Both Sides of the Table

MAY 9, 2018

Your product demo crushed. This is a very common scenario when entrepreneurs pitch VCs and frankly is a very common scenario when VCs try to raise money from LPs. When you pitched me I really did love you. I worked on a new model and I’d really love to show it to you in person. You had an amazing meeting with an investor.

Software Review 381

Software Review Startup Email Conference 381

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 29, 2021

Unfortunately, what I see in this Internet age is information overload, and new product differentiation is harder than ever before. In this context, based on recent feedback , over 30,000 new products get introduced every year, and 95 percent fail, primarily because they don’t stand out over existing alternatives.

Social Media 134

Social Media Case Study Customer Custom 134

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 21, 2019

Professional investors are adept at looking for innovation capital, beyond the passionate pitch. To amplify your impressions and win support for your ideas, you need to focus on a fundamental human need and make it personal. As you create an innovative product, put an equal effort into a compelling vision. The cycle repeats.

Product 93

Product Ideas Resource Capital 93

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2022

In my role as a mentor to entrepreneurs and an angel investor, I find that too many are stuck in this myth that a good pitch, and good marketing content, should consist of more product features, and more hype on customer benefits. That’s why I recommend every solution pitch must start with a painful problem, not just “nice-to-have.”

Startup 117

Startup Social Media Guide Content 117

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 8, 2020

I’m not proposing that anyone promise things that they don’t intend to deliver, but it’s time that founders switch to start selling their product before they build it, rather than believing the old adage of “if we build it, they will come.” Craft and hone your elevator pitch early. Craft and hone your elevator pitch early.

Ideas 124

Ideas Tips Marketing Social Media 124

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 27, 2015

I have found it to be more productive and effective to lead with the model that no meetings will take an hour, and may be done in as little as five minutes. I have personally used this approach in leading startups as well as large organizations, in highly technical roles as well as business development and marketing.

Product 99

Product Mentor Startup Technical Review 99

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 30, 2021

Pilot-authors tell their stories in the first person, and all of us readers slow down to think while reading of these events, wondering “what if” or whether this could happen to me. What if the hardware manufacturer had serious problems with product quality on site? We ask ourselves “what if?”. or “I learned about flying from that.”

Entrepreneur 156

Entrepreneur Training Invest Email 156

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2023

You have to get past how great the product is to address clearly what your business rationale is, why it is different from the competition's, and why it will succeed. A winning product or service. Provide a simple yet complete description of your product or service and its competitive marketplace. Be concise as well as complete.

Equity 121

Equity Technical Advisors Funding Ideas 121

TechCrunch LA

MARCH 26, 2020

Startups across the nation and around the world are looking for ways to relieve shortages of much-needed personal protective equipment and sanitizers used to halt the spread of COVID-19. In fact, Kentucky was outbid by the federal government for personal protective equipment. “We break it up into three different programs.

Company 281

Company Companies Mobile Organization 281

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 29, 2020

The average length of a funding pitch to angel investors is ten minutes. If you start by pitching your extended life story, that’s the wrong point. Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch.

Startup 118

Startup Slides Technical Review Research 118

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 14, 2020

Here are eight key points that I believe should be taken from the show by every startup founder looking for investors in real life, across the range of venture capitalists, angel investors, or even friends and family: You will be judged first as a person, then by your idea. Personalize your presentation, if possible, for every investor.

Entrepreneur 127

Entrepreneur Sample Ideas Customer 127

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2021

Here is my outline of key deliverables that could convince me that you are a cut above the “average” entrepreneur that approaches me with nothing but a dream and a prayer: Personal video introduction with elevator pitch. Investor and strategic partner pitch. Pitch your company, not your product.

Entrepreneur 156

Entrepreneur Tips Funding Startup 156

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 3, 2013

These range from companies pitching me to portfolio companies presenting at board meetings. Almost always the CEO plus members of his or her management team including tech, marketing, sales and/or product. Here are some guidelines for you – particularly for VC pitch meetings. I sit through a lot of presentations.

Venture Capital 377

Venture Capital Slides Course Summary 377

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2014

Yesterday I wrote a post about The Silent Benefits of PR in which I pointed out that most young companies I encounter don’t fully grasp the benefits of PR because they are less measurable than product milestones or customer acquisition analyses (like CAC/LTV). It super charges a business that is closer to product delivery.

Press 319

Press Startup Writing Training 319

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2022

Perhaps a close personal friend can be both (the earliest stage and first tier investors should be “friends and family”). Offer to give your executive presentation, but he may want just the elevator pitch. Don’t insist on a product demo – he is buying the business, not the product.

Slides 126

Slides Outsource Summary Conference 126

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 27, 2020

You have to get past how great the product is to address clearly what your business rationale is, why it is different from the competition's, and why it will succeed. A winning product or service. Provide a simple yet complete description of your product or service and its competitive marketplace. Be concise as well as complete.

Technical Advisors 162

Technical Advisors Tips Startup Equity 162

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 19, 2021

In my view, it starts with your communication of real personal values , and ends your focus on results. Especially in these modern times, both your customers and your team are looking for personal relationships to incent their engagement and loyalty. Manual assessment is not productive. billion buyout. There are no easy answers.

Customer 157

Customer Custom Metrics Ideas 157

socalTECH

OCTOBER 11, 2016

What's the difference between pitching your startup on television, versus pitching your startup in real life? Can you talk about the difference between pitching on TV versus pitching in real life to investors? And how do you best take advantage of a TV audience to promote your startup? You don't have that luxury in TV.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Invest Competition 100

TechCrunch LA

MAY 12, 2020

The event kicked off with a few words from CEO Evan Spiegel and soon transitioned into a succession of live-streamed pitches from the 10 startups in Yellow’s latest batch. Now Su says he’s fielding plenty of augmented reality pitches. making their way to Los Angeles. ”

Invest 237

Invest Startup Artificial Inteligence Class 237

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 29, 2019

I have found it to be more productive and effective to lead with the model that no meetings will take an hour, and may be done in as little as five minutes. I have personally used this approach in leading startups as well as large organizations, in highly technical roles as well as business development and marketing. Marty Zwilling.

Mentor 124

Mentor Technical Review Coach Slides 124

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2020

As an angel investor in startups, I’m a believer that smart investors invest more in you as the entrepreneur than the next billion dollar solution you are pitching. For example, I often hear statements such as, “competitor x’s product is expensive and hard to use.” They talk positively about how customers will appreciate value.

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Startup Examples Metrics 124

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 23, 2019

So, if you are starting a beauty company, like Justine and I were with LovingEco, which was natural and organic products and skincare, lots of men just didn't understand why you would need organic skincare products, or why organic jeans were just much more sustainable, because of water use and all these other things.

Help 224

Help Entrepreneur Capital Startup 224

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2021

I say that because I’ve heard too many abstract pitches about the next paradigm-shifting technology, which I can’t relate to, and only a couple with stories that really grabbed me. This should be obvious, but much of what passes for “a story” these days are things like elevator pitches or product descriptions that have no characters at all.

Startup 125

Startup Technical Review Entrepreneur Customer 125

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2023

For example, if you have a proven product, real revenue, a big potential market, and are ready to scale up the business, every investor will be interested. For investors, this is the idea stage , where you may have a great idea, but no plan, product, or customers, and probably no success record in this business domain. Congratulations!

Funding 125

Funding Startup Ideas Equity 125

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 26, 2021

Yet I believe that business success is more a function of the person than the idea or the plan, so the best idea is one that is a best fit for you, and only you can assess that. As an investor, I’m not attracted to startups where the founder sends in a marketing person to do the talking. I can assess execution plans, if you have any.

Satisfaction 145

Satisfaction Ideas Entrepreneur Activity 145

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 17, 2013

Calling high means reaching the highest level appropriate person in an organization that you can reach to hear your pitch. The senior person you meet is unlikely to be the person actually making the decision. Find a business unit leader who would be positively impacted by success of your product.

Sales 375

Sales Technical Review Organization Case Study 375

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 1, 2022

Social entrepreneurs pitch me their latest idea for reducing world hunger (such as producing edible algae), but forget that hungry people probably don’t have any money. One of the best ways to assess development risk is to build and test a prototype, or minimum viable product (MVP). Be ready to pivot at any point in the process.

Ideas 145

Ideas Startup Case Study Writing 145

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 25, 2022

The result is low productivity, mistakes, and poor customer experiences. Don’t make gut decisions based primarily on marketing pitches and hard-sell tactics. Don’t make gut decisions based primarily on marketing pitches and hard-sell tactics. Your business image will spiral downward. Big growth takes big investment.

Startup 134

Startup Training Tool Demand 134

Berkonomics

AUGUST 3, 2023

Certainly, bootstrapping is a preferred method of funding growth if it does not hold back the speed of growth or hobble the quality of product or service to the extent that better-funded competitors can overtake the business. There is a lot to say about retaining control. Many accelerators have come and gone during these past five years.

Venture Capital 295

Venture Capital Startup Class Invest 295

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 15, 2010

You bump into the person you’ve always wanted to chat with or your perfect business development partner who can “make” you. I’ve written about the “elevator” pitch before. One person who doesn’t waste this opportunity is Sam Jones of Formation Media. My partner was in product management at Demand Media. Don’t blow it.

Startup 315

Startup Content Conference Media 315

socalTECH

MARCH 19, 2012

Are you the sort of person who relies on your friends to help you figure out the best places to explore on the web? We help you turn you and your friends into personal tour guides to the web, ultimately making it easier to find new and awesome sites through each other. I'm a person that loves discovering new stuff on the web.

USC 252

USC Startup Web Ideas 252

Tech Zulu Event

NOVEMBER 16, 2013

Turn on your phone and look at the productivity folder. You’ll be more productive within three weeks time. We discuss productivity, emails, communication, and the dynamics of the team. Must be something easy to use for non-task managers (he claims to be a very unorganized person). We’ve been there.

Product 99

Product Ideas Email Organization 99

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 9, 2022

True business success and leadership starts with real personal values, extends to building a team, and finally to inspiring customers and your community. That’s a huge leap from an entrepreneurial idea, to a product, to making money. In business, consistency is the key to productivity and trust by team members and customers alike.

Case Study 139

Case Study Customer Custom Tool 139

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 23, 2020

For example, if that person is an investor, listen for a background in technology or a focus on financial returns, before highlighting your vision to change the social culture. Ask questions first to find what people or interests you might have in common, and then explore these at a personal level to build a positive relationship.

Networking 126

Networking Social Media Startup Media 126

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 8, 2019

In my role as a mentor to entrepreneurs and an angel investor, I find that too many are stuck in this myth that a good pitch, and good marketing content, should consist of more product features, and more hype on customer benefits. That’s why I recommend every solution pitch must start with a painful problem, not just “nice-to-have.”

Startup 102

Startup Customer Custom Social Media 102

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 4, 2019

As an introvert myself, I remember worrying that I could never be comfortable giving a sales pitch, or networking to find clients. Every entrepreneur, especially an introvert, can benefit from the perspective of another business person, ideally one who has prior experience in the domain you are about to enter.

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Mentor Activity Startup 104

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2021

Great entrepreneurs seem to all exhibit a common set of attributes which go well beyond the basic skills required to be an entrepreneur: “Larger than life” personality and presence. Richard Branson’s adventurer escapades are legendary, and Steve Jobs made new product presentations an experience, as well as a sales pitch and an education.

Marketing 157

Marketing Design Entrepreneur Ideas 157