Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 26, 2021

As a long-time advisor to entrepreneurs and occasional angel investor, I often see and hear innovative product pitches that sound exciting, but are missing one or more of the key business elements that investors deem critical for funding consideration. Specify a primary customer channel for sales.

Funding 132

Funding Template Resource Competition 132

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 2, 2010

This is part of a series on sales & marketing. I previously covered how early phase sales teams should be “evangelical&# and consultative in nature. The first post on scaling sales dealt with “aiming&# your sales teams – making sure they were focused on the right opportunities.

Sales 289

Sales Startup Training Pricing 289

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

Most technology startups seem to be funded by product people or business people. Specifically what is often not in the DNA of founders are sales skills. The result is a lack of knowledge of the process and of sales people themselves. We focused together on improving our sales methodology, our training and our comp plans.

Sales 316

Sales Startup Pricing Customer 316

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 21, 2014

Since 2009 we’ve been in an unequivocal bull market. An impressive number of new VCs have been created – most of them with new seed funds. Growth markets have a way of fooling us all. When markets start to turn shelfware companies are the quickest to die.

Marketing 354

Marketing Case Study Metrics Sales 354

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 20, 2020

Contrary to popular opinion, viral marketing has not eliminated the need for old-fashioned lead generation to bring customers to a startup. His professional background includes having held marketing-executive roles at big companies as well as startups. Email marketing. Direct mail marketing. Marty Zwilling.

Customer 146

Customer Custom Marketing Startup 146

Berkonomics

APRIL 19, 2012

Professional investors laugh when they hear an entrepreneur state, “We have no competition.” Perhaps buyers cannot obtain attractive financing in the current market. If you are raising funds, list “do nothing” as a viable competitor in your slide deck. That statement has killed more investment deals than almost any other.

Competition 189

Competition Slides Sales Ideas 189

TechCrunch LA

DECEMBER 8, 2020

Today, a startup that is doing this in the specific area of distressed property is announcing a round of growth funding to ramp up its team and expand its business. The funding is being led by QED Investors; Founders Fund, Susa Ventures, Navitas Capital, and Prudence Holdings also participated.

Sales 282

Sales Demand San Diego Funding 282

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 6, 2018

Fund raising. But it’s critical for your business, for you as a leader and people who excel at fund raising have an extreme advantage over those who do not. As a VC I also have to fund raise every three years and these posts 100% apply to VCs raising money, too. It definitely has a “d” in it, as in it’s really not fun, raising.

Funding 236

Funding Venture Capital Startup Entrepreneur 236

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 29, 2010

Competitiveness - One attribute that I believe most VCs look for in entrepreneurs is competitiveness. If you stumble on to a really good idea believe me it will get competitive really quickly. It amazes me how quickly a modest success story gets replicated and any initial product / market advantages get narrowed.

Competition 296

Competition Entrepreneur Startup GRP Partners 296

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2014

It’s not uncommon for me to see a startup business plan “mission” to be the “premier brand” for their product, yet their marketing budget in the financials is trivial. This combination will almost certainly get your plan tossed by potential investors, who understand all too well the need and cost for marketing in today’s environment.

Marketing 102

Marketing Funding Social Media SEM 102

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 10, 2023

As a startup investor, I often see business proposals looking for funding that really look like expensive hobbies looking for donations. I still see entrepreneurs who spend money and time for months on a new business idea without any separation of personal and business funds, and any formal accounting system for their new business.

Outsource Development 115

Outsource Development Startup Competition Ideas 115

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 10, 2021

With the enormous changes to our economies and financial markets?—?how how on Earth could the venture capital market stand still? One of the most common questions I’m asked by people intrigued by but also scared by venture capital and technology markets is some variant of, “Aren’t technology markets way overvalued?

Venture Capital 471

Venture Capital Writing Invest Pricing 471

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. The most common failures are solutions looking for a problem, lack of a defined market, or an inadequate revenue model. Target market. Sales/Marketing.

Sales 102

Sales Customer Custom Outsource 102

socalTECH

OCTOBER 11, 2010

Last week, the University of Southern California 's Viterbi School of Engineering announced that it had established a new, business plan competition, the Maseeh Entrepreneurship Prize Competition ([link] specifically aimed at students in the engineering school. Why a business plan competition, and why in engineering school?

Competition 154

Competition Southern California Mentor USC 154

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 20, 2015

VC funding. Our perspectives on the topic wax and wane with market cycles. Here’s what I believe, but won’t claim to “know” because every time I think I know something the market seems to do something entirely different. the more money you give a startup the faster they grow. I have strong opinions.

Funding 150

Funding Venture Capital Startup Marketing 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 7, 2020

As a startup investor, I often see business proposals looking for funding that really look like expensive hobbies looking for donations. I still see entrepreneurs who spend money and time for months on a new business idea without any separation of personal and business funds, and any formal accounting system for their new business.

Entrepreneur 131

Entrepreneur Outsource Development Startup Competition 131

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 31, 2022

After many years in business, I’m convinced that none of us has the strengths and interest in all the areas needed for success, including solution changes, finance, marketing, and operations. Idea people often don’t get funded as entrepreneurs, because a new business is all about results, not just ideas.

Activity 108

Activity Satisfaction Metrics Startup 108

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 3, 2023

Here are the major elements of the best product plans: Market requirements section. This first section of every product plan defines the market, sizes the opportunity, and discusses individual needs and requirements that will be provided by your product and service. Opportunity segmentation and competitive environment.

Product 112

Product Summary Activity Entrepreneur 112

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2023

Projecting financials is a natural extension of the homework every entrepreneur needs to do on customer opportunity size, product costs, pricing, competition and customer value. Forecast sales-volume expectations. Project based on your market size how many widgets you will sell in every channel.

Startup 116

Startup Pricing Sales Statistics 116

TechCrunch LA

AUGUST 9, 2022

The funding, a Series C, will be used to continue expanding Boulevard’s product and engineering teams and to build out more tools targeting an ever-wider set of users in the bigger wellness and beauty sector (those product additions are typically big — it most recently added a whole new payments feature). Focusing on the U.S.

Help 195

Help Startup UCLA Tool 195

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 23, 2021

Some investors seem to focus wholly on the strengths of the management team, or a sustainable competitive advantage, and in reality these are the core attributes for every funding equation. While these may be necessary for funding, they may not be sufficient to make your startup the great success embodied in your vision.

Education 151

Education Customer Custom Sales 151

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2023

There are no guarantees, but various studies have found that entrepreneurs who create a good plan generally double their chances of securing funding and building a successful business. Your idea may be technically right, but without a business plan, it could be dead right, which is not the result anyone is looking for.

Startup 102

Startup Writing Mentor Sample 102

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 18, 2023

For a new business, you can provide unique ingredients, but the preparation steps in your business plan must follow a tried and true recipe for startup success: Identify a market with a real need. You need a good cook, good marketing, and first-class service. investors invest in people, not ideas) Effective and timely go-to-market.

Startup 112

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 112

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2010

Yet, in today’s world of information overload and global reach, marketing and selling skills are critical to the success of every startup. In my own effort to keep up with the times, I just finished a new book by Landy Chase, titled “ Competitive Selling: Out-Plan, Out-Think, Out-Sell to Win Every Time.” Politics really do matter.

Competition 92

Competition Entrepreneur Startup Customer 92

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2022

It takes a long immersion in the marketplace for someone to be a true insider, understand the subtleties of the competitive landscape, recognize the people who are true assets (independent of titles), and look through the propaganda of technical collateral and PR campaigns. The sales professional. The financial suit.

Technical Advisors 123

Technical Advisors Startup Outsource Development High Tech 123

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

A business plan is the outward facing definition of the business you hope to drive with your hardware solution, with a hardware overview in the intro to highlight customer value and competitiveness. Quantify the market opportunity in business terms. Include marketing, sales, and customer rollout plans. and trademarks.

Product 169

Product Summary Startup Examples 169

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2013

It is simply the most important way to proactively control your career development and how the market perceives you. That was fine with me – the market is the market. That was the market. In today’s market you can prove your worth, in 1991 that was a bit harder. It is neither. She was paid 15% more.

Technical Advisors 385

Technical Advisors Marketing Startup Venture Capital 385

InfoChachkie

JULY 14, 2011

Value Prop Twitter Style : “Ringrevenue’s call performance marketing platform enables ad networks, agencies, advertisers & publishers to generate more inbound sales calls.”. In today’s market, so much focus is placed on transacting business online. Who do you view as your biggest competition? You’re right.

Marketing 209

Marketing Advertising Paid Search Startup 209

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 17, 2013

It’s not uncommon for me to see a startup business plan “mission” to be the “premier brand” for their product, yet their marketing budget in the financials is trivial. This combination will almost certainly get your plan tossed by potential investors, who understand all too well the need and cost for marketing in today’s environment.

Marketing 106

Marketing Startup Social Media SEM 106

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 1, 2016

Rolf Winkler wrote a piece in the WSJ about A16Z’s returns in which he says they “lag behind Sequoia, Benchmark and Founders Fund.” Scott Kupor of A16Z responded with a comprehensive overview of valuation methodology in a post that while accurate feels more targeted at sophisticated Limited Partners (LPs) who invest in funds.

Venture Capital 264

Venture Capital Invest Funding Competition 264

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2021

The best are ones quickest and most willing to do the realignment on a continuous basis these days, as the market changes, customer interests change, and you learn from experience. Make sure the inspiration that launched your vision isn’t lost in the course of a pivot or market change. Revisit your startup vision and values.

Social Media 143

Social Media Startup Framework Course 143

Tech Zulu Event

OCTOBER 19, 2011

CapLinked , the online platform for private investment funded by members of the “ PayPal Mafia “—announced that it is launching a worldwide pitch competition for entrepreneurs to present their business ideas to a panel of all-star judges from Idealab, Rincon, Rapidfire, and Actarus. says CapLinked CEO Eric M.

Competition 70

Competition Idealab Slides Startup 70

socalTECH

APRIL 26, 2017

My background is I was a sales rep in this industry for fourteen years, with Nikon. Eugene Cho: I saw this market opportunity when I realized that the larger microscope companies, like Nikon, Olympus, and so on were really only focusing their efforts on high end systems, which cost $200,000 plus. How did you start the company?

Tech Coast Angels 124

Tech Coast Angels Startup Sales Slides 124

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 23, 2022

The result is fewer and fewer new ideas are volunteered by prospective leaders and key team members, and the business suffers from poor customer satisfaction or loss of market share. The challenge is for leaders to really listen to their team and the market, and for every team member to anticipate pushbacks and respond effectively.

Ideas 116

Ideas Netflix Resource Customer 116

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 11, 2020

I’m not talking about just making incremental improvements in their products and processes, but more fundamental changes to the business model, such as the following: Announce a new market launch that fits your core competency. You didn’t wait until a new market was totally proven before entering. Remember when you were a startup?

Customer 143

Customer Custom Examples IBM 143

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

To grow faster businesses need resources in today’s financial period to fund growth that may not come for 6 months to a year. The most obvious way to explain this is with sales people. You may have leverage when you DO need to fund raise. If you don’t, somebody else WILL!” ” The Details.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2020

Here are the major elements of the best product plans: Market requirements section. This first section of every product plan defines the market, sizes the opportunity, and discusses individual needs and requirements that will be provided by your product and service. Opportunity segmentation and competitive environment.

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Startup Summary Product 124