Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 22, 2020

I saw a good summary of the most effective ways to source prospective investors in a classic book, “ The Art of Startup Fundraising ,” by Alejandro Cremades, who has been there and done that, both as an entrepreneur and an investor. Industry leaders are a prime source of leads to companies and individuals that may invest.

Funding 173

Funding Tips Startup Statistics 173

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2018

controlling your psychology ) you no doubt have heard me say that raising capital is a sales & marketing process. Some firms are trickier since they artificially call everybody “partner” but they’re not all “investment partners.” Find a portfolio company or two that they’ve invested in. It’s super easy to suss all this out.

Venture Capital 314

Venture Capital Technical Review Invest Slides 314

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 30, 2017

One of the most common complaints I hear from new business owners and startups is about the pain and difficulty raising capital. The “venture capital” model is the only option they know, where they feel they get no mercy, giving up equity and control. Document the investment types you are willing to consider.

Technical Review 88

Technical Review Equity Capital Entrepreneur 88

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2019

Just as I was getting the swing of things the world shifted beneath my feet and the stock market went into a free fall and venture capital all but shut down for nearly a year. The advantage is that in many of our best deals we now have $50+ million invested so we can really support entrepreneurs as their businesses scale.

Venture Capital 223

Venture Capital IP Startup Google 223

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. Find funders who seek long-term returns. These tolerate negative cash flows for growth.

Competition 142

Competition Software Review Social Media Customer 142

socalTECH

DECEMBER 1, 2008

In what looks to be a challenging funding climate for entrepreneurs, we thought it would be interesting to talk to one fund which is still making investments--Saban Ventures (www.saban.com)--a new, digital media focused venture capital fund located in Los Angeles. For those not familiar with Saban Capital, tell us about the fund?

Capital 100

Capital Southern California Media Venture Capital 100

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 26, 2015

Investors, on the other hand, look at the money figure, and even the equity, as the easy part. Here is a summary of the key terms to expect on the term sheet, or the contract between the founder and investor: Consideration given for the money invested. This is a loan with an option to convert to equity at a later date.

Demand 105

Demand Startup Equity Invest 105

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 3, 2013

Watch the 30-minute interview to hear why but summary notes below. Let me start by saying that Clayton is one of the most influential people on my thoughts about markets that led to both the concept behind my first startup and my main theses in investing. He spoke about ROCE (return on capital employed). Venture Capital.

Venture Capital 403

Venture Capital Education Offshore Outsource Development 403

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 12, 2011

I think you’ll really enjoy this video , but as always I have summary notes for those with less time. If you like the quick summary notes, please check out Adam’s blog on tech, entrepreneurship & VC as a thank you. Prior to starting FC, he was co-investing with David Frankel and Eric Paley as individuals.

Technical Review 281

Technical Review Venture Capital Startup Artificial Inteligence 281

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 12, 2015

Every investor in your startup, even friends and family, normally expects a share of your company (equity), which means your return for all your effort goes down quickly. This is at least double the time required for most equity investments, and may be a delay you can’t afford in keeping up with the market and your competitors.

Pricing 100

Pricing Equity Technical Review Research 100

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 9, 2015

A popular myth these days is that successful entrepreneurs must attract investors to get their businesses going, when the reality has been that more than 80 percent of new businesses are started and grown with no outside investment at all. The first question from most investors is the size of your own investment.

Startup 101

Startup Entrepreneur Equity Summary 101

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 12, 2010

It's big, well known & we've invested in all of these really cool companies]. There is no chance they’re going to invest and it’s not even a close match. Many of the growth equity firms have had outbound dialing programs for years. Do you have time for a half hour conversation over the next week or so?

Venture Capital 294

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Email Equity 294

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 19, 2011

Or read the quick, informative summary below the image! What better than to have capital from somebody who has actually done it in the trenches? Matt’s commitment to re-investing in tech startups is reminiscent to this great Fred Wilson post of “recycling capital. &#. Here’s a summary of our interview.

Acquisition 304

Acquisition Startup Customer Custom 304

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 9, 2011

By 2008 I had gotten more serious about championing companies through our investment process. And just when I thought I had the deal that was worthy of bringing to investment committee the world changed. Let’s review all of our existing investments. tl;dr summary. Eventually you have to invest.

Marketing 305

Marketing Venture Capital Funding Technical Review 305

socalTECH

JUNE 21, 2013

Instead of equity, the company is aimed at profiting profitable small businesses with business debt funding from investors, to help those businesses grow and get to the next level. Why did you decide to focus on debt, not equity? You can show them what your growth is like, give them a financial summary, and they can interact with you.

Startup 247

Startup Software Review Entrepreneur Equity 247

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2016

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. It takes more than one person, no matter how passionate, to grow an investible business. Prepare an executive summary and investor presentation.

Angel 65

Angel Startup Technical Review Social Media 65

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2010

Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Many people seem to use the social network advertising model for revenue, but forget it requires at least 100M users and $50M investment. Investors invest in people - not just ideas. Executive team.

Invest 74

Invest Tips Competition Metrics 74

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2018

Do your homework on opportunity, competitors, financial projections, funding required, and hook investors the first time you can with an executive summary and ten-slide pitch. Offer a realistic equity percentage to generate interest. They will be turned off by single-digit equity offers and loan requests with low return potential.

Startup 56

Startup Equity Funding Slides 56

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 16, 2015

There’s plenty of capital out there, but there’s also a lot of competition for startup funding. His best advice: take capital where you can get it. If you go this route, be careful to make the stakes clear: i.e., that they could lose their whole investment. Angels (invest their own money) and super angels. Vendor funding.

Startup 40

Startup Venture Capital Equity Funding 40

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2016

I saw a good summary of the most effective ways to source prospective investors in a new book, “ The Art of Startup Fundraising ,” by Alejandro Cremades, who has been there and done that, both as an entrepreneur and an investor. Industry leaders are a prime source of leads to companies and individuals that may invest.

Startup 61

Startup Entrepreneur Statistics Funding 61

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 13, 2018

I always tell founders … “An investors job is to deploy capital and make a return. If you truly believe that you, your company and your products are exceptional and your company will be valuable then you’re actually doing them a FAVOR by helping them invest in your startup. an investment in your company.

Venture Capital 332

Venture Capital Funding Startup Sales 332

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2011

When I described to people why I initially invested my calls went something like this, “He’s taken kicks to the face for nearly 2 years and is still standing. That said, a summary below is available for those who prefer to read the notes version. It soon became difficult to manage the many new investment leads.

Startup 292

Startup Venture Capital Blogging Summary 292

socalTECH

DECEMBER 10, 2009

One of the industries which has seen a lot of activity lately in Southern California is clean technology, with a large amount of investment activity and new company formation. Nikhil Jain: The concept behind Artilient Labs is it's a way to take a business, from the ground up, with very low capitalization.

Southern California 193

Southern California Startup eHarmony Sites 193

socalTECH

DECEMBER 1, 2008

In what looks to be a challenging funding climate for entrepreneurs, we thought it would be interesting to talk to one fund which is still making investments--Saban Ventures (www.saban.com)--a new, digital media focused venture capital fund located in Los Angeles. We're looking to build out our investment portfolio.

Southern California 100

Southern California Media Venture Capital Invest 100

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 31, 2012

Many MBA programs still cater too much to the needs of large, corporate management jobs or prepare students to enter big consulting companies or investments banks. I got an email recently from my friend & fellow VC, Jeff Bussgang from Flybridge Capital Partners in Boston. In Summary. And that leads me to today’s post.

Startup 319

Startup Sales Course Competition 319

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

Most prefer not to say this publicly for two reasons: 1) they have an entire portfolio of startups, many of whom are raising capital and 2) they prefer not to be attacked publicly or seem “anti entrepreneur.” We write about $40 million of first-checks into new deals / year and about $40 million of follow-on investments.

Startup 150

Startup Company Companies Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 23, 2010

You’ve invested $1 million in building the perfect application the meet a large market need. and you’re ready for your big round of VC investment to come in. The price points are not as high as your beautiful Excel spreadsheet had forecasted when you raised your seed capital. A Channel Love Story. If they have $1.2

Startup 293

Startup Sales Marketing Product 293

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2012

Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Many people seem to use the social network advertising model for revenue, but forget it assumes at least 100M users and $50M investment. Investors invest in people - not just ideas. Executive team.

Competition 113

Competition Metrics Startup Invest 113

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 23, 2015

For some aspiring to be tech entrepreneurs, I often suggest a two-step process, as I argued in this post that “ The First Startup Founder You Need to Invest in Is You.” You will learn about running board meetings, setting up the ultimate financial plan, leading a team from the top, dealing with the press, raising capital, etc.

Technical Review 150

Technical Review Startup Venture Capital IP 150

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2011

Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Many people seem to use the social network advertising model for revenue, but forget it assumes at least 100M users and $50M investment. Investors invest in people - not just ideas. Executive team.

Competition 116

Competition Metrics Startup Sales 116

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 17, 2010

Funding is different – In Silicon Valley you have mega venture capital funds and many of them. LA generally doesn’t have an appetite for this kind of investment at early stages. Summary – there is a lot of talent here. But we have a great city for building technology companies.

Company 290

Company Companies Technology Startup 290