Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2016

They thought it was like MySpace and why did I need a MySpace page? In 2008 I started VC blogging. I had blogged when I was an entrepreneur. In 2015 I opened up my Facebook page to the public. Here’s the thing: If you never try new product and new networks you’ll never learn anything. I already have Facebook.”.

Snapchat 150

Snapchat Product Startup AMA 150

socalTECH

OCTOBER 19, 2011

Fullerton-based Hipgeo , the developers of iPhone apps for tracking and logging your travels, said today that it has launched a new version of its product which is specifically aimed at travelers.

eHarmony 154

eHarmony Yahoo San Diego Blogging 154

InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 22, 2011

I began publishing my blog in 2008. I was hesitant to use my own name, as I did not want my blog to be perceived as a self-promotional vanity project. In addition, my role as Partner at Rincon Venture Partners provided me with a business reason to invest additional time and effort into my humble blog. All Time Rank.

Newsletter 205

Newsletter Blogging Santa Barbara Content 205

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

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

APRIL 14, 2014

Sponsored by VISA Business If you have a unique product or service, and you are not selling it around the world on the Internet, now is the time to start. Anyone can be an entrepreneur today, without a huge investment, bank loans, lawyers, venture capitalists, or Angels. The cost of entry has never been lower.

Startup 100

Startup Commerce Sites Blogging 100

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 5, 2014

When I think about the people in our generation I most respect: Elon Musk, Larry Page, Richard Branson – they are optimists to a fault. It was really gratifying to read Larry Page’s interview in the FT this past week. But “what is wrong with tech investing today?” When we ship product.

Technical Review 417

Technical Review Startup Software Review Course 417

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 18, 2011

Anyone can be an entrepreneur today, without a huge investment, bank loans, venture capitalists, or Angels. Here are the key steps for a personal home-based business website selling a few products (as an alternative to Ebay): Go online to reserve a website domain name. Publish the site and now you are in business.

Commerce 99

Commerce Startup Sites Tool 99

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 21, 2010

So it’s really hard to draw too many conclusions about whether the investment really makes sense because often you learn stuff in the fund raising about the future strategy of the company that might make you much more excited than somebody on the outside might be. Finally, a lot of people asking me about typos on my blog.

Venture Capital 265

Venture Capital Capital Email Blogging 265

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 10, 2013

Anyone can be an entrepreneur today, without a huge investment, bank loans, venture capitalists, or Angels. Here are the key steps for a personal home-based business website selling a few products (as an alternative to Ebay): Go online to reserve a website domain name. Publish the site and now you are in business.

Sites 78

Sites Commerce Startup Tool 78

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

I suggest you use social media, blogging, crowdfunding, or documented research to quantify a real demand from people who can afford it, and don’t have a better alternative already out there. Make the product or service come alive. As a result, smart investors will tell you they invest in the jockey, not the horse (people, not ideas).

Ideas 94

Ideas Slides Technical Review Patents 94

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 23, 2013

Probably every one of you who has a business and a website have been approached through email or personal contact, and asked to spend money on paid search results (appear on the first page of search results, right hand column, despite low SEO rank). This is NOT the same as Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Cost per click (CPC).

Paid Search 90

Paid Search PPC Organization SEO 90

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 17, 2009

Ability to Pivot – I don’t like to invest in people that I’ve never met before who come through my office wanting to have a term sheet within 30 days. VCs often tell entrepreneurs that they want to see “traction&# before they’re ready to invest. I then covered Street Smarts. Geni.com beget Yammer.

Entrepreneur 291

Entrepreneur Startup Google Yammer 291

InfoChachkie

JUNE 3, 2013

Upon graduation from Wharton, John and Kyle launched a startup based upon a simple, pedestrian product: a computer mouse shaped like the head of a golf driver. Putting their expensive educations to good use, they aptly named their novelty product a "MouseDriver". It was really no longer than a page um. blogging, in a sense.

Newsletter 233

Newsletter Startup Entrepreneur Writing 233

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2014

Investors tell me that they invest in people more than the idea. It’s especially important to highlight your uniqueness in some easy to remember way, so people will think of you and what you do, in case they need your product or service. Visit [link] to take a look at the reinvented Facebook Page: Well Sourced by Visa Business.

Startup 98

Startup Tips Customer Custom 98

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 27, 2011

By definition, you read blogs. If you care about accessing customers, reaching an audience, communicating your vision, influencing people in your industry, marketing your services or just plain engaging in a dialog with others in your industry a blog is a great way to achieve this. People often ask me why I started blogging.

Blogging 373

Blogging Startup Writing Venture Capital 373

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 10, 2012

What websites one visits, what pictures they look at, whose FB page they checking out – are not fair game in a world where you care about trust. I read this story on Ivan Kirigin’s blog that shows that Quora was posting which articles you’re reading to other people without your consent. Which brings me to Quora.

Blogging 328

Blogging Content Press Startup 328

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 15, 2017

Yesterday I wrote a blog post about what the role of a board actually is. I can’t change who your board members are so let me offer some thoughts on how to make your interactions with your board more productive.

Tips 212

Tips Slides Startup Technical Review 212

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

Anyone can be an entrepreneur today, without a huge investment, bank loans, venture capitalists, or angels. Here are the key steps for a personal home-based business website selling a few products (as an alternative to Ebay): Go online to reserve a website domain name. Publish the site and now you are in business.

Commerce 88

Commerce Startup Sites Tool 88

InfoChachkie

APRIL 25, 2011

Although many are entertaining, most fail to provide entrepreneurs with a sufficient return on their time investment. If you are a leader at a startup and you are reading a business book, you are not closing customers, raising capital, improving your product, or spending time with your loved ones. I was not disapointed.

Technical Review 279

Technical Review Blogging Class Entrepreneur 279

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 5, 2010

This blog post originally appeared in serialized form here on TechCrunch. If you came here via a direct link you might want to check out the more detailed full version on my blog, which is here. By the mid-nineties we had the World Wide Web, which gave us a standard way to publish web pages using HTML. Modern Social Networking.

Social Network 297

Social Network Networking Web 2.0 Web 297

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. When I first started blogging Digg was still at its peak. But it wasn’t to be.

Marketing 379

Marketing Startup SEM SEO 379

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 30, 2011

In the IAB study that revealed the graph above, brand advertisers indicated that their number one objective in online advertising was “creating awareness&# followed by “creating purchase intent&# or “likelihood to recommend&# the product. We are investing heavily in these changes. It has for decades. In Image Ads.

Advertising 352

Advertising Media Social Media Screening 352

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 4, 2011

I was recently talking with a startup company who wanted me to try their product. I’m a big believer in product stability & performance before adding too many features. If you have multiple versions of your product, how many are web vs. mobile? They have a mobile app and I felt like it crashed too much for my liking.

Metrics 346

Metrics Startup SEO Customer 346

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2010

Their computers then cleverly merge your ads with search results only when users search words imply an interest in your products. If you sell widgets, and a user is searching for widgets, your ad will appear on the same page as the search results for widgets. This is NOT the same as Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Marty Zwilling.

SEM 90

SEM Marketing Startup Search Engine Optimization 90

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 5, 2014

Yet if your service is consulting, for example, real travel is required to deliver the product. Most young businesses with a new product plan to attend as many as ten shows or conferences per year across the country or around the world. Visit [link] to take a look at the reinvented Facebook Page: Well Sourced by Visa Business.

Startup 100

Startup Tips Mentor Conference 100

InfoChachkie

JUNE 3, 2013

Upon graduation from Wharton, John and Kyle launched a startup based upon a simple, pedestrian product: a computer mouse shaped like the head of a golf driver. Putting their expensive educations to good use, they aptly named their novelty product a "MouseDriver". It was really no longer than a page um. blogging, in a sense.

Newsletter 133

Newsletter Startup Entrepreneur Writing 133

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 18, 2010

Venture Capital funds: the different between “closed funds&# (which typically have a 10-year time horizon) and “evergreen funds&# which re-invest profits back into the fund. An investment doesn’t guarantee your product will suddenly be on the investor’s price sheet. DST invested $180mm last fall.

Venture Capital 225

Venture Capital Google Web Sites 225

socalTECH

OCTOBER 14, 2011

Well, Los Angeles based Near Networks (www.nearnetworks.com) is looking to both reach customers online, and avoid the tacky, lousy production of typical small business ads, with a new service. Sam Rogoway: Near Networks is a national production studio that creates online videos for local businesses across the country.

Networking 150

Networking Search Engine Optimization Product Startup 150

Xconomy

AUGUST 16, 2016

A recent Wall Street Journal article that raised the possibility of Biogen as the target of another huge pharma buyout cited the lack of productivity as a major driver of M&A in the pharmaceutical industry. The authors made the point that, given the size of companies today, a single garden-variety blockbuster hardly moves the needle.

Product 40

Product Journal Venture Capital Demand 40

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 17, 2013

Entrepreneurs have no trouble focusing on how to build a product, and the good ones know how to find and nurture those first critical customers. This tells you whether your marketing and advertising investments are paying for themselves. Operating productivity. Size of gross margin. What you don’t measure probably won’t happen.

Metrics 100

Metrics Technical Review Sales Customer 100

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 21, 2011

When I first got into VC I decided I better have some investment themes. We now know that the medium has changed the news industry leading to blogs, real-time reporting, integration of text and video, two-way discussions, stories surfaced based on what your friends are reading, etc. They recommend up-sells and cross-sells of products.

Mobile 329

Mobile Advertising Media Marketing 329

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 18, 2013

Venture capital investments are returning to startups. The continuing rise in the price of fuel, combined with the ongoing evidence of global warming, has highlighted the need for alternative energy sources, and green products. Visit [link] to take a look at the reinvented Facebook Page: Well Sourced by Visa Business.

Startup 86

Startup Tips Venture Capital Demand 86

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 12, 2013

In the online world, you need a solid connection between your domain name and your product, brand, or business. Key measurements should always include return on investment, and visibility to the targeted audience. Visit [link] to take a look at the reinvented Facebook Page: Well Sourced by Visa Business.

Social Media 93

Social Media Content Startup Web 93

InfoChachkie

JULY 16, 2012

In addition, a number of advertisers have invested significant resources into creating libraries of video content which effectively communicate brand and product attributes but are incapable of eliciting a particular action, such as: clicking to a landing page, completing a lead form, or initiating a purchase. Share and Enjoy.

Custom 226

Custom Customer Entrepreneur Advertising 226

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 29, 2009

Turns out everybody likes to produce content and take part in the “conversation.&# Massive uptake of user-generated content including blogs (e.g. People rightly recognize that comments on blogs are just a form of a stream and thus the growth of open commenting platforms like Disqus and IntenseDebate. Then came blogs.

Ideas 286

Ideas Advertising Google Technical Review 286

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 14, 2015

I try to remind people that raising money is about building rapport and you can’t build rapport wading through 60 pages of charts or showing 45 product features. I’ve blogged for years. Many entrepreneurs pitching err on the side of too much information. You do it eyeball-to-eyeball in discussion.

Startup 150

Startup Venture Capital Course Marketing 150