Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 19, 2011

Or read the quick, informative summary below the image! He is very hands-on and helpful – especially for any company looking into customer acquisition. Matt’s commitment to re-investing in tech startups is reminiscent to this great Fred Wilson post of “recycling capital. &#. That was a quick meeting!!

Acquisition 304

Acquisition Startup Customer Custom 304

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 14, 2018

You’re adding unnecessary “purchase friction” If your deck is something I should open 3–4 times as I’m contemplating an investment, why add any consumption friction to the reader? Because I invest in “ lines, not dots ” it’s actually the delta that I’m investing in. What should not be in your deck? Many of my colleagues do, too.

Funding 239

Funding Venture Capital IP Email 239

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 24, 2021

Others schedule exhaustive training sessions for everyone on the team, including showcase customers, to make sure that everyone paints a consistent picture. Due diligence always involves on-site visits, informal discussions with any or all members of the team, vendors, and good customers as well as bad. Status of the solution.

Technical Review 151

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Invest 151

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 18, 2021

This is the last step of the process, where surprises in the evaluation of the management team, documentation, and personnel problems can derail the investment. If there are financial anomalies, or someone on the team doesn’t know the current strategy, or is unhappy with you or the company, the investment will be jeopardized.

Technical Review 152

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Summary 152

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2020

Serious investors, on the other hand, look for a professional business plan or summary first, and hardly ever look at the product plan. These requirements must be based on market analysis, expert input, and existing customer feedback. Executives, marketing & sales, financial projections, and funding. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Startup Summary Product 124

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2018

controlling your psychology ) you no doubt have heard me say that raising capital is a sales & marketing process. Some firms are trickier since they artificially call everybody “partner” but they’re not all “investment partners.” Find a portfolio company or two that they’ve invested in. It’s super easy to suss all this out.

Venture Capital 314

Venture Capital Technical Review Invest Slides 314

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 31, 2012

Many MBA programs still cater too much to the needs of large, corporate management jobs or prepare students to enter big consulting companies or investments banks. That student is Erin McCann who formerly worked in sales at Google, so she has some ground to stand on in her assertions. My guess is that we are likely in total agreement.

Startup 319

Startup Sales Course Competition 319

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2021

I like the summary of the competitive reality in a new book, “ Rethinking Competitive Advantage: New Rules for the Digital Age ,” by Ram Charan, who relates a wealth of current experience from global clients: Customers expect a personalized experience. Features, availability, and brand are just the price of entry.

Competition 142

Competition Software Review Social Media Customer 142

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2018

Your historical trading information including financials and a “customer file” which shows the history of your transactions so that investors can run “cohort” analyses Customer reference, personal references, key team members, compensation, cap table, stock option plan, etc. It doesn’t. The data room is where your process goes to die.

Funding 336

Funding Venture Capital Startup Email 336

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 6, 2014

With small amounts of money invested (sub $3 million) the risks are reasonably low for most VCs and the consequences of bad decisions or decisions a VC has limited say in is tolerable. how much energy to put into channel partners vs. direct sales. how to build an initial sales organization. Mentorship. As You Start to Mature.

Startup 325

Startup Sales Technical Review Software Review 325

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 6, 2016

Contrary to popular opinion, viral marketing has not eliminated the need for old-fashioned lead generation to bring customers to a startup. Here is my summary of the seven most successful lead-generation vehicles he and I still recommend today, despite the popularity of viral marketing: Search-engine marketing. Display advertising.

Customer 60

Customer Custom Marketing Social Media 60

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2019

At Upfront, our partners have been fortunate enough to be part of 18 companies that have reached north of $1 billion and the average tenure of an investment that exits at this scale is more than 10 years. We have invested in every round and as a result our ownership has actually gone up over time. Over the past 2.5

Venture Capital 223

Venture Capital IP Startup Google 223

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 13, 2018

The most important advice I could give you before you set out in fund raising mode is to understand that fund-raising a sales & marketing process and needs to be managed. Somehow many first-time founders equate “sales” with something that is beneath them. an investment in your company.

Venture Capital 332

Venture Capital Funding Startup Sales 332

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 18, 2016

When entrepreneurs introduce new products to the market, their passion and conviction often leads them to assume that every potential customer will see the immediate need and value, and will quickly adopt the solution. The more revolutionary the solution, the more important it is to educate customers on a solution’s existence and value.

Product 95

Product Case Study Customer Custom 95

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

The most obvious way to explain this is with sales people. If you hire 6 sales reps in January at $120,000 / year salary then you’ve taken on an extra $60,000 per month in costs yet these sales people might not close new business for 4-6 months. “COGS” represents the amount that each sale costs you.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2010

I’m very pleased today to announce that I invested, on behalf of GRP Partners, in Burstly alongside Rincon Venture Partners , an early stage VC in Southern California whith whom we love to work (and were our co-investors on RingRevenue ). Naturally I’m excited about this investment or I wouldn’t have done it.

Mobile 282

Mobile Invest Company Companies 282

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 18, 2022

The first page of the business plan better be an executive summary which gives the investor a taste of the financials, as well as opportunity, competition, and key executives. “I If you haven’t yet finalized the business model, cost projections, and customer segments, you aren’t ready for investors.

Technical Review 109

Technical Review Startup Statistics Social Media 109

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 1, 2010

You’ll get sales information from your VP of Sales, marketing information from your VP Marketing, tech information from your CTO and so on. An obvious example would be in sales. By going on sales calls you pick up directly the feedback of what customers want and also what they’re telling you about competition.

Startup 308

Startup CTO Coach Technical Review CTO Hire 308

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 16, 2015

Fred Wilson also wrote on a similar topic in his usual more succinct manner , with a great quote being: “One thing I know for sure is that those who advise and invest in startups cannot and should not meddle in the day to day decision making. Another area we CEOs often meddle is in sales. ” Of course I agree with this.

Startup 150

Startup Sales CTO Coach Course 150

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 16, 2011

After college Joanne worked for 4 years in retail apparel at Macy’s where she initially managed sales reps on the floor and then worked as a buyer of clothing. This is where she first developed sales skills. She doubled her salary by going into sales. to $12m in sales. “A lot of sales is innate.

Startup 311

Startup Sales Venture Capital Entrepreneur 311

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2022

Most public shells ready for sale are not listed on a national securities exchange, but are instead traded in a less glamorous setting, such as the OTC Bulletin Board. You may no longer have the option of investing all earnings into growth, or servicing your special corporate cause. Yet reverse mergers are not all bad.

Funding 104

Funding Summary Entrepreneur Acquisition 104

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 14, 2017

There is nothing more pure than building a product, putting it out in the world and seeing paying customers using your product and in some cases loving it. As companies get this initial customer feedback on their product they start to have to ask harder questions about unit economics: How much does it cost us to acquire a new customer?

Startup 286

Startup Technical Review Customer Custom 286

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 19, 2015

We have made 5 online video investments in total – some we will talk about later this year. Content is a “hits driven business” and therefore you can only invest in platforms not media. You must invest in technology. You can’t build a brand on YouTube. I think most arguments miss the mark.

SEM 150

SEM Content Platform Acquisition 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2010

Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Terms like “every customer needs this” and “next generation platform” are far too soft, and should be avoided. Clearly define the customer, channel, and revenue model associated with this solution.

Invest 74

Invest Tips Competition Metrics 74

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 13, 2013

I spent countless hours with VC firms, startups & LPs (the people who invest in VC firms). My observation is that many entrepreneurs have a strong relationship with the partner at the VC who invested in his or her company. It’s best to think of your VC partnership as a customer. Is your partner senior or junior?

Venture Capital 309

Venture Capital Summary Organization Entrepreneur 309

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2015

Passionate entrepreneurs tend to talk on and on about their disruptive technology, their intent to change the world and free services, but if a business can’t provide quantifiable value to real customers, the dream will likely turn into a nightmare. Skip the sales pitch and avoid preaching. Build up for the punch line at the end.

Startup 104

Startup Summary Patents Examples 104

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 18, 2014

Serious investors, on the other hand, look for a professional business plan or summary first, and hardly ever look at the product plan. These requirements must be based on market analysis, expert input, and existing customer feedback. Executives, marketing & sales, financial projections, and funding. Marty Zwilling.

Product 101

Product Entrepreneur Summary Activity 101

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 21, 2020

The first page of the business plan better be an executive summary which gives the investor a taste of the financials, as well as opportunity, competition, and key executives. “I If you haven’t yet finalized the business model, cost projections, and customer segments, you aren’t ready for investors.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Statistics Startup Social Media 124

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 1, 2015

“the ecommerce company gained fauxmentum by raising artificially high amounts of venture capital and spent lavishly on customer acquisition despite long payback periods and questionable LTV” __. I’m not saying don’t hire sales staff or market your products aggressively. __. faux·men·tum.

Startup 150

Startup Marketing Customer Custom 150

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2019

Most public shells ready for sale are not listed on a national securities exchange, but are instead traded in a less glamorous setting, such as the OTC Bulletin Board. You may no longer have the option of investing all earnings into growth, or servicing your special corporate cause. Yet reverse mergers are not all bad.

Summary 121

Summary Startup Entrepreneur Funding 121

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2010

Secondarily, it will be required by potential investors to validate how much money you need to get started, and how much return they can expect on their investment. Start with a “sample” business model, available in generic form or customized for specific industries, from many sources on the Internet. In fact, this is the easy part.

Invest 71

Invest Startup Sample Summary 71

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 17, 2015

Others schedule exhaustive training sessions for everyone on the team, including showcase customers, to make sure that everyone paints a consistent picture. Due diligence always involves on-site visits, informal discussions with any or all members of the team, vendors, and good customers as well as bad. Status of the solution.

Technical Review 108

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Entrepreneur 108

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 28, 2018

If a consumer will pay a fixed price for a product or service then the battle over who gets the margin in any sale is between the person who merchandises a product and the person who manufactures it. Ariel understood her customer?—?the This is an age-old marketplace tension where leverage often determines the value captured.

Product 296

Product Course Customer Custom 296

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2012

Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Terms like “every customer needs this” and “next generation platform” are far too soft, and should be avoided. Clearly define the customer, channel, and revenue model associated with this solution.

Competition 113

Competition Metrics Startup Invest 113

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

Of course it is super helpful if a VC can drop you in to important people for business development, recruiting, PR, sales and eventually M&A. Simply put – I’d be in search of a VC who had an intuitive sense of my product, my customers, my organizational issues, my competitors, etc. Connections? EQ and Team Leadership?

Venture Capital 364

Venture Capital Coach Writing SaaS 364

Tech Zulu Event

NOVEMBER 15, 2013

It’s pretty tricky to make money without understanding where that money is coming from and what kind of cost investment it will take to become cash-flow positive. You take all the pieces—costs, revenue, cash-flow summaries, profit and loss statements—and piece them together to see the big picture. Validate your assumptions.

Startup 85

Startup Acquisition Invest Framework 85

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2013

Notice that I didn’t say anywhere that a good business plan has to be at least 20 pages, or have ten sections, or must start with an executive summary. A few thousand dollars is a small price to pay for a successful business, or for that $1M investment you expect the plan to entice.

Sample 92

Sample Writing Startup Summary 92