Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2022

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Join a startup incubator. It always reduces risk to plan your business first.

Startup 136

Startup Technical Review Equity Incubator 136

socalTECH

APRIL 23, 2021

Carpinteria-based construction management software unicorn Procore has named a new sales VP, saying this week that it has appointed Bill Crawford as the company's Senior Vice President of U.S. Crawford had previously served as Chief Value Officer at Ceridian, and Senior Vice President of Sales at ADP.

Sales 113

Sales Southern California Software Startup 113

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 7, 2022

A common pain of startups after an exhilarating first surge of early adopters is a long and frustrating plateau of slow growth, where it seems like nothing you do will get your business to profitability. Others do far too little, assuming the viral effect and word-of-mouth will soon kick in, and sales will suddenly grow exponentially.

Startup 134

Startup Search Engine Optimization Social Media Metrics 134

TechCrunch LA

OCTOBER 7, 2021

Women have made great inroads into the tech world in recent years, but there remains a long way to go before we reach a truly equitable state of affairs in workforce numbers, remuneration and product development. But originally it started as a much shorter (six-week) program, was all in-person and cost $5,000.

Mentor 297

Mentor Training Startup Course 297

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series called “ Start-up Lessons.&#. I came across this blog post about getting a computer science degree as the best degree for getting into venture capital or working at a VC-backed start up. I paid up for the diploma but can’t say that I saw better results. So back to MBAs.

Startup 337

Startup Venture Capital Study Course 337

socalTECH

JUNE 1, 2021

Playa Vista-based iLife, a startup which is developing tools to help life insurance agents set up their own, branded "digital insurance agency", has raised $4M in a seed funding round, according to the company. iLife said the funding was led by Foundation Capital, and also include AME Cloud Ventures and Cherubic Ventures.

Sales 113

Sales Seed Funding Startup Tool 113

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 27, 2020

Los Angeles-based ringDNA , the venture-backed startup which is developing artificial intelligence tools to help sales teams, says it has acquired a popular podcast focused on sales. According to the company, it has acquired the sales podcast "Accelerate!", Financial details of the deal were not announced.

Artificial Inteligence 140

Artificial Inteligence Sales Tips Los Angeles 140

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 28, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series Startup Lessons. I started my first company in 1999 in London at the height of the dot com craze. Our business development discussions took longer than planned. Our sales forecasts were revised downward – many times. We downsized, developed processes and found our groove.

Startup 331

Startup Press Customer Custom 331

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2023

As a business advisor, I meet many business professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs who are anxious to be their own boss , or have an innovative idea to start or acquire a new business. Also, initiating a startup is quite different from taking over a thriving business, where the focus is on repeatable processes and quarterly profits.

Startup 94

Startup Ideas Metrics Entrepreneur 94

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2022

In my years of advising startups and occasional investing, I’ve seen many great ideas start and fail, but the right team always seems to make good things happen, even without the ultimate idea. You need to have a technical genius on the team to get your startup product off the ground. The sales professional.

Technical Advisors 123

Technical Advisors Startup Outsource Development High Tech 123

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2021

Thus, financial projections for up to five years are a necessary element in every business plan. Per the words of an old country song, “if you don’t know where you’re going, you will probably end up somewhere else.” If you are losing money on every unit, it’s hard to make it up in volume. Forecast sales-volume expectations.

Startup 147

Startup Pricing Sales Statistics 147

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 2, 2010

This is part of a series on sales & marketing. I previously covered how early phase sales teams should be “evangelical&# and consultative in nature. As a tech startup grows it needs to develop more process & management if it is to scale. More experienced sales leaders seldom compete on price.

Sales 289

Sales Startup Training Pricing 289

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2013

In my first enterprise software company we developed a methodology for sales that we called PUCCKA. Having a methodology instead of just going on random sales visits helped force a bit of rigor and honesty amongst team members about how well or not we thought we were doing. The best sales meetings are discussions.

Sales 367

Sales Slides Startup Customer 367

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

Most technology startups seem to be funded by product people or business people. Specifically what is often not in the DNA of founders are sales skills. The result is a lack of knowledge of the process and of sales people themselves. My first startup was no different. Sales people: Are motivated by cash.

Sales 316

Sales Startup Pricing Customer 316

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

When you see startups like SpaceX and Pinterest grow from a low valuation to a billion dollars in just a few years, it’s easy to assume that if you just keep doing what you are doing, you can get there as well. Of course, that means a mindset willing to give up much more equity, and taking on a whole new level of risk.

Startup 151

Startup Course Sales Entrepreneur 151

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 23, 2013

Every sales organization with more than a handful of reps or that is across multiple offices or time zones would benefit from having a sales methodology. But the number one reason sales stall when customers see the value in what you do is because they often don’t have a reason to buy NOW. The USP solves the, “Why Buy Me?”

Sales 328

Sales Customer Custom Examples 328

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2020

As a mentor to entrepreneurs, I tend to see many of the same obstacles appearing in every new startup, and since I don’t want to appear to be a downer , I’m not sure how to properly warn people ahead of time to be on the alert for these challenges. Even the strongest relationships are often tested and broken by the stresses of a new startup.

Startup 131

Startup Entrepreneur Examples Customer 131

socalTECH

JULY 24, 2014

The company--which originally started in Austria--set up shop here two years ago to further expand its footprint in the US, and most recently hired away the entire Los Angeles marketing team of crosstown CRM software developer Nimble. We''re now opening up in six markets. Tell us about Pipeliner CRM?

Sales 229

Sales Startup Software Customer 229

Tech Coast Venture Network

APRIL 22, 2010

Virgina Lorimor There are several options for financing a start-up business that tend to follow a natural course in a business’ development: Personal Investment. This is where all entrepreneurs have to start. If you are pre-revenue, have pre-sales, letters of intent and/or customer commitments.

Startup 124

Startup Tech Coast Angels TCVN Incubator 124

TechCrunch LA

AUGUST 30, 2022

Digital avatar startup Genies , known its for high-profile partnerships with celebrities such as Justin Bieber, Migos and Cardi B, has just released its long-anticipated NFT storefront, “The Warehouse.” An image of the Genies platform showcasing a fashion collection designed by creator Ian Charms. Image Credits: Genies.

Geni 219

Geni Silver Lake Startup Platform 219

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 21, 2020

I realized a while back that creating a new company for the first time is a lot like whipping up a great dinner entrée for the first time – you need a recipe, even though it may look simple. Yet you may not be so sure where to start, and how to put it all together. Emeril Lagasse is always ready to “kick it up a notch!”

Startup 156

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 156

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 21, 2021

When someone introduces me to an “idea person,” I automatically jump to the down-side conclusion that this person doesn’t do follow-up. I can think of several related aspects of starting and running a business where follow-up, or lack of it, can make or break your startup. They expect prompt formal follow-up to questions.

Activity 133

Activity Startup Ideas Technical Review 133

socalTECH

MARCH 19, 2014

Sales tax compliance is not a typical sexy startup area. Mark Faggiano is the CEO and founder of the company, and spoke to us about what the big deal is about sales tax software compliance. Mark Faggiano is the CEO and founder of the company, and spoke to us about what the big deal is about sales tax software compliance.

Sales 149

Sales Software Startup Commerce 149

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 16, 2009

This post is part of my series “ Startup Lessons &#. Elephants, Deer and Rabbits – Some thoughts on start-up segmentation. I know that this advice won’t apply to every possible startup – but I think it applies to many. So when I started my first company I naturally went for elephants.

Startup 389

Startup Customer Custom Resource 389

socalTECH

MAY 2, 2017

He was just trying to collect more data for his startup on what was happening on real estate deals that the company had been referring to brokers. However, starting in 2015, we found that creating this was really hard. So, what I did was pick up the phone, and start talking to those agents. What is Digsy?

Sales 145

Sales Startup Email Tool 145

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2023

Thus, financial projections for up to five years are a necessary element in every business plan. Per the words of an old country song, “if you don’t know where you’re going, you will probably end up somewhere else.” If you are losing money on every unit, it’s hard to make it up in volume. Forecast sales-volume expectations.

Startup 116

Startup Pricing Sales Statistics 116

socalTECH

APRIL 10, 2017

Santa Monica- and Singapore-based Wavemaker Partners is one of the investors in Saleswhale , a Singapore startup developing artificial intelligence software for managing sales leads and sales conversations. Saleswhale said it raised $1.2M

Sales 113

Sales Artificial Inteligence Santa Monica Seed Funding 113

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 4, 2013

This is part of a series that describes a sales methodology for technology companies or frankly many other types of companies, too. We developed this at our first company and called it PUCCKA – the overall methodology is described here. Unique Selling Proposition. Compelling Event. The enemy is against you.

Sales 321

Sales Organization Startup Resource 321

Berkonomics

JANUARY 28, 2021

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked away from deals where the entrepreneur insists on a start-up pre-money valuation that is so high, no angel could expect to make a return upon the investment, even with a reasonable sales price for the company down the road. The post Don’t get hung up on early stage valuation.

Outsource Development 156

Outsource Development Startup Outsource Venture Capital 156

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 31, 2010

This is part of my ongoing Sales & Marketing Series. In the first part of this post I talked about how sales in a startup is often evangelical , requires as consultative sale and needs constant adjustments based on customer feedback. We had 4 or 5 sales reps that had been around since the early days.

Sales 286

Sales Newsletter Technical Review Activity 286

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011

It’s very common for startup companies to have COO’s. But … Startups don’t need – shouldn’t have – COOs. I have this conversation with every startup that comes to see me and has a CEO & a COO. I think usually a COO title at a startup is an ego thing. CEO’s run things.

Startup 325

Startup Technical Review Sales Report 325

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 12, 2022

As a business advisor, I have too often seen technical entrepreneurs get a product or service off the ground with ease, but then struggle mightily when their business reaches a couple of million in annual sales, or the employee count grows beyond a handful. With a startup, everything is an experiment. Many don’t survive the change.

Startup 137

Startup Training Entrepreneur Organization 137

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 10, 2014

In a VC business when you raise additional capital you need to “level up” and act the round you are. I’d say 20% of startups I see level-up early after their A round. These are important leveling-up activities but the CEO is often still up at 10pm f **g around with QuickBooks entries.

Startup 381

Startup Resource Venture Capital Activity 381

socalTECH

MARCH 31, 2017

San Diego-based Echo , a startup which is developing a new "hybrid" microscope aimed at replacing both upright and inverted microscopes, has raised $7.5M According to the company, the new funding will go towards manufacturing, sales, and developing future technologies. in a Series A funding.

Tech Coast Angels 100

Tech Coast Angels Develop Development San Diego 100

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 10, 2020

Los Angeles-based Signal Automotive , a startup which develops software for managing buying, selling, and inventory allocation for automobile dealers, has raised $20M in a funding round. The funding was led by Kayne Partners Fund, the growth private equity arm of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP.

Software 124

Software Sales Southern California Equity 124

Tech.Co

MARCH 10, 2022

Amazon could substantially expand their dominance over the ecommerce market, as the Seattle-based tech giant has announced the acquisition of Veeqo, a UK-based ecommerce startup. Amazon already represents 40% of the US ecommerce sales , so there's only so much further they can establish themselves in the industry.

Startup 128

Startup News Acquisition Platform 128

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 15, 2020

They are devastated when their business growth never starts or stalls, and they have no idea how to get it moving again. As an advisor to many startups, I often spend hours with business owners helping them anticipate every possible obstacle to the adoption of their solution, and developing a rollout plan to include antidotes.

Case Study 174

Case Study Startup Customer Custom 174