Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 21, 2020

Many of the entrepreneurs I advise or invest with spend considerable time on the Internet, keeping up with technology, customers, and competitors, but very few feel the need for an early personal presence. You may not see the need for a YouTube, Instagram, or Twitter account now, until someone takes the name you want.

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Tech.Co

MAY 16, 2024

However, despite growing optimism, the path to success for Black entrepreneurs is still paved with systematic barriers in 2024. Power Forward Small Business Grant Black Founder Startup Grant Powershift Entrepreneurs Grant NAACP and Lelsie’s Certification Boost Grant U.S. You can unsubscribe at any time.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2022

My recommendation to entrepreneurs is to recognize these concerns as an opportunity to make people’s life better, rather than worry and dodge the risk. I see lots of new software put together on a shoestring as a “proof of concept” – but then gets rolled out to customers “asis” due to lack of time or money to “harden” the product.

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Customer Custom Technical Review Symantec 137

InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 15, 2014

Multiple surveys confirm that honesty is one of the most common traits of serial entrepreneurs. In his book, The Entrepreneur’s Manual , Richard White cites a survey of venture capitalists which ranks honesty as the single most important characteristic for serial success. Honesty Matters - Honest. Image : Wikipedia. Share and Enjoy.

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InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 9, 2013

At Rincon Venture Partners , we have invested in several female entrepreneurs(so far), including Tracy DiNunzio, Founder and CEO of Tradesy. which serves to further diminish the perceived number of accomplished women entrepreneurs. If you haven''t already subscribed yet, subscribe now for free weekly JohnGreathouse.com articles!

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Berkonomics

MAY 25, 2023

First, if your vision is limited and you will be happy with a successful local dry-cleaning enterprise or small restaurant around the corner, you are not the target for this epic effort to help entrepreneurs build great businesses that do change the world. Please take what you can from these weekly posts. Many will apply directly to you.)

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 27, 2017

Customer service has traditionally been a support function to respond to customer initiated requests, meaning someone waits for the phone to ring or for a website support request form. The old days of routing a customer to a single phone queue for any request will quickly kill any brand loyalty or advocate referral.

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socalTECH

MARCH 1, 2018

As part of the lead in to the conference, and as a part of our sponsor relationship with the conference, we're running a series of interviews with speakers from the conference about their experience in the area of recurring revenues, customer service, and similar topics. We respond very quickly to all of our customers. Kevin Anderson.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 6, 2015

Every new baby gets a name before it is introduced to the world, and yet some entrepreneurs continue to send me business plans with TBD (to be determined) in place of a business name on the front page. Your business name will have the same impact on potential customers. Don’t limit future expansion possibilities.

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InfoChachkie

AUGUST 22, 2016

We had a spirited discussion regarding a number of issues related to blowing past $10M in annual recurring SaaS revenue, in front of a sold-out crowd of about 400 entrepreneurs. Near the conclusion of our discussion, I asked each CEO to name any non-obvious metrics by which they guide their businesses. Share and Enjoy.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2014

First things first – your startup needs a name! The name of your business has a tremendous impact on how customers and investors view you, and in today’s small world, it’s a world-wide decision. Here are some key things I look for in the name, with some expert help from Alex Frankel and others: Unique and unforgettable.

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 12, 2010

Here is the email he received (reprinted without names with his permission). “Hi [entrepreneur], I hope all is well. I’m an investor at [Big Name, Large Fund VC] and recently came across [Your Company]. Looking forward to speaking, Name [redacted]. So I have to imagine many other entrepreneurs felt the same.

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 26, 2020

The name “investment bank” somehow always sounded like a place where I could deposit my investments, and maybe even earn a little interest. Most retail and commercial banks offer investment services to their customers, but these services have nothing to do with investing in your business.

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socalTECH

JULY 7, 2010

One complaint we sometimes hear from venture capitalists visiting Southern California for the first time, is the difficulty of finding experienced entrepreneurs and executives. socalTECH.com has mined its proprietary database of high tech companies and entrepreneurs and identified just a few of the repeat entrepreneurs to watch in the region.

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Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 19, 2009

This is part of my new series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity. Many entrepreneurs struggle with their setbacks.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 17, 2019

Traditionally, the majority of entrepreneurs have been logical thinkers, problem solvers, with full attention to details. Of course, the best solution would be a new wave of so-called whole-brain thinkers, but this term is usually reserved for Einstein and Picasso, and no entrepreneurs that I can name.

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SoCal Tech Calendar

JUNE 17, 2021

What Every Entrepreneur Needs To Know. What: Energy/Sustainability, Greentech, Cleantech, Climatetech - these are all names attempting to group together the multi-trillion dollar opportunities that deal with our energy system, our built infrastructure, and our global economy, as it moves to a low-carbon and more sustainable future.

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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 31, 2011

One of the most common questions that entrepreneurs who meet me for the first time like to ask is, “Do you miss being an entrepreneur? I thought I’d talk a bit about the differences I’ve experienced between being an entrepreneur & a VC – you know, from “both sides of the table.&#. On Being an Entrepreneur.

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StartUp Beat

NOVEMBER 9, 2017

Grigori Mikayelyan was a failed and an aspiring entrepreneur; furnished with a new idea – and determined to make a success of it – he became a Lyft driver to conduct customer research with his passengers. What prospective entrepreneur wouldn’t benefit from canvassing such a broad scope of opinion?

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2014

The days are gone when a techie or a genius could build things in his garage and customers would find and buy the product, based purely on the “wow factor” of the technology. Thus customers and partners rely more and more on personal engagement with people. branding business David Rogers engagement entrepreneur startup'

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 5, 2015

Most of the technologists I know inherently believe that the terms inventor and entrepreneur mean the same thing, so they are frustrated and surprised when they build their products and no business evolves. The term entrepreneur has always been defined as a person who builds a new business, which may or may not involve inventing a product.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 20, 2022

Why else would name brands with huge resources, like Blockbuster and Kodak , get overrun by upstarts like Netflix and Apple. You can’t ignore the key principles preached by every innovative entrepreneur: Build tomorrow’s opportunity rather than extend today’s. Don’t be trapped by linear thinking.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 27, 2022

Some entrepreneurs are “lone rangers,” never mentioning any outside guidance, while others tout dozens of advisors. Few entrepreneurs, no matter what their background, have the breadth of experience and expertise to face all the challenges of a new startup without relying on some guidance from an engaged and committed advisor.

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Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 19, 2011

He is very hands-on and helpful – especially for any company looking into customer acquisition. Consumers responded to name and concept well, solves real problem, o Took 4 months to build initial prototype. On Entrepreneurship: What makes a great entrepreneur? combination of factors –. we both love Jason).

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Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 24, 2021

When someone says Intellectual Property (IP), most entrepreneurs think only of patents. Here are the key elements: Company name. The company name becomes your intellectual property at the moment you incorporate your startup as an LLC or a Corporation. Sole proprietorships need to trademark the name to protect it.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 7, 2011

Most then add customer service at the rollout, but very few really understand what it means to be truly customer centric, and even fewer really achieve it. Customer centricity is far more than providing excellent customer service, although that’s a step in the right direction. Focus on individual customer value.

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Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 25, 2013

A good entrepreneur is not necessarily born a good salesman. The alternative “If we build it, they will come” approach has long been relegated to the field of dreams , after Kevin Costner’s movie by the same name. Julie is known as the entrepreneur’s selling mentor, for both men and women. Claim your sweet spot.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 25, 2023

In the aftermath of the recent pandemic, which caused many businesses to close, a new raft of business workers and entrepreneurs are deciding to pursue their own dreams of being a new business owner, and controlling your own destiny. Pick a name, location, and marketing strategy early. Names and taglines are critical to success.

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Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 17, 2009

This is part of my new series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I also wonder about the entrepreneur who would sign a term sheet that came from somebody they hadn’t gotten to know over time. Great entrepreneurs pivot.

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Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 14, 2023

Finding your sweet spot as an entrepreneur needs to start with a meaningful personal purpose that is also a business opportunity. Many entrepreneurs are finding their “secret sauce” these days by combining a strong purpose with a good business opportunity. Delight and deliver value to your customers.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2013

First things first – your startup needs a name! The name of your business has a tremendous impact on how customers and investors view you, and in today’s small world, it’s a world-wide decision. Here are some key things I look for in the name, with some help from Alex Frankel and others: Unique and unforgettable.

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Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 26, 2010

This is part of my series on what makes an entrepreneur successful. I originally posted it on VentureHacks , one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs. I started the series talking about what I consider the most important attribute of an entrepreneur : Tenacity. The best entrepreneurs focus on details.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 21, 2013

New entrepreneurs who want to survive, and optimize the growth of their startups, need to think globally, and act locally, from day one. But it does mean that you think about the global implications at every step of the process: Pick your company and product names carefully. Speak the customer’s language. Marty Zwilling.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 18, 2022

New entrepreneurs who want to survive, and optimize the growth of their startups, need to think globally, and act locally, from day one. But it does mean that you think about the global implications at every step of the process: Pick your company and product names carefully. Speak the customer’s language.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 22, 2010

On why you should be an entrepreneur, “A lot of people do what they have to do. He said that he noticed a lot of tech entrepreneurs don’t speak into the mic, don’t project their voices with confidence and aren’t necessarily paying attention to the mood or energy of the audience. This was in the 90′s.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2023

Many passionate entrepreneurs fight to add more features into their new products and services, assuming that more function will make the solution more appealing to more customers. Focus is the art of limiting your scope to the key function that really matters for the majority of customers.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 1, 2023

Too many entrepreneurs I know still believe that that their great idea will carry the startup, and they may even minimize their own value, especially if they have introvert tendencies. Yet most investors agree that the “idea” is worth nothing alone, and it’s the entrepreneur execution that counts. Remember the rule of one.

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