Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 27, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 01/15/2016. It pays to understand the tradeoffs, but it doesn’t pay to let an emotional debate stand in the way of your business success.

Software Review 120

Software Review Intellectual Property Software Technical Review 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Forbes on 07/02/2016. You need the very best to maintain a competitive edge, and get the satisfaction you want for you and your team members. It won’t happen by default.

Hiring 144

Hiring Matching Cost Entrepreneur 144

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 16, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 05/06/2016. It’s a big lever in your ongoing battle for success, and it’s one that you need to pull earlier rather than later. Are you there yet?

Leadership 144

Leadership Software Review Social Media Employee 144

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 11, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Forbes on 07/04/2016. Relationships and experiences are now driven more and more by interactive media and smart technology. If your services business isn’t innovating with the market, it’s falling behind.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Social Media Media Matching 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 4, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 02/24/2016. Doing so may well save you the time and cost of a startup failure and also will save you from the embarrassing admission the next time around that you don’t pay attention to the advice and counsel of people who have been there before you.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Startup Forecast Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 22, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 10/21/2016. It’s not only good for your business, but it will add meaning and joy to your customers, and will also enhance your personal satisfaction and well-being. That’s a win-win-win opportunity you can’t afford to miss.

Customer 120

Customer Social Media Media Employee 120

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 6, 2023

Most of the experience so far has been cash versus the equity feature defined by the JOBS Act – Equity Crowdfunding (Title III) , introduced back in 2016 with 685 pages of rules. That’s not as high as the failure rate with professional investors, but it should convince entrepreneurs that crowdfunding is still no panacea for funding.

Angel Groups 201

Angel Groups Accredited Investor Due Diligence Equity 201

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 21, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 11/03/2016. I highly recommend that you screen your business plan and your executive presentation carefully for variations on any of these themes, and remove them. Your credibility is paramount, so don’t jeopardize it with hype and too much passion. Your future depends on it.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Valuation Technical Review Equity 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 27, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 05/18/2016. Otherwise you will likely feel like you are working hard with one arm tied behind your back. You need both for maximum impact.

Technical Review 134

Technical Review Intellectual Property Due Diligence Angel Investor 134

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 23, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 12/06/2016. If this isn’t happening for your business, you are already behind the curve for change and realignment. It’s time to pick up the pace or you may lose the race.

Social Media 120

Social Media Technical Review Metrics Channel 120

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 04/06/2016. Don’t expect the process to be a cakewalk, so make that part of the fun and the learning. Enjoy the journey as well as the destination.

Social Media 120

Social Media Acquisition Finance Entrepreneur 120

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 25, 2020

Most of the experience so far has been cash versus the equity feature defined by the JOBS Act – Equity Crowdfunding (Title III) , introduced back in 2016 with 685 pages of rules. That’s not as high as the failure rate with professional investors, but it should convince entrepreneurs that crowdfunding is still no panacea for funding.

Equity 411

Equity Angel Groups Accredited Investor Due Diligence 411

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 25, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 03/16/2016. While I agree this strategy is key to getting your startup funded and off the ground, when you see sales starting to plateau, it’s time to pivot from that strategy per the initiatives outlined here. Change is the only constant in businesses that survive and prosper.

Customer 120

Customer Marketing Social Media Technical Review 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 03/02/2016. Also, later when you need a larger round of venture capital, the same preparation will serve you just as well, so you might as well learn now how to fly with the angels.

Angel Investor 120

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Accredited Investor Angel Groups 120

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 01/29/2016. Business relationships, on the other hand, are more logically tuned to expediting business transactions. If your business seems harder than it should be, maybe it’s time to stop focusing on friends.

Entrepreneur 120

Entrepreneur Social Network Technical Review Social Media 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 25, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 01/14/2016. Today, with instant low price search, ordering via smart phones and unfiltered online reviews everywhere, the advantage has shifted to companies who can make the whole customer experience positive.

Customer 120

Customer Technical Review Differentiation Metrics 120

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 18, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 09/17/2016. In fact, the best team members and managers I work with always see themselves as their own boss. Try it – you may find and train that great boss you never had.

Leadership 120

Leadership Management Demand Founder 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 13, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 06/03/2016. It takes a sound and profitable business to provide the long-term value proposition that you envision for society. Anything less is a loss for all concerned.

Limited Liability Company 120

Limited Liability Company Entrepreneur Software Review LLC 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 10, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 06/01/2016. But like everything else in a startup, your go-to-market and channel strategy are not one-time things – they need to be revisited and optimized several times each year. Don’t let an innovative solution and a great business model get lost in the wrong channel.

Channel 120

Channel Distribution Partner Acquisition 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 8, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Forbes on 06/01/2016. On the other hand, avoiding outside funding means you can apply your passion and innovative solution without investor challenges, and remain in full control of your destiny. Isn’t this why you were attracted to the entrepreneur lifestyle in the first place?

Bootstrapping 120

Bootstrapping Advisory Board Startup Venture Capital 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 7, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 02/26/2016. Are you sure your startup is moving beyond the idea stage, with the execution principles outline here, to assure long-term business success?

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Architecture Agile Business Model 120

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 27, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 02/17/2016. With odds like these, you can’t afford to make all the same mistakes that others have endured before you. A lesson learned from others is a mistake you don’t have to pay for.

Non-disclosure Agreement 120

Non-disclosure Agreement Intellectual Property Technical Review Vesting 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 09/29/2016. Unrealistic valuation expectations are one the key reasons that investors walk away from a promising startup, leaving you with no valuation, and perhaps no future. You have to earn a billion-dollar valuation, not declare it. How well does your new company stack-up today?

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Valuation Merger Exit Strategy 120

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 09/29/2016. True leaders in business with million-dollar ideas, like Bill Gates and Elon Musk, don’t stop until they have billion-dollar results. Where do you fit in this spectrum?

Technical Cofounder 120

Technical Cofounder Cofounder Mobile Differentiation 120

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 16, 2016

According to Gartner, the opportunity is 100 million by 2016, with 12% compounded growth.” Lead with facts, but skip the details. Skip the generic marketing phrases like more user friendly, massive opportunity, and paradigm shifting. Investors don’t need to know the implementation details of your patent or customer support plan.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Startup Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 01/08/2016. It’s nice to start with a little mystery in a relationship, but neither side likes surprises during the honeymoon or later.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Cap Table Intellectual Property 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 03/04/2016. The new entrepreneurial age is here, but you can’t be competitive if you don’t speak the language.

Software Review 120

Software Review Sweat Equity Accredited Investor Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 7, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 09/22/2016. Success to you probably includes financial gain, but don’t forget that money doesn’t buy lasting satisfaction and happiness. The happiest business people don’t work for money, and don’t even think of what they do as work.

Social Media 248

Social Media Hiring Entrepreneur Search 248

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 8, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 10/07/2016. If you are looking to move up in your business career, or looking to adopt the lifestyle of an entrepreneur to take control of your time and your life, make sure that you follow the steps outlined here for success, self-esteem, and real happiness.

Entrepreneur 267

Entrepreneur Sales Management Cost 267

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 10/04/2016. It takes discipline, initiative, a positive attitude, and the ability to communicate and be accountable to set your business apart from the million others that have equal access to your customers. Make them remember you and appreciate the added value.

Entrepreneur 267

Entrepreneur Leadership Sales Matching 267

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 16, 2016

According to Gartner , less than 40 percent of American consumers today use the free personal assistant services on their smartphones on a regular basis, and the best projections are that this could double by the end of 2016. Marty Zwilling First published on Entrepreneur.com on 01/06/2016.

Semantic 120

Semantic Web Database Search 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 1, 2016

You’ve probably already made your resolutions for 2016, but if not, I suggest a renewed commitment to finding happiness and satisfaction in your chosen business lifestyle. Make your resolution today to keep the long road ahead in 2016 a satisfying one. Welcome to another challenging new year ahead! Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 120

Entrepreneur Restful Analytics Matching 120

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 11, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 11/10/2016. Are you spending as much time at work focusing on the things that don’t change as you are on the things that must change? I call that the work-work balance. Keep it up, or you may not have a life at work.

Equity 233

Equity Networking Restful Entrepreneur 233

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 1, 2017

You can fail by not being there at all (see the United Breaks Guitars story ), or making a big mistake (see The 12 Worst Social-Media Fails of 2016 ). Of course, with social media marketing, trial and error is not the only way to fail. More positively, social media also brings many more ways to succeed.

Social Media 157

Social Media Media Conversion Ratio Lead Generation 157

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 26, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 12/09/2016. By following the principles of question-based leadership, smart business leaders find more innovative ideas, more people committed to the right actions, and a business culture that can thrive in today’s rapidly changing marketplace.

Leadership 161

Leadership Matching Partner Customer 161

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 28, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Huffington Post on 12/27/2016. That should indicate that a lot of entrepreneurs get more than they bargained for. Think twice before you invest your precious time, money, and energy, and then go for it!

Stock 178

Stock Finance Employee Management 178

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2016

Marty Zwilling First published on Inc.com on 12/13/2016. In either case, it’s an opportunity that doesn’t require heavy technology, a big inventory, or rocket science. Anyone can do it. Isn’t it time that you joined this age of the entrepreneur?

New York City 158

New York City Kansas Advertising Cash Position 158