Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2016

One of the reasons that now is the time to be an entrepreneur is the explosion of startup assistance organizations, usually called incubators or accelerators. A few are still trying to make a profitable business out of nurturing startups, but it’s a challenge to make money when your customer startups don’t have many resources to give.

Incubator 106

Incubator Startup Help Resource 106

Tech.Co

DECEMBER 29, 2023

While the market isn't short of spritely, innovative entrepreneurs, harsh economic headwinds combined with a pullback in investor spending have made it harder than ever for budding businesses to break through. Writesonic Writesonic is an AI writing tool designed to help writers overcome writers block and level up their skills.

Startup 210

Startup Generative AI Newsletter Tool 210

Tech Zulu Event

JANUARY 27, 2016

TechZulu is excited to invite you to the 2016 Startup and Entrepreneur Forecast taking place Thursday, February 11 from 7 p.m. We will have amazing panelists from Crosscut Ventures, Machine Shop Ventures, Techstars, and more to be announced soon who will share their insights and forecast for startups in 2016.

Startup 40

Startup Santa Monica Venture Capital SaaS 40

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2016

Successful entrepreneurs understand the difference between a good business relationship with more people and having more friends. In the world of entrepreneurs and startups, professional relationships are critical. You need business partners, investors and customers. You can’t start a business with friends alone.

Entrepreneur 66

Entrepreneur Social Network Technical Review Social Media 66

Tech Zulu Event

JANUARY 26, 2016

6 Entrepreneurs share their predictions for this year’s evolution of online industries, which will be key for small businesses across the globe in 2016. In 2016, the price of mobile data will remain relatively stable. wireless carriers will begin to treat enterprise customers differently. Wireless Global Connections.

Commerce 40

Commerce Mobile Technical Review Google 40

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2016

Customers are acclimating to change faster than ever before, technology is evolving very rapidly, all markets are instantly global, and the cost of entry is lower than ever. Bold entrepreneurs put more effort into communicating the new market ecosystem value, and their natural product fit. But now I believe that times have changed.

Entrepreneur 61

Entrepreneur Marketing Design SpaceX 61

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 30, 2016

Being an entrepreneur is a lifestyle that requires staying power, because starting a new business is a long-term process with many tough challenges. Great entrepreneurs will tell you that they may have pivoted many times, down to their last dollar, but have never given up. I look for that same determination in every new founder.

Entrepreneur 76

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media Platform 76

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2016

Most aspiring entrepreneurs look to their alma mater, or any university, as a source of classes that can help them, but neglect to think outside the box or take advantage of all the other resources to be found there. Get help with grant funding and incubator resources. Access to entrepreneurs-in-residence, business mentors.

Entrepreneur 55

Entrepreneur Capital Class Startup 55

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2016

Most entrepreneurs work long and hard to get a handshake agreement from an investor, and then tend to relax and wait for the check to clear. Due diligence is going the next step, to meet and interview all key members of the team, visit the business location and follow-up with early customers and advisors.

Technical Review 55

Technical Review Help Innocal Startup 55

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 20, 2016

Thus the top priority of every entrepreneur who wants funding should be to build and highlight their “dream team” of co-founders, executives and advisers, to attract the biggest and best investors. Solo entrepreneurs rarely find an investor. Investors talk to each other and they love warm introductions to up-and-coming entrepreneurs.

Startup 60

Startup Entrepreneur Software Review Technical Review 60

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 21, 2016

There are a few entrepreneurs who seem to always be ahead of the rest, and are able to sense where the market is going tomorrow. Everyone wants to support the entrepreneur with the courage to make bold decisions, and can make it happen. So what does one have to do to get on the list? His new product presentations were legendary.

Entrepreneur 56

Entrepreneur Marketing Design Satisfaction 56

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 15, 2016

As an advisor to startups and an angel investor, I encounter many Millennials as entrepreneurs who are leaders and great role-models for the rest of us in business. Most great entrepreneurs, including Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Michael Dell, have talked about their failures as the key to later success.

Entrepreneur 60

Entrepreneur News Outsource Activity 60

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 4, 2017

With the Identity Theft Resource Center® reporting a 40 percent increase in data breaches in 2016, there seems to be a growing population out there worried about all the people intent on hurting them. My plea to entrepreneurs is to recognize these concerns as an opportunity, to make people’s life better, rather than stoke the fires.

Entrepreneur 54

Entrepreneur Technical Review Startup Symantec 54

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 26, 2017

Helen Lee: What JOANY does, is we help individuals and families sign up for the most optimal health insurance plan for them. It's a concierge service, which helps individuals and plans throughout the year. We put that algorithm in a small Excel spreadsheet, and wondered if that might help other people. What is JOANY?

Startup 138

Startup Customer Custom Help 138

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 9, 2016

It only takes one person come up with a great startup idea, but in my experience as an investor, it’s a rare entrepreneur who has all the skills and resources to build a business as well as a solution. Often times, the help you need is outside your familiar domain, and more into marketing, distribution, or manufacturing.

Ideas 60

Ideas Entrepreneur Startup Examples 60

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 7, 2016

I found this illustrated well in a new book I just finished, “ A Paperboy’s Fable ,” by a young entrepreneur and writer Deep Patel. Although just seventeen years old, Patel has some great insights that I can extrapolate for every aspiring entrepreneur to answer the most common question I get as an advisor and mentor – “Where do I start?”

Entrepreneur 99

Entrepreneur Social Media Satisfaction Customer 99

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

With interactive social media and video everywhere, everyone needs to feel they have a relationship with their leaders, and every brand needs leader personification for customers to relate. Here is my adaptation of his engagement principles for all the aspiring entrepreneurs I advise: Learn to adopt an outsider’s perspective.

Social Media 99

Social Media Metrics Customer Custom 99

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. If your solution alleviates a high level of existing pain, customers more readily change.

Product 95

Product Case Study Customer Custom 95

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 3, 2016

The new war for platforms has mostly been waged by Andreessen Horowitz who have raised astounding amounts of capital and therefore had the fees to put into providing more services for entrepreneurs. There is no right or wrong – these are the three basic models. There is no right or wrong – these are the three basic models.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Platform Startup Resource 150

socalTECH

APRIL 21, 2017

Georg Richter , CEO and founder of OceanX (www.oceanx.com), tells us how he's applying what he learned in many years of experience in direct selling, most recently as President and COO at Guthy Renker, to help large CPGs decode how to succeed in creating their own, physical subscription businesses. How did you get into this?

Startup 145

Startup Product Customer Custom 145

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 28, 2016

Steve Jobs was a one-in-a-million entrepreneur who seemed to violate many conventional rules of starting a business and dealing with people, yet undeniably achieved great success. As a result, I don’t recommend to aspiring entrepreneurs that they try to emulate his style as a model for their first startup.

Startup 103

Startup Entrepreneur Product Marketing 103

TechCrunch LA

MAY 19, 2020

After wrestling with recalcitrant homeowners, husbanding their parcels of land to keep their property values high, the state’s leadership passed a law that increased the availability of new rental units and put more money into homeowners’ pockets in 2016. Image Credits: United Dwelling (opens in a new window).

Los Angeles 191

Los Angeles Startup Culver City .Net 191

socalTECH

MARCH 4, 2021

I think, now more than ever, Flippy meets the distinct challenges and can help our customers spur new growth. This was in mid-2016, and the decreasing costs of robotics and computer vision made me think that the process of making a burger could be fully automated. Speaking of customers, can you talk about who they are now?

Startup 113

Startup Venture Capital Capital Customer 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 26, 2018

Editor's note: All this week, and into the start of next year, we'll be featuring reflections on 2018 from notable investors, entrepreneurs, and others from Southern California's technology community. You'll be able to browse all of those contributions here. Here's Jim Andelman of Bonfire Ventures. Happy Holidays!

Southern California 100

Southern California SoCal Venture Capital News 100

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 6, 2014

And here’s an important point that I think modern entrepreneurs often forget: Investors are “co-owners” of your business. The functions of an early-stage board are pretty obvious and well understood: Providing introductions to customers, biz dev partners, recruits, the press, other investors, etc. Mentorship.

Startup 325

Startup Sales Technical Review Software Review 325

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2016

Unfortunately, many passionate entrepreneurs read this initial surge as success, and charge ahead with more of the same passion, leading to a series of potential pitfalls that can quickly jeopardize the health of the entire business. On the other end of the transaction, customer support, returns, and transportation can add up.

Startup 57

Startup Training Entrepreneur Customer 57

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 14, 2016

Too many aspiring entrepreneurs I mentor can talk at length about their innovative ideas and passions, and ask lots of good questions, but never make much progress in building a real business. It’s time to get the help you need. Most entrepreneurs work hard, but many don’t follow up often to check for completion.

Writing 100

Writing Ideas Startup Entrepreneur 100

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 27, 2016

As an angel investor, I’ve learned to believe in this approach, since I have seen great ideas go astray, due to poor execution and I have seen apparently marginal ideas make millions, managed by a savvy entrepreneur. Giving the wrong people money doesn’t help at the idea level. Focus on customer needs.

Ideas 53

Ideas Technical Review Entrepreneur Advertising 53

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 9, 2016

Good entrepreneurs are all about managing change, but too many forget that they have to change themselves as their dream evolves from a startup to a scalable business. It doesn’t matter how dedicated and capable you are, there are only so many hours in a day, and as your business scales, you need to count on others for help.

Social Network 59

Social Network Startup Demand Entrepreneur 59

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2016

As an active angel investor myself, I understand how the process works, and I see the disappointment in the eyes of entrepreneurs who approach angel groups for funding and often get turned away for not being timely or prepared in the minds of potential investors. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 03/02/2016.

Angel 65

Angel Startup Technical Review Social Media 65

socalTECH

JANUARY 4, 2016

As an entrepreneur and a new investor, this couldn't be more relevant. As an entrepreneur, being more focused on the outcome than the process can be counterproductive. Things like building a great product, building and nurturing a great culture, presenting a really clear value proposition to customers or partners.

Southern California 100

Southern California Entrepreneur News Technology 100

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 1, 2016

After many years of working with angel investors seriously trying to find new ventures worthy of their hard-earned money, I find their frustration often exceeds that of entrepreneurs sincerely looking for financial help. The most investable ventures stem from painful needs by customers who have money to spend.

Entrepreneur 57

Entrepreneur Invest Funding Patents 57

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 29, 2016

Every new entrepreneur soon realizes he or she has some big ones, but very few figure out how to use these them to their advantage. I believe that the resourcefulness to turn constraints into competitive differentiators and new opportunities is a trait that separates the great entrepreneurs from the “wannabes.”

Startup 57

Startup Resource Entrepreneur Outsource 57

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 7, 2016

Founders soon learn that customers only spend real money for solutions rather than ideas. Investors have also learned not to invest in ideas but only in entrepreneurs and teams who can deliver solutions. A good execution requires a plan and the right people, combined to create operational excellence and exceptional customer value.

Ideas 59

Ideas Technical Review Google Startup 59

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2016

Entrepreneurs who are looking to attract investors need to develop and pitch a plan -- preferably written -- that answers every potential investor question about your startup before it is asked. Investors want to hear about customers with money who have a painful problem that you can solve now. How does your business model make money?

Invest 108

Invest Startup Slides Equity 108

socalTECH

MAY 10, 2018

It was the Summer of 2016, if I'm not mistaken. That's been our strength at Cross Campus, events, and it ended up being a very helpful introduction. Is there anything entrepreneurs here can learn from the ecosystem in Israel? This connection here very much helps this scenario. Behzad Kianmahd: Nothing is easy.

El Segundo 100

El Segundo Southern California Startup Santa Monica 100

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 26, 2016

Here are seven key principles that I recommend you follow as an aspiring business leader or entrepreneur, based on my own experience in large companies as well as startups: Proactively ask for input to hone your vision. Motivated team members are much more likely to delight customers and create memorable customer experiences.

Coach 64

Coach Satisfaction Organization Activity 64