Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 21, 2010

In writing anything positive about any of the companies I’m not suggesting that it means that I prefer them to any of their competitors. Also, some of the deals I write about I have actually seen as part of their fund raising process. So there is likely robust demand from borrowers. Enter P2P lending.

Venture Capital 265

Venture Capital Capital Email Blogging 265

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 25, 2011

Yesterday I saw a Tweet from Chris Sacca fly by that prompted me to want to write a blog post helping entrepreneurs understand why they should push back against VCs asking for “super pro-rata” rights. They might own 8% of your company after the first funding but demand up to 33-50% of your next round of financing.

Entrepreneur 310

Entrepreneur Venture Capital Writing Invest 310

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 7, 2014

This is something I think entrepreneurs don’t totally understand and it’s worthwhile they do. No VC will be so naive as not to see straight through it. When I first became a VC, seed rounds were typically $500k – $1.5 If you''re newer to VC math here''s a great primer]. Nobody cares.

Seed Funding 399

Seed Funding Venture Capital Startup Entrepreneur 399

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2014

For starters some funds are small and thus while they put $750k into your company to own 10% of your company they might not be able to write another $2 million if you then raise a $20 million round (10%). A day after I published this Changing Structure of VC article I noticed at least one “Angel Prorata Fund” on AngelList.

Guide 336

Guide Venture Capital Startup Writing 336

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2010

My primary role was “chief psychologist&# and as I’ve learned over the past few years the same has been true as a VC. I finally got around to writing it having read Fred Wilson’s post about what a CEO does. Some entrepreneurs make the mistake of never devolving power. Both are basically people businesses.

Venture Capital 319

Venture Capital Startup Sales Customer 319

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. So it was my great pleasure to host Chamillionaire on This Week in VC this week talking marketing, entrepreneurship, old media and, of course, music. You want to get yourself to a position where you can do what you want to do&# (Chamillionaire).

Entrepreneur 356

Entrepreneur Venture Capital Startup Email 356

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 5, 2023

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million-dollar investment before they even have a business plan. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). Funding or rollout stage.

Startup 122

Startup Funding Organization Incubator 122

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 22, 2010

Back in 1999 when I first raised venture capital I had zero knowledge of what a fair term sheet looked like or how to value my company. And for some strange reason entrepreneurs didn’t share this information. I just want to figure out what a fair valuation is.&# I figured all the VC’s talked so we should.

Venture Capital 405

Venture Capital Pricing Startup Funding 405

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 21, 2018

I was recently with an entrepreneur and talking with him about his fund raising process. link] Another entrepreneur was recently in my office. She had emailed with a partner at a big VC fund and he had passed the request to a junior associate. If you don’t act in demand, people will subconsciously know you’re not in demand.

Funding 217

Funding Newsletter Venture Capital Email 217

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 8, 2014

” It’s the most common refrain I hear from investors and even entrepreneurs these days. ” I hear it when I visit LPs (the people who invest in VCs) all across the country, “Yeah, I haven’t been out there for a few years but I keep hearing that something is going on there.” for $565 million to Excite.

Entrepreneur 376

Entrepreneur Snapchat Startup Google 376

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2017

I often ask entrepreneurs to consider, “What’s your objective? Do you imagine eventually raising VC and trying to build a faster growing company?” Venture capital isn’t right for many business but if you do want to raise from a VC at some point you need to understand that often investors care more about growth than profits.

Startup 227

Startup Venture Capital Sales Course 227

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 12, 2020

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). Funding or rollout stage.

Resource 171

Resource Startup Organization Incubator 171

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 15, 2013

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). Funding or rollout stage. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Funding Incubator Startup 102

SoCal CTO

MARCH 11, 2013

Yesterday, I was talking to a startup founder about their MVP and they said something that finally got me to write this post: "I have a few investors interested but they want to see a product." Investors demand more than that. What The Heck Does “Traction” Really Mean To A VC?

Metrics 264

Metrics Venture Capital News Product 264

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 18, 2010

As a startup entrepreneur you’ll have many demands for your time. The problem is that the scarcest resource in any entrepreneur’s life is your time. “Thank you for writing to me – it’s nice to hear from you (or meet you) via email. As a VC I struggle to say “no&# to meetings.

Startup 305

Startup Venture Capital Writing Conference 305

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 15, 2019

The company recently raised a round of funding from Santa Barbara-based ScOps Venture Capital. There's lots of noise in the on-demand tutoring space, especially connecting people virtually, however, in my experience, it's in the best interest of consumers to get in-person, local tutoring. What is HeyTutor?

Startup 113

Startup Venture Capital Beverly Hills Acquisition 113

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 27, 2011

I interviewed Eric for an hour for - This Week in Venture Capital. 3:35 The real entrepreneurs come out during a down economy. 19:30 A teachable moment for entrepreneurs: HAVE A HYPOTHESIS! 24:00 Big money vs. 36:30 Eric: Social media is great for people with social capital. ” This week was no exception.

Social Media 301

Social Media Startup Metrics Media 301

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 19, 2015

They suffered in trying to live up to public perceptions and the demands to continue their successes. Entrepreneurs could learn about loneliness of success: nobody talks about. The Yo-Yo Life of a Tech Entrepreneur. But needed to be seen. Mark Suster (@msuster) July 19, 2015. Of course that’s true. I was 31.

Press 150

Press Venture Capital Startup Entrepreneur 150

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

I find it amusing when a journalist writes an article about a prominent startup (either privately held or preparing for an IPO) and decries that, “They’re not even profitable!” If you have a market lead then raising capital and making investments now will help you as others enter the market. ” The Details.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 28, 2018

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). Funding or rollout stage.

Funding 94

Funding Startup Organization Incubator 94

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 5, 2013

Well, a down round is even more complicated than having no demand for your investment round. And most VCs are over-whelmed with deals. So given the choice of p **g off your VCs (and you) they simply give you a polite response and move on to the next deal (with less hair on it). A down round. That’s why.

Pricing 302

Pricing Seed Funding Invest Venture Capital 302

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 25, 2016

If such write-downs only impacted the faux unicorns and their avaricious investors, there would be little need for alarm. Unfortunately, the coming market correction will reverberate to all stages of venture investing. At Rincon Venture Partners , we continue to be disciplined, seed-stage investors. Find A Partner Not A Banker.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Invest Venture Capital 100

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 16, 2010

Ever had a meeting with a CEO who was really short with you, demanded the answer quickly and was fidgety while you spoke? For extroverted people I recommend that entrepreneurs have an “executive summary&# slide up front that cuts to the chase. 25% of VCs are expressives, like you. Most entrepreneurs are.

Slides 358

Slides Venture Capital Startup Summary 358

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

2: As expected at least one person accused me of writing this post because I want to see lower valuations. I have conversations with entrepreneurs and other VCs on a daily basis about fund raising, the prices of deals, how much companies should raise, etc. I acknowledged this in the article. That’s stupid.

Startup 336

Startup Pricing Technical Review Marketing 336

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 22, 2011

Redpoint Ventures is one of the venture capital firms which has straddled both Northern California and Southern California, with offices in both locations. We've created over a billion dollars in public market capital created by our investments here. We can also write checks as large as $35M out of the Omega Fund.

Redpoint 154

Redpoint Southern California Cornerstone OnDemand Invest 154

TechCrunch LA

MARCH 31, 2021

Finally for startups there’s a $31 billion available for programs that give small businesses access to credit, venture capital, and R&D dollars. This increased competition is good for hardware vendors and ultimately could create new businesses for entrepreneurs who want to become ISPs of their own. Sick of your ISP?

Startup 229

Startup Technical Review Invest Research 229

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 27, 2016

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). Funding or rollout stage.

Organization 93

Organization Startup Incubator Ideas 93

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 15, 2010

The life of an entrepreneur is filled with 20 second opportunities. My partner was in product management at Demand Media. So 2 things reminded me of that story and got me thinking about writing this post: I was on a panel this week talking to a crowd of a couple of hundred aspiring entrepreneurs. Most are squandered.

Startup 315

Startup Content Conference Media 315

Jason Nazar

MARCH 22, 2011

In the bay area it’s quite common for the entrepreneurs starting a company to be developers or technologists who can build the first versions of their products. When he had the idea for his company, he didn’t write a long business plan or try to raise money to hire an agency to build a website for him.

Company 111

Company Companies Startup Twiistup 111

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 16, 2012

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). Funding or rollout stage.

Resource 94

Resource Startup Organization Incubator 94

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 5, 2010

I’ve been meaning to write this post since September of last year when Brad Feld first wrote about the The Founders Visa Movement. I commented briefly on his blog and made a mental note to write a blog post. But it turns out I met a bunch of really interesting entrepreneurs. But TWTFelipe is an entrepreneur.

Technical Review 282

Technical Review Startup High Tech Software Review 282

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 25, 2016

In our industry we applaud the efforts for entrepreneurs to have tried and we know that today’s failure can bring the experience for tomorrow’s success. The questions that a VC mulls before writing a check are precisely the questions you should be asking yourself. Market Size. And how much do others providers make?

Startup 150

Startup Marketing Study SEO 150

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 18, 2010

I’m a pretty natural public speaker so I can write my presentation the day before and do just fine. I wrote out 3 pages of bullet point notes on paper and delivered a 20-minute speech to a crowd of entrepreneurs (which included the Minister of Technology for China). Get VCs to agree to join. I couldn’t.

Slides 374

Slides Email Entrepreneur Startup 374

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 13, 2011

Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy). Funding or rollout stage.

Startup 92

Startup Organization Incubator Ideas 92

Tech Zulu Event

APRIL 17, 2012

They are used by almost all the entrepreneurs I met with and have gained some serious traction in the marketplace. Almost, two years since the inception, he has built up a team and product making a name for himself as one of the city’s most promising entrepreneurs. Same space, different spin.

Startup 109

Startup Incubator Seed Funding Platform 109

socalTECH

JULY 20, 2011

We thought it was a real opportunity to bring in some taste-maker editors, who could write specifically for that audience, and break news. However, it was an idea and concept which had been brewing for awhile, and besides, I had a personal interest in starting my own company and wanting to be an entrepreneur. It was an eye opener.

News 173

News Entertainment Startup Bertelsmann 173

InfoChachkie

JULY 14, 2011

9) In Getting The Band Back Together , I write about the power of serial Founding teams. Do you have any words of caution or advice for entrepreneurs who attempt to “Get Their Band Back Together”? “In When assembling a team, I encourage entrepreneurs to seek out the MVPs, and look to build diversity into the teams they assemble.”.

Marketing 209

Marketing Advertising Paid Search Startup 209