socalTECH

NOVEMBER 30, 2017

The funding came from angels, including Nancy Tellem (Executive Chairman, Eko Studios and former President of CBS Network Television Group), Daniel Murray (CFO Dollar Shave Club), Angela Mathes (Entrepreneur & former President, ABC Daytime TV) and Kent Wakeford (COO & Board Member KSV esports). READ MORE>>.

Dollar Shave Club 113

Dollar Shave Club Sites Seed Funding Los Angeles 113

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. Social-media advertising.

Custom 146

Custom Customer Marketing Startup 146

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. In addition to locking in his leadership position in electric vehicles, he has also used his patents to negotiate faster growth in his market.

Entrepreneur 173

Entrepreneur Patents Startup Technical Review 173

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. READ MORE>>.

Entrepreneur 153

Entrepreneur Commerce Social Media Startup 153

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2021

With the appearance of do-it-yourself services on the Internet, entrepreneur curriculums at every university, and a wealth of new books on the subject, the need for expensive consultants and business advisors has also been mitigated. Social media facilitates marketing and sales. Savings here can easily reach another $10K per month.

Entrepreneur 162

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media Outsource Development 162

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 8, 2020

Savvy entrepreneurs start testing their ideas on potential customers even before the concept is fully cooked. This early in the game, any coverage and peer review is better than just being another unknown entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs who wait to be found are destined to spend a lot of time alone. Capitalize on yourself early.

Ideas 124

Ideas Tips Marketing Social Media 124

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2021

The recent pandemic was a strong signal for change, and I see most of you entrepreneurs and business owners responding to the business changes required and new opportunities presented. As times change, you may need new metrics, such as total experience, web site hits, and social media complaints.

Marketing 162

Marketing Social Media Metrics Custom 162

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 3, 2014

It is no secret that Pinterest and other social commerce sites have begun to dial in the commerce equation. These sites (so far) have managed to balance facilitating product discovery and purchase capabilities with users'' desires to entertain and educate themselves without feeling like they are in a marketplace.

Entrepreneur 210

Entrepreneur Commerce Sites Social Network 210

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2021

Anyone who works with entrepreneurs will tell you that all are different. Others are really marketers out to make money fast, and believe that they can entice customers to any offering. The Opportunist is the speculative part of the entrepreneur in all of us. Of course, discovering your entrepreneur type is only the beginning.

Entrepreneur 134

Entrepreneur Framework Mentor Web 134

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 11, 2013

Every time I challenge a business plan with little or no budget for marketing, I get the answer that they will be using “viral” marketing, which costs nothing. First of all, Seth Godin pointed out a few years ago that viral marketing does not equal word-of-mouth. People are more demanding and have more choices than ever before.

Marketing 99

Marketing Entrepreneur Startup SEM 99

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 27, 2014

No, Jason Calacanis , the Santa Monica angel investor, and CEO and founder of Mahalo , isn''t bootstrapping a new company and reverting to the hungry''s entrepreneur diet. The size of the investment round was not announced. The size of the investment round was not announced. READ MORE>>.

Mahalo 140

Mahalo Sites Santa Monica Conference 140

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 29, 2019

As a mentor to many aspiring entrepreneurs, I challenge them to think beyond what I call linear extensions to a current trend, such as another “easier-to-use” app for smartphones, a new dating site for pets, or another niche social network. Great social entrepreneurs are rare. Why doesn’t this product or service already exist?

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Ideas Resource Examples 126

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 1, 2020

Every entrepreneur I know finds it a challenge to balance the joys of entrepreneurship against a set of frustrations they never anticipated. You expected the difficulty of finding funding, but you never expected it to go so fast into unanticipated expenses, inventory, support, and marketing. Scaling a business is hard.

Entrepreneur 122

Entrepreneur Startup Course Examples 122

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 24, 2018

As a long-time advisor to aspiring entrepreneurs, and a technology fan myself, I still meet dozens of techies with great solutions who assume they don’t need marketing to change the world. In fact, with today’s information overload, modern marketing is the key to raising even the most innovative solution above the crowd.

Marketing 97

Marketing Startup Examples Technology 97

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2012

These days every new entrepreneur understands that an innovative product or service is necessary, but not sufficient, to start a business. You have to build a web presence with marketing content to get visibility above the 300 million other new websites created last year, and attract the customers you need. Win with engaging contests.

Examples 93

Examples Content Marketing Entrepreneur 93

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2014

But being best-in-class at online marketing is also a sine qua non to standout from your peer group. The starting point of product IS marketing, which is what a lot of young entrepreneurs that never studied business don’t realize. Online marketing uses techniques for driving promotion and place.

Marketing 379

Marketing Startup SEM SEO 379

InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 10, 2012

The lessons learned by Divshot confirm that obtaining, and more importantly maintaining, visibility on the front page of a major social news site results from the congruence of three factors: audience, timing and engagement. We’re a tool for hackers, designers, and entrepreneurs - effectively everyone who reads Hacker News. Engagement.

News 198

News Sites Startup RSS 198

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.

Southern California 228

Southern California Entrepreneur SoCal Mahalo 228

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 19, 2020

Since in most cases, there was no revenue in many of these companies, all trying to gain market share at any cost, we had to invent the metric to use. And the most logical one seemed to be “eyeballs” or number of unique monthly users finding their way to the site or registering for the service. Remembering the insanity before 2000.

Metrics 296

Metrics Sites Advertising Web 296

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 stood up, grabbed the mic and gave a heartfelt overview of his experiences in experimenting with new technologies to build relationships with his audience, get feedback on his product quality and to market his music all the way to the top of iTunes.

Entrepreneur 356

Entrepreneur Venture Capital Startup Email 356

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2018

Even with instant two-way communication via the Internet and mobile phones, your greatest new solution or service won’t found or properly recognized without marketing. I find that digital marketing is the most visible and effective place to start. Traditional marketing hype won’t get you the attention you need. every month.

Marketing 96

Marketing Metrics Social Media Content 96

InfoChachkie

JULY 16, 2012

Others shun translucent run-of-site Google ads, because they are distracting and monetize at extremely low rates. Skimlinks is an affiliate marketing tool that allows website publishers to readily monetize their online content. Some reject pre-roll ads because they increase the viewer abandonment rate. Skimlinks For The Video Age.

Custom 226

Custom Customer Entrepreneur Advertising 226

socalTECH

OCTOBER 8, 2012

As part of our Insights and Opinions section on our site, we regularly feature advice from entrepreneurs, investors, attorneys, and many others on a variety of topics of interest to high tech companies. Co-marketing arrangements present a wealth of opportunities to expand your business. What is co-marketing?

Marketing 124

Marketing High Tech Sites Entrepreneur 124

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.

Entrepreneur 291

Entrepreneur Startup Google Yammer 291

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 7, 2023

The cost of entry to the entrepreneur lifestyle is at an all-time low, but the challenge of winning and success is at an all-time high. Anyone can build a new web site, or publish a smartphone app for a few thousand dollars, but getting market penetration requires a lot more. Take a hard look at SpaceX or HyperLoop.

Entrepreneur 118

Entrepreneur Startup Social Network SpaceX 118

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 19, 2012

Your business plan must have an “Opportunity” section, where industry market size and growth projections are included. On or off the Internet, there are dozens of reputable market research reports available for purchase. Credible sites include Gartner Group , Market Research Reports , and Frost & Sullivan.

Marketing 97

Marketing Entrepreneur Research Statistics 97

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 27, 2020

Investors have to look behind the plan and at the entrepreneur and his or her team, knowing that, over time, most of us have come to the conclusion that it is the execution of the ever-changing plan, not the plan itself that makes a company a success. Tyson’s insight into the realities of the market. Tyson was right again.

Summary 156

Summary Metrics Class Email 156

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

Back in the early 2000s, the Maker Movement took hold in California, based on the emergence of such do-it-yourself (DIY) tools as 3-D printers, and now sites such as SketchUp and Makerspaces have all the tools you need to make almost anything computer related. Low-cost design and fabrication tools are extremely valuable.

Startup 159

Startup Tool Design Demand 159

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2023

Savvy entrepreneurs start testing their ideas on potential customers even before the concept is fully cooked. This early in the game, any coverage and peer review is better than just being another unknown entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs who wait to be found are destined to spend a lot of time alone. Capitalize on yourself early.

Ideas 126

Ideas Startup Social Media Blogging 126

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 29, 2015

That means your marketing must now include shopping apps, location-based services and mobile wallets. Today’s customers ignore these sites in favor of ones with dynamic daily specials, promotions and positive reviews easily accessible on their mobile devices. The best sites engage customers more deeply and add more value.

Custom 103

Custom Customer Marketing Social Media 103

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2016

The cost of entry to the entrepreneur lifestyle is at an all-time low, but the challenge of winning and success is at an all-time high. Anyone can build a new web site, or publish a smartphone app for a few thousand dollars, but getting market penetration requires a lot more. Take a hard look at SpaceX or HyperLoop.

Entrepreneur 103

Entrepreneur Social Network SpaceX Ideas 103

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2013

These days every new entrepreneur understands that an innovative product or service is necessary, but not sufficient, to start a business. You have to build a web presence with marketing content to get visibility above the 51 million other new websites created last year, and attract the customers you need. Win with engaging contests.

Content 114

Content Marketing Startup eBook 114

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2021

In my role as advisor and mentor to many new entrepreneurs, I often find myself suggesting that they think bigger. For example, I’m not sure the world needs one more social media niche site, or another dating site, or yet another flavored drink alternative. Communicate and market your solution to the max.

Startup 162

Startup Metrics Ideas Entrepreneur 162

Steve Reich

SEPTEMBER 10, 2013

The Pasadena Angels have redesigned our site with a new focus on Entrepreneurs and LA Basin tech resources. We took a lesson from successful companies we have funded–we talked to the market first. We started by surveying a group of local entrepreneurs and our own members to find out what they wanted in a site.

Pasadena Angels 55

Pasadena Angels Pasadena Sites Angel 55

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 27, 2014

In my experience, consummate entrepreneurs tend come up with more startup ideas than they can ever implement, and some of the ideas may not even make business sense. But how does any entrepreneur know which ideas to implement, and which ones are best left behind? Find a recognized billion dollar and growing market.

Ideas 106

Ideas Entrepreneur Technical Review Patents 106

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 2, 2017

Every business I know is intimately familiar with outbound marketing, or pushing your message out to customers through email, newspaper, and television advertising. Only a few really understand the process and value of inbound marketing, for pulling customers to your brand. Participate in the top social media sites for maximum impact.

Marketing 76

Marketing Social Media Content Media 76

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2014

Savvy entrepreneurs start testing their ideas on potential customers even before the concept is fully cooked. This early in the game, any coverage and peer review is better than just being another unknown entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs who wait to be found are destined to spend a lot of time alone. Capitalize on yourself early.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Social Media Startup Blogging 102