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Retro: My Favorite Blog Post on Raising VC

Both Sides of the Table

On December 2nd, 2006 I wrote the blog post published later in this post when I was CEO of startup Koral about my experiences in pitching VCs. After my company was acquired by Salesforce.com I was asked to stop blogging and they took over my blog as an asset in the sale of the company. My blog was wiped out.

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8 Key Startup Drivers Bring Pleasure As Well As Sweat

Startup Professionals Musings

Aspiring entrepreneurs ask me why their great idea hasn’t sold; they talk about it endlessly, and they expect others to do the development, finance, and marketing work for them. It can also be very inspiring, as you watch your dream morph into reality, or as you feel each little element of success: Watch your team develop new skills.

Startup 160
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Bio Roundup: Jazz Drug OK’d, Gilead’s Bet, Moderna Patent Decision & More

Xconomy

Both drugs are anti-cancer molecules in mid-stage development that have been designed to hit known cancer targets. But it offered few specifics about how it would achieve those goals. This week, drug licensing deals it made with two publicly traded companies spurred it to say more. But not much. They’re intended to address the No.

Patents 77
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7 Incentives For Testing Your Startup Marketing Early

Startup Professionals Musings

I’m not suggesting that a startup should ever disclose patent details to others before filing, but I can’t imagine why a startup would not seek visibility and feedback for their idea and solution while they could still make changes with minimal cost. Evaluate customer response prior to development.

Marketing 105
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5 Keys To A Viable Spending Rate And Cash Management

Startup Professionals Musings

Hire a professional marketing and public relations agency once you have a good revenue stream but you don’t need them to start a free blog, establish Facebook and Twitter accounts with initial content and complete the basics of search engine optimization. Tackling most of the support tasks yourself. Use social media for early marketing.

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7 Reasons To Avoid Stealth Mode For Your New Venture

Startup Professionals Musings

I’m not suggesting that a startup should ever disclose patent details to others before filing, but I can’t imagine why a startup would not seek visibility and feedback for their idea and solution while they could still make changes with minimal cost. Evaluate customer response prior to development.

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10 Key Business Founder Checks Needed Before The Plan

Startup Professionals Musings

You may dream of developing a new silicon chip technology, but a bit of research should tell you that most disruptive solutions take billions in investment, and more time than you can afford for acceptance. You need intellectual property , such as a patent, trade secret, or process expertise that will be a barrier that you can defend.