Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 3, 2020

The critical success factors for a product business are well known, starting with selling every unit with a gross margin of 50 percent or more, building a patent and other intellectual property, and continuous product improvement. Low cost and low margin products can be winners, if the volume is high enough.

Startup 174

Startup Training Services Writing 174

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2010

I recently wrote a post about avoiding the “ Deferred Life Plan &# and some related thoughts about personal productivity that came from Tim Ferriss’s book, The Four Hour Workweek. I would love to say that I’m the productivity guru. Tim Ferriss gave this extra emphasis in his book.

Product 280

Product Startup Email Technical Review 280

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 26, 2013

One of the advantages of blogging, using social media, public speaking, etc as a VC is that you get a more nuanced view of these shifts by watching your own successes and failures. I will add to this as I write more in the coming weeks on the topic. Is Funding a Worthy Announcement? The short answer is yes, absolutely.

Startup 355

Startup Funding News Press 355

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 14, 2013

Creating awareness for your brand and products is one of the lifebloods of technology startups yet in a world where so many companies are being created it becomes difficult to rise above the noise. Ever notice how some companies tend to be in the press all the time and your big new product launch struggled for inches? I am a VC.

Marketing 389

Marketing Press Blogging Startup 389

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2014

Yesterday I wrote a post about The Silent Benefits of PR in which I pointed out that most young companies I encounter don’t fully grasp the benefits of PR because they are less measurable than product milestones or customer acquisition analyses (like CAC/LTV). It super charges a business that is closer to product delivery.

Press 319

Press Startup Writing Training 319

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 23, 2011

One of the most frequent questions entrepreneurs ask about when they raise a little bit of money or are getting close to launching their first product is whether they should hire a PR firm. And you need somebody who is committed to keeping up your presence in blogs, social media and other online forums. In a startup this is a mistake.

Startup 349

Startup Writing Press Blogging 349

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 15, 2010

Blogging has come a long way in the past few years, from a social release for narcissists, to today’s required vehicle for promoting your business and gaining valuable online exposure, ultimately bringing in more customers. Here are some tips I’ve gleaned from experience: Make your blog your website. Anchor blog in your domain name.

Blogging 48

Blogging Search Engine Optimization Startup Writing 48

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 4, 2021

Their computers then merge your ads with search results when users search words imply an interest in your products. It pays only if a customer clicks through AND takes a further action (conversion), such as buying a product or filling out a web form. Campaign setup and ad copy writing. Keyword research and budget forecasting.

PPC 154

PPC SEO Paid Search Search Engine Optimization 154

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 19, 2019

Everyone assumes their product or service is so great that “word-of-mouth” will carry the day for them. Even great products need great marketing “content” to fuel the ascent of their online message. If you want to connect with customers, put aside your writing formalities. Then write it down. Conversation inviting.

Customer 93

Customer Custom Marketing Tips 93

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 24, 2011

On this blog I’m often trying to combine lessons for entrepreneurs and market commentary. I have long wanted to write about FNAC (feature, not a company) because it’s part of my normal lexicon to push teams that present to me to think harder about where the economics in their industry is coming from. It lingered.

Email 270

Email Writing Blogging Competition 270

InfoChachkie

JULY 23, 2012

companies should… focus on building amazing products. If you have amazing products, the marketing of those products is trivial. If you have $hitty products, the marketing is impossible. Instead of focusing on marketing as an activity… integrate it into (your) products.”. Write Your Own Playbook.

Marketing 233

Marketing Blogging Startup Venture Capital 233

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 31, 2012

Jeff (also an HBS alum) co-teaches the LTV course with Professor Eisenmann about a student of theirs who had written a blog post about sales taking on some of my previous assertions. The idea that the course asks students to write public blog posts is a testament to its more modern teaching style.

Startup 319

Startup Sales Course Competition 319

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 27, 2011

By definition, you read blogs. But should you actually write one if you’re a startup, an industry figure (lawyer, banker) or VC? This is a post to help you figure out why you should write and what you should talk about. This is a post to help you figure out why you should write and what you should talk about.

Blogging 373

Blogging Startup Writing Venture Capital 373

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 2, 2018

The critical success factors for a product business are well known, starting with selling every unit with a gross margin of 50 percent or more, building a patent and other intellectual property, and continuous product improvement. Low cost and low margin products can be winners, if the volume is high enough.

Services 72

Services Startup Training Writing 72

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2014

If you’re a technology startup you need to excel at product, of course. The starting point of product IS marketing, which is what a lot of young entrepreneurs that never studied business don’t realize. But being best-in-class at online marketing is also a sine qua non to standout from your peer group.

Marketing 379

Marketing Startup SEM SEO 379

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 15, 2010

If you enjoy this blog I think you’ll enjoy watching the first 14 minutes of this video (just click on the image of me below). I give a sneak peek at a blog post I’m writing on the topic next week. I spoke about the need of the CEO, CTO and head of Products to be in the same location. Great exit. -

Venture Capital 210

Venture Capital Seed Funding Pricing Southern California 210

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2013

For much of 2013 I watched the press write articles about how the YouTube “MCNs” (multi-channel networks) were doomed and tried to square that with the data I was watching at the one I invested in, Maker Studios, who has had one hell of a year. I will talk about these strategies in my next blog post. ” Don’t.

Networking 366

Networking Media Content Customer 366

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 28, 2012

” Part of the beauty of blogging that in two sittings Fred was able to influence what was built over the next 12 months. I’ve wanted to write a blog post called “Mobile Second” for a long time to make this point more forcefully. I believe in integrated products. then mobile is awesome.

Web 334

Web Mobile Startup Software Review 334

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 27, 2014

The critical success factors for a product business are well known, starting with selling every unit with a gross margin of 50 percent or more, building a patent and other intellectual property, and continuous product improvement. Low cost and low margin products can be winners, if the volume is high enough.

Services 105

Services Startup Training Writing 105

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 14, 2017

Everyone assumes their product or service is so great that “word-of-mouth” will carry the day for them. Even great products need great marketing “content” to fuel the ascent of their online message. If you want to connect with customers, put aside your writing formalities. Then write it down. Conversation inviting.

Content 67

Content Marketing Newsletter Writing 67

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 26, 2014

Everyone assumes their product or service is so great that “word-of-mouth” will carry the day for them. Even great products need great marketing “content” to fuel the ascent of their online message. If you want to connect with customers, put aside your writing formalities. Then write it down. Conversation inviting.

Startup 103

Startup Content Newsletter Writing 103

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 17, 2016

The critical success factors for a product business are well known, starting with selling every unit with a gross margin of 50 percent or more, building a patent and other intellectual property, and continuous product improvement. Low cost and low margin products can be winners, if the volume is high enough.

Services 61

Services Startup Training Writing 61

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2013

Most entrepreneurs I know are too busy creating a compelling product to give proper focus to the four phases of building a people and media platform that Hyatt says are equally critical for long-term success: Platform creation prior to launch. Building your home base with personal and product traction. Their startups will get noticed.

Platform 105

Platform Entrepreneur Startup Social Media 105

Tech.Co

MAY 26, 2020

Jeff Bezos didn't get to be the world's richest man by writing a lot of checks, and one recent way to keep Amazon's profits healthy has been to cut its affiliate commissions scheme. Since April 21, Amazon has slashed its rates across a wide range of product categories, in some cases dropping as much as 70%. The impact? commission).

Technical Review 130

Technical Review Buzzfeed News Networking 130

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 12, 2011

Chris Dixon is one of my favorite people in tech and writes one of the few blogs I read religiously. He’s thoughtful about markets, investors, products and is always very well reasoned in his arguments. If you don’t read it and you care about tech & entrepreneurship, you should. West Coast”).

Technical Review 281

Technical Review Venture Capital Startup Artificial Inteligence 281

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 2, 2009

Twitter, by contrast, started as an open platform where people let anybody see what they were writing. People write their thoughts knowing that anybody else can see them. Are people giving you feature requests, complaining about your service or comparing you to the competition? So why is this important for businesses?

Social Network 235

Social Network Writing Tool Startup 235

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 1, 2012

Everyone assumes their product or service is so great that “word-of-mouth” will carry the day for them. Even great products need great marketing “content” to fuel the ascent of their online message. If you want to connect with customers, put aside your writing formalities. Then write it down. Conversation inviting.

Content 99

Content Startup Newsletter Writing 99

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2012

Most entrepreneurs I know are too busy creating a compelling product to give proper focus to the four phases of building a people and media platform that are equally critical for long-term success: Platform creation prior to launch. Building your home base with personal and product traction. Make your customers your platform.

Startup 104

Startup Social Media Platform Blogging 104

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 27, 2013

In this period (less than 2 years) he has brought on incredibly talented senior execs is sales, marketing, product management, client services, finance, vp engineering and more. So what are Rob’s secret hacks that he didn’t spill in his blog post? . He is very pleasant when he calls and writes. Rob does it.

Tips 365

Tips Email Venture Capital CTO Coach 365

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 25, 2010

I believe that it is part of the DNA of an entrepreneur – being so competitive that you’re practically sick when you lose. They’re competitive. I keep my competitors as friends and those that didn’t choose me or my product as friends, too. Write things down. I don’t want to lose next time.

Outsource Development 333

Outsource Development Software Review Technical Review News 333

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 18, 2010

By Mahesh Raj Mohan Writing a business plan can be a difficult process. Even if you know your product/service suite down cold, understand the strengths/weaknesses of the competition, and have built pro forma financials that are sane. you still have to write the plan for a particular audience. What does that mean?

Writing 97

Writing Summary Ideas Research 97

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 25, 2010

I believe that it is part of the DNA of an entrepreneur – being so competitive that you’re practically sick when you lose. They’re competitive. I keep my competitors as friends and those that didn’t choose me or my product as friends, too. Write things down. I don’t want to lose next time.

Outsource Development 328

Outsource Development Software Review Technical Review News 328

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 13, 2011

I wrote the summary notes in this blog post. I would argue that this mostly consists of consumer Internet companies (although not exclusively) and it is predominantly early-stage people who are product gurus and have a mildly technical bend to them. I’m a product geek more than a spreadsheet ninja.

Venture Capital 299

Venture Capital Slides Technical Advisors Startup 299

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 20, 2015

blog here ). With perfect information and too much competition you pay up or they walk right down the street and get it from somebody else.” And if you’re lucky and hit product/market fit straight out of the gate – awesome. Money when you find product / market fit is an extreme differentiator.

Funding 150

Funding Venture Capital Startup Marketing 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 25, 2011

Everyone assumes their product or service is so great that “word-of-mouth” will carry the day for them. Even great products need great marketing “content” to fuel the ascent of their online message. If you want to connect with customers, put aside your writing formalities. Then write it down. Conversation inviting.

Content 94

Content Startup Newsletter Writing 94

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2010

Since I answer this all the time anyway I thought it might make an interesting blog post. I get to do a deep dive on their business model, product roadmap and competitive positioning. I’ll write about that in a couple of weeks. Writing this bl0g – This blog is a huge creative outlet for me.

Venture Capital 312

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Entrepreneur 312

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

I was reading Danielle Morrill’s blog post today on whether one’s “ Startup Burn Rate is Normal. We’re going to start aggressively spend money on marketing our product. ” I highly recommend reading it. We want a strong balance sheet (um, ok. but that’s our firm’s money on your balance sheet.

Startup 383

Startup Company Companies .Net 383