Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 7, 2022

A common pain of startups after an exhilarating first surge of early adopters is a long and frustrating plateau of slow growth, where it seems like nothing you do will get your business to profitability. Others do far too little, assuming the viral effect and word-of-mouth will soon kick in, and sales will suddenly grow exponentially.

Startup 134

Startup Search Engine Optimization Social Media Metrics 134

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 3, 2019

Our interview today is with Amos Schwartzfarb , the author of Sell More Faster: The Ultimate Sales Playbook for Start-Ups , which comes out tomorrow, Wednesday. Thanks for the time today, to start off, tell us a little bit about what you do? How did you end up at Techstars Austin?

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Sales Startup Custom Development Framework 113

socalTECH

MAY 16, 2019

For our interview this morning, we caught up with Isaac Garcia , a serial entrepreneur who previously founded and sold his last company, Central Desktop, and now is working on a new startup, Sales Insider. What is Sales Insider? Isaac Garcia: Sales Insider is a talent marketplace for hiring software sales reps.

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Sales Startup Software Marketing 133

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2022

Marketing is everything these days. You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late.

Marketing 141

Marketing Startup Social Media Technical Review 141

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 20, 2020

Contrary to popular opinion, viral marketing has not eliminated the need for old-fashioned lead generation to bring customers to a startup. His professional background includes having held marketing-executive roles at big companies as well as startups. Email marketing. Direct mail marketing.

Customer 146

Customer Custom Marketing Startup 146

Startup San Diego

OCTOBER 31, 2023

Day 4 of San Diego Startup Week was hosted by our day sponsor, San Diego State University, in Conrad Preby’s Aztec Student Union. With over 450+ attendees, we held workshops in entrepreneurship, branding, marketing, sales, and metrics.

San Diego 52

San Diego Startup Entrepreneur Metrics 52

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2020

Companies are rightsized quickly now as markets change rapidly, and business professionals are quick to jump to new opportunities for growth and survival, with no ties to special benefits or pension plans. Thus smart business professionals are rapidly becoming the new entrepreneurs. Here are some examples: Marketing Professional.

Startup 164

Startup Social Media Course Entrepreneur 164

Startup San Diego

OCTOBER 31, 2023

Day 4 of San Diego Startup Week was hosted by our day sponsor, San Diego State University, in Conrad Preby’s Aztec Student Union. With over 450+ attendees, we held workshops in entrepreneurship, branding, marketing, sales, and metrics.

San Diego 52

San Diego Startup Entrepreneur Metrics 52

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2019

Marketing is everything these days. You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late.

Marketing 97

Marketing Entrepreneur Startup Technical Review 97

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 8, 2022

In reality, a simple Excel spreadsheet model customized around your assumptions can save you hours and avoid a wasted expense in validating alternative vendor and marketing decisions. For maximum value with the least effort, focus on only the “what ifs” that are the highest priority in your mind for your own startup.

Startup 147

Startup Pricing Sample Customer 147

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2021

It wasn’t so many years ago that starting a new e-commerce business on the Internet was a complex custom development project, usually costing a million dollars or more. Almost anyone can start a company today on a shoestring budget, following these cost-cutting recommendations: Establish a solid legal structure for your business.

Entrepreneur 162

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media Outsource Development 162

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 4, 2023

The world of marketing is changing faster than technology these days. Winning entrepreneurs have long since supplemented conventional print and video “push” marketing with digital online interactive “pull” marketing, and a while back added social-local-mobile ( SoLoMo ) to the mix. Proactively seek out win-win alliances.

Marketing 107

Marketing Technical Review Startup Innocal 107

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 27, 2011

I made every textbook mistake at my first startup, which is why I believe I was much more effective at my second one. The following are some lessons I learned about early-stage startup marketing. I actually like finding entrepreneurs who are more circumspect, less braggadocios and generally more planned about their actions.

Marketing 380

Marketing Startup Press Technical Advisors 380

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 4, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series Startup Advice. Many entrepreneurs who start technology companies are product people, technologists or savvy business people who worked previously for a larger company. Most start-up entrepreneurs have little or no sales experience. I know I didn’t. To the contrary.

Sales 319

Sales Startup Platform Tips 319

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

One of the vivid memories I have from being a startup CEO is the feeling that most people in your company have a look in their eyes that like they can do your job as well as you. But if you level up , raise capital and grow customers, revenue and staff – life changes. Marketing of course often feels the opposite.

Entrepreneur 385

Entrepreneur CTO Hire Startup Sales 385

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 4, 2022

As a startup advisor and investor, I’ve met many aspiring entrepreneurs, and I often get asked the question, “I have a great idea for a startup – do you agree that it real potential?” If we build it, they will come” is not a viable startup strategy. A startup is no place for the Lone Ranger.

Entrepreneur 121

Entrepreneur Startup Ideas Sample 121

Berkonomics

MARCH 9, 2017

Starting a company is HARD – in so many ways. I read several years ago, that the average startup restaurant lasts only about a year. Restaurant startups would not top my list. We have years of real data to call upon: data that impacts both investors and entrepreneurs. And this includes all businesses, not just startups.

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Startup Statistics Tech Coast Angels Study 266

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2022

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Join a startup incubator. It always reduces risk to plan your business first.

Startup 136

Startup Technical Review Equity Incubator 136

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2023

Contrary to popular opinion, viral marketing has not eliminated the need for old-fashioned lead generation to bring customers to a startup. His professional background includes having held marketing-executive roles at big companies as well as startups. Email marketing. Direct mail marketing.

Marketing 114

Marketing Invest Social Media SEM 114

TechCrunch LA

SEPTEMBER 7, 2021

But LA-based performance marketing agency MuteSix didn’t wait that long to build its business around scaling DTC brands. Created in 2014 and acquired by Dentsu in 2019, MuteSix was recommended to TechCrunch by Rhoda Ullmann, VP Consumer at Sense, a Boston-based startup building a home energy monitor. Image Credits: MuteSix.

Commerce 211

Commerce Content Marketing Startup 211

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 12, 2010

A while back I wrote a bunch of posts on Sales & Marketing and have been meaning to get back to that theme for a while. Even if you don’t have “direct&# sales I would tell you that “everything is a sale&# including fund raising, hiring, getting press and doing business development.

Sales 346

Sales Startup Technical Review Customer 346

InfoChachkie

AUGUST 26, 2013

A startup''s marketing launch strategy should resemble an inverse funnel. This approach allows your venture to "fail in the small" and make course corrections before spending significant marketing resources. An infamous example of a startup that did not follow this strategy is Color. Rely On A Public Relations Agency.

Marketing 247

Marketing Entrepreneur Journal Media 247

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2021

Most aspiring entrepreneurs understand that you can’t build a business if you won’t commit to delivering a product or service, but many are hesitant or refuse to commit to any financial forecasts. Thus, financial projections for up to five years are a necessary element in every business plan. Forecast sales-volume expectations.

Startup 147

Startup Pricing Sales Statistics 147

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2021

The ultimate compliment that any entrepreneur can get is that they can “see around corners.” This is a statement that they are willing and able (and successful) at projecting market and technology turns, not just straight-line innovations. They have the courage to make bold decisions, often contrary to conventional market research.

Marketing 157

Marketing Design Entrepreneur Ideas 157

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 12, 2021

If you are a passionate technologist , it’s easy to forget that marketing is required to sell even the most compelling solution, to cut through the information overload everyone sees today on the internet. If marketing is not your thing, then you need to find a partner or outside expert to help you.

Technical Advisors 154

Technical Advisors Tips Marketing Case Study 154

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2020

The world of marketing is changing faster than technology these days. Winning entrepreneurs have long since supplemented conventional print and video “push” marketing with digital online interactive “pull” marketing, and a while back added social-local-mobile ( SoLoMo ) to the mix. Proactively seek out win-win alliances.

Mobile 173

Mobile Marketing Technical Review Startup 173

Tech.Co

MAY 31, 2023

Launching and growing a startup is one of the biggest missions an entrepreneur can undertake. But while competition remains fierce, the advancement and accessibility of smart solutions are making it easy than ever for startups to find their feet. VPN Startup tool: VPN Price: Free Hide.me While Hide.me

Tool 128

Tool Startup Software Review Technical Review 128

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 5, 2020

In my experience with entrepreneurs, there seems to a wealth of self-proclaimed “idea people” who aspire to start businesses, but only a few who are willing and able to dig in and get the job done. Only rare great entrepreneurs, like Bill Gates and Elon Musk, have proven to be both. Tailor investor proposals and term-sheets.

Ideas 122

Ideas Entrepreneur Startup IBM 122

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 23, 2020

Entrepreneurs who experience success with their first startup are often amazed to realize that the risks and fears of doing it right the second time go up, rather than down. Encores are tough, especially in the high-risk world of startups, yet every entrepreneur I know can’t wait to start over and do it again.

Entrepreneur 129

Entrepreneur Startup Technical Review Ideas 129

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. In many business domains today, the market seems to change about every ninety days. No startup can implement a broad strategy quickly enough to stay ahead.

Startup 114

Startup IBM IBM Social Media 114

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 15, 2023

Entrepreneurs have always believed that their product or service must show real value to customers, but today the smart ones are even able to make their marketing valuable. The days are gone when marketing was all “pushing product.” by the so-called godfather of content marketing, Joe Pulizzi. The key is consistency.

Content 104

Content Customer Custom Marketing 104

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

When you see startups like SpaceX and Pinterest grow from a low valuation to a billion dollars in just a few years, it’s easy to assume that if you just keep doing what you are doing, you can get there as well. Of course, that means a mindset willing to give up much more equity, and taking on a whole new level of risk.

Startup 151

Startup Course Sales Entrepreneur 151

socalTECH

OCTOBER 11, 2018

Shopify , which develops software for merchants to set up e-commerce, mobile, social media sites, online marketplaces, bricks-and-mortar stores, and more, is setting up a space for entrepreneurs in Los Angeles, the company said this morning.

Entrepreneur 153

Entrepreneur Commerce Social Media Startup 153

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2023

As a business advisor, I meet many business professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs who are anxious to be their own boss , or have an innovative idea to start or acquire a new business. Also, initiating a startup is quite different from taking over a thriving business, where the focus is on repeatable processes and quarterly profits.

Startup 94

Startup Ideas Metrics Entrepreneur 94

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2020

In my role as a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I find that most have the technical challenges well understood, but many are a bit short on some basic street smarts , or basic business realities. Thus I often recommend that before you kick off your own business, you join another startup or existing business to see how things really work.

Entrepreneur 173

Entrepreneur Patents Startup Technical Review 173

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2020

Every entrepreneur knows that good demand generation marketing is the key to growth these days, but very few have the discipline or know-how to measure return in a world of a thousand tools and techniques. In fact, we now live in a buyer-led digital age, where the traditional media push-marketing efforts just don’t work.

Marketing 174

Marketing Invest Demand Metrics 174

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series called “ Start-up Lessons.&#. I came across this blog post about getting a computer science degree as the best degree for getting into venture capital or working at a VC-backed start up. I paid up for the diploma but can’t say that I saw better results. So back to MBAs.

Startup 337

Startup Venture Capital Study Course 337