TechCrunch LA

MARCH 31, 2021

The sweeping infrastructure package put forward today by President Joe Biden comes with a price tag of roughly $2 trillion (and hefty tax hikes) but gives startups and the broader tech industry about $1 trillion worth of reasons to support it. ” Climate resiliency . Given the steady drumbeat of climate disasters that hit the U.S.

Startup 229

Startup Technical Review Invest Research 229

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2014

The rise of “micro VCs” or seed-stage funds. The rise of alternative sources of capital (crowd funding and the like). The VC market has right-sized (returned back to mid 90′s levels & less competition). ” The new narrative is “will my seed funds be able to fund the prorata of their winners?”

Venture Capital 398

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Seed Funding 398

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2020

In the short term you need customers to find you at any price, and in the longer term you need revenue, profit, and return loyalty. In my experience, even in startups, longer-term strategy often gets pushed off the agenda due to current challenges. Hone your process for due diligence and integrating these new elements.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Layoffs Social Media Metrics 124

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 28, 2018

People said this about Ring (which went from startup to selling to Amazon > $1 billion in around 5 years), Facebook, YouTube, Airbnb, Uber, Twitter, Instagram and many other great behemoths of the technology industry. You can expect some strong competition, but it’s unlikely that there will be 5 great scooter companies. Not really.

Santa Monica 256

Santa Monica Funding Startup Course 256

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 12, 2022

In this world of constant change, new technologies, and a thousand cultures, it’s evident and somehow comforting to me that the basic rules for business prosperity really haven’t changed in the last hundred years. Business success is still more about the people than the technology or idea involved. Master-mind alliance. Applied faith.

Technical Review 119

Technical Review Ideas Entrepreneur Customer 119

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

2 preamble issues having read the comments on TC today: 1: I know that the prices of startup companies is much great in Silicon Valley than in smaller towns / less tech focused areas in the US and the US prices higher than many foreign markets. You can be pissed off, but I don’t set prices. That’s stupid.

Startup 336

Startup Pricing Technical Review Marketing 336

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

Many risks can be managed or calculated to improve growth or provide a competitive edge, while others, like skipping quality checks to save money, are recipes for failure. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Build your business with minimum outside funding.

Resource 121

Resource Metrics Entrepreneur Customer 121

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 3, 2014

Most technology startups seem to be funded by product people or business people. They are the lifeblood of many companies yet they are different than the traditional technology startup DNA so the ways that you hire, motivate, compensate and assess performance of these individuals will be different. Customers seldom buy on price.

Sales 382

Sales Help Startup Pricing 382

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2014

Prorata rights are one of the most important rights of a private market technology investors and yet are seldom fully understood. These tensions seep out in some angels or seed funds publicly or semi-privately deriding later-stage VCs for their “bad” behavior. As always a balanced perspective is in order.

Guide 336

Guide Venture Capital Startup Writing 336

socalTECH

MAY 26, 2009

Capital efficient companies offering very competitive terms are still getting funded," says Al Schneider of the Tech Coast Angels , although it appears the group is much more sensitive about how it is investing in deals. What isn't appealing to angel investors right now?

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Invest Tech Coast Angels Westlake Village 100

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2010

The VC industry grew dramatically as a result of the Internet bubble - Before the Internet bubble the people who invested in VC funds (called LPs or Limited Partners) put about $50 billion into the industry and by 2001 this had grown precipitously to around $250 billion. So the people who invest in VC funds have two problems.

Venture Capital 311

Venture Capital Startup Seed Funding Rustic Canyon 311

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

Industry reviews. VC firm policy or fund analysis. So the “VC associate” is largely a launching pad job for exceedingly bright and hard-working young tech professionals. Ability to source information easily to help build a thesis around companies / industries / competition. Portfolio community building.

Help 365

Help Invest Venture Capital Technical Review 365

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 15, 2020

In this world of constant change, new technologies, and a thousand cultures, it’s evident and somehow comforting to me that the basic rules for business prosperity really haven’t changed in the last hundred years. Business success is still more about the people than the technology or idea involved. Master-mind alliance. Applied faith.

Technical Review 126

Technical Review Ideas Entrepreneur Customer 126

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. You have to understand whether they’re likely to yield revenue growth in the near term OR whether you have access to cheap enough capital to fund your losses until your investments pay off.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2020

Many risks can be managed or calculated to improve growth or provide a competitive edge, while others, like skipping quality checks to save money, are recipes for failure. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Build your business with minimum outside funding.

Entrepreneur 129

Entrepreneur Resource Metrics Customer 129

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2011

He said, “They need an unbiased view of the fund raising environment because there is too much misinformation and everything seems to be changing fast.&#. But that doesn’t mean that people are paying rational prices as investors based on intrinsic value. – you’re very well positioned as a fund.

Pricing 309

Pricing Marketing Startup Venture Capital 309

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 21, 2016

Terms “paradigm shift” or “disruptive technology” used more than once. In reality, fundamental changes in technology frighten away more customers than they attract, and take longer and more money to come to fruition than any investors wants to commit. These terms are so overused as hype that any meaning has been lost.

Funding 98

Funding Startup Innocal Entrepreneur 98

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2015

Skip the fuzzy marketing terms, such as "easier to use," "lower cost" and "disruptive technology." " Investors want to buy into an entrepreneur with a startup that can provide evidence of an ability to double customer productivity, at half the cost, with patented technology.

Summary 101

Summary Patents Technical Review Competition 101

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 23, 2015

For a high-volume seed fund that adds many portfolio companies every year (such as our friends at 500 Startups who invest in over 100 distinct companies annually), the cost of a bad affirmative decision (a false positive) is quite low, since it accounts for a relatively small portion of their total fund. Unicornless. billion).

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Technical Review Software Review Southern California 100

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

Most technology startups seem to be funded by product people or business people. They are the lifeblood of many companies yet they are different than the traditional technology startup DNA so the ways that you hire, motivate, compensate and assess performance of these individuals will be different. Customers seldom buy on price.

Sales 316

Sales Startup Pricing Customer 316

Tech Zulu Event

JULY 24, 2014

Whether due to technological, regulatory, or competitor driven factors, key market dynamics you envisioned when you came up with your idea, did your research and developed your business plan, no longer apply. When projections about the size of your market or pricing strategy are off, you need to start working on a major redirection.

Startup 98

Startup Competition Examples Customer 98

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 1, 2016

At the Upfront Summit in early February, we had a chance to have many off-the-record conversations with Limited Partners (LPs) who fund Venture Capital (VC) funds about their views of the market. …But LPs Have Been Putting Out More Money Than They Are Getting Back. . That’s money that fuels our startup ecosystems.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Capital Marketing Seed Funding 150

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 1, 2013

Pricing is an art, a challenging art. For more information on pricing, see my previous post 6 Pricing Tips for Your product/Service. Do your due diligence to perform competitive analysis. Perhaps the biggest mistake I see has to do with milestone funding. Undercharging for your product/service.

Startup 93

Startup Pricing Outsource Competition 93

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

” And even the venerable Fred Wilson weighed in with how people “ leading vs. following ” in funding rounds play different roles and have different skills. AngelList 101 : As you know, AngelList is a platform where angels can invest in semi-screened tech deals. They will have to negotiate price and terms.

Venture Capital 356

Venture Capital Invest Course Technical Review 356

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2019

Smart entrepreneurs are just now starting to look at this option again, due to its unpredictability and the challenges of running a public company. Today around 90 percent of successful startups are still acquired by bigger companies, as the safer and preferred method of growth and funding. Constant pressure to increase earnings.

Startup 84

Startup Technical Review Report IBM 84

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

Smart entrepreneurs are just now starting to look at this option again, due to its unpredictability and the challenges of running a public company. Yet they still see warning lights in many geographies around the world, due to political uncertainties. The M&A alternative looks simple by comparison.

Startup 87

Startup Technical Review Report Entrepreneur 87

socalTECH

AUGUST 18, 2009

In the recent surge in interest in the clean technology and energy investment area, we're constantly surprised by the number of startups in the area focused on some aspect of the industry. Let's start on the technology side--can you tell us about the technology, and its origins? It's very simple, from the technical perspective.

UCLA 159

UCLA Technical Review El Monte Startup 159

socalTECH

OCTOBER 4, 2010

Last week, Santa Monica-based Revolution Prep announced its first, institutional round of funding, worth $15M, from Kennet Partners. I had worked as a tutor for Princeton Review, and Jake for Kaplan. It was us, funding ourselves from credit cards, literally, to a company that is now on par with Kaplan and Princeton Review.

Software Review 178

Software Review Technical Review Education Startup 178

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 9, 2015

Many risks can be managed or calculated to improve growth or provide a competitive edge, while others, like skipping quality checks to save money, are recipes for failure. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Build your business with minimum outside funding.

Startup 115

Startup Resource Metrics Entrepreneur 115

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 3, 2009

What about your competition – how much do they charge? Good ones don’t care about the granular details in a startup but they do care about how big the market is, what share you’ll get and what assumptions you make about pricing over time and other market factors. They are not just for fund raising.

Web 2.0 334

Web 2.0 Venture Capital Web Technical Review 334

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 27, 2014

Many risks can be managed or calculated to improve growth or provide a competitive edge, while others, like skipping quality checks to save money, are recipes for failure. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Build your business with minimum outside funding.

Startup 113

Startup Resource Metrics Entrepreneur 113

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2018

Many risks can be managed or calculated to improve growth or provide a competitive edge, while others, like skipping quality checks to save money, are recipes for failure. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Build your business with minimum outside funding.

Resource 64

Resource Metrics Entrepreneur Customer 64

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

It’s what signals to existing investors how quickly their teams need to be fund raising and the level of risk the company is facing and also it signals to potentially new investors both how quickly you need to raise (ie you have less leverage if you’re in a rush) as well as how much cash you’ll need if they fund you.

Startup 383

Startup Company Companies .Net 383

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 28, 2018

In this world of constant change, new technologies, and a thousand cultures, it’s evident and somehow comforting to me that the basic rules for business prosperity really haven’t changed in the last hundred years. Business success is still more about the people than the technology or idea involved. Master-mind alliance. Applied faith.

Technical Review 53

Technical Review Ideas Entrepreneur Customer 53

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 25, 2016

Many startup businesses – tech or otherwise – fail. Trying outrageous new things or even trying mundane things but in new ways but with extreme quality & innovation is what fuels the tech startup industry. The perfect competitors are the ones where they unable to respond due to The Innovator’s Dilemma.

Startup 150

Startup Marketing Study SEO 150

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 1, 2015

Smart entrepreneurs now avoid this option like the plague, due to its unpredictability and the challenges of running a public company. Today 70 percent of successful startups are still acquired by bigger companies, as the safer and preferred method of growth and funding. The M&A alternative looks simple by comparison.

Startup 98

Startup Technical Review Report Entrepreneur 98

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2017

A successful business requires focus – define the customer need with a specific solution for a specific price and cost. New business owners are often quick to spend outside investment funding, and quick to delegate money management to accountants in the business. In today’s world, the market evolves even faster than the technology.

Ideas 72

Ideas Startup Metrics Entrepreneur 72