Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 30, 2015

Serious entrepreneurs know that, but too many “wannabes” still fall for that elusive get-rich-quick scheme with no risk. As an active Angel investor, I still hear entrepreneurs asserting large opportunities with minimal risk and no competition. You can grow organically, or stretch out with big capital investments for volume and reach.

Entrepreneur 103

Entrepreneur Startup Marketing Customer 103

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2021

Beyond these believers, you need to match your credentials and interests with the multitude of public, academic and government organizations that proclaim to foster research and early development, to satisfy the long-term needs of the people or organizations they support. Technology pilots. Product verification and clinical trials.

Help 165

Help Research Startup Funding 165

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 20, 2016

As an angel investor in early-stage startups, I’ve long noticed my peers apparent bias toward the strength and character of the founding entrepreneurs, often overriding a strong solution to a painful problem with a big opportunity. The scope of the positive leadership views included human nature, organization life, and personal purpose.

Mentor 55

Mentor Ideas Entrepreneur Study 55

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 4, 2020

One of the big questions that every entrepreneur struggles with is how much funding they should request from investors in the first round. On the other hand, venture capital organizations typically look for needs that exceed $2 million. Are you flexible on the terms of the investment? What business milestones have you met?

Startup 135

Startup Equity Invest Funding 135

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 16, 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. Thinking out loud – I’m sure that’s important for entrepreneurs as well. If you haven’t spent time over there you should.

Entrepreneur 306

Entrepreneur Startup Outsource Development Customer 306

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 31, 2018

Rather than rely only on linear thinking, the best entrepreneurs are always looking to offer in parallel a more dramatic new alternative. Since these usually require a large investment, and more time, including customer education, they need to be started while your current business is still healthy.

Examples 99

Examples IP Acquisition Social Media 99

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 19, 2018

Unfortunately, most entrepreneurs don’t realize that the words “research” and “development” are red flags to investors, and all such proposals are routinely discarded. People who know you, trust you, and believe in you above all else are always candidates for requesting an investment. Find private fund incubators for technology pilots.

Research 57

Research Develop Development Funding 57

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

There were many moments in each space when pioneers were funding startups and the press hadn’t written much about them and if you were a typical investor you were still funding the last trend while some VCs were trailblazing into new categories. As I like to say, “We need to fight. Let’s just make sure we do it fairly.”

Funding 362

Funding Technical Review Ideas Startup 362

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 7, 2015

One of the big questions that every entrepreneur struggles with is how much funding they should request from investors in the first round. On the other hand, venture capital organizations typically look for needs that exceed $2 million. Are you flexible on the terms of the investment? What business milestones have you met?

Help 104

Help Startup Equity Entrepreneur 104

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 23, 2011

I took the opportunity this past week to publish summary notes of some of the VCs and entrepreneurs I had interviewed on This Week in VC. One of my goals in doing the show was not only to educate entrepreneurs but also to put a human face on many of the VCs in our industry as VCs can be hard to get to know. (5:00 5:00 – 5:55).

Capital 265

Capital Venture Capital Veoh Startup 265

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 22, 2015

The most valuable assets of a new startup are the people on the team, and the most challenging task of the entrepreneur and team leaders is to spend their leadership time and energy productively. The authors define a leadership matrix of four behavioral categories and eight team member subtypes. Rising stars. Steamrollers.

Startup 104

Startup Entrepreneur Resource Guide 104

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 18, 2015

I rarely talk to any startup entrepreneur or VC who doesn’t feel it and somehow long for simpler times despite the benefits we all enjoy from increased enthusiasm for our sector. For entrepreneurs there’s too much money sloshing around. Have a shorter to-do list with more things that are in the “done” category.

Software Review 150

Software Review Startup Venture Capital Invest 150

InfoChachkie

NOVEMBER 17, 2011

“We’re focusing now on re-disrupting categories that moved early online, but in some ways, have been freeze-dried since then. And then with Schwab, who was just a small, discount broker when I joined them and we rose to dominant market share in three categories in brokerage. ’ Guess what, it changes completely.

Google 220

Google Technical Advisors Technical Review Equity 220

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 22, 2017

Serious entrepreneurs know that, but too many “wannabes” still fall for that elusive get-rich-quick scheme with no risk. As an active angel investor, I still hear entrepreneurs asserting large opportunities with minimal risk and no competition. You can grow organically, or stretch out with big capital investments for volume and reach.

Entrepreneur 68

Entrepreneur Marketing Customer Custom 68

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2015

Beyond these believers, you need to match your credentials and interests with the multitude of public, academic and government organizations that proclaim to foster research and early development, to satisfy the long-term needs of the people or organizations they support. Technology pilots. Product verification and clinical trials.

Develop 102

Develop Development Product Funding 102

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 17, 2014

Serious entrepreneurs know that, but too many “wannabes” still fall for that elusive dream of a get-rich-quick scheme with no risk. As an active Angel investor, I still hear entrepreneurs asserting large opportunities with minimal risk or no competition. There is no real business opportunity without risk. Operational. Find the balance.

Entrepreneur 93

Entrepreneur Marketing Customer Custom 93

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 3, 2018

The most valuable assets of a new startup are the people on the team, and the most challenging task of the entrepreneur and team leaders is to spend their leadership time and energy productively. The authors define a leadership matrix of four behavioral categories and eight team member subtypes. Rising stars. Steamrollers.

Resource 51

Resource Entrepreneur Startup Guide 51

socalTECH

OCTOBER 28, 2016

Those were the three categories, for a long time, that tended to be the domain of the LA ecosystems, just in terms of the number of startups house here, the funding, where you could attract talent, and really sort of where LA gained a reputation. We're on our third fund, and are now investing out of that fund.

Startup 100

Startup Entrepreneur Funding Incubator 100

socalTECH

MARCH 28, 2014

I do think the key in bootstrapping is that it helps you organically, in that you make decisions you wouldn''t have made otherwise, out of need. We organically invested in Bangalore and India, and that''s the reason we are profitable. We don''t have anyone else paying our bills, and it''s an organic process. READ MORE>>.

Startup 196

Startup Mobile Advertising Organization 196

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 23, 2016

The most valuable assets of a new startup are the people on the team, and the most challenging task of the entrepreneur and team leaders is to spend their leadership time and energy productively. The authors define a leadership matrix of four behavioral categories and eight team member subtypes. Rising stars. Steamrollers.

Entrepreneur 57

Entrepreneur Startup Resource Guide 57

socalTECH

JUNE 27, 2011

Scott Saunders: I spent nearly my entire career on the investment side, and in 2005 switched over to the entrepreneurial side of the world. Our special sauce in that, is instead of focusing on categories like groceries and restaurants, we've mapped everything to brands instead. Tell me the story behind Payoff.com?

Startup 197

Startup Ideas Southern California Social Network 197

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 17, 2014

Most entrepreneurs struggle with financial projections, not wanting to commit to numbers they can’t deliver, and having no clue what investors might consider reasonable. According to a recent Dow Jones VentureSource report, the average time to liquidity of an equity investment in a startup is now about five years.

Equity 99

Equity Venture Capital Invest Pricing 99

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 28, 2013

Most entrepreneurs struggle with financial projections, not wanting to commit to numbers they can’t deliver, and having no clue what investors might consider reasonable. According to a recent Dow Jones VentureSource report, the average time to liquidity of an equity investment in a startup is now about five years.

Startup 97

Startup Equity Entrepreneur Venture Capital 97

socalTECH

AUGUST 27, 2014

We had worked at another organization together in online marketing, and learned every aspect of the business, from closing new deals, on-boarding new clients, to building media plans. We are constantly learning, doing research, and networking with other entrepreneurs, and people in our business who are the best at what they do.

Startup 239

Startup El Segundo Marketing Media 239

socalTECH

JUNE 30, 2016

Phil Hui-Bon-Hoa , the CEO of El Segundo-based Kaleo (www.kaleo.com), is a serial entrepreneur who has previously built and sold four companies, including one acquired by IFILM, and another by Sun Microsystems. I organically built the company, and didn't have any outside venture money. What was your background, before starting Kaleo?

El Segundo 169

El Segundo Southern California Startup CTO Hire 169

socalTECH

MAY 17, 2019

The chief revenue officer must have up-to-date forecasts, up-to-date information on customer opportunities, a view of sales opportunities, and customer issues at their fingertips in order to run their sales organization properly. What's your biggest lesson you've learned as an entrepreneur?

SaaS 113

SaaS Startup Customer Custom 113

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 27, 2019

A theme I often hear from the entrepreneurs and startups I advise is that once they see that first surge of traction from customers, they can relax and enjoy life for a change. Very few organizations communicate internally with the same investment of thought and professionalism as when implementing their customer-obsessed strategies.

Ideas 77

Ideas Customer Custom Competition 77

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

I recently read a blog post by Beezer Clarkson, Managing Director of Sapphire Ventures about why entrepreneurs should care about from whom their VC funds raise their capital. There are a lot of things I think entrepreneurs should care about when raising from a VC: How big or small their fund is? I could go on for a long time.

Entrepreneur 150

Entrepreneur Venture Capital Invest Funding 150

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 15, 2010

Pretty much anything that goes into a business plan falls into one of these four categories: Opportunity : Every successful business exploits an opportunity. A lot of first-time entrepreneurs think that a brilliant solution is the most important ingredient in building a successful business, but it's only one of many important elements.

Startup 91

Startup Oracle Entrepreneur Ideas 91

socalTECH

SEPTEMBER 14, 2009

So, we created a site which not just aggregates, but also organizes activities by type, category--land, sea, air--and things like competition, family, culture, adrenaline--to really narrow down the possibilities for what you're looking for. Bill Fried: I'm a serial entrepreneur. We're really in the memories business.

Activity 164

Activity Startup Sites Web 164

Tech Zulu Event

JUNE 11, 2013

This second annual fest brings together technology leaders, startup CEOs, investors, Hollywood studio executives, entrepreneurs, developers, students and more to celebrate LA’s dynamic technology industries with panels, workshops, hackathon, mixers, and a start-up showcase spotlighting 40 local startups. and launching at Silicon Beach Fest.

GRP Partners 88

GRP Partners MyLife Dollar Shave Club Santa Monica 88

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 12, 2010

The Venture Value Scorecard is a one-page summary of your company’s achievements and assets: the factors that contribute to the value of your organization. Items that paint a big picture include revenue by major product area, cost of goods, and operating expenses by category. Detail isn’t important; tracking your progress is.

.Net 89

.Net Metrics Competition Template 89

Tech Zulu Event

MARCH 4, 2014

As one of our most fully stacked events to date, we thought it wouldn’t quite each of our five categories justice by recapping the entire event and skimming only for highlights. Tom Soto – Managing Director/Investment Committee Member, TCW/Craton. Ian Harris - VP of Partnerships, LA Cleantech Incubator.

UCLA 99

UCLA Technical Review Software Review Incubator 99

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 5, 2011

I’m an entrepreneur at heart so I’m always inspired when I hear stories about innovation. It’s why my investment philosophy is called, “ the entrepreneur thesis.&#. Who’s going to help you with improving your marketing / positioning to become a clear platform category leader like Twilio?

Venture Capital 317

Venture Capital Technical Review Startup Press 317

InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 2, 2009

Unattributed – There is no such thing as organic customers. As Marketing Guru Guy Gabriel of Idea Engineering points out in Max Brand , viral marketing has made many an entrepreneur terminally ill. Paid Search – Customers which click on sponsored ads associated with search keywords fall into this category. It does not happen.

Customer 164

Customer Custom Advertising SEM 164

socalTECH

FEBRUARY 24, 2010

We sat down with Scott Morrow President of Curatemedia, to hear more about the firm's strategy and the thinking behind the acquisition and new investment in the firm. For additional verticals, we'll expand that through additional acquisition or through organic sites launched internally. What verticals are you thinking about?

Content 165

Content Demand Sites Media 165

socalTECH

DECEMBER 17, 2018

I have sold companies of my own, companies I have invested in, and helped companies I've run or invested in with corporate development partnerships to help their business. That's why I organized it into these 10 sections. I think one of the things entrepreneurs need to understand, is yourself. What are your issues?

Startup 147

Startup Technical Review Entrepreneur Software Review 147