Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 6, 2017

WINTER For starters when we conducted our annual VC & LP survey in December of 2016 to prepare our annual Upfront State of the VC Industry report we found that twice as many VCs cut their investments in 2016 relative to 2015 with > 30% of VCs having cut investments. On stark graph should give you a sense of the picture.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Capital Funding Startup 150

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 21, 2019

Other Supreme apparel sells in the aftermarket for hundreds more than their retail prices, including box logo hoodies which typically sell for between $500 – $1,000. A Veblen good does not adhere to the traditional laws of price and demand. You may think that this item is an anomaly, but it is not.

Demand 160

Demand Pricing Product Equity 160

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2016

Invoca had grown steadily and consistently since 2009 and by 2015 SaaS companies with scale had become hot – trading at a median of 7.3x Mark dutifully went to partner meetings, back-channel references began, firms started calling existing VCs to “test prices” and we started debating whom our best partner would be.

Funding 150

Funding Startup SaaS Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 4, 2016

Limited Partners (LPs) who invest in VC funds have continued to pour money into venture – with the market returning to pre-recession levels. Don’t be fooled by the slight dip in 2015 – the size of funds & timing of deals in market in any year can skew the data set. So why the slow down all of a sudden?

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Startup Course Marketing 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 12, 2015

This is at least double the time required for most equity investments, and may be a delay you can’t afford in keeping up with the market and your competitors. Just like you can hire investment brokers to find equity investors, you can hire grant writers and expeditors to help you through the process and improve your odds of success.

Pricing 100

Pricing Equity Technical Review Research 100

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

There is much discussion online and also in small, private groups, about why the price of technology companies – public and private – are falling. It pains me to see the typical (and predictable) responses on Twitter, “VCs want prices to drop!” ” “Sure, prices are dropping.

Startup 150

Startup Company Companies Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2016

I remember when seed funds first started (they were being incorrectly called “super angels” and then Micro VCs before Seed Funds stuck) and every LP (who invest in VCs) told me they weren’t convinced about Seed Funds (too small, too hard to pick winners, would they be able to follow on?). Now seed funding is conventional wisdom.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Capital Funding Seed Funding 150

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 18, 2015

“Trade in an asset at a price that strongly deviates from an asset’s intrinsic value” The arguments against that, “This time the startups have real revenues!” “A price that strongly deviates from an assets intrinsic value” is pretty clear. Here is the Wikipedia definition of a bubble.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Pricing Platform Marketing 150

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 7, 2015

Businesses require an equally elegant business model, with the right price, messaging and delivery channel to the right target customers to keep the dream alive and growing. The founder had simply not done the work to validate a price and customer segment. In the investment community, this work is called proving the business model.

Technical Review 108

Technical Review Pricing Startup Software Review 108

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 26, 2015

Here is a summary of the key terms to expect on the term sheet, or the contract between the founder and investor: Consideration given for the money invested. For later investments, the price is equity, with a percentage of the owner stock to be assigned to the investor. Definition of investment delivery in "tranches."

Demand 105

Demand Startup Equity Invest 105

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 24, 2015

You thought media twitter was bad… You thought tech twitter was bad… — Hunter Walk (@hunterwalk) August 24, 2015. So why invest in that period of uncertainty unless it’s early-stage and thus valuation matters less. If the next 30 days stays calm then investment will pick up. So, too, investments.

Marketing 150

Marketing Venture Capital Startup Invest 150

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 7, 2015

Here is where projections of cost, pricing, volumes and cash flow are critical. The average valuation for angel investments is $2 million, which will get you $500,000 for 20 percent of your startup. Are you flexible on the terms of the investment? Are you willing to offer milestones for staged investment delivery?

Help 104

Help Startup Equity Entrepreneur 104

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2015

This is a relatively new term loosely applied to angels who invest their own money in a portfolio of startups (typically 20 or more) and are willing to lead multiple rounds, usually starting with a seed round. These funders often offer convertible notes, rather than the traditional priced equity. A micro venture capital firm.

Funding 104

Funding Venture Capital Startup Seed Funding 104

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 7, 2015

You shouldn’t invest in an undefined business. Five-year revenues, based on your volumes and prices, should penetrate at least 10 percent of the target market segment. Think about the valuation implications and equity you are willing to give up for each investment amount. Neither extreme is good.

Startup 107

Startup Equity Invest Acquisition 107

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 1, 2016

We All Know That Dollars into Venture Have Gone Up … As a starting point, we know that the dollars into venture have steadily rebounded to pre great-recession levels, with just under $30 billion committed to US technology venture capital in 2015. The Biggest Area of Concern is Late Stage Investments.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Capital Marketing Seed Funding 150

socalTECH

MAY 25, 2016

Santa Monica-based March Capital Partners (www.marchcp.com) has just announced a brand new, $240M venture investment fund, led by longtime venture investing veterans Jim Armstrong, Sumant Mandal, Gregory Milken and Jamie Montgomery. What is the investment focus for this fund?

Southern California 113

Southern California Capital Funding Invest 113

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 25, 2016

Unfortunately, the coming market correction will reverberate to all stages of venture investing. The constant media coverage of the aberrant unicorn valuations has caused otherwise level-headed entrepreneurs to expect investors to participate at prices which are detached from their startups’ fundamentals. Find A Partner Not A Banker.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Invest Venture Capital 100

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 28, 2015

Validated pricing and a sufficient revenue stream. Pricing needs to be set before rollout, based on the value delivered and the competition; pricing also needs to be tested with real customers. An understanding of return-on-investment potential is critical to all founders and investors.

Pricing 100

Pricing Technical Review Entrepreneur Startup 100

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2015

Partnerships, distribution channels and pricing models should be included. “If Immediate investment requirements and use of funds. Investors are also interested in future investment requirements, time frames and long-term strategy. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 7/29/2015.

Product 103

Product Slides Customer Custom 103

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 17, 2015

If there are conflicts within the team, or differing views of the strategy, or evidence of missing processes and tools, the investment process will likely be terminated. Make yourself available to answer any questions, show your enthusiasm, and explain both the positives and negatives of the external investment process.

Technical Review 108

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Entrepreneur 108

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 21, 2015

With this model, a startup pre-sells their product early, at a cheaper price, in exchange for a pledge. Equity investing is very risky, but huge returns are possible if you pick the next Facebook, but failure means your entire investment is lost. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 2/13/2015. In the U.S.,

Venture Capital 108

Venture Capital Angel Satisfaction Equity 108

Tech Zulu Event

JANUARY 26, 2016

In 2015 an additional 237 thousand joined the online community. As online viewership and behaviors grew in 2015 – the average U.S. In 2015, issues of online security and data privacy consumed headlines. In 2016, the price of mobile data will remain relatively stable. Data Security Concerns Dominate.

Commerce 40

Commerce Mobile Technical Review Google 40

socalTECH

MARCH 6, 2017

After I sold my last company, Shift, in May of 2015, I took some time off to look for the next thing to do. Traffic Marketplace, Adconian, TheTradeDesk)--what is it that you look for in investing in a startup? I love that Bessemer anti-portfolio they have posted in their office, of all the investments they missed.

Media 153

Media Mobile Startup Acquisition 153

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 3, 2015

It does happen once in a while, but usually only for entrepreneurs who have already spent money promoting their efforts, and a large amount of precious time connecting with their peers and the investment community. Here are some key recommendations to get you started: Plan for adequate time to find an investment.

Startup 101

Startup Keiretsu Entrepreneur Invest 101

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2015

If you sell for half the price of a competitor, but you lose money on each item, it’s hard to make it up in volume. Quantify all the key elements of the equation, including price, margin and volume. Project revenues, costs and investment expectations. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 6/17/2015.

Summary 101

Summary Patents Technical Review Competition 101

Xconomy

JULY 19, 2016

In 2015, Cybersecurity startups saw 332 funding deals with investments hitting the highest ever at $3.8 For 2015, there were 133 information security M&A deals, according to 451 Research’s Tech M&A Outlook 2016. In an ideal world, and from the perspective of a venture investor, this would absolutely be the case.

Symantec 40

Symantec IBM IBM Acquisition 40

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 1, 2020

Andrew Schydlowsky: We entered this market in 2015, and we are backed by a combination of institutional investors, and some family offices, as well as some very experienced and successful angels and operators. All of that is done on a foundation of control, which is established during the protection phase. We evolved and expanded from there.

Artificial Inteligence 140

Artificial Inteligence Startup Commerce Sales 140

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2015

No matter how great your solution, it takes real marketing effort, content and investment to get attention these days. Don’t wait for your worst case scenario where no customers show up, and expect that slashing the price will solve the problem. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 9/23/2015.

Startup 105

Startup Entrepreneur Marketing Satisfaction 105

Tech Zulu Event

AUGUST 6, 2015

Lore’s biggest promise is that Jet members will enjoy prices “10 to 15 percent below the lowest prices online,” a bold pitch in today’s hyper-competitive retail landscape. On July 21, Jet’s launch day, Profitero conducted a study to evaluate Jet’s lowest-price promise. Profitero looked at 16,028 exactly-matching products (i.e.,

Pricing 40

Pricing Commerce Startup Study 40

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 14, 2015

As a serious entrepreneur, you have more invested than any outsider, so you should be looking for the same evidence and not believing your own hype. You should be counting only those people who fit your target customer demographic and paid full price for the product or service, without any prior connection to you or the business.

Acquisition 100

Acquisition Entrepreneur Customer Custom 100

Tech Zulu Event

APRIL 18, 2016

Despite the benefits of developing an app, there are valid reasons why retailers choose not to invest in one. Many retailers report $100,000 is the minimum price of entry. The price of a retail app varies depending on the developer and features; nevertheless, it’s a big number. percent in brick and mortar stores.

Mobile 40

Mobile Sites Customer Custom 40

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 23, 2015

Twilio has now raised around $235 million, including a July 2015 round totaling $130 million. In the startup world, the former happens when a VC makes a bad investment, and the latter occurs when they miss a great opportunity. Yet most VC's bury their failures under six feet of denial. Unicornless. billion) and ISS (sold to IBM $1.3

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Southern California 100

socalTECH

AUGUST 7, 2014

I had worked a year in investment banking, and Jasper was out of USC. So, we wondered what we could do at a low price point, things like transcribing voicemail, things like social media sentiment analysis. We have a great team on the ground in the Philippines, who are phenomenal at managing, training, and investing in staff.

Startup 231

Startup Technology Outsource Santa Monica 231

Inverted Software

SEPTEMBER 5, 2017

Millennials are more educated about healthy choices, are price sensitive and environmentally friendly. The investment management firm Alliance Bernstein even downgraded its rating of the company from “outperform” to “market perform” Sears. decline from 2015. billion in fiscal 2016, a 1.8% a year earlier.

Company 48

Company Companies Sales Education 48

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 26, 2015

Yet, due largely to non-technology business considerations, including pricing, safety concerns and support infrastructure, there are none that most people can name. Focus on advancing return on investment, rather than state of the art. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 12/16/2015.

Technical Review 54

Technical Review Product Activity Technology 54

socalTECH

OCTOBER 29, 2015

Those loans are very mis-priced, in our opinion. Where there are lots of players focused on different types of equity, different types of investments, different types of debt, they're doing it in a very unfocused manner. Brett Crosby: We have been in invitation-only mode for all of 2015, and that's been growing and growing.

Southern California 100

Southern California Google Technical Review Manhattan Beach 100

Xconomy

JULY 21, 2016

After a year in which Biogen’s share price has fallen by more than a third and one of its top drug prospects failed, Scangos, who has led the company since 2010, has announced plans to step down. In January 2015, Biogen shares were at over $400 apiece as the company was gaining steam on early positive signals for aducanumab.

San Diego 40

San Diego Conference Pricing Acquisition 40