Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2021

As a long-time business advisor, and an investor in startups along the way, I’m always on the lookout for an entrepreneur who is responding first to a problem in the marketplace , rather than bringing a new technology to the market, assuming it will find a problem to solve. A recurring expense was turned into a recurring revenue.

Activity 132

Activity Entrepreneur Social Media Satisfaction 132

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

As an advisor to many startups today, I still see that most of you entrepreneurs see yourselves as the sole driver of your new solution, and the key driver of your new business. You need them to make a personal commitment to customer service, improved quality, and change to improve the future.

Startup 147

Startup Customer Custom Ideas 147

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 3, 2021

Today, with the Internet and social media, if you aren’t visible in a positive way to everyone, including customers, your leadership efforts will be lost. You need to be visible in marketing efforts, viral videos, and interactions with key customer segments. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 08/19/2021.

Mentor 145

Mentor IBM IBM Social Media 145

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 2, 2021

In the eyes of investors like me, to be an entrepreneur, it’s not enough to create an innovative solution – you need to convince me that you can build a profitable business. Investors (and customers) need to know the realities of costs, prices, marketing, delivery, and what differentiates your offering from competitors.

Funding 152

Funding Startup Ideas Resource 152

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 1, 2021

Every entrepreneur and business owner I know has had more setbacks than they would like to admit, in this age of rapid change and constant surprises, like the current pandemic. Rather than get angry and upset, fall back to your initial process for evaluating markets, customer needs, and financial implications.

Mentor 127

Mentor Satisfaction Customer Custom 127

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2021

Almost every entrepreneur and new business owner I mentor is certain that his/her idea has a very high probability of success, and all find it hard to believe that ninety percent of startups ultimately fail. I once met with an entrepreneur who had developed a new algae strain to cure world hunger and make him rich.

Technical Review 131

Technical Review Case Study Mentor Software Review 131

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 20, 2021

Later, in my second career as an entrepreneur with startups, I realized that limited resources and fresh insights actually created the mindset that relied on market change and innovation to survive. Employee and customer input are good for fixing bugs, but not good leading indicators. Look outside for future trends and potential.

Marketing 117

Marketing IBM IBM Resource 117

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2021

Confidence and self-esteem are critical to your success as an entrepreneur, or any business role. On the other hand, most business professionals and the customers we all need in business recognize that professionals with a healthy self-esteem will always be more resilient, creative, listen better, and treat others with respect.

Mentor 174

Mentor Satisfaction Competition Marketing 174

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 21, 2021

In my current role as a consultant to entrepreneurs and small business owners, I’ve accumulated my own list of insights on how some people get more done. Start with your own story, the mission of your business, and how to make everyone in your domain, including customers, into advocates and teachers.

Technical Review 123

Technical Review Coach Satisfaction Mentor 123

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 25, 2021

In my role as mentor to business professionals, I often get the question about your potential of going out on your own as an entrepreneur, versus your current role of working for a boss at an established company. Most importantly, you have to deal with customers, and understand their wants and needs. There are no startup expert roles.

Entrepreneur 158

Entrepreneur Satisfaction Ideas Social Media 158