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. There are just as many bad entrepreneurs who do bad things. how much energy to put into channel partners vs. direct sales. how to build an initial sales organization.

Startup 325

Startup Sales Technical Review Software Review 325

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 8, 2016

As a startup advisor and investor, I find that more and more entrepreneurs avoid using the term “profit” in pitching their new venture. Thus I was pleased and a bit surprised to see a new book, “ The Purpose Is Profit ,” by Ed “Skip” McLaughlin, an entrepreneur who has both succeeded and failed in starting multiple businesses.

Entrepreneur 58

Entrepreneur Ideas Pricing Customer 58

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 18, 2016

As a startup advisor and investor, I’ve met many aspiring entrepreneurs, and I often get asked the question, “I have a great idea for a startup – do you agree that it real potential?” If you are dreaming of an opportunity to get rich quick, the entrepreneur route is not for you. You enjoy building relationships as well as products.

Entrepreneur 67

Entrepreneur Startup Ideas Sample 67

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 25, 2016

Many entrepreneurs assume that everyone will love their solution as much as they do, so they tune their marketing focus based on their own needs and wants. Expanding your market into these areas requires thinking outside your personal box. Test drive marketing programs outside of your comfort zone.

Customer 55

Customer Custom Marketing Social Media 55

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

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 3, 2016

Examples of VC platform services include: recruiting, marketing, design support, inside sales reps, consulting, accounting services and so forth. Side Note : Upfront has hired Kerry Bennett as a member of our executive management team to run marketing – please follow her on Twitter here ].

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Platform Startup Resource 150

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. In today’s information overload, marketing is everything. Use every marketing channel available.

Product 95

Product Case Study Customer Custom 95

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. How big and growing is the total market and your target segment? They like billion-dollar markets with double-digit growth rates.

Invest 108

Invest Startup Slides Equity 108

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2016

Too many entrepreneurs don’t know what to do at this point, largely accounting for that disappointing 50 percent of startups that fail in the first five years, according to Gallup. Others do far too little, assuming the viral effect and word-of-mouth will soon kick in, and sales will suddenly grow exponentially.

Search Engine Optimization 57

Search Engine Optimization Startup Social Media Metrics 57

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. Similarly, mentioning viral marketing without specifics won’t assure fundability. Focus on customer needs.

Ideas 53

Ideas Technical Review Entrepreneur Advertising 53

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 21, 2016

Others, like Guy Kawasaki , have irreverently called some of these “entrepreneur lies,” but I prefer to think of them as innocent enhancements or omissions that can kill your deal. Target market sizing higher than $10 billion. Sales projections are less than one percent market penetration. Skip the hype.

Funding 98

Funding Startup Innocal Entrepreneur 98

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 26, 2016

The biggest challenge for every entrepreneur and every startup today is to get noticed and remembered in today’s information overload. The number of entrepreneurs worldwide is huge, starting an estimated 50 million new businesses in the past year, or 137,000 per day. Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 09/24/2016.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Customer Custom 100

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 14, 2014

All the data actually suggests with the growth of mobile, inbound sales calls will double from 30 billion to 60 billion in 3 years (source: Kelsey). It’s why opt-in marketing databases can be so incredibly valuable for companies like Gilt Groupe, One King’s Lane and AdoreMe. Calls are changing but not dying. PHONE CALLS.

Email 339

Email SaaS Venture Capital Google 339

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 10, 2016

For example, if you watch the TV show “Shark Tank,” you will remember several entrepreneurs with specialty products doing well online who want money to move into big box retail. The right channel for marketing and distribution is one of the basic “four Ps” of business (product, promotion, price and placement).

Pricing 54

Pricing Customer Custom Sales 54

socalTECH

AUGUST 18, 2017

Marcus Filipovich: I joined as Chief Executive Officer in January of 2016, however, our founders are really the pioneers in the area of using eye signs for drug enforcement. Marcus Filipovich: Our other founder, Ron Waldorf, is a serial entrepreneur, primarily in the medical business. How big of a market is there for all of this?

Pasadena Angels 100

Pasadena Angels Pasadena Technical Review Southern California 100

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 5, 2016

All too often as a startup investor, I hear the term “disruptive technology” from an entrepreneur, played like a trump card that should override any other potential business qualms. These normally require an innovative new business model, non-linear thinking for marketing, sales, and distribution.

Technology 57

Technology Competition Customer Custom 57

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 8, 2016

One of the most important skills for every entrepreneur is timely and effective decision making. The best entrepreneurs relish this role, while others struggle mightily and ultimately lose their health and their company. Your job as entrepreneur or executive does not end with picking a solution.

Startup 106

Startup Entrepreneur Ideas Coach 106

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 19, 2016

As an entrepreneur looking for an idea, it makes sense to explore problem areas within your knowledge comfort zone, but when you are building a business with the solution, you have to stretch your comfort zone to keep up with the market and stay ahead of competitors. The idea is the only easy part. Stop talking and start executing.

Social Network 94

Social Network Startup Ideas Entrepreneur 94

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 5, 2016

Too many entrepreneurs put their best creative thinking into the startup idea, and believe that the business implementation simply requires following tried and true business practices. Successful entrepreneurs call these paradigm shifts or disruptive technologies, where new solutions cause unanticipated opportunities.

Ideas 103

Ideas Competition Customer Custom 103

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 11, 2016

I meet many entrepreneurs with a real passion for their new idea, but unfortunately they don’t all realize that passion is necessary but not sufficient fuel to turn their idea into a successful business. Seek evidence of market opportunity to balance your passion. These include confidence, commitment and a determination to succeed.

Startup 62

Startup Ideas Entrepreneur Statistics 62

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 12, 2016

Does your business have a visible positive strategy, or do your customers and employees still see your primary focus as closing more sales and killing competitors? I believe these steps are especially critical to the success of entrepreneurs who are rolling out new businesses today. Market and customer positioning.

Customer 104

Customer Custom Social Media Competition 104

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 6, 2016

But in my experience as a startup advisor, too many entrepreneurs get stuck there, and always find excuses for not really exploring mergers, acquisitions, partnerships, and alliance alternatives. For example, at any given moment in your business, you may be limited by development, marketing, or sales.

Startup 56

Startup Outsource Development Organization Outsource 56

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 9, 2016

Technical entrepreneurs love to compare the number of features in their product to competitors, and they love to keep adding features -- just because they can. Even worse, this “feature creep” often makes the final product late to market, sluggish and more expensive than competition. Define and enforce role and decision authorities.

Product 61

Product Competition Customer Custom 61

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. With new disciples come the new pitfalls listed above, which can undo all the initial market acceptance.

Startup 57

Startup Training Entrepreneur Customer 57

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2016

What every entrepreneur is asking me these days, is “How do I get to be a unicorn?” Yet there are a common set of driving factors that every entrepreneur should know, including the following: Extraordinary marketplace traction. Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 09/29/2016. These are popularly called “unicorns.”

Company 100

Company Companies Startup Statistics 100

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 25, 2016

In our industry we applaud the efforts for entrepreneurs to have tried and we know that today’s failure can bring the experience for tomorrow’s success. Market Size. It’s ok to target a small market and you can probably build a niche business that is extremely valuable to you as an individual.

Startup 150

Startup Marketing Study SEO 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 25, 2016

On the other hand, if you are a new entrepreneur, a well-written and complete business plan demonstrates that you understand the issues and have a real plan for execution. They know that showing market traction will attract big companies, like Apple or Google, who can easily overrun the best startup.

Funding 57

Funding Social Media Startup Patents 57

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 2, 2017

Anne Fulton: I've always been an organizational psychologist crossed with a serial entrepreneur. I can't help myself in being an entrepreneur. Anne Fulton: I'm actually a Kiwi, a New Zealander, and all of our product and marketing is done out of New Zealand. This is like my fifth business. versus New Zealand? READ MORE>>.

Help 100

Help Southern California Startup Technical Review 100

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2016

The total proceeds raised in Q2 2016 from IPOs diminished by three-quarters compared to Q2 2015. Concerns over valuations being reset to a new normal, and a soft exit market, are seen as key drivers. Market volatility usually hits public companies first. Executives shoulder new risks for insider trading and employment practices.

Company 55

Company Companies Acquisition Entrepreneur 55

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. Many entrepreneurs gave grown to prefer the relative quiet and isolation of their garage, and their ability to set their own schedule.

Social Network 59

Social Network Startup Demand Entrepreneur 59

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 16, 2016

Most new entrepreneurs have great ideas, and many are highly skilled in building their solutions. Full autonomy to go above and beyond in sales and customer-service roles will increase team engagement as well as customer satisfaction. Entrepreneurs and team members who genuinely care for each other relish their engagement with others.

Software Review 57

Software Review Satisfaction Startup Training 57

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 22, 2016

Almost every entrepreneur looking for outside investors has heard the annoying rejection, “You are just too early – come back when you have more traction.” Use experiments to test every element of your business model – cost, price, marketing, sales channel, customer acquisition cost, lead conversion rate, and lifetime value.

Metrics 57

Metrics Funding Startup Customer 57

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 18, 2016

As an entrepreneur looking for professional investors, one of the quickest ways to lose credibility and get rejected is to start with a ridiculously high pre-money valuation. It’s like trying to sell a home still being built at next year’s dream market price. Get premium for billion-dollar markets with double-digit growth rates.

Startup 71

Startup Patents Invest Blogging 71

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 14, 2017

I will summarize here some of the key business domains with large opportunities, based on reports by Data Flair , Gartner , and other sources : Targeted marketing. By transforming a single shopper's path into data points, companies can see how you move through a store, and how that tracks with sales. Big data’ can mean big profits.

IBM 75

IBM IBM Social Media Commerce 75

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 2, 2017

People who are good at solving problems for other people make great entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs are often too passionate and impatient. For example, what looks like a sales revenue problem may actually be a new competitor offering, a marketing decline, or a lag in receivables. That’s what a business gets paid to do.

Metrics 58

Metrics Entrepreneur Examples Coach 58

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 6, 2014

zettabytes by the year 2016. There is still infinite room for new startup sales modes and models. As an entrepreneur, what steps can you take to help your business not only survive the data hurricane, but to thrive under these new and challenging conditions? Look beyond today’s requirements for entire new market opportunities.

Startup 99

Startup Social Media Entertainment Metrics 99

Xconomy

NOVEMBER 13, 2016

View the Slideshow A little more than a year ago, amid a resurgence in San Diego’s software sector, Xconomy identified a baker’s dozen of local tech companies to watch in 2016. Tim Rueth, a UC San Diego entrepreneur in residence and member of the EvoNexus selection committee, also screened the list, and offered his perspective.

San Diego 40

San Diego Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Startup 40