Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 18, 2022

How an entrepreneur answers this question speaks volumes about their knowledge of business realities, customers, confidence, and their ability to handle investor funding. They are also seeking to find out how you handle one of the many tough questions that a new founder will get in today’s market. Don’t bash the competition.

Competition 133

Competition Patents Resource Invest 133

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 12, 2023

Every entrepreneur I know has their favorite excuse for a previous failure – an investor backed out, the economy took a downturn, or a supplier delivered bad quality. In that spirit, I offer my perspective on ten common startup failure sources that rarely get admitted by entrepreneurs: Choose to skip the written business plan.

Startup 124

Startup Writing Entrepreneur Ideas 124

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2010

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. The reality is that angel investors are humans, and personal traits often make or break the relationship, even before the investment is considered. Listens before answering questions.

Entrepreneur 96

Entrepreneur Angel Technical Review Course 96

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2021

In their passion and excitement about a new product or service, entrepreneurs tend to continually narrow the scope of potential competitors, and often claim to have no direct competitors. First to market, for example, is not normally a sustainable advantage for startups. Thought leadership position in your market and customer set.

Competition 166

Competition Funding Startup Patents 166

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2022

As a startup mentor, I’m always amazed that some entrepreneurs seem to be an immediate hit with investors, while others struggle to get any attention at all. Finally I realized that venture capital and angel investors are actually humans, despite some views to the contrary. Registered patents and other intellectual property.

Entrepreneur 111

Entrepreneur Social Media Patents Mentor 111

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2014

How an entrepreneur answers this question speaks volumes about their knowledge of business realities, customers, confidence, and their ability to handle investor funding. They are also seeking to find out how you handle one of the many tough questions that a new founder will get in today’s market. Don’t bash the competition.

Entrepreneur 110

Entrepreneur Competition Patents Resource 110

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 17, 2020

Every entrepreneur I know has their favorite excuse for a previous failure – an investor backed out, the economy took a downturn, or a supplier delivered bad quality. In that spirit, I offer my perspective on ten common startup failure sources that rarely get admitted by entrepreneurs: Choose to skip the written business plan.

Startup 174

Startup Writing Entrepreneur Ideas 174

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 12, 2022

In my experience as an angel investor to startups, goodwill disagreements are perhaps the most common reason that you will fail to close interested investors as an entrepreneur. If you are the entrepreneur or owner, every potential investor takes a hard look at you. Brand recognition and market influencer support.

Technical Review 147

Technical Review Social Media Entrepreneur Startup 147

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 13, 2020

As a startup mentor, I’m always amazed that some entrepreneurs seem to be an immediate hit with investors, while others struggle to get any attention at all. Finally I realized that venture capital and angel investors are actually humans, despite some views to the contrary. Registered patents and other intellectual property.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Social Media Patents Mentor 126

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 14, 2019

How an entrepreneur answers this question speaks volumes about their knowledge of business realities, customers, confidence, and their ability to handle investor funding. They are also seeking to find out how you handle one of the many tough questions that a new founder will get in today’s market. Don’t bash the competition.

Competition 120

Competition Patents Resource Invest 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2014

Desperate entrepreneurs lose their leverage and die young. Of course, their answer is that the second intends to get to market faster, but every engine has limits regardless the fuel applied. The best entrepreneurs manage cashflow ruthlessly and never delegate decisions about spending money. Use social media for early marketing.

Entrepreneur 105

Entrepreneur Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media 105

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 18, 2012

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. The reality is that angel investors are humans, and personal traits often make or break the relationship, even before the investment is considered. Listens before answering questions.

Entrepreneur 117

Entrepreneur Technical Review Course Patents 117

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 14, 2023

Desperate entrepreneurs lose their leverage and die young. Of course, their answer is that the second intends to get to market faster, but every engine has limits regardless the fuel applied. The best entrepreneurs manage cash flow ruthlessly and never delegate decisions about spending money.

Search Engine Optimization 103

Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media Equity 103

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2016

Angel investors are still the lifeblood of early-stage startups, despite the surge of activity in crowdfunding and an increasing early interest from venture capitalists. According to the Angel Capital Association , at least 300,000 people have made angel investments in the last two years, totaling $24 billion in the U.S.

Angel 65

Angel Startup Technical Review Social Media 65

SoCal Delicious

MAY 6, 2012

where entrepreneurs share their stories. 63 Los Angeles Entrepreneurs To Be Proud Of By mario on May 2, 2012 in Features , grid. Free Corporations For First-Time Entrepreneurs. Right now they’re setting up 500 free corporations for first time entrepreneurs. Our Best Interviews Via Email: Monthly. Idea Mensch.

Los Angeles 78

Los Angeles Entrepreneur Angel Fractional CTO 78

socalTECH

AUGUST 29, 2013

A new, Los Angeles area startup, JumpStartFund (www.jumpstartfund.com) recently launched, offering up a combination of crowdfunding and crowd-advice for entrepreneurial ideas. It is one of the older incubators in Los Angeles, even though not a lot of people know about it. How do entrepreneurs get involved?

Ideas 178

Ideas Patents Funding Startup 178

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 24, 2012

Every new startup I know dreams of being funded early by one of the 318,000 active Angel investors in the USA alone. Most of these investors are members of Angel groups that have a rigorous filtering and screening process, to select the top 3% and most fundable proposals. File a patent and trademarks to show real intellectual property.

Angel 104

Angel Screening Summary Startup 104

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2013

The average length of a funding pitch to Angel investors is ten minutes. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. Skip the generic marketing phrases like more user friendly, massive opportunity, and paradigm shifting. Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers.

Angel 102

Angel Funding Slides Technical Review 102

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 24, 2015

Most entrepreneurs I meet are reluctant to disclose anything about their idea to investors before getting a signed confidential disclosure agreement (CDA). Yet I can assure you that people who are paranoid, or want to avoid all risks, won’t be happy as entrepreneurs, so it’s all about balancing the risk-reward scale.

Ideas 106

Ideas Technical Review Patents Entrepreneur 106

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2020

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. Smart entrepreneurs pre-disclose any possible due diligence issues, with full and open explanations and no excuses.

Funding 123

Funding Startup Entrepreneur Invest 123

socalTECH

AUGUST 12, 2019

The Vinetta Project (www.vinettaproject.com), a group which is focused on helping to accelerate the growth of female-led startups, announced a few weeks ago that it is working with P&G Ventures, the internal "startup studio" of Procter and Gamble on an effort to help female-led companies in Los Angeles. What is The Vinetta Project?

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Metrics Los Angeles Help 124

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2011

Every new startup I know dreams of being funded by an angel investor. Over the past 10 years, I have had the opportunity to see how the process works, several times from the startup side, and more recently from the angel perspective (as a member of an angel group selection committee). Get your Internet domain name and website.

Invest 99

Invest Angel Technical Review Summary 99

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2020

Desperate entrepreneurs lose their leverage and die young. Of course, their answer is that the second intends to get to market faster, but every engine has limits regardless the fuel applied. The best entrepreneurs manage cash flow ruthlessly and never delegate decisions about spending money.

Search Engine Optimization 124

Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media Equity 124

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2013

I hear a lot of entrepreneurs contemplating their great “idea” for several years with little discernable progress, and looking for money to start. For a business, you must define the absolute minimum features you need to satisfy the customer problem, and test it in the market. milestones entrepreneur startup funding business'

Funding 112

Funding Entrepreneur Startup CTO Hire 112

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 21, 2023

The average length of a funding pitch to angel investors is ten minutes. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. Skip the generic marketing phrases like more user friendly, massive opportunity, and paradigm shifting. Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers.

Slides 147

Slides Funding Technical Review Startup 147

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 4, 2012

Most sophisticated investors ignore them, focusing their attention on an entrepreneur's pitch and presentation materials, financial forecast and executive summary. As noted in Entrepreneurs Shouldn't Pitch Their Ideas To Venture Capitalists , most sophisticated investors place their bets on people rather than opportunities.

Venture Capital 211

Venture Capital Summary Technical Review Template 211

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 29, 2017

As an advisor to entrepreneurs, I often have to deal with people who are convinced that they must get me to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) before they begin talks about their new venture. Get an NDA before detailed patent disclosures. It pays to talk to competitors about the business, but not your business.

Technical Review 61

Technical Review Patents Ideas Social Media 61

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 2, 2015

How an entrepreneur answers this question speaks volumes about their knowledge of business realities, customers, confidence, and their ability to handle investor funding. They are also seeking to find out how you handle one of the many tough questions that a new founder will get in today’s market. Don’t bash the competition.

Startup 118

Startup Competition Patents Resource 118

socalTECH

AUGUST 18, 2017

Last week, Pasadena-based Ocular Data Systems (www.oculardatasystems.com) announced a funding round from the Pasadena Angels, for its camera-based systems used by law enforcement to capture evidence in drunk or drugged driving cases. A member of the Pasadena Angels, Don Hall, who is the company's chairman, funded the start of the company.

Pasadena Angels 100

Pasadena Angels Pasadena Technical Review Southern California 100

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 23, 2010

Every new startup I know dreams of being funded by an angel investor. Over the past 10 years, I have had the opportunity to see how the process works, several times from the startup side, and more recently from the angel perspective (as a member of an angel group selection committee). Get your Internet domain name and website.

Angel 89

Angel Funding Technical Review Startup 89

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2015

As a model, think high-quality marketing collateral, with text and graphics in columns and sidebars, but focused on the value of your business, rather than selling your product. Skip the fuzzy marketing terms, such as "easier to use," "lower cost" and "disruptive technology."

Summary 101

Summary Patents Technical Review Competition 101

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 15, 2011

Establishing the legal structure for your business, registering trademarks, filing copyrights and patents, and drafting partnership agreements used to require extensive attorney fees and ongoing consultation. Do basic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Marketing (SEM) yourself. Sales and marketing costs. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 94

Entrepreneur Startup Search Engine Optimization SEM 94

Tech Zulu Event

AUGUST 28, 2013

Helping solicit new business ideas and patents from individuals, federal research labs, universities and other R&D organizations countrywide. Members submit ideas and patents, the JumpStartFund community members and the JumpStartFund team vets them. Those with market potential are selected and moved into a “work in progress” state.

El Segundo 76

El Segundo Social Network Startup Patents 76

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2017

Unless you are a serial entrepreneur with a string of successes behind you, you need a business plan to convince investors that you can build a business out of the dream that has been driving your passion to change the world. For example, “I just patented a new cell-phone technology that will double battery life for half the cost.

Startup 65

Startup Writing Patents Competition 65

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2013

Entrepreneurs often get the advice from their lawyers and friends to always get a Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA or CDA) signed before disclosing anything about their new venture. You won’t last long as an entrepreneur in this category, since a startup is all about taking risks. Prior to patent application. Who is right?

Ideas 92

Ideas Demand Patents Entrepreneur 92

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 1, 2015

Every entrepreneur I know has their favorite excuse for a previous failure – an investor backed out, the economy took a downturn, or a supplier delivered bad quality. In that spirit, I offer my perspective on ten common startup failure sources that rarely get admitted by entrepreneurs: Choose to skip the written business plan.

Startup 105

Startup Entrepreneur Writing Ideas 105

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2015

It’s a new age for aspiring entrepreneurs, where anyone with a dream or a hobby should be turning it into a business. Too many entrepreneurs still think plans are for investors, and investors are required to build a startup. Trademarks, copyrights and even patents can be completed online by anyone through the U.S.

Startup 108

Startup Search Engine Optimization Social Media Outsource Development 108