Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 2, 2023

One of the simplest questions I get from aspiring entrepreneurs, and ironically one of the hardest, is “How do I start?” I want to tell them to just start anywhere, but I realize that most have no idea where anywhere is. It takes more than passion and a course on business basics. Adaptive business advising and learning.

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Startup Education Entrepreneur Tool 108

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 2, 2019

An all-too-common question I get from startups and small businesses is “Which is the right social media platform for my business?” If you are in the 30 percent of all small businesses who still ignore social media, you need to read the book by Dave Carroll, “ United Breaks Guitars.” Keep up with the competition.

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Social Media Platform Media Customer 98

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 1, 2013

Entrepreneurs and startups often ask if they should use social media for marketing, digital media, or traditional media. The place to start today is if your company only uses traditional media for marketing, or no marketing. Focus first on the social media trinity.

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Social Media Media Marketing Startup 103

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 24, 2013

An all-too-common question I get from startups and small businesses is “Which is the right social media platform for my business?” If you are in the realm of the 47% of small businesses who still ignore social media, you need to read the book by Dave Carroll, “ United Breaks Guitars.” Keep up with the competition.

Social Media 108

Social Media Media Startup Platform 108

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 28, 2020

In my view, starting a new business has never been easier, and according to reports from the Kauffman Foundation , the numbers are here to show it. Of course, that’s both the good news and the bad news for aspiring entrepreneurs, since it means more competition, and the business landscape is changing faster than ever.

Tips 161

Tips Startup Social Media News 161

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 7, 2021

The E-Myth (“Entrepreneurial Myth”) is the mistaken belief that most businesses are started by people with tangible business skills, when in fact most are started by “technicians” who know nothing about running a business. Perhaps an innate business savvy is no longer a requirement for starting a successful business.

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Technical Review Startup Social Media Satisfaction 136

SoCal CTO

MARCH 30, 2010

People seem to be missing the really big picture of the value of social media and really the Internet for that matter. They look at how current social networking sites work and how online and offline relationships currently work and make the assumption that this represents the value proposition. Call it relationship inflation.

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Social Media Media Social Network Networking 179

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2023

That’s why I’m impressed with the classic book, “ All Dreams on Deck: Charting the Course for Your Life and Work ,” by Jeremy Cage. Hopefully, between the two of us, more of you with big business dreams will follow the leads and generate more successful business results: Start by getting your hands dirty. Marty Zwilling

Ideas 105

Ideas Startup Entrepreneur Social Media 105

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 13, 2015

Entrepreneurs and startups often ask if they should select only social media for marketing, or stick with digital media, or just count on traditional media. Social media as a marketing tool is here to stay, and is now widely accepted. Focus first on the social media trinity.

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Social Media Media Marketing Resource 108

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2013

When my friend’s small business was struggling a while back, I suggested he add some social media marketing initiatives, and his answer was that he was “too busy.” According to a study of 1700 CEOs last year, only 60% of companies today use social media for marketing, and only 12% of those feel that they are using it effectively.

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Social Media Media Startup Social Network 106

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2021

It wasn’t so many years ago that starting a new e-commerce business on the Internet was a complex custom development project, usually costing a million dollars or more. Almost anyone can start a company today on a shoestring budget, following these cost-cutting recommendations: Establish a solid legal structure for your business.

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Entrepreneur Startup Social Media Outsource Development 162

Eric Greenspan

MAY 25, 2010

I didn’t know what I was getting into when I started buying live endorsement radio ads back in 2005. What I mean by this is we do radio better by building it around the web, social media and traditional marketing strategies alongside, behind and wrapped around our radio shows. I spent a lot of money on Mark Germain (Mr.

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Social Media Media Blogging Social Network 220

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 28, 2012

When my friend’s small business was struggling a while back, I suggested he add some social media marketing initiatives, and his answer was that he was “too busy.” Dell announced years ago that it had earned $3 million in revenue from using Twitter, and other businesses report daily on increases in web traffic up to 800%.

Social Media 115

Social Media Media Startup Social Network 115

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 13, 2009

I find myself speaking at various venues in Los Angeles to tell people (most often service providers) about how I've used social media and particularly my blogs, LinkedIn, twitter and topic hubs as part of my own services business. How can I get more help setting up my blog? They need some help getting started.

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Social Media Los Angeles Media Angel 167

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2023

In my view, starting a new business has never been easier, and according to reports from the Kauffman Foundation , the numbers are here to show it. Of course, that’s both the good news and the bad news for aspiring entrepreneurs, since it means more competition, and the business landscape is changing faster than ever.

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media News 104

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 10, 2023

Even though the color of their money is always green, all startup investors are not the same. Investor due diligence on a startup is not a mysterious black art, but is nothing more than a final integrity check on all aspects of your business model, team, product, customers, and plan. It’s no fun for either side.

Technical Review 138

Technical Review Startup Innocal Offshore 138

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 11, 2015

Shahidi’s inspiration for building Shots was that he was picked on growing up. He explained to me that especially for young girls social media apps are really intimidating because increasingly teens are judged by the number of followers they have or by the number of people who like their photos on Instagram. Make it great.

Social Media 150

Social Media Media Technical Review Startup 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 1, 2017

Most startups, and many big businesses, still don’t have a clue on how to use social media productively for marketing their business. Social Marketology ,” outlined the best set of steps I have seen so far for the new world: Focus on desired outcomes first. Ric Dragon, an expert in online marketing, in his classic book.

Social Media 62

Social Media Media Metrics SEO 62

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 18, 2013

Most startups, and many big businesses, still don’t have a clue on how to use social media productively for marketing their business. Ric Dragon, an expert in online marketing, in “ Social Marketology ,” outlined the best set of steps I have seen so far for the new world: Focus on desired outcomes first.

Social Media 102

Social Media Media Product Metrics 102

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 3, 2019

You will be pivoting your business in your lifetime, whether you are a new startup, or a mature company like Motorola or IBM. It happens on the front end for startups to get traction, and then again later for every company as the economy, competition, and culture changes around them. Carpenter, Gary F. Gebhardt, and John F. Sherry, Jr.,

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Course IBM IBM Social Media 85

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 3, 2020

This can be an advantage to startups who don’t have the resources and brand awareness of mature businesses, if they understand and position themselves to win in the decisive moments of the new customer buying process. Great startups manage to continually improve the relationship through outstanding follow-on support and service.

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Customer Custom Startup Course 124

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 30, 2022

This can be an advantage to startups who don’t have the resources and brand awareness of mature businesses, if they understand and position themselves to win in the decisive moments of the new customer buying process. Great startups manage to continually improve the relationship through outstanding follow-on support and service.

Customer 146

Customer Custom Startup Course 146

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 14, 2023

When I heard a friend and business mentor say, “Your startup won’t fail if you don’t quit,” I realized that every entrepreneur should adopt “never give up” as their mantra. Either could improve the statistic that half of startups fail within the first five years. So why do most startups fail?

Startup 135

Startup Entrepreneur Statistics Course 135

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2020

Maybe we haven’t seen the results yet, but there are thousands of startup opportunities to offer new alternatives and services, to replace those destroyed by the crisis. I hear this term every day, wrongly applied to new social media site, or a new productivity tool. Of course, there are caveats to every opportunity.

Customer 167

Customer Custom Startup Outsource Development 167

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 19, 2023

It’s still popular these days for startup founders to operate in stealth mode, meaning no details about the idea or progress are shared with anyone until the big reveal and rollout. Pivots and corrections are inevitable for startups in this age of rapid change, and the earlier you make them, the quicker you get to success.

Marketing 105

Marketing Startup Search Engine Optimization Ideas 105

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 26, 2017

An all-too-common question I get from startups and small businesses is “Which is the right social media platform for my business?” If you are in the half of all small businesses who still ignore social media, you need to read the book by Dave Carroll, “ United Breaks Guitars.” Keep up with the competition.

Social Media 59

Social Media Media Entrepreneur Platform 59

SoCal CTO

MAY 22, 2012

I recently posted about the Increase in Early-Stage Startup Activity in Los Angeles. In that post, I mentioned how one of the signals is the big increase in number of startup events and the number of attendees at those events. Of course, given the size of this list and having kids, I really can't attend a lot of these.

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Los Angeles Southern California Angel Enterprise Forum 198

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2021

At the highest level, startups must remember what Jim Barksdale of Netscape and FedEx famously said, “The main thing is to keep the Main Thing the main thing.” Then it’s time to speed up with a set of ambitious initiatives, and finally going all out to engage all the constituents in enduring change. Realign all elements of the plan.

Social Media 143

Social Media Startup Framework Course 143

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2011

I suggested that he add some social network marketing initiatives, and his answer was he is “too busy.” He is not alone, according to a recent study , which concludes that only 47% of companies use social media today for marketing, despite the fact that 78% of executives polled feel it’s critical for success. What’s the problem?

Social Media 104

Social Media Media Marketing Social Network 104

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 25, 2019

This is part of a series on a Board of Directors at a Startup. High Functioning Startup Boards High-functioning boards have a tight-knit relationship between all members based on mutual trust and admiration. They are able to divide responsibilities and work to gain consensus on tough decisions that every startup inevitably faces.

Startup 269

Startup Venture Capital Layoffs Resource 269

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 22, 2020

One of the biggest myths I have found in the entrepreneur community is that every startup needs one or more outside investors for credibility and success, and perhaps is even entitled to at least one. Draw up a list of the best prospects, and put together your best story for follow-up. But don’t wait for them to contact you.

Funding 173

Funding Tips Startup Statistics 173

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 8, 2020

That’s why I’m impressed with the classic book, “ All Dreams on Deck: Charting the Course for Your Life and Work ,” by Jeremy Cage. Hopefully, between the two of us, more of you with big business dreams will follow the leads and generate more successful business results: Start by getting your hands dirty. Marty Zwilling.

Startup 117

Startup Entrepreneur Social Media Coach 117

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 27, 2012

Most startups, and many big businesses, still don’t have a clue on how to use social media productively for marketing their business. Ric Dragon, an expert in online marketing, in his new book “ Social Marketology ,” outlined the best set of steps I have seen so far for the new world: Focus on desired outcomes first.

Social Media 91

Social Media Media Metrics SEO 91

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 27, 2020

If you want to make a great first impression on a startup investor or an advisor like me, don’t try to convince me or show me how busy you are. I’m sure you all know someone who always seems to be overworked, but often comes up short on the delivery side. As an entrepreneur starting a new business, you have a lot to learn.

Product 123

Product Startup Tips Entrepreneur 123

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2019

In fact, according to the latest Index of Startup Activity by the Kauffman Foundation and recent press reports , these Baby Boomers are actually driving a new entrepreneurship boom. With longer life expectancies and greater health in later life, older generations are moving to start new firms -- and mentor young entrepreneurs.

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Startup Technical Review Technical Support Entrepreneur 119

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 4, 2010

I suggested that he add some social network marketing initiatives, and his answer was he is “too busy.” According to this study from last year, over 65% of existing small businesses still ignore social media for marketing, so he is still the rule rather than the exception. Start social networking with peers.

Social Media 88

Social Media Media Marketing Startup 88

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 26, 2013

Understanding “The Funding Angle” I sit at enough board meetings to hear conflicting advice given to entrepreneurs about how to handle PR and announcements at startups. In stead of doing my typical big long post with 10 PR tips (like I did there), I’m going to break them up into individual (I hope more digestible) chunks.

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Startup Funding News Press 355