Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 23, 2021

You have done everything to register your brand legally , including domains, copyrights, patents, and trademarks. For example, a few years ago Wells Fargo seriously damaged its brand trying to grow the business by creating accounts without proper customer consent. Never argue with customers, public or private.

Examples 170

Examples Customer Custom Social Media 170

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2023

Value factors include your related product breadth and depth, relationships with thought leaders, key vendors, and large potential customers. Key to required patents or trade secrets. In many cases, one of the cofounders may bring some work in progress that can be patented, trademarked, or copyrighted.

Equity 99

Equity Patents CTO Hire Startup 99

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2021

They are looking for startups that have a sustainable advantage over direct and indirect competitor offerings, as well as obvious value to customers living without your product today. Non-specific terms, like better usability and low cost don’t incite customers to action these days. Investors check connections.

Competition 166

Competition Funding Startup Patents 166

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2015

Market change happens too frequently these days, and organizations need to quickly change course just to survive. And without knowing where you stand, there is no way to set a course. It might be a patented technology, but it could also be the creativity of employees or logistic competencies of the company.

Customer 102

Customer Custom Organization Course 102

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 26, 2021

Of course, you can find these elements embodied in many of the business plan templates and tools out there, such as the Business Model Canvas. Quantify your value proposition for customers. Competitor resources include larger cash assets, trained staffs, an existing customers, and a known brand in the market.

Funding 132

Funding Template Resource Competition 132

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 15, 2020

What I want to hear is an innovative marketing and growth strategy that will set you apart in the minds of investors, as well as customers. Today’s customer is especially attracted to companies like TOMS , who donates a pair of shoes for every pair they sell, or Patagonia, with its support for grassroots environmental groups.

Marketing 170

Marketing Startup Examples Customer 170

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2020

Value factors include your related product breadth and depth, relationships with thought leaders, key vendors, and large potential customers. Key to required patents or trade secrets. In many cases, one of the co-founders may bring some work in progress that can be patented, trademarked, or copyrighted.

Startup 174

Startup Equity Patents CTO Hire 174

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 17, 2022

Market change happens too frequently these days, and organizations need to quickly change course just to survive. And without knowing where you stand, there is no way to set a course. It might be a patented technology, but it could also be the creativity of employees or logistic competencies of the company.

Organization 118

Organization Course Patents Entrepreneur 118

InfoChachkie

AUGUST 10, 2010

Patents held by startups generally have a limited ability to reduce competition. The average time required to obtain a patent is 36-to-40 months, during which there is no guarantee your adVenture will ultimately receive patent protection. Even if you are granted a patent, the scope of your claims may be significantly denuded.

IP 256

IP Patents Company Companies 256

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2020

I’m not suggesting that a startup should ever disclose patent details to others before filing, but I can’t imagine why a startup would not seek visibility and feedback for their idea and solution while they could still make changes with minimal cost. Evaluate customer response prior to development.

Search Engine Optimization 174

Search Engine Optimization Ideas Startup Customer 174

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2023

For example, a while back a passionate entrepreneur approached me with an innovative solution for reducing world hunger, but hadn’t focused on the fact that hungry people often don’t have any money, and governments are not easy customers. Find market evidence of customers with means who are willing to pay for a solution.

Tips 80

Tips Startup Satisfaction Ideas 80

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2022

Message delivery must be customized for each investor. It takes more than one person to build a business, so the lone entrepreneur, without support from any visible team, advisors, partners, or potential customers, will not attract investors. Of course, previous successes provide more direct evidence of a network of the right people.

Entrepreneur 111

Entrepreneur Social Media Patents Mentor 111

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 3, 2020

Of course, these may need to be updated for cause, but it’s hard to get anywhere if you don’t have a specific destination. It clearly takes focus to create and file a patent, but it will give you a tremendous advantage over “me too” competitors. Anything less will lower your credibility with investors, and confuse potential customers.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Startup Patents Resource 126

Berkonomics

MARCH 14, 2019

Of course, we are speaking of increased valuation of your company when we speak of “wealth.” One way to mitigate this is by using early money to create a prototype, to perform market research, to complete the first generation of the product, or to deliver the service to a satisfied customer. So, let’s examine them and mitigate them.

Outsource Development 120

Outsource Development Ideas Resource Patents 120

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 26, 2020

You see, inventing a business is about attracting money from investors and customers, rather than spending money on a challenging dream. Many inventors like to work alone, and are convinced that if their solution is amazing enough, investors and customers will come. Target a higher customer need and ability to pay.

Customer 136

Customer Custom Examples .Net 136

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 7, 2021

The tougher question is whether you are also wise, in the sense of cultivating the right relationships, understanding team dynamics, and keeping to the correct side of the ethical line to maintain the trust of team members and customers alike. This locked in engagement from his employees and customers.

Patents 138

Patents Mentor Customer Custom 138

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2021

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. The same is true for filing patents, registering trademarks, and filing copyrights. A programmer can build a new smartphone app for a few thousand dollars.

Entrepreneur 162

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media Outsource Development 162

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 12, 2022

Of course, Jeff Bezos no longer needs investors, but he worked hard in his early days courting potential investors, building relationships and credibility that allowed him to get the money he needed to scale his company quickly. Just be aware that building your customer base first requires deep pockets, or many investors.

Technical Review 147

Technical Review Social Media Entrepreneur Startup 147

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2019

Of course, we all know there are no guarantees, and we like your passion and commitment to future results. We certainly want to hear about any positive feedback you have from potential customers on your idea, your prototype, and your business model, but that better not be the end of the story.

Competition 86

Competition Patents Startup Customer 86

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2020

Despite some recent advances, there are still some cultures which have less regard for patents and other intellectual property. Leading edge technology software and manufacturing require constant course corrections and iterative restarts. Customer-facing services, like call centers, should rarely be outsourced.

Outsource Development 122

Outsource Development Outsource Software Review Technical Review 122

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 27, 2020

As an aspiring entrepreneur, one of the most important things you need is a memorable “ elevator pitch ,” to communicate your startup value proposition and leave a great first impression on friends, investors, employees, and future customers. For example, “I have patented a new tire that will double the wear mileage at half the cost.”

Sample 127

Sample Summary Startup Slides 127

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2021

Others are really marketers out to make money fast, and believe that they can entice customers to any offering. Too many Innovators are like Dean Kamen , still struggling with the Segway Human Transporter , while holding over 1000 other device patents. Of course, discovering your entrepreneur type is only the beginning.

Entrepreneur 134

Entrepreneur Framework Mentor Web 134

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2018

Of course it helps to have innovative technologies before you start building a business. In other words, inventions are necessary but not sufficient to create real value for investors and customers. You need a viable business model and customers. Take a hard look at the alternatives. Early adopters are not a big market.

Technical Review 86

Technical Review Patents Ideas Journal 86

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 13, 2020

Message delivery must be customized for each investor. It takes more than one person to build a business, so the lone entrepreneur, without support from any visible team, advisors, partners, or potential customers, will not attract investors. Of course, previous successes provide more direct evidence of a network of the right people.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Social Media Patents Mentor 126

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 29, 2019

The right answer to this question is that you bring some new intellectual property to the table – like a patent or other secret sauce. Also evaluate the values of desired customers. The right reason would be to bring value to customers, with a strong conviction that you are uniquely qualified to make it happen.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Ideas Resource Examples 126

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 24, 2018

Don’t forget to consider customer alternatives, like trains versus airplanes. These days, you can find existing patents and trademarks through Google and the US Patent Office online site without spending thousands of dollars with your favorite patent attorney. Check for intellectual property barriers in your way.

Ideas 83

Ideas Technical Review Patents Startup 83

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 27, 2020

Yet if that leaves you with no documented business plan or unclear strategy, most investors and even customers will walk away. There are complex processes, like filing a patent, and financial tools that may be new to you, including Excel and Quickbooks. Prioritize your tasks ahead of helping others with theirs.

Product 123

Product Startup Tips Entrepreneur 123

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 12, 2019

Market change happens too frequently these days, and organizations need to quickly change course just to survive. And without knowing where you stand, there is no way to set a course. It might be a patented technology, but it could also be the creativity of employees or logistic competencies of the company.

Organization 88

Organization Course Patents Entrepreneur 88

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2018

Value factors include your related product breadth and depth, relationships with thought leaders, key vendors, and large potential customers. Key to required patents or trade secrets. In many cases, one of the co-founders may bring some work in progress that can be patented, trademarked, or copyrighted.

Equity 95

Equity Patents CTO Hire Startup 95

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011

As the school year kicks off for college students, one of the big tasks of the year is buying books for their courses. What our site does, instead, is it integrates directly with a student course schedule, so you can just enter your course, and it automated the process of buying all of your books simultaneously.

UCSD 185

UCSD Course Startup Sites 185

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 18, 2014

Of course, it helps to have innovative technologies before you start building a business. In other words, inventions are necessary but not sufficient to create real value for investors and customers. You need a viable business model and customers. Take a hard look at the alternatives. Early adopters are not a big market.

Ideas 106

Ideas Technical Review Patents Entrepreneur 106

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 27, 2014

Don’t forget to consider customer alternatives, like trains versus airplanes. These days, you can find existing patents and trademarks through Google and the US Patent Office online site without spending thousands of dollars with your favorite patent attorney. Check for intellectual property barriers in your way.

Ideas 106

Ideas Entrepreneur Technical Review Patents 106

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 22, 2012

No known patents filed. Maybe the solution hasn’t yet been commercialized, but a patent has been submitted by someone else, putting your idea in jeopardy. Another series of searches on Google Patents and the US Patent Office site and Free Patents Online is in order at this point. Real customer pain and money.

Ideas 97

Ideas Patents Startup Google 97

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 27, 2018

Unfortunately, customers look for value in solving their problem, and new technologies alone scare them, so these solutions don’t get bought by customers, or funded. Attracting business investors is as tough as attracting customers, but it’s a different challenge. Customized marketing strategy and realistic sales plans. “If

Product 58

Product Slides Entrepreneur Invest 58

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2012

Of course, the first one gets the patent. But patent disclosure requirements often make imitation easier, and smart technologists can work around most patents anyway. Market research is more meaningful if there is already a market and real customers. Learn from competitors and early adopters.

Patents 84

Patents Startup Statistics Course 84

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 20, 2016

Of course it helps to have innovative technologies before you start building a business. In other words, inventions are necessary but not sufficient to create real value for investors and customers. You need a viable business model and customers. Take a hard look at the alternatives. Early adopters are not a big market.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Patents Ideas Journal 60

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 14, 2011

No known patents filed. Maybe the solution hasn’t yet been commercialized, but a patent has been submitted by someone else, putting your idea in jeopardy. Another series of searches on Google Patents and the US Patent Office site and Free Patents Online is in order at this point. Real customer pain and money.

Ideas 94

Ideas Patents Startup Google 94