Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 14, 2023

You probably realize that the leading edge is very near the bleeding edge, where only early adopter customers dare to tread. On the other hand, if you wait for competitors to get there first, you may be left in the dust with no customers. Otherwise, look for advances from distributors, vendors or even future customers.

Startup 135

Startup Entrepreneur Statistics Course 135

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 4, 2021

The last thing they can afford is to waste any of these, but in my mentoring and coaching activities, I see it happening all too often. Waste in a startup is any activity that burns resources, but creates no value or competitive advantage in the eyes of customers. Then always measure customer results, not work.

Startup 161

Startup Resource Training Entrepreneur 161

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 18, 2015

Businesses stopped hiring for lifetime commitments some time ago, as markets change so rapidly and companies need to tune their workforce for changing economic conditions. Simply defining yourself as a specialist or professional minimizes the stigma of a consultant role (think marketing specialist or staffing professional).

Services 100

Services Startup Software Review Social Media 100

socalTECH

OCTOBER 17, 2014

Santa Monica-based voice and texting API developer CallFire said this week that it has just hit two billion messages send via its platform, and decided to donate $10,000 in credits on its service to a nonprofit to celebrate the milestone.

Santa Monica 187

Santa Monica Coach Activity Platform 187

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 5, 2014

Marketing is everything these days. You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late.

Technical Review 103

Technical Review Tips Marketing Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2017

Marketing is everything these days. You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late.

Tips 75

Tips Marketing Technical Review Startup 75

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 18, 2023

Any startup coach or business advisor will tell you that, on your way to being a great chef, you don't start your journey by inventing the ultimate entre. If you can’t identify customer interest, it doesn’t matter how good your product is. You need a good cook, good marketing, and first-class service. Don’t stand still.

Startup 112

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 112

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 11, 2022

In building successful businesses, I find that creating a new and innovative product or service is usually the easy part. The hard part is providing the leadership required to align and motivate all the constituents and players – from engineers, to investors, vendors, and ultimately customers.

Coach 114

Coach Framework Entrepreneur Tool 114

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2022

Early-stage entrepreneurs rightly keep their focus on creating an innovative product or service. These only come with the proper training, investment in tools, and focus on customer relationships. Leaders are needed to coach each salesperson, keep the team on message, and spur new growth and goals.

Sales 147

Sales Metrics Guide Startup 147

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 19, 2013

Marketing is everything these days. You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. Give yourself the “So-what?”

Startup 103

Startup Marketing Social Media Technical Review 103

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 21, 2020

Any startup coach or business advisor will tell you that, on your way to being a great chef, you don't start your journey by inventing the ultimate entre. If you can’t identify customer interest, it doesn’t matter how good your product is. You need a good cook, good marketing, and first-class service. Don’t stand still.

Startup 156

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 156

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2022

” by Donna Cutting, who is a globally-recognized guru on employee culture and optimizing customer service. In my experience, a healthy team is a prerequisite for a thriving business, innovation to meet market needs, and high customer loyalty. Emotional stability. Environmental safety. Intellectual stimulation.

Technical Review 141

Technical Review Mentor Social Media Customer 141

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2021

For many, it’s hard to make the switch from that top-down order-giving culture, and it’s hard to find the time to recruit and coach the new team members you need to scale the business to success. We all need to be humble and recognize that what we need to know about technology and the market changes daily.

Startup 147

Startup Customer Custom Ideas 147

Berkonomics

MAY 16, 2019

There are five niches you can chose when defining your positioning strategy: price, quality, service, innovation, and elegance. Certainly Walmart, Target and others have gotten the attention of their potential customers using price as the primary leader to drive sales. Service is a remarkable differentiation.

Company 120

Company Companies Pricing Competition 120

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2013

And we wanted a head of global marketing. He had an idea for a startup that would help consumers better book service jobs and would take on Service Magic, which he believed had a business model that could be disrupted. I acted as the occasional mentor, advisor and coach to Ethan. The company was called Red Beacon.

CTO Coach 359

CTO Coach Google CTO Hire Yammer 359

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 18, 2020

You probably realize that the leading edge is very near the bleeding edge, where only early adopter customers dare to tread. On the other hand, if you wait for competitors to get there first, you may be left in the dust with no customers. Otherwise, look for advances from distributors, vendors or even future customers.

Entrepreneur 121

Entrepreneur Startup Statistics Course 121

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 20, 2022

Be sure to encompass all your constituents, especially including customers. Whole Foods , for example, has built their business with a commitment to natural and organic foods, and have a culture of loyal employees and customers, resulting in 500 stores worldwide. Commit to delivering a positive customer experience.

Product 109

Product Training Customer Custom 109

socalTECH

MAY 30, 2019

I think, to be a great entrepreneur, you have to look at what is missing in the category that you will be playing in the industry, and figure what you can deploy with a little bit of strategy and technology to bring a better service and price. People were not just going to Google, they were looking all over the place.

Content 193

Content Social Network Coach Help 193

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 9, 2020

That means starting your search through contract services sites, rather than conventional career hiring sites. By hiring contract experts, less oversight and coaching is needed. This lets you evolve your strategy with the market. Optimize staffing overhead and flexibility in a fluid market.

Competition 168

Competition Startup Demand Training 168

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 28, 2020

He brings a wealth of experience to the table, based on years of consulting work with middle market companies around the world. Team members must be engaged and enabled to do the job – that means aligned, equipped, coached, supported, and valued for the work and changes ahead.

Coach 159

Coach Resource Summary Metrics 159

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 17, 2019

In building successful businesses, I find that creating a new and innovative product or service is usually the easy part. The hard part is providing the leadership required to align and motivate all the constituents and players – from engineers, to investors, vendors, and ultimately customers.

Coach 96

Coach Framework Entrepreneur Tool 96

Eric Greenspan

MAY 9, 2013

So often I find myself coaching others on how they behave on social networks. About me: I’m a dad, a social research marketer, customer service champion, closet chef, TEDster. Social Marketing dos and donts rules Social media' So I figured I’d share my thoughts publicly: 1. About my company: [link].

Social Media 117

Social Media Media IBM IBM 117

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 15, 2020

In most businesses, this means selling something, and proving that your product or service has value. For the business to prosper, every employee, and your customers, must know and relate to your core values, such as product excellence, care for the environment, and personal integrity. Stay connected and engaged with your employees.

Metrics 140

Metrics Entrepreneur Coach Satisfaction 140

Berkonomics

JUNE 15, 2012

There are five niches you can chose when defining your positioning strategy: price, quality, service, innovation, and elegance. Certainly Wal-Mart, Target and others have gotten the attention of their potential customers using price as the primary leader to drive sales. Service is a remarkable differentiator.

Pricing 149

Pricing Competition Coach Sales 149

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 1, 2019

Early-stage entrepreneurs rightly keep their focus on creating an innovative product or service. These only come with the proper training, investment in tools, and focus on customer relationships. Leaders are needed to coach each salesperson, keep the team on message, and spur new growth and goals.

Startup 97

Startup Sales Metrics Guide 97

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011

They will often run all of the daily reports into them covering off for finance, sales, marketing, biz dev & HR. If they’re not running their business then perhaps the wrong person was picked as CEO or perhaps they need more mentorship / coaching to better allocate their time. But ask yourself, what does a COO actually do?

Startup 325

Startup Technical Review Sales Report 325

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2018

Any startup coach or business advisor will tell you that, on your way to being a great chef, you don't start your journey by inventing the ultimate entre. If you can’t identify customer interest, it doesn’t matter how good your product is. You need a good cook, good marketing, and first-class service. Don’t stand still.

Startup 81

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 81

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 13, 2015

The last thing they can afford is to waste any of these, but in my mentoring and coaching activities, I see it happening all too often. Waste in a startup is any activity that spends resources, but creates no value or competitive advantage in the eyes of customers. Then always measure customer results, not work.

Resource 105

Resource Startup Entrepreneur Training 105

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2015

Entrepreneurship is all about leading – leading customers to a new product or service, leading a startup team to peak performance, and leading a new business to the market opportunity, while providing maximum return to stakeholders. Pretend to be a customer or client of the business you lead.

Entrepreneur 108

Entrepreneur Mentor Coach Customer 108

socalTECH

MARCH 28, 2019

I think, sometimes at an early stage, many entrepreneurs focus too much on a very small market or a niche market. The last thing, is understanding how open and receptive all of these CEOs were to feedback, coaching, and improvement. What really struck me about everyone on the stage, was how big their vision was.

Capital 162

Capital Entrepreneur Invest Artificial Inteligence 162

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2017

Most of the guidance you see for entrepreneurs is aimed at those who are selling a product (Apple, Tesla, Xiaomi), or selling a service (Uber, Airbnb, Snapchat). The challenges for making money and survival in these professional services worlds are different, maybe even tougher. Be targeted in marketing and lead generation.

Social Media 56

Social Media Pricing Technical Review Demand 56

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2014

The last thing they can afford is to waste any of these, but in my mentoring and coaching activities, I see it happening all too often. Waste in a startup is any activity that absorbs resources, but creates no value or competitive advantage in the eyes of customers. Then always measure customer results, not work.

Entrepreneur 115

Entrepreneur Resource Training Product 115

socalTECH

APRIL 5, 2017

Diamond Bar-based LifeRay (www.liferay.com) is a company that not too many people have heard of, but which is used to run the websites for such well known organizations like Toyota, T-Mobile, Coach, Fujitsu, Allianz, and Sesame Street. We focus on digital transformation and customer experience. What is LifeRay?

Diamond Bar 169

Diamond Bar Customer Custom Organization 169

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 3, 2016

While firms define platforms differently, let’s just say they are the services that a VC offers outside of investment capital and partner time on boards or providing intros. Examples of VC platform services include: recruiting, marketing, design support, inside sales reps, consulting, accounting services and so forth.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Platform Startup Resource 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 3, 2015

In building successful businesses, I find that creating a new and innovative product or service is usually the easy part. The hard part is providing the leadership required to align and motivate all the constituents and players – from engineers, to investors, vendors, and ultimately customers.

Product 103

Product Coach Framework Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 30, 2017

In building successful businesses, I find that creating a new and innovative product or service is usually the easy part. The hard part is providing the leadership required to align and motivate all the constituents and players – from engineers, to investors, vendors, and ultimately customers.

Coach 64

Coach Framework Entrepreneur Tool 64

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2016

Any startup coach or business advisor will tell you that, on your way to being a great chef, you don't start your journey by inventing the ultimate entre. If you can’t identify customer interest, it doesn’t matter how good your product is. You need a good cook, good marketing, and first-class service. Don’t stand still.

Entrepreneur 93

Entrepreneur Startup Coach Metrics 93