Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2011

This was an audience of mostly first-time entrepreneurs. It is great for entrepreneurs and great for VCs. I suppose I should have imagined that this line would get more press than all other comments combined. So here is what I have been telling entrepreneurs privately for the past 6 months. I believe that. Fair enough.

Pricing 309

Pricing Marketing Startup Venture Capital 309

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2014

New investors sometimes want early investors to put in money to “prove” they have confidence in the new price. some may get caught out paying too high of prices for what perhaps will be great deals but not at the prices being paid. Much of this historically didn’t matter to entrepreneurs.

Guide 336

Guide Venture Capital Startup Writing 336

InfoChachkie

FEBRUARY 9, 2015

Successful entrepreneurs make similarly educated guesses. Today’s entrepreneurs should take these historical commonalities to heart, as a means of predicting the future. Entrepreneurs who recognize such ramifications are well positioned to shape and commercialize emerging innovations. 130-years later, scientists discovered X.

Examples 100

Examples Startup Press Entrepreneur 100

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2014

The starting point of product IS marketing, which is what a lot of young entrepreneurs that never studied business don’t realize. Product is simply about defining a physical good or service that would be valued by consumers of the product more than existing alternatives based on functionality, quality and/or price.

Marketing 379

Marketing Startup SEM SEO 379

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 28, 2017

We all face pressure in our lives, but there’s nothing like that of an entrepreneur facing customer crises and the competitive challenges of a new business. Thus, here is my own reframing of the authors generalized rules into some specifics for an entrepreneur or business leader: Reframe competitive threats to opportunities.

Entrepreneur 56

Entrepreneur Competition Press Mentor 56

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 4, 2014

But I would posit that in order to sustainably build great products in an intensely competitive industry with skills shortages – people management is one of the most critical soft skills organizations need. If you give up after this you’re not an entrepreneur. That worked for two years but then the tensions began.

Startup 340

Startup Technical Review Course Press 340

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 13, 2018

As a VC I of course want you to come see only me because that means I have no competition and have time to properly get to know you. Remember, I was an entrepreneur for 10 years before a VC). Most entrepreneurs don’t put enough effort into these phases. friendly, but direct in my thoughts.

Venture Capital 332

Venture Capital Funding Startup Sales 332

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 18, 2010

industry investors rather than VCs) a good idea for entrepreneurs. His view: sometimes entrepreneurs expect too much value from the partner. An investment doesn’t guarantee your product will suddenly be on the investor’s price sheet. FTC is considering an investigation into Apple’s anti-competitive practices.

Venture Capital 225

Venture Capital Google Web Sites 225

InfoChachkie

MAY 22, 2012

The same should be true of an entrepreneur who is attempting to secure money from sophisticated investors. Step 1: The Person, Not The Firm – As Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson make clear in their book Venture Deals , entrepreneurs should identify specific venture partners, rather than target firms as a whole. It’s not.”

Venture Capital 236

Venture Capital Capital Research Customer 236

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 19, 2011

o Huge on PR, “Be Everywhere” is his motto – fly to NY, proactively everywhere he could get press. People want to invest in people they trust – once you’ve made money for someone you can always go back, and even get better pricing. o Everything is for sale but it’s the price that moves the timing. combination of factors –.

Acquisition 304

Acquisition Startup Customer Custom 304

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 28, 2018

My friend Michael Broukhim, founder & co-CEO of FabFitFun and I recently had a catch-up meeting for 3-miles on the Santa Monica “Bird Trail” No company has ever elicited so many questions by friends, colleagues, entrepreneurs, fellow VCs and journalists as has Bird, the company that pioneered the electronic scooter as a service market.

Santa Monica 256

Santa Monica Funding Startup Course 256

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2012

I hear a lot of entrepreneurs contemplating their great “idea” for several years with little discernable progress, and looking for money to start. It doesn’t prove your business model of pricing, distribution, and support. It’s also the keystone to convincing investors that you have a “sustainable competitive advantage.”

Startup 104

Startup CTO Hire Press Customer 104

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 21, 2014

The conversation moves into Zeroblock’s upcoming plans to implement trading API’s, a robust front-end interface for trading, as well as goals to create a standardized protocol in connecting different exchanges (thereby leveling out bitcoin prices across the board). The ultimate plan? Be the Bloomberg of Bitcoin.

Startup 104

Startup Venture Capital Draper Invest 104

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 17, 2011

I hear a lot of entrepreneurs contemplating their great “idea” for several years with little discernable progress, and looking for money to start. It doesn’t prove your business model of pricing, distribution, and support. It’s also the keystone to convincing investors that you have a “sustainable competitive advantage.”

Startup 101

Startup CTO Hire Press Customer 101

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 22, 2010

I hear a lot of entrepreneurs contemplating their great “idea” for several years with little discernable progress, and looking for money to start. It doesn’t prove your business model of pricing, distribution, and support. It’s also the keystone to convincing investors that you have a “sustainable competitive advantage.”

Tips 88

Tips Startup CTO Hire Press 88

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 1, 2016

We try to hire people who we believe will be upfront and respectful of entrepreneurs and know that it’s far easier to judge ones decisions on the outside than it actually is to have to make the tough decisions inside of a startup every day. Empowerment is hard for most startup entrepreneurs. Great leaders talk with other leaders.

Startup 150

Startup Coach Course Invest 150

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 5, 2011

I’m an entrepreneur at heart so I’m always inspired when I hear stories about innovation. It’s why my investment philosophy is called, “ the entrepreneur thesis.&#. He listed all of the product releases that were up coming, the customers that were in the pipeline and where he saw his competition moving.

Venture Capital 317

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Press 317

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 10, 2018

Nobody commits, nobody wants to set a price, nobody wants to stick their neck out then BOOM! Many entrepreneurs let the early rejections get to them and it’s normal because when you hear “no” you think “what’s wrong with me!?” When you read about the funding in the press it sounds like it was a walk in the park.

Press 232

Press Funding Venture Capital Technical Review 232

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 12, 2019

Much has been written recently about the requirement to focus today on the total customer experience, as a competitive edge or even for survival. The challenge I hear from savvy business owners and entrepreneurs operating on a shoestring is that providing a superior customer experience costs money.

Customer 96

Customer Custom Coach Pricing 96

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2012

I raised money as an entrepreneur, like you, in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2005 for two different companies. I never suggest that entrepreneurs just randomly pitch VCs. You’ll never make a great entrepreneur. So your journey to fund raising begins by strengthening your relationships with other entrepreneurs.

Develop 366

Develop Development Funding Venture Capital 366

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 22, 2012

The term, introduced by entrepreneur and venture advisor Eric Ries in an article on Lessons Learned a couple of years ago, is properly used to describe smart startups that change direction quickly, but stay grounded in what they've learned. One of the hottest buzzword for startups these days is “pivot.” Product feature pivot.

Customer 94

Customer Custom Sales Product 94

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 23, 2012

The movie, “The Social Network” might have had more of an impact on creating future entrepreneurs than any other event of the past 5 years. Contrary to some press reporting, the boom in startups, the creation of accelerators and seed funds as well as the deserved popularity of AngelList do not signal doom for our industry.

Venture Capital 347

Venture Capital Capital Technical Review Startup 347

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 16, 2010

The term, made popular by entrepreneur and venture advisor Eric Ries in an article on Lessons Learned last year, is properly used to describe successful startups that change direction quickly, but stay grounded in what they've learned. The hottest buzzword for startups in 2010 is “pivot.” Product feature pivot. Revenue model pivot.

Startup 88

Startup Customer Custom Sales 88

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 10, 2011

Think about this: The investment banks and trading houses across the globe have invested billions of dollars in computing equipment and staff in order to process news that affects stock prices milliseconds before the rest of the market can process & transact on this same information. Twitter is a valuable and unique service.

Platform 307

Platform News Startup Invest 307