Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 23, 2023

Every startup and every new business needs a unique selling proposition (USP) to get people’s attention these days, and make it stand out in the information overload we all see. I’m looking for the “hook” right up front, or I lose interest quickly, just like every customer and investor these days. Is the opportunity large and growing?

Startup 96

Startup Education Ideas Customer 96

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2020

List key competitors and alternatives, highlighting your sustainable competitive advantages, such as patents and trademarks. There are many good books and Internet articles describing each of these sections, so I won’t cover the details here. That means they invest first in a set of plans. Provide details on the business model.

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Startup Summary Product 124

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2015

An excellent example is the initiative by Elon Musk and Tesla Motors to give away all their patents, to infrastructure providers and even competitive car makers, without transactional agreements. Another new partnering model is the IBM Watson Group $1 billion investment to share cloud-based development and super-computing tools.

Startup 100

Startup IBM IBM Examples 100

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 17, 2013

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Cohen and Michael Rybarski, titled “ Start-Up Smarts.” Poor choice of funding sources. Marty Zwilling.

Software Review 106

Software Review Funding Startup Seed Funding 106

InfoChachkie

MARCH 1, 2012

Despite the book’s shortcomings, it contains a number of insightful lessons for budding entrepreneurs. Of the 100 business “lessons” articulated in the book, I highlight a few below that I feel are the most relevant and impactful for entrepreneurs. Some of the examples are patently obvious (e.g., (i) What’s Your B7?

Tips 259

Tips Startup Entrepreneur Product 259

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 2, 2022

I expect that should seem intuitive to all entrepreneurs, but every investor I know has many stories about startup funding requests with major business model elements missing. A target market is the group of customers that the startup plans to attract through marketing and sales their product or service. Target market. Sales/Marketing.

Sales 102

Sales Customer Custom Outsource 102

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 18, 2022

They also look for entrepreneurs they know from past experience and warm introductions, or for evidence that you have previously built a successful startup, and sold your last one for maybe $800 million. Every pitch should start with a concise statement of the problem and your innovative solution.

Technical Review 109

Technical Review Startup Statistics Social Media 109

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. Registered patents and other intellectual property. Many key insights to success in any business can’t be learned from books or the Internet.

Entrepreneur 111

Entrepreneur Social Media Patents Mentor 111

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2015

As a startup investor in this age of the entrepreneur, I see many more startups, but innovation is still hard to find. Startups which display real innovation, such as alternative energy sources and new medical treatments, are still rare. An entrepreneur looking for a sure thing will never innovate. New product process.

Entrepreneur 101

Entrepreneur Startup Coach Metrics 101

Berkonomics

AUGUST 10, 2017

Fixed overhead for salaries, rent, equipment leases and more make up the majority of the “burn rate” (monthly expenses) for most companies. And we were able to secure that investment along with a partner from that firm joining our board. There is a relationship between time and money that is more complex than most managers think.

Venture Capital 243

Venture Capital Product Resource Marketing 243

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 27, 2014

It wasn’t so many years ago that starting a new e-commerce business on the Internet was a complex custom development project, usually costing a million dollars or more. Almost anyone can start a company today on a shoestring budget, following these cost-cutting recommendations: Establish a solid legal structure for your business.

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media Commerce 104

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 30, 2012

All too many startups are founded simply on the basis of a new and exciting technology invented by an industrious technologist. The right approach is to start by solving a problem causing real pain to a large number of customers willing to pay real money for a solution. They emphasize that before the “What” should come the “Why?”

Startup 99

Startup Competition IP Patents 99

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 8, 2014

” I hear it when I visit LPs (the people who invest in VCs) all across the country, “Yeah, I haven’t been out there for a few years but I keep hearing that something is going on there.” Given how efficient markets are when a large market like LA starts to blossom it attracts capital pretty quickly.

Entrepreneur 376

Entrepreneur Snapchat Startup Google 376

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 16, 2016

Even if you have booked an hour with a VC, you should plan to talk only for the first fifteen minutes. The biggest complaint I hear from investors is that startup founders often talk way too long, and neglect to cover the most relevant points. If you start by pitching your extended life story, that’s the wrong point.

Startup 64

Startup Slides Technical Review Research 64

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 9, 2010

All too many startups are founded simply on the basis of a new and exciting technology invented by an industrious technologist. The right approach is to start by solving a problem causing real pain to a large number of customers willing to pay real money for a solution. They emphasize that before the “What” should come the “Why?”

Startup 92

Startup Competition IP Patents 92

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2010

Yesterday I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Cohen and Michael Rybarski, titled “ Start-Up Smarts.” Poor choice of funding sources. Use them and win.

Software Review 95

Software Review Startup Seed Funding Funding 95

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 21, 2020

They also look for entrepreneurs they know from past experience and warm introductions, or for evidence that you have previously built a successful startup, and sold your last one for maybe $800 million. Every pitch should start with a concise statement of the problem and your innovative solution.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Statistics Startup Social Media 124

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. Registered patents and other intellectual property. Many key insights to success in any business can’t be learned from books or the Internet.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Social Media Patents Mentor 126

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2017

Don’t believe that Silicon Valley myth that all you have to do is sketch your idea on the back of a napkin, and investors will line up to give you money. Let me be quick to say that a plan doesn’t have be a book, and probably should start as a “pitch deck” of maybe a dozen slides which cover all the right bases.

Startup 65

Startup Writing Patents Competition 65

SoCal Delicious

SEPTEMBER 13, 2012

The Startup UCLA Accelerator Is About Entrepreneurship Not Investment Returns. Next → Later today, the Startup UCLA accelerator will have its inaugural demo day. Most have been involved in some capacity along the way with Startup UCLA, and all will be represented during the demo day. Post navigation. ← Previous.

UCLA 47

UCLA Invest Startup Class 47

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 14, 2014

This raises a big red flag with potential investors, who conclude that no competitors means no market, or you haven’t looked, and the new startup is likely not investable. First to market, for example, is not normally a sustainable advantage for startups. Startup team with experience and connections is this domain.

Competition 93

Competition Startup Patents Slides 93

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 3, 2023

List key competitors and alternatives, highlighting your sustainable competitive advantages, such as patents and trademarks. There are many good books and Internet articles describing each of these sections, so I won’t cover the details here. That means they invest first in a set of plans. Provide details on the business model.

Product 112

Product Summary Activity Entrepreneur 112

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 13, 2016

A friend recently asked me to give his startup-minded daughter some advice to help her vet undergraduate entrepreneurial programs. I have also interacted with a number of excellent startup programs, most notably those Cal Poly’s Center For Innovation And Entrepreneurship and SDSU’s Lavin Entrepreneurship Center.

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Technical Review Class Patents 100

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

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2021

I like the summary of the competitive reality in a new book, “ Rethinking Competitive Advantage: New Rules for the Digital Age ,” by Ram Charan, who relates a wealth of current experience from global clients: Customers expect a personalized experience. Thus it’s more important than ever that you keep up with the latest trends and rules.

Competition 142

Competition Software Review Social Media Customer 142

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 25, 2018

An excellent example is the initiative by Elon Musk and Tesla Motors a few years ago to give away their battery patents, to infrastructure and competitive car providers, without transactional agreements. Another partnering model example is the IBM Watson Group $1 billion investment to share cloud-based development and super-computing tools.

Competition 60

Competition IBM IBM Startup 60

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2014

An excellent example is the initiative by Elon Musk and Tesla Motors to give away all their patents, to infrastructure providers and even competitive car makers, without transactional agreements. Another new partnering model is the IBM Watson Group $1 billion investment to share cloud-based development and super-computing tools.

IBM 100

IBM IBM Startup Examples 100

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2017

Based on my own experience as a startup investor, and feedback from like-minded friends, we all get pitches for at least ten startup ideas for every one new business plan. Amazon offers a multitude of books with free ideas, such as “ Small Business Ideas ,” and “ Business Ideas: 100 Starting Points to Make Money.”

Ideas 74

Ideas Social Media Startup Customer 74

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 10, 2012

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Cohen and Michael Rybarski, titled “ Start-Up Smarts.” Poor choice of funding sources.

Seed Funding 100

Seed Funding Software Review Entrepreneur Funding 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2021

As an example of a good resource, I enjoyed the classic book, “ Idea To Invention ,” by Patricia Nolan-Brown, that does a great job on the key steps. Here is my interpretation of her realistic process for deciding and then actually taking your inspiration from an invention idea to a sustainable business: It all starts in your head (think it).

Ideas 136

Ideas Entrepreneur Mentor Resource 136

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 3, 2011

Their primary intended reader is a “first-time entrepreneur”, but clearly other stakeholders within the startup universe can also benefit from the book’s hands-on advice. Examples – The book is filled with text excerpted from actual funding documents, rather than the generic templates usually found in academic textbooks.

Venture Capital 205

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Writing Guide 205

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2011

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Cohen and Michael Rybarski, titled “ Start-Up Smarts.” Poor choice of funding sources.

Software Review 98

Software Review Funding Seed Funding Startup 98

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 8, 2016

List key competitors and alternatives, highlighting your sustainable competitive advantages, such as patents and trademarks. There are many good books and Internet articles describing each of these sections, so I won’t cover the details here. That means they invest first in a set of plans. Provide details on the business model.

Product 55

Product Startup Summary Entrepreneur 55

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 8, 2015

They also look for entrepreneurs they know from past experience and warm introductions, or for evidence that you have previously built a successful startup, and sold your last one for maybe $800 million. Every pitch should start with a concise statement of the problem and your innovative solution.

Technical Review 109

Technical Review Entrepreneur Startup Statistics 109

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 25, 2017

Every startup and every new business needs a unique selling proposition (USP) to get people’s attention these days, and make it stand out in the information overload we all see. I’m looking for the “hook” right up front, or I lose interest quickly, just like every customer and investor these days. Is the opportunity large and growing?

Startup 58

Startup Education Ideas Customer 58

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 6, 2014

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. Registered patents and other intellectual property. Many key insights to success in any business can’t be learned from books or the Internet.

Entrepreneur 107

Entrepreneur Angel Social Media Patents 107

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 22, 2010

A couple of weeks ago I was privileged to meet Lon Safko, probably most recognized as the author of his best-selling book " The Social Media Bible.” Lon is the founder of 14 companies, 19 inventions, and he holds three patents. Marty: Welcome to Startup Professionals interviews. Tell us what you do these days. That's mine.

Entrepreneur 83

Entrepreneur Social Media Startup Patents 83