Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 10, 2023

As a startup investor, I often see business proposals looking for funding that really look like expensive hobbies looking for donations. I still see entrepreneurs who spend money and time for months on a new business idea without any separation of personal and business funds, and any formal accounting system for their new business.

Outsource Development 115

Outsource Development Startup Competition Ideas 115

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 14, 2023

Cash flow is a basic survival metric for every startup. Count on six months from beginning the funding process until a new check is cashed. Always add 20 percent to your best estimate of funding requirements when approaching investors. Waiting until you have something to sell before bringing on a sales and operations staff.

Search Engine Optimization 103

Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media Equity 103

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 18, 2023

All the investment money in the world won’t make your company succeed, if you have the wrong team. investors invest in people, not ideas) Effective and timely go-to-market. Have you projected sales and marketing costs, cash flow, and capital requirements? Show return on investment, growth rates, and market penetration.

Startup 112

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 112

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 9, 2020

Others do far too little, assuming the viral effect and word-of-mouth will soon kick in, and sales will suddenly grow exponentially. There is no magic lever for growth, so several initiatives are required, with metrics to assess value returned. Ask every employee to focus on sales. Shorten the close cycle to grow faster.

Search Engine Optimization 131

Search Engine Optimization Startup Social Media Metrics 131

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 20, 2015

VC funding. We love capital efficiency until we love land grabs until we abhor over funding until we get huge payouts and ring the bell for more funding until we attract every non-VC on the planet to invest in startups until it crashes and we start the cycle all over again none the wiser. It’s subjective.

Funding 150

Funding Venture Capital Startup Marketing 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 7, 2020

As a startup investor, I often see business proposals looking for funding that really look like expensive hobbies looking for donations. I still see entrepreneurs who spend money and time for months on a new business idea without any separation of personal and business funds, and any formal accounting system for their new business.

Entrepreneur 131

Entrepreneur Outsource Development Startup Competition 131

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 21, 2020

All the investment money in the world won’t make your company succeed, if you have the wrong team. investors invest in people, not ideas) Effective and timely go-to-market. Have you projected sales and marketing costs, cash flow, and capital requirements? Show return on investment, growth rates, and market penetration.

Startup 156

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 156

socalTECH

MAY 17, 2019

Perspectium recently raised a funding round from TVC Capital. David Loo: Ultimately, at the C-level, the CIO requires data metrics and intelligence, in order to compete and make decisions and take actions to further a company's agenda. You're received some funding lately? What is Perspectium?

SaaS 113

SaaS Startup Customer Custom 113

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2021

I recommend a trial run with an experiment or MVP (minimum viable product), at full price and cost, before the big bang launch, risking your investment money and a major time commitment. Growing too fast kills many new ventures, due to staffing costs, inventory, and funding delays. Mergers and acquisitions also require new skills.

Technical Review 131

Technical Review Case Study Mentor Software Review 131

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 2, 2021

Customers today quickly get beyond these, and put a competitive priority on the experience of others, reflected in reviews and social media, and their own total experience with your sales process, delivery, returns, and support on their schedule. These have the vision and the resources to fund long-term digital success.

Competition 142

Competition Software Review Social Media Customer 142

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2020

Cash flow is a basic survival metric for every startup. Count on six months from beginning the funding process until a new check is cashed. Always add 20 percent to your best estimate of funding requirements when approaching investors. Waiting until you have something to sell before bringing on a sales and operations staff.

Search Engine Optimization 124

Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media Equity 124

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

To grow faster businesses need resources in today’s financial period to fund growth that may not come for 6 months to a year. The most obvious way to explain this is with sales people. You may have leverage when you DO need to fund raise. Just be careful that it doesn’t come at the expense of investments in growth.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2010

In fact, a business plan is needed more by you than investors, as the blueprint for your company, team communication, and progress metrics. Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Marketing, sales, and partners. Funding requirements.

Invest 74

Invest Tips Competition Metrics 74

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 3, 2021

To keep you on a positive track with potential investors, I recommend the following logic principles, to balance your passion in presenting your vision of a new business: Make sure your plan includes some business metrics. Equity investors realize that they won’t see any real return until an exit occurs, such as a sale, merger, or IPO.

Entrepreneur 162

Entrepreneur Social Media Examples Metrics 162

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 2, 2015

For a well-funded seed company I have controversially recommended hiring a great office manager that doubles as an administrative assistant. For a well-funded A or B round company I have recommended “ leveling up ,” which entails many things but in summary I tell people to “act your stage.” HR & Legal.

Outsource Development 150

Outsource Development Metrics Startup Sales 150

socalTECH

JUNE 1, 2012

My other co-founder, Rusty Jenkins, was also with that company, doing sales. Can you talk about how your company is funded? Michael Wong: We're with StartEngine, and have received a small amount of seed funding from them. We're also funding it out of pocket. Based on his number, we decided to pivot.

CTO Coach 223

CTO Coach Startup Mobile Artificial Inteligence 223

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2015

These don’t get funded, nor bought by customers. How the solution and business model work to fund the business. Customers may be attracted to your marketing message, but investors look harder at the startup team, seeking superior expertise in the key areas of growing a business, product domain, financial, marketing and sales.

Product 103

Product Slides Customer Custom 103

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2012

In fact, a business plan is needed more by you than investors, as the blueprint for your company, team communication, and progress metrics. Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Marketing, sales, and partners. Funding requirements.

Competition 113

Competition Metrics Startup Invest 113

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 21, 2010

As startup entrepreneurs we all want to work with them because having their name as reference clients makes it so much easier for marketing, PR, selling to other customers, fund raising and even recruiting. If a company wants to invest in your company and you haven’t read that post please do. million in sales.

Startup 298

Startup Sales Slides Metrics 298

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2015

As a startup investor, I often see business proposals looking for funding that really look like expensive hobbies looking for donations. I still see entrepreneurs who spend money and time for months on a new business idea without any separation of personal and business funds, and any formal accounting system for their new business.

Outsource Development 99

Outsource Development Startup Competition Ideas 99

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 29, 2018

Cash flow is a basic survival metric for every startup. Count on six months from beginning the funding process until a new check is cashed. Always add 20 percent to your best estimate of funding requirements when approaching investors. Waiting until you have something to sell before bringing on a sales and operations staff.

Startup 89

Startup Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media 89

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2011

In fact, a business plan is needed more by you than investors, as the blueprint for your company, team communication, and progress metrics. Things that make it investment-grade for outside investors will also benefit you, since you are the ultimate investor. Marketing, sales, and partners. Funding requirements.

Competition 116

Competition Metrics Startup Sales 116

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2018

All the investment money in the world won’t make your company succeed, if you have the wrong team. investors invest in people, not ideas) Effective and timely go-to-market. Have you projected sales and marketing costs, cash flow, and capital requirements? Show return on investment, growth rates, and market penetration.

Startup 81

Startup Coach Metrics Marketing 81

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

Cash flow is a basic survival metric for every startup. Count on six months from beginning the funding process until a new check is cashed. Always add 20 percent to your best estimate of funding requirements when approaching investors. Waiting until you have something to sell before bringing on a sales and operations staff.

Startup 108

Startup Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media 108

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2016

Others do far too little, assuming the viral effect and word-of-mouth will soon kick in, and sales will suddenly grow exponentially. There is no magic lever for growth, so several initiatives are required, with metrics to assess value returned. Ask every employee to focus on sales. Shorten the close cycle to grow faster.

Search Engine Optimization 57

Search Engine Optimization Startup Social Media Metrics 57

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

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. If you invested in the first angel round of a startup company it is usually very hard to sell your stock – usually for many years if ever at all. They are pretty illiquid.

Startup 336

Startup Pricing Technical Review Marketing 336

InfoChachkie

JANUARY 16, 2018

The problem is that stakeholders, like marketing and sales, don’t know what the latest version of the roadmap is. Greathouse: Having run these groups, I know all about the inherent friction between sales and marketing with regard to lead quality, volume, etc., We both made personal investments in the company.

Venture Capital 115

Venture Capital Entrepreneur Santa Barbara SaaS 115

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2016

All the investment money in the world won’t make your company succeed, if you have the wrong team. investors invest in people, not ideas) Effective and timely go-to-market. Have you projected sales and marketing costs, cash flow, and capital requirements? Show return on investment, growth rates, and market penetration.

Entrepreneur 93

Entrepreneur Startup Coach Metrics 93

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2013

Because at least while the VC spigot is open and flowing for high-potential individuals that fit a pattern that some VCs seem to favor they can access cheap capital that isn’t terribly dilutive and can use the to fund development and swing for the fences with limited focus on monetization. That leaves 99.99% of you. Let’s see.

Venture Capital 412

Venture Capital Startup Funding Snapchat 412

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 26, 2013

Almost every early-stage startup who has approached investors for funding has heard the innocuous sounding rejection “I love your idea, but come back when you have more traction.” As an investor, I would like to see one month of sales, and see how that compares to your projections. First of all, a definition.

Startup 106

Startup Metrics Customer Custom 106

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 28, 2016

As a startup investor, I often see business proposals looking for funding that really look like expensive hobbies looking for donations. I still see entrepreneurs who spend money and time for months on a new business idea without any separation of personal and business funds, and any formal accounting system for their new business.

Ideas 62

Ideas Outsource Development Startup Competition 62

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2014

Cashflow is a basic survival metric for every startup. Count on six months from beginning the funding process until a new check is cashed. Always add 20 percent to your best estimate of funding requirements when approaching investors. Waiting until you have something to sell before bringing on a sales and operations staff.

Entrepreneur 105

Entrepreneur Search Engine Optimization Outsource Development Social Media 105

socalTECH

APRIL 4, 2011

We've worked with Microsoft, Live Nation, Variety, and other clients, plus just closed our funding of $2.2M Those can be sales, coupon redemptions, or downloads. We're looking to staff up pretty aggressively, and are buildling out our engineering team, sales team, and ad operations team. from a group of VCs and angels.

Advertising 198

Advertising Startup Santa Monica Social Network 198

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 26, 2018

As a member of an angel investment group, I have to admit this is probably the most common rejection we issue. Even if you are funding the project yourself (bootstrapping), you should be asking yourself the same question before you have burned all your resources. Traction is marketing and sales results.

Customer 59

Customer Custom Pricing Startup 59

SoCal CTO

JUNE 9, 2010

He’d been working at a well-funded startup for about a year and had come to terms with the fact that the startup was really a pretty dumb idea. Through advertising or direct sales, these sites harvest intent. friend of mine asked me to chat with a startup he’d invested in. I Be specific. they have purchasing intent ).*.

Startup 248

Startup Venture Capital Conference Social Media 248

InfoChachkie

MAY 22, 2012

Send them a private message via Twitter or Quora that contains a compelling link relevant to their investment focus. Professional service providers are incentivized to foster your business, as a portion of the funds you raise will go toward payment of their invoices. Subscribe to their blog.

Venture Capital 236

Venture Capital Capital Research Customer 236

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 16, 2015

Why raise funds? This seems like an obvious question but you need to be clear why you’re looking to raise in order to come up with an effective game plan and determine your best funding option. And when it comes to timing, wait until you’ve come up with a working prototype and developed your product before you seek external funding.

Startup 40

Startup Venture Capital Equity Funding 40