Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 26, 2016

Perhaps the most misused terms I see these days from entrepreneurs involve CAC (customer acquisition costs) and LTV (life time value) and a lack of understanding these critical components is driving many companies to premature failure. So I spend an inordinate amount of time with entrepreneurs focused on payback. End of story.

Metrics 150

Metrics Startup SaaS Course 150

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 14, 2014

Of course that website isn’t completely up to date but it’s a great resource for seeing the overall picture. Of course unsolicited spam has very low open rates and is filtered by the major providers. So I send Byron any SaaS investment I do at the earliest stage where I know we’ve nailed product / market fit.

Email 339

Email SaaS Venture Capital Google 339

InfoChachkie

APRIL 18, 2011

I am on the Board of a growing, dynamic SaaS business which has recently graduated from the startup stage and entered the early-growth phase. Thus, confident entrepreneurs understand the value of seeing themselves through the lens of seasoned executives whose opinions they value and trust. No More Bottle Washing.

Entrepreneur 217

Entrepreneur Startup Slides Examples 217

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2010

Many entrepreneurs think that risk is just an “occupational hazard” that can be minimized or eliminated by a smart businessman. Software as a service (SaaS) has now pretty much replaced the old licensing model, but offering it was a strategic risk for SalesForce.com. Tags: entrepreneur startup strategic risk business.

Entrepreneur 97

Entrepreneur Pricing SaaS Competition 97

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 25, 2015

I have written about the deceiving nature of early successes before – in particular in the SaaS or B2B world leading to a phenomenon called “shelfware.” ” This, too, is a must read for any entrepreneur. And of course it’s true in personal productivity apps, SMB apps, B2B software and so forth.

Product 150

Product Startup Metrics Technical Review 150

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 19, 2017

One of the hardest decisions entrepreneurs make when they start a company and raise outside capital is figuring out what an acceptable “burn rate” is. I know as an entrepreneur you prefer as long of a runway as possible — I’ve never heard an entrepreneur argue for the opposite.

Startup 212

Startup Venture Capital .Net Capital 212

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 22, 2012

And of course on Twitter I’ve seen the Tweets, ReTweets and superlatives on what a great post it is. And so do entrepreneurs who are quick to pivot to new businesses or to sell in an acquihire. It’s been high tide since 2009 so an entire batch of entrepreneurs don’t know what low tide even looks like.

Startup 390

Startup Venture Capital Entrepreneur Technical Review 390

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 20, 2014

Want to be an entrepreneur? In addition, Entrepreneur Magazine recently included UCSB in its Top 50 Schools For VC Backed Entrepreneurs at number 37. The company quickly pivoted to create a SaaS solution and in less than two years later, it was acquired by Intuit for $30 million. Don''t go to Wharton or Harvard.

Santa Barbara 258

Santa Barbara Technical Review Startup Venture Capital 258

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 21, 2020

We discussed why in Q4 you will see large renegotiations of SaaS contracts and increased churn rates. Of course I believe the market has slowed down massively. We of course need to understand markets and market dynamics but many people understand this from an analytical perspective. It’s hard being a VC right now. Yes, critical.

Venture Capital 263

Venture Capital Marketing Startup Writing 263

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 6, 2015

When I counsel startup entrepreneurs I give them my blunt dose of reality, “If you can’t easily identify target leads who have a problem you can solve then hang up your cleats – you’re not going to succeed.” I built my first software company in the early days of SaaS and there were few models to go by.

Sales 150

Sales SaaS Startup Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 13, 2018

As a VC and former entrepreneur let me offer you some advice. The mistake entrepreneurs make is either writing a lengthy email (everybody has too much email so it will get skimmed / not digested) or not having a deck which means the VC can’t quickly determine his or her fit as a potential investor. The key is WHAT you send.

Venture Capital 261

Venture Capital Slides Email Startup 261

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 8, 2016

Of course it’s too early to predict whether this is a trend or an aberration but the smartest people I know in the industry are predicting the former. We entrepreneurs have been spinning that line for decades in every boom cycle. It applies to all startups – not just SaaS. This prudence is smart and welcomed.

Startup 150

Startup Pricing Venture Capital Statistics 150

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

Traditional software vs. SaaS. Of course it is super helpful if a VC can drop you in to important people for business development, recruiting, PR, sales and eventually M&A. The best way – of course – is to reference check. Think of web vs. mobile. SEO marketing vs. social marketing. Connections?

Venture Capital 364

Venture Capital Coach Writing SaaS 364

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 24, 2014

Of course, we all love disruptive new products, like the Pebble Smart Watch and Google Glass, but recent innovative services startups, including Uber for transportation and Airbnb for lodging, have grown much bigger and faster. Here is just a sampling to give you the idea: Software as a service (SaaS). Marty Zwilling.

Services 101

Services Startup Outsource Technical Support 101

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 18, 2015

I rarely talk to any startup entrepreneur or VC who doesn’t feel it and somehow long for simpler times despite the benefits we all enjoy from increased enthusiasm for our sector. For entrepreneurs there’s too much money sloshing around. They’re doing how much in SaaS revenue? My general advice is to do less.

Software Review 150

Software Review Startup Venture Capital Invest 150

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2013

I, of course, knew nothing about business. When I started my second company I was a serial entrepreneur. I introduced myself as a serial entrepreneur. I was a serial entrepreneur. When I decided to start blogging again (I had done so as an entrepreneur) I thought about how to brand myself. ” Instant.

Technical Advisors 385

Technical Advisors Marketing Startup Venture Capital 385

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 7, 2018

If you’re a SaaS company and the firm is a “consumer” firm (or vice versa) then don’t waste your time. As an investor I can tell you that when I meet an entrepreneur who knows very little about our fund or me as an individual it’s a huge turn off. All of this, of course, is Sales 101.

Funding 215

Funding Startup Venture Capital News 215

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 21, 2014

I’d like to do a few posts on what life looks like on the way up and perhaps how to keep your head on straight and avoid drinking your own Kool Aid because as I often advise entrepreneurs on irrational exuberance, “ In a strong wind even turkeys can fly.” Your favorite investor told you this was a bad idea.

Marketing 354

Marketing Case Study Metrics Sales 354

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2012

Most entrepreneurs think that risk is just an “occupational hazard” that can be minimized or eliminated by a smart businessman. Software as a service (SaaS) has now pretty much replaced the old licensing model, but offering it was a strategic risk for SalesForce.com. That way of thinking is simplistic and wrong.

Pricing 103

Pricing SaaS Competition Social Network 103

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 29, 2009

If you look at what you go through, starting high school, and maybe even middle or grade school, you go through your educational life managing courses, relationships with your teachers, and relationships with your parents. It's started with managing courses and grades, on to a whole array of other services.

Education 124

Education Startup Course Tool 124

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

I’d like to explain as best I can my opinion on what is going on because most of what I hear from entrepreneurs is not only wrong but is reminiscent of what I heard in 1997-2000. ” “This will be great for VCs and bad for entrepreneurs.” ” Of course life is more complicated. All of these are false.

Startup 150

Startup Company Companies Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 1, 2015

I don’t meet many rational invests (VCs or LPs) who believe this will last but of course nobody knows whether we have 6 weeks, 6 months or 2 years. Let me give you some examples I see of fauxmentum: In the SaaS world I see many business plans where companies have achieved 100-300% year-over-year growth and this is truly impressive.

Startup 150

Startup Marketing Custom Customer 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2011

Most entrepreneurs think that risk is just an “occupational hazard” that can be minimized or eliminated by a smart businessman. Software as a service (SaaS) has now pretty much replaced the old licensing model, but offering it was a strategic risk for SalesForce.com. That way of thinking is simplistic and wrong.

Startup 98

Startup Pricing SaaS Competition 98

Steve Reich

OCTOBER 30, 2012

Last week, the WSJ ran a great article (add link) on the value of college humanities courses, and used comments from a successful entrepreneur to make their case. The company builds a SaaS mobile banking platform for community banks. Successful fundraisers tell a complete, engaging story and close the deal.

Startup 65

Startup SaaS Platform .Net 65

SoCal CTO

AUGUST 3, 2010

SaaS 101: 7 Simple Lessons From Inside HubSpot - OnStartups , July 19, 2010 It’s been a little over 4 years since I officially launched my internet marketing software company , HubSpot. So, I’ve had about 4 years on the “inside” of a fast-growing, venture-backed B2B SaaS startup. I got a taste of that within my first weeks on the job.

Startup 217

Startup Venture Capital Blogging Software Review 217

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 6, 2014

And here’s an important point that I think modern entrepreneurs often forget: Investors are “co-owners” of your business. You may have raised money across multiple rounds of investors from 3-4 different VCs and of course most of them would like board seats or at a minimum board observer rights.

Startup 325

Startup Sales Technical Review Software Review 325

socalTECH

MAY 19, 2017

It was that combination of great talent, the great companies we can sell to here, and of course, the great lifestyle of living next to the beach, which is a no brainer. Andrew Peterson: We've been really lucky to have a lot of investors who have great experience in working with both SaaS companies, and especially, security.

Web 138

Web Startup Southern California Software 138

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 21, 2011

My macro theme was “great entrepreneurs&# who mapped to my belief system about the kind of entrepreneurs I wanted to work with. My background was 8 years of telecoms & mobile and 8 years of cloud computing & SaaS – so these two themes were a given. They know what you bought the last time you were shopping.

Mobile 329

Mobile Advertising Media Marketing 329

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2019

When an entrepreneur takes on investors who take equity (i.e. Of course there is usually an inverse relationship between how senior the person is, how much time they have available and on the other side how much time they’ll spend helping you and getting involved in details.

Startup 187

Startup Writing Venture Capital Oracle 187

InfoChachkie

FEBRUARY 24, 2011

8 ) SocialStay is effectively a B-to-B, SaaS product that requires you to simultaneously speak to several audiences (hotels, travelers, travel sites, etc.). Do you have any advice for emerging entrepreneurs regarding how they can be frugal without compromising their company’s value prop? They are starting to see the light.

Startup 233

Startup Design Mobile Social Network 233

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 23, 2015

Fred has of course been a public mentor to us all with his market-defining terminology that he popularized including “freemium” and “mobile first.” My initial blogging inspiration was actually Brad Feld because as an entrepreneur I always wanted to work with Brad after reading his advice on term sheets and the like.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Startup Writing Blogging 150

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 31, 2011

9) In Competing From The Fringe , I caution entrepreneurs to not alert their competitors when they are making mistakes. What are the primary differences between being a Founder, versus an early Executive, and which role would you recommend to an emerging entrepreneur? Ideally we’d like to work with other B2B SAAS businesses.

MyLife 160

MyLife CitySearch Web Technical Review 160

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 31, 2011

9) In Competing From The Fringe , I caution entrepreneurs to not alert their competitors when they are making mistakes. What are the primary differences between being a Founder, versus an early Executive, and which role would you recommend to an emerging entrepreneur? Ideally we’d like to work with other B2B SAAS businesses.

MyLife 157

MyLife CitySearch Web Technical Review 157

InfoChachkie

FEBRUARY 17, 2011

I taught a somewhat crazy course about writing and deploying a scalable website in Ruby on Rails and deploying it in EC2. When you began your teaching career, did you plan on eventually being an entrepreneur? What guidance can you give to anyone in a financially safe career who longs for the exciting life of an entrepreneur?

Cloud Computing 188

Cloud Computing Santa Barbara EC2 Startup 188

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 19, 2010

Vice versa is it’s a SaaS platform company where I spent nearly 10 years running companies. As both an entrepreneur (in VC and sales meetings) and as a VC I’ve seen this happen many times. In a positive way, of course. In our current portfolio 3 or his 4 investments are in the Fin Svcs space. Get them involved!

Venture Capital 318

Venture Capital Startup Sales Writing 318

InfoChachkie

OCTOBER 1, 2010

Entrepreneurs constantly have to capture the attention of larger companies. These people are employed to keep entrepreneurs out, maintain order and reduce disruptions. Although some BDCs may be miffed by job candidates like Kramer, who attempt unconventional points of entry, startups should welcome such entrepreneurs.

Company 124

Company Companies Email Press 124

InfoChachkie

MARCH 3, 2011

Thus, we became one of the first ASP (aka SaaS) companies, by selling subscriptions of our screen sharing technology to customer service departments – the same market segment which had adopted BuddyHelp. He is a member of the University of California at Santa Barbara’s Faculty where he teaches several entrepreneurial courses. _.

Custom 162

Custom Customer Technical Support Startup 162