Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2016

Entrepreneurs who are looking to attract investors need to develop and pitch a plan -- preferably written -- that answers every potential investor question about your startup before it is asked. Investors want to hear about customers with money who have a painful problem that you can solve now.

Invest 108

Invest Startup Slides Equity 108

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2013

Scan the Internet for existing patents and some “credible unbiased third party” data that confirms there is really a market for a solution resulting from your idea. Just because you or your friends think it is a great idea or great technology, that doesn’t mean that a large number of customers will buy it.

Ideas 106

Ideas Startup Summary CalTech 106

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2009

On December 2nd, 2006 I wrote the blog post published later in this post when I was CEO of startup Koral about my experiences in pitching VCs. It included one firm who I asked not to call Salesforce.com as a reference (they were our largest pilot customer) and in their kindness they called Marc Benioff (the CEO) and asked his opinion.

Venture Capital 274

Venture Capital Blogging Startup Slides 274

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

Based on my experience and data from the field, over seventy-five percent of new startups fail, even with venture backing. In my experience, the key steps I look for always include the following: Testing the idea against customers who have money to spend. Prepare your marketing story for customers and investors.

Ideas 94

Ideas Slides Technical Review Patents 94

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2015

Few investors these days have the time or patience to read a full business plan, so a better way to catch their eye is with a tightly written and well formatted two-page executive summary. I see too many executive summaries that are simply heavy-duty customer pitches, or lightweight visions of the future.

Summary 101

Summary Patents Technical Review Competition 101

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2021

I like the summary of the competitive reality in a new book, “ Rethinking Competitive Advantage: New Rules for the Digital Age ,” by Ram Charan, who relates a wealth of current experience from global clients: Customers expect a personalized experience. Thus it’s more important than ever that you keep up with the latest trends and rules.

Competition 142

Competition Software Review Social Media Customer 142

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 12, 2013

Behind most great startup success stories is a long list of mistakes! Every startup mentor has his favorite list of basic strategies to avoid pitfalls, and I’m no exception. Every startup mentor has his favorite list of basic strategies to avoid pitfalls, and I’m no exception. Assume your initial strategy will be wrong.

Tips 102

Tips Help Startup Blogging 102

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2012

In my experience, there is no magic gene involved, just simple good habits executed consistently and convincingly until everyone around you in a startup wants to follow your example. In a startup, things don’t always work, and it’s easy to blame someone else, the poor economy, or just bad luck. Be accountable for your actions.

Startup 104

Startup Examples Entrepreneur Ideas 104

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 24, 2015

First of all, I will admit that there is some risk involved with talking to any potential investors, even with an agreement, just as there is risk in all the elements of your plan, product and market opportunity. Disclosures relative to patents. Product details in the public domain can never be patented.

Ideas 106

Ideas Technical Review Patents Entrepreneur 106

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 8, 2015

They also look for entrepreneurs they know from past experience and warm introductions, or for evidence that you have previously built a successful startup, and sold your last one for maybe $800 million. Every pitch should start with a concise statement of the problem and your innovative solution.

Technical Review 109

Technical Review Entrepreneur Startup Statistics 109

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 24, 2014

They also look for entrepreneurs they know from past experience and warm introductions, or for evidence that you have previously built a successful startup, and sold your last one for maybe $800 million. Every pitch should start with a concise statement of the problem and your innovative solution.

Entrepreneur 119

Entrepreneur Technical Review Statistics Startup 119

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 4, 2012

In most cases, I provide some combination of the following advice: Brevity - Maximum length: two pages. Hopefully this straightforward format will help you avoid overly obtuse verbiage, while keeping your executive summary to two pages. Patents and Trademarks. Follow my startup-oriented Twitter feed here: @johngreathouse.

Venture Capital 211

Venture Capital Summary Technical Review Template 211

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 5, 2018

They also look for entrepreneurs they know from past experience and warm introductions, or for evidence that you have previously built a successful startup, and sold your last one for maybe $800 million. Every pitch should start with a concise statement of the problem and your innovative solution.

Funding 62

Funding Technical Review Entrepreneur Startup 62

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 5, 2018

Tech may be the tool, but hospitality – making life a little easier, more comfortable, and more enjoyable for your customer, is the winning focus. Unfortunately, too many of the technical entrepreneurs I mentor and advise are focused on their technology, and assume that the value will be self-evident to customers.

Technical Advisors 82

Technical Advisors Artificial Inteligence Customer Custom 82

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 24, 2012

Every new startup I know dreams of being funded early by one of the 318,000 active Angel investors in the USA alone. Over the past 10 years, I have had the opportunity to see how the process works, several times from the startup side, and more recently from the Angel perspective (as a member of an Angel group screening committee).

Angel 104

Angel Screening Summary Startup 104

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2012

Scan the Internet for existing patents and some “credible unbiased third party” data that confirms there is really a market for a solution resulting from your idea. Just because you or your friends think it is a great idea or great technology, that doesn’t mean that a large number of customers will buy it.

Ideas 97

Ideas Summary Startup CalTech 97

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 30, 2013

In my experience, there is no magic gene involved, just simple good habits executed consistently and convincingly until everyone around you in a startup wants to follow your example. In a startup, things don’t always work, and it’s easy to blame someone else, the poor economy, or just bad luck. Be accountable for your actions.

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Startup Examples Ideas 104

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 7, 2011

Scan the Internet for existing patents and some “credible unbiased third party” data that confirms there is really a market for a solution resulting from your idea. Just because you or your friends think it is a great idea or great technology, that doesn’t mean that a large number of customers will buy it.

Ideas 104

Ideas Entrepreneur Summary Startup 104

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 27, 2012

As a member of the local Angel group selection committee, I’ve seen a lot of startup presentations to investors, and I’ve never seen one that was too short - maybe short on content, but not short on pages! Every startup needs both a business plan and an investor presentation, completed before you formally approach any investors.

Slides 99

Slides Competition Sample Sales 99

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 22, 2012

The biggest complaint I hear from investors is that startup founders often talk way too long, and neglect to cover the most relevant points. If you start by pitching your extended life story, that’s the wrong point. Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Start with the problem and your solution.

Tips 97

Tips Slides Technical Review Startup 97

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2011

Every new startup I know dreams of being funded by an angel investor. Over the past 10 years, I have had the opportunity to see how the process works, several times from the startup side, and more recently from the angel perspective (as a member of an angel group selection committee). Line up an experienced team.

Invest 99

Invest Angel Technical Review Summary 99

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 19, 2010

As a member of the local angel group Selection Committee, I’ve seen a lot of startup presentations to investors, and I’ve never seen one that was too short - maybe short on content, but not short on pages! Every startup needs both a business plan and an investor presentation, completed before you formally approach any investors.

Slides 94

Slides Competition Sample Sales 94

socalTECH

JULY 18, 2012

One way is to create your own, custom video clip which you can share via email, text message, or through a social networking site like Facebook. For a receiver, the receiving page on SnapCuts can also be branded or skinned. We thought it would be nice to combine that with sending a text message, which is how the whole thing started.

Social Network 246

Social Network Mobile Media Examples 246

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 15, 2010

plus a large settlement on patent disputes paid from Google) so Bill did well on it. Google monetized this with AdWords (ads on their home page). So when Google started pushing AdSense (ads for affiliate or 3rd party sites) they had a HUGE cost advantage. In the former case many people scoffed at paying up for Google at IPO.

Venture Capital 271

Venture Capital Capital Google Platform 271

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2016

There is no shame in getting knocked down; it’s getting back up that matters. In a startup, pivots and problems will happen. Dean Kamen, while still struggling with the Segway Human Transporter, holds 440 other device patents. Great businesses these days start with innovation. Now he has over 20,000 stores.

Examples 76

Examples Startup Coach Patents 76

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 23, 2010

Every new startup I know dreams of being funded by an angel investor. Over the past 10 years, I have had the opportunity to see how the process works, several times from the startup side, and more recently from the angel perspective (as a member of an angel group selection committee). Line up an experienced team.

Angel 89

Angel Funding Technical Review Startup 89

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 10, 2011

As a member of the local Angel group selection committee, I’ve seen a lot of startup presentations to investors, and I’ve never seen one that was too short - maybe short on content, but not short on pages! Every startup needs both a business plan and an investor presentation, completed before you formally approach any investors.

Slides 93

Slides Competition Sample Sales 93

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 22, 2010

It's been awhile since we last caught up with Los Angeles-based Language Weaver (www.languageweaver.com), a venture-backed firm which develops language translation software, so we sat down the other day with Mark Tapling , the President and CEO of the firm, to hear more about where the company is nowadays--plus its strategy for growth and an exit.

Software Review 145

Software Review USC Content Tech Coast Angels 145

SoCal Delicious

SEPTEMBER 13, 2012

The Startup UCLA Accelerator Is About Entrepreneurship Not Investment Returns. Next → Later today, the Startup UCLA accelerator will have its inaugural demo day. While it’s en vogue for everyone and their grandmother to start an accelerator, the University is coming at it with much, much different motivations than most.

UCLA 47

UCLA Invest Startup Class 47

Jason Nazar

MAY 2, 2016

I’ve spent almost 20 years starting businesses and helping hundreds of clients, colleges & friends start theirs. I created this resource to have the single most comprehensive guide anywhere on all the different items involved in starting a business. Set up your computer and network. Recommended. Recommended.

Outsource Development 40

Outsource Development Startup Google Mentor 40

socalTECH

JULY 15, 2009

What we were looking at, when this first started taking off, was using instant messaging lines and really trying to see how people were using them socially. Our goal was to take those observations, and subsequent research, and turn that into commercial products. I had tried my hand at some startups, and was mildly successful.

Startup 100

Startup Research UCI Social Network 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

For the rest of us, we need a business plan, as well as a product plan. Some of you may be convinced that your product specification communicates the product message even better than a business plan, so why be redundant? Use non-fuzzy terms to quantify customer value. Provide specifics on the customer business model.

Product 169

Product Summary Startup Examples 169

socalTECH

JULY 29, 2009

You could create a business process design Genie, and announce it through public relations or social networking efforts, and direct them to a login page. As part of your launch, we can integrate Google or Paypal payment options into the login page. How did the company start? We have patents filed on this process.

Geni 100

Geni Web Guide Platform 100

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 11, 2011

At the time when you did a search on Lycos, Alta Vista or similar for a category such as Cars you ended up getting 9 spam results and 1 proper website to meet your needs. The idea actually came to him from the Yellow Pages business. So the Yellow Page business was always “pay for placement.&#.

Competition 350

Competition Idealab Product CitySearch 350

SoCal Delicious

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012

Tech startup accelerators dot the landscape, feeding investments into the waiting arms of the nation’s most intelligent and driven entrepreneurs. Founder and CEO since starting the company back in 1999, Miller has led Cornerstone through 11 years of consecutive growth. 27 on the list of Most Valuable Startups. I’d say yes.

Technical Review 75

Technical Review Entrepreneur Riot Games Southern California 75

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 3, 2020

Good examples of initial focus by an entrepreneur would include Jeff Bezos when he started Amazon as an online marketplace for books only, and Elon Musk starting PayPal as an online bank. Even if this is your first startup, you must have some personal life evidence that you finish things you start, never give up, and stay focused.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Startup Patents Resource 126

SoCal Delicious

MARCH 1, 2010

RSS ); Why You Should Start a Company in. Los Angeles By: Laura Rich February 26, 2010 It used to be, if you were serious about starting a tech company, you went to Silicon Valley. But emerging entrepreneurial hubs around the country are giving startup aspirants options. startup scene so hot. a great place for startups?

Los Angeles 50

Los Angeles Company Companies Angel 50