Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 21, 2018

If you are one of the thousands of entrepreneurs who need equity funding to get your startup going (no loans to repay), you are probably overwhelmed at the prospect of finding, contacting and pitching to the huge number of qualified angels and investment groups around the country. Recruit a team with complementary skills.

Platform 94

Platform Equity Invest Technical Advisors 94

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 7, 2020

Even though I’m a big proponent of becoming an entrepreneur, it is definitely not for everyone. In my view, entrepreneur roles need to be planned carefully rather than made on the spur of the moment. Adopt the Silicon Valley entrepreneur family model. Test your entrepreneur instincts through crowdfunding.

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Sample Entrepreneur Ideas Startup 126

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 18, 2022

A popular approach for aspiring entrepreneurs these days seems to be to corner anyone who will listen, with a pitch on their current “million dollar idea.” What separates an idea person from a visionary leader? Visionary leaders radiate a sense of energy, strong will, and personal integrity. Marty Zwilling.

Ideas 149

Ideas Startup Entrepreneur Resource 149

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 30, 2021

Several times in my investing life, as the final board member making the arrangements to dispose of remaining assets, I have literally been the one to turn out the lights, carry out the documents, books and records to my car, and become the only remaining contact between the failed business and the investors, bankruptcy court, or creditors.

Entrepreneur 156

Entrepreneur Training Invest Email 156

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 9, 2018

This is a very common scenario when entrepreneurs pitch VCs and frankly is a very common scenario when VCs try to raise money from LPs. When you pitched me I really did love you. At night I had a group dinner where I met 6 new entrepreneurs and hung out with some old friends from law firms, banks and other VC funds.

Software Review 381

Software Review Startup Email Conference 381

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 7, 2023

Young entrepreneurs often are so excited by new technology or their latest invention that they forget to translate it into a value proposition that their customers or potential investors can understand and relate to. Personal privacy protection. Payback on investment. Skip the acronyms and implementation details.

Social Network 108

Social Network Training Startup Technology 108

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 22, 2021

Yet in my experience on both sides of this equation, I find that many aspiring entrepreneurs focus only on the best idea , assuming that it will attract the right investors. Develop a personal story as a visionary and learner. Offer an attractive and viable investment equation. In reality, that’s only half the story.

Ideas 140

Ideas Entrepreneur Equity Resource 140

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 12, 2012

Even with great credentials, it is all too possible for an entrepreneur to come across as a high risk investment. Here are some “rules of thumb” that indicate a marketable and experienced entrepreneur: Highlights team strengths, more than his own. Loner entrepreneurs won’t get their foot in the door with any investor I know.

Entrepreneur 97

Entrepreneur Invest Ideas Venture Capital 97

socalTECH

APRIL 12, 2017

Wallach on investments out of a new fund, Inevitable Ventures. How did you end up here in Los Angeles doing investments? I was the youngest person at the firm, fresh to LA, super excited about everything, and I gravitated towards those smaller deals in the venture space. Ron chose me to manage those investments.

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Invest Startup Hollywood Echo Park 157

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 4, 2020

As an entrepreneur, I understand your passion when pitching your solution to investors and customers, but passion alone won’t make one more technology pitch stand out above all the rest. I can tell you from my own experience as an advisor and an investor, what everyone remembers is a good personal story.

Startup 145

Startup Competition Customer Custom 145

SoCal Tech Calendar

JUNE 5, 2019

Tuesday, June 11, 2019 -- San Diego FundingPost VC and Angel Investor PitchFest + Pitch Workshop. Due to the overwhelming demand to pitch at our last event in San Diego, we're throwing an exclusive PitchFest speed dating event where you will be pitching to over 20 investors one-on-one! We're doing it again!

San Diego 100

San Diego Venture Capital Angel Summary 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 14, 2020

As an advisor to entrepreneurs and active angel investor, I often get questions about the realism of the Shark Tank TV series, compared to professional investor negotiations. Yet the process is eerily realistic, and every entrepreneur can glean some important lessons. Investors invest in people, more than ideas.

Entrepreneur 127

Entrepreneur Sample Ideas Customer 127

SoCal Tech Calendar

JUNE 7, 2019

Thursday, June 13, 2019 -- Orange County FundingPost VC and Angel Investor PitchFest + Pitch Workshop. Due to the overwhelming demand to pitch at our last event in Orange County, we're throwing an exclusive PitchFest speed dating event where you will be pitching to over 20 investors one-on-one! We're doing it again!

Orange County 100

Orange County Venture Capital Angel Tech Coast Angels 100

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 15, 2021

As a member of an angel investment group for years, I’m sometimes surprised to see founders with a good technical business case get rejected for funding, while others seem to have a hidden quality that gives them credibility to be fundable despite some missing elements. Adjust based on feedback from many practice rounds.

Entrepreneur 174

Entrepreneur Examples Google Funding 174

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 14, 2010

This is the second article in a series on what it takes to be a great angel investor (and why this should matter to entrepreneurs). And we all know that Ron Conway is considered the savviest of angel investors and yet by definition not all of his investments succeed. I personally try to avoid many of these club deals.

Invest 288

Invest Angel Web 2.0 SEO 288

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 10, 2015

As an advisor to entrepreneurs and active angel investor, I often get questions about the realism of the Shark Tank TV series, compared to professional investor negotiations. Yet the process is eerily realistic, and every entrepreneur can glean some important lessons. Investors invest in people, more than ideas.

Entrepreneur 106

Entrepreneur Sample Ideas Customer 106

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 15, 2020

Young entrepreneurs often are so excited by new technology or their latest invention that they forget to translate it into a value proposition that their customers or potential investors can understand and relate to. Personal privacy protection. Payback on investment. Skip the acronyms and implementation details.

Technology 165

Technology Social Network Training Startup 165

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 8, 2020

Savvy entrepreneurs start testing their ideas on potential customers even before the concept is fully cooked. I still hear too many excuses for not working early on the elevator pitch, like wanting to fly under the radar, don’t have the team together yet, or can’t afford an agency. Craft and hone your elevator pitch early.

Ideas 124

Ideas Tips Marketing Social Media 124

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 2, 2022

Venture capitalists (VCs) are paid to invest other people’s money, and measured on the rate of return they get. Angels are typically high net worth individuals who are investing their own money, for a wide range of motives. This means they usually invest in people who have the right “chemistry”, and areas of business they already know.

Invest 153

Invest Angel .Net Startup 153

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2014

Savvy entrepreneurs start testing their ideas on potential customers even before the concept is fully cooked. Craft and hone your elevator pitch early. This early in the game, any coverage and peer review is better than just being another unknown entrepreneur. Follow up personally on every new connection.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Social Media Startup Blogging 102

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 17, 2012

However, certain questions can be tricky for an entrepreneur to answer. Below are five common questions an entrepreneur will encounter when seeking venture funding. Handled appropriately, these questions provide investors a window into an entrepreneurs’ soul, which minimizes the chances of a future misalignment.

Entrepreneur 253

Entrepreneur Google Invest RSS 253

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 6, 2023

For the elite startups and entrepreneurs who manage to attract the investor they dream of, and survive the term sheet negotiation, there is still one more hurdle before the money is in the bank. That might start with the CEO giving the investor pitch to the whole organization, and distributing the current business plan document to everyone.

Technical Review 118

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Invest 118

socalTECH

OCTOBER 11, 2016

What's the difference between pitching your startup on television, versus pitching your startup in real life? It's different from Shark Tang, because whether or not you get an investment or not, you are getting that consumer feedback. I think the best entry level position is starting in investment banking.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Invest Competition 100

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2022

In my role as a mentor to entrepreneurs and an angel investor, I find that too many are stuck in this myth that a good pitch, and good marketing content, should consist of more product features, and more hype on customer benefits. That’s why I recommend every solution pitch must start with a painful problem, not just “nice-to-have.”

Startup 117

Startup Social Media Guide Content 117

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 5, 2012

I use George Bush vs. Al Gore as allegory and I’ve been using it with entrepreneurs for years to sink in a simple point about how to communicate with the market. Most Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs I know are more like Al Gore. In a VC pitch this type of messaging will do just fine. It is election season.

Entrepreneur 370

Entrepreneur Startup Press Venture Capital 370

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 1, 2017

A popular approach for aspiring entrepreneurs these days seems to be to corner anyone who will listen, with a pitch on their current “million dollar idea.” What separates an idea person from a visionary leader? Visionary leaders radiate a sense of energy, strong will, and personal integrity. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 67

Entrepreneur Ideas Startup Resource 67

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.

Entrepreneur 286

Entrepreneur Startup CTO Hire Sales 286

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 17, 2017

He eventually founded and sold consumer health firm ViSalus to a public company and is now back making investments, in technology companies, as a venture capitalist here at Los Angeles-based HashtagOne (www.hashtagone.com). What's the theme of your investments? That's why we have investments in Heal, Saucey, and FragMob.

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Technical Review Software Review 100

Berkonomics

JUNE 26, 2014

Angel investors, particularly those in organized angel groups, are typically former entrepreneurs who have had successful liquidity events in their pasts, or executives of companies who’ve retired with the funds from their stock options. So how an angel responds to your pitch depends upon his or her background. a 33% discount.

Angel 191

Angel Technical Review Coach Entrepreneur 191

TechCrunch LA

AUGUST 16, 2020

Over their longtime personal and professional relationship, the two Los Angeles-based serial entrepreneurs have invested in each other’s companies and investment firms, but never worked together until now. “We want to connect them to the right person at those companies to create a commercial relationship.

Funding 230

Funding Southern California Los Angeles Invest 230

Berkonomics

JUNE 8, 2017

Email readers, continue here…] Bootstrapping: This term describes your ability to start a business with little investment and grow it using internally-generated funds. And even with the significant cost of credit card debt, many entrepreneurs aggressively use existing cards to finance a startup.

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Venture Capital Class Invest Equity 266

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2021

The ultimate compliment that any entrepreneur can get is that they can “see around corners.” Great entrepreneurs seem to all exhibit a common set of attributes which go well beyond the basic skills required to be an entrepreneur: “Larger than life” personality and presence. Practice learning as an action sport.

Marketing 157

Marketing Design Entrepreneur Ideas 157

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 13, 2018

As a VC and former entrepreneur let me offer you some advice. The short answer is that you should have multiple versions of your “pitch deck” (a short, visual presentation in Keynote, PPT or similar and shared as a PDF) and each occasion has a specific goal. whether they invest or not. A great meeting is a debate, not a pitch.

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Venture Capital Slides Email Startup 261

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 10, 2021

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. It is not helpful to you for funders to love an idea that does not fit the criteria for their investing capability.

Software Review 123

Software Review Seed Funding Funding Startup 123

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2023

Many entrepreneurs are convinced that banks are not worth the effort for startups, especially early-stage ones that still don’t have a revenue stream, or collateral to back up their financing needs. A question I get from time to time is “Can I ever expect any backing from my bank for a great opportunity?” Partnerships that lend credibility.

Equity 121

Equity Technical Advisors Funding Ideas 121

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 7, 2021

Some aspiring entrepreneurs are so desperate for funding, or naïve, that they ignore the obvious signs of scams and rip-offs on the Internet, praying for a windfall. No real investor or venture capital firm asks for money from the company they are intending to invest in. Loan offer in lieu of investment. Phantom fund investors.

Technical Review 148

Technical Review Tips Funding Startup 148

Tech Zulu Event

MAY 7, 2013

This time they’re inviting you to attend their annual Fast Pitch Conference. UCLA’s EA fast-pitch Conference is being held at UCLA tomorrow, with fast-pitch Semi Finals and the Final Round. Judging this year’s Fast-pitch Conference is a splendid all-star cast featuring: Jason Beck, VP of Vicente Capital Partners.

Competition 82

Competition UCLA Entrepreneur Conference 82