaviors of individual visitors.  Booyeon Lee, technology reporter at the Los Angeles Business Journal, said “It’s like rearranging the layout of a store for every customer who walks through the door.”  That’s pretty powerful stuff.

There are a lot of fancy terms on Magnify360’s site, like “multivariate testing,” “real-time behavioral targeting,” and “predictive modeling.”  Given that we’re as wonky as the analysts around here, I think you’ll all agree that those words add up to “fantastic user experience.”  Which, of course, also leads to more transactions and more satisfied customers.

Currrent clients include Service Magic (IAC Corp), HSBC, and Intuit.  Magnify360 also announced just yesterday a groundbreaking social networking site with Citrix Systems and Microsoft.  You can find the press release here.

Fabulous, yes?  Well, you can also be a part of it, if you’re so inclined, because they’re aggressively recruiting at all levels.  So, please give Magnify360 a little Twiisted love for making the online experience better for all of us.

FreshBooks’ online toolset is very impressive.   With it, you can automate invoicing, allow clients to access their invoices and account histories online, and even collect online payments using services such as PayPal and Verisign.   You can also create professional-looking online estimates, track time and expenses, and maintain client contact information and history.  Bonus points for the ability to brand your pages and your materials with your own logo:  as we all know, looking professional is key to maintaining credibility!  FreshBooks is also populated with some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet.  After all, they’re a good Canadian company, and I personally have never met a Canadian I didn’t like, eh?

We’re delighted to welcome FreshBooks as a sponsor for Twiistup 4, and hope you’ll pay a visit to the site.  They’re also offering a special promo for Twiistup attendees who’d like to sign up for one of their subscription packages.  Simply used the all-too-appropriate promo code SUNBURN when you sign up, and you’ll get $20 off.

LOUD3R’s value proposition:

‘Good content is hard to find. Leave the dirty work to LOUD3R. We scour thousands of sites, sift through the spam, the splogs, and all the other junk to find the best, most relevant content across the Web – the stuff you really care about.’

Check out their sites here (see below) then talk to the team at Twiistup 4. LOUD3R was selected as one of the 11 Showoffs to demo on July 17.

venture capital – http://www.found3r.com
gadgets & technology – http://www.new3r.com
internet business & technology – http://www.buzz3r.com
wine – http://www.decant3r.com
environment – http://www.glaci3r.com
fashion – http://www.glitt3r.com
gossip – http://www.sland3r.com
sneakers – http://www.sneak3r.com
men’s fashion – http://www.dapp3r.com
skateboarding – http://www.grind3r.com

Congrats to Lowell Goss and team on the launch.

Dopplr is an online service for frequent travellers. It was created by an international team of world travellers. If you travel more than five times a year and have friends who do as well, then Dopplr is for you.

How does Dopplr work? It lets you share your future travel plans with a group of trusted fellow travellers whom you have chosen. It also reminds you of friends and colleagues who live in the cities you’re planning to visit.

If you want an invite, shoot me a note at: mike@twiistup.com