Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

When I was new at Venture Capital I was trying to figure out the business. As a VC you want to feel like you have “proprietary sources” of deal flow. Because entrepreneurs often went to lawyers at their earliest stages to get their company registration done. They are venture bankers not investment bankers.

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Startup Venture Capital Pricing Technical Review 361

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 14, 2014

It’s why the first company I ever invested in as a VC – Invoca – just announced a $20 million funding by Accel Partners. Only naive people believe that but for inexperienced entrepreneurs you can be fooled into the narrative by the press who sometimes write stories without the actual data. PHONE CALLS.

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Email SaaS Venture Capital Google 339

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 26, 2016

I recently sat down with Troy Carter to talk about what he does and why he believes it is applicable to venture capital. And more recently he has turned that into a fund called CrossCulture VC such that many in Silicon Valley and beyond now know Troy as well.

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Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 24, 2011

I know this category has gotten a lot of press. At JAMDAT he designed the most successful mobile games – (Bowling, Bejeweled Multiplayer & Solitaire) and knows what drives engagement on “the small screen.&# We immediately decided we wanted to work with them and started a full-court press to invest. I can do that.

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Gogii Invest Blogging Startup 310

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 19, 2011

And yes, VC’s, too. Yet a critical mistake I see many entrepreneurs make is that they hand over too much control to their third-parties. They’re also good at screening candidates. Negotiate directly with your VC or acquirer with lawyers present in the room. What might the VC do against your interest?

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Venture Capital Pricing Startup Outsource 319

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 3, 2009

There are now a second generation of entrepreneurs and companies that have learned from their last successes and are producing great new companies like TopSpin Media , Sometrics and GumGum. My favorite Rogers line was, “musicians of the future will be entrepreneurs and not employees [of labels].”

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Twiistup SoCal Southern California Yammer 228

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 14, 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 wanted to also post the series here to have it as a resource on my blog for future entrepreneurs who stop by. I once had a debate with a prominent VC on a panel.

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Entrepreneur Startup Venture Capital Google 338

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2012

I raised money as an entrepreneur, like you, in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2005 for two different companies. And of course I’ve sat on the other side of the table: As a VC. This is not just the perspective of a VC although I can’t say I have zero VC bias. I’ve raised seed rounds and A-D rounds.

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Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 6, 2011

I was saying that I was happy it was all out in the open because I felt at least everybody could now understand the issues & opportunities from the perspectives of angels, entrepreneurs and VCs. Let’s be clear: AngelList doesn’t scare a single VC I know. It is additive. It is a communication platform.

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Startup Venture Capital Blogging Summary 292

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 11, 2016

Your customers are all on this product so not trying to grok this platform gives you a few big handicaps: Some VCs on on Snapchat and interacting with them daily on Snapchat and you’re not. That’s like you saying you don’t want to go to cocktail parties and network anymore while every 25-35 year-old VC steals your customers.

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Snapchat Screening Venture Capital Guide 150