Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 20, 2019

Why you should set up a board at the seed round of funding I know these days with SAFE documents and rolling convertible notes many founders prefer not to set up a board early on. How does control start to change at the B-round of funding? The Limited Partners (LPs) who back funds don’t expect their dollars to be passive.

Startup 236

Startup Venture Capital Tips Capital 236

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. Should I write off my $2.5

Venture Capital 412

Venture Capital Startup Funding Snapchat 412

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 22, 2014

I had an enjoyable conversation this morning with a young team straight out of college this morning and they were calling to ask advice on how to approach fund raising (angels vs. VCs, how to select a VC, etc.) So I thought I’d write about out with what I would look for in a VC knowing what I know now and why. FourSquare.

Venture Capital 364

Venture Capital Coach Writing SaaS 364

socalTECH

DECEMBER 11, 2018

Right now, when people are communicating using Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, and others, those businesses are principally using display advertising and sponsored listings to monetize those users. Who is providing the funding and backing for the company? We're taking a different approach.

San Diego 159

San Diego Social Media Commerce Snapchat 159

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2017

Or you know the other one — the one where Snapchat lost $2 billion in just one quarter. To grow faster businesses need resources in today to fund growth that may not come for 6 months to a year. They don’t want high burn rates but they will never fund slow growth. million to fund operations in their first year of operations.

Startup 227

Startup Venture Capital Sales Course 227

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2015

I must admit I discuss this very frequently with portfolio companies but hadn’t thought to write about it. If you’re negotiating with Samsung you can imagine they have Apple on their minds and if you’re negotiating with Twitter you can imagine they have eyes on Facebook, Google and even Snapchat.

Outsource Development 150

Outsource Development Startup Customer Custom 150

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

Brad was openly writing about this and it felt like he was giving the VC playbook away for free! We write about $40 million of first-checks into new deals / year and about $40 million of follow-on investments. I’ll spare you the math and point out that this means we funded 0.104% of the market. This is how VCs feel.

Startup 150

Startup Company Companies Venture Capital 150

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 11, 2016

Thus begins Snapchat and why you don’t get it. Snapchat will be used for both like the Internet (and TV) are. I just need to break you of the idea that Snapchat is for one thing – it is not. But since Snapchat uses the frequency above your hearing range it’s nearly impossible to “get” without help.

Snapchat 150

Snapchat Screening Venture Capital Guide 150

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 17, 2017

In more than a decade of writing about the Internet and tech-enabled businesses I’ve learned that mobs don’t do nuance well. Our social graphs are locked in Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat. The reality is that cryptocurrencies can be both and can be liberating and corrupting at the same time.

Course 280

Course Startup Framework Marketing 280