Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 22, 2012

I think I’ve read Paul Graham’s post on “ Startup = Growth ” three or four times now. And of course on Twitter I’ve seen the Tweets, ReTweets and superlatives on what a great post it is. Viewing the article through the lens of a venture capitalist there’s much to agree with under the mantra of “growth!” And when you read the article carefully it allows for a period of discovery in your business.

Silicon Valley 390

Silicon Valley Venture Capital Startup Technical Review 390

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 1, 2012

Every entrepreneur tries to maximize his startup growth by building and selling more product and services for the widest geographic area that he can support. This strategy is called “organic growth,” yet it alone may yield only a fraction of the potential you could achieve, unless you add the additional strategies of partnerships and M&A (mergers and acquisitions).

CTO Hire 229

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Merger Non-Compete 229

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 21, 2012

This is a guest post by my Startup Owner’s Manual co-author Bob Dorf. ——————-. While statistics are weak on startup success rates, the worst one I’ve seen suggests that 2 in 1000 venture backed startups will ever achieve $100-million or more in valuation. Another stat puts that number at 2% rather than 0.2%. Either way, the “hurdle” for successful, scalable startups is high, and it gets higher every day as customer acquisition challenges continue to increase.

Startup 332

Startup Cofounder Customer Development Viral 332

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 13, 2012

While individual achievement can be great, sometimes it takes some serious teamwork to get things done, from winning a game to completing a client project on time. Unfortunately, working in a team comes with its own host of challenges, as sometimes egos clash and not everyone is on the same page when it comes to work ethic. No matter what your personal challenges are, it’s important to remind yourself why working in a team can be the best way to go and also to learn some new ways you can improve

Web 255

Web Employee Hosting Networking 255

Speaker: Nick Noreña, Innovation Coach and Advisor, Kromatic

Every startup and innovation project exists within an ecosystem that either helps or hurts that project. As innovation managers, we need to keep a pulse of that ecosystem and make sure we're helping those innovation projects we're managing every step of the way. In this webinar, Nick Noreña will walk through an Innovation Ecosystem Model that he and his team at Kromatic have developed to help investors, heads of product, teachers, and executives understand how they can best support innovation in

Startup

The Equity Kicker

SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

Personal discipline is one of my hallmarks. I have thought a lot about how and why I do what I do so that I can get a lot of important stuff done. Doing stuff inefficiently or spending time on unimportant stuff sends me round the twist a little. Staying disciplined is an ongoing process of self improvement and I’m always looking for new tricks and tactics, so when I saw a link to Achieving top mental performance for software developers I clicked straight through, and to my delight I found

Software Developers 157

Software Developers Software Development Software Developer 157

Feld Thoughts

SEPTEMBER 22, 2012

In July I wrote a post where I was Searching For A Collaborative Writing Tool. I got a bunch of suggestions – some people suggested their startups, some suggested Google Docs, and one person (a friend who works for Microsoft) suggested Microsoft SkyDrive . Amy and I were deep in working on Startup Life: Surviving and Thriving in a Relationship with an Entrepreneur.

Software Review 175

Software Review Technical Review Cloud Search 175

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 28, 2012

When my friend’s small business was struggling a while back, I suggested he add some social media marketing initiatives, and his answer was that he was “too busy.” His business has since closed, but his mindset is still out there. According to a recent Harvard Business Review article , only 60% of companies today use social media for marketing, and only 12% of those feel that they are using it effectively.

Social Media 289

Social Media Small Business Media Technical Review 289

Occam's Razor

SEPTEMBER 24, 2012

Facebook has an incredible audience, 950 million strong and counting. This audience is immensely attractive to Brands and Marketers around the world. We've seen explosive growth in brand pages, types of advertising and other fun ways to monetize this audience. Increased investment in Facebook as an engagement/acquisition channel has translated into requests from CEOs, CMOs and other CxOs about the return on that investment.

Metrics 165

Metrics Advertising Marketing Social Media 165

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

by Ian Smith of Captricity. This is not about running a startup badly, it’s about not doing the things that are not core to your business. The world has changed a lot lately and just about every aspect of a technology company – and especially a web-based company – can be “moved out” to a web-based application provider at a lower cost than doing it yourself.

Technology 251

Technology EC2 Mobile Startup 251

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 16, 2012

Though it’s incredibly valuable to be an early adopter of 2012′s tech trends, it won’t hurt your company to be right on time with everyone else who is just discovering them now. It’s not too late to set up a presence on Pinterest and Instagram, and mobile apps aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. However, as always, new tech trends are on the horizon.

API 157

API Social Media Mobile Valuation 157

Version One Ventures

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012

With tens of thousands of new start-ups being created every year, the potential of a company to truly scale and become a large, stand-alone business is more crucial than ever before. A great product is always the foundation but a clear distribution strategy becomes essential to cut through the noise. So most early-stage VCs have started to evaluate investment opportunities with an imaginary benchmark in mind: can this company become a $100 million opportunity?

Churn Rate 168

Churn Rate Viral Acquisition Cofounder 168

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

This article initially appeared on TechCrunch - with a minor update highlighted in red below. Ah. We’re back to discussing convertible debt again. This time by the efforts of Adeo Ressi to introduce a new kind of structure called “ convertible equity.” I applaud all efforts by people to take on this issue and especially be Adeo who – let’s be honest – was really the first champion of trying to make the VC world more transparent by launching TheFunded, which d

Ratchet 354

Ratchet Liquidation Preference Equity Stock 354

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

Paul Graham’s Startup Curve – avoid the “through of sorrow”! Pintrest, Facebook, Zynga, Dropbox, AirBnb… What do they all have in common? They’ve all used growth hacking techniques to grow their user base from zero to millions (and sometimes hundreds of millions). Growth Hacking isn’t viral marketing (although viral marketing is part of it).

API 167

API Viral Startup Retention 167

Mike Michalowicz

SEPTEMBER 6, 2012

Unlimited Real, Legit Amazon Reviews. Being that I am an, admittedly, relatively unknown author of business books, it was clear that I needed to show credibility immediately. A pretty book cover with a catchy title may get someone to look at your page on Amazon , but it is unlikely to get them to buy it. Ultimately, for a consumer to buy your book, product or service, they want to trust they are making a good decision.

Software Review 167

Software Review Product Naming Email 167

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 3, 2012

No man is an island. From time to time, we all find we’ve gone as far as we can go on our own. Therein lays the beauty of teamwork: a helping hand to pick you up and see you through to the end. To celebrate the joy of working together, we’ve compiled the definitive list of the best teams ever assembled, along with what each of them has to teach us. We made our picks from all walks of life, from sports to space and from fictional to factual.

Oklahoma 245

Oklahoma Jordan United States DC 245

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 8, 2012

This week, TIME Magazine editor-at-large Harry McCracken interviewed himself as a follow-up to his piece on how he had been using his iPad as his primary computer. During the interview he mentions that he still uses his iPad a lot – so much so that it is still his favourite computer. Yes, he’s a journalist. But he points out that others have taken up the charge of becoming “big time” iPad users: “I’m pretty sure it’s not just journalists who are using iPads as computers.

Software Review 155

Software Review Technical Review Social Network Hosting 155

Gust

SEPTEMBER 16, 2012

Steve Forbes image via Wikipedia. Presenting your startup vision as a founder to a potential investor, or presenting an idea as an employee to an executive, requires that you effectively communicate, or “translate”, the value proposition into terms that the receiver can fully understand and appreciate. If you fail, it’s your loss, not theirs, no matter what the reason.

Technology 162

Technology Agile Architecture Distribution 162

ConversionXL

SEPTEMBER 19, 2012

There are three ways to grow sales – online and offline both. Only three. However, most companies focus only on one – and are missing out on revenue opportunities. So what are these 3 ways to increase online sales? increase the number of customers, increase the average order size, increase the number of repeat purchases. #1: Increase the number of customers.

Sales 125

Sales Phoenix Email Europe 125

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2012

The other day, I noticed an eye-catching headline: "Internet Funding Boom Ends as Fast as It Began". It was from the Wall Street Journal--a publication I count on for emphasizing quality journalism over empty linkbaity headlines above hollow stories. Perhaps I need to rethink that. How else can you explain this headline matching a story about a professional social network still trying to explore revenues raising $17mm on an $80mm valuation?

Venture Capital 114

Venture Capital Marketing Term Sheet Software Review 114

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 6, 2012

This post was co-written by Eric Ries and Sarah Milstein, co-hosts of The Lean Startup Conference. This year, for the first time, we've added a day of workshops and site visits to The Lean Startup Conference. We’re really proud to present the workshops, which we're holding on December 4, and we wanted to tell you more about them. (We’ll talk about the cool site visits in a separate post.

Lean 154

Lean Cofounder Analytics Startup 154

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 30, 2012

How do companies like GE, Wal-Mart and Honeywell succeed? What is the secret of Jack Welch, one of the most legendary CEO in the business world today? The secret, according to Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan, is “ Execution “ Subtitled The Discipline of Getting Things Done , the New York Times bestseller emphasizes the importance of execution in business, how companies with an execution culture conduct their business affairs, and its three core processes: people, strategy and operations

Operations 220

Operations New York Framework Management 220

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

Amsterdam-based Rockstart Accelerator , one of the many, many startup accelerators in Europe, is taking the first class of startups who’ve graduated from its six-month program stateside this month. The accelerator, which counts Amazon CTO Werner Vogels among its startup mentors , will be showcasing its first batch of startups (see list below) in Silicon Valley on the 20th of September, followed by a panel discussion about “The Future of the European Startup Community” Sounds ri

Silicon Valley 123

Silicon Valley CTO Hire Continuous Deployment Cofounder 123

crowdSPRING Blog

SEPTEMBER 28, 2012

Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account , I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design , web design , startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

Social Media 95

Social Media Small Business Design Media 95

paulgraham.com

SEPTEMBER 23, 2012

September 2012 A startup is a company designed to grow fast. Being newly founded does not in itself make a company a startup. Nor is it necessary for a startup to work on technology, or take venture funding, or have some sort of "exit." The only essential thing is growth. Everything else we associate with startups follows from growth. If you want to start one its important to understand that.

Startup 111

Startup Technical Review Software Review Acquisition 111

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 20, 2012

There are a number of certainties in life. There’s death. And taxes. And if you’re the founder of a successful startup and you’re not named Mark Zuckerberg, there’s the day when you’re replaced as CEO. Don’t pout - your ouster is actually the ultimate validation of your company. So says David Feinleib , author of Why Startups Fail: And How Yours Can Succeed.

Part-Time VPE 133

Part-Time VPE Founder Silicon Valley Startup 133

The Equity Kicker

SEPTEMBER 6, 2012

UPDATE: Step 2 added following feedback on Twitter. The developer behind Appbot – a service for app developers who want their app store reviews and features in their email inbox – has posted the lessons he learned when building his minimum viable product. There is nothing revolutionary here, but it is a good list of things to do. This is my summary: Build something for yourself, that you would use, especially if you are a first time entrepreneur.

Product 129

Product Software Review Analytics Conversion 129

Mike Michalowicz

SEPTEMBER 27, 2012

Recently the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) and AARP announced they are teaming up to train entrepreneurs over the age of 50 who want to start a business. This got me thinking about the youth vs. old guy experience debate and how, after twenty years in entrepreneurship, my view on business, money and worth has changed. Old entrepreneurs are in fact the winners.

Entrepreneur 123

Entrepreneur SBA Architecture Washington 123

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

Giving a presentation is as much an art as it is a craft. And it’s becoming increasingly important in today’s world of startups that those who are going to pitch and present need to have a sense of what to do not just when they’re up in front of everyone, but what to do before and afterward as well. There’s much to do when putting together a presentation that just can’t be covered up by the passion the speaker feels for their subject matter, and I’ve seen plenty of presentations and pitches both

Technical Review 154

Technical Review Audience Technology Internet 154

crowdSPRING Blog

SEPTEMBER 14, 2012

Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account , I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design , web design , startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

Social Media 92

Social Media Small Business Design Media 92

online.wsj.com

SEPTEMBER 23, 2012

WSJ. WSJ. Facebook. Twitter. WSJ Live. WSJ Live. MarketWatch. MarketWatch. Barrons. Barrons. AllThingsDigital. AllThingsDigital. Factiva. Factiva. Risk. Risk. More. BigCharts. Financial News. Professor Journal. SmartMoney. Student Journal. Virtual Stock Exchange. WSJ Classifieds. WSJ Classroom. WSJ Radio. WSJ Wine. SEARCH. headline. gold man. Companies.

Venture Capital 107

Venture Capital Software Review Rhode Island North Dakota 107

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 11, 2012

With TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2012 in full swing this week, it’s only a matter of days before a new winner is crowned. We decided to check in with previous Disrupt winners to see how they’ve fared since their victories - and try to determine how it means to ace a high-profile startup contest. Startup contests like TechCrunch Disrupt can generate a lot of hype and interest, but does that translate into any lasting benefit for the startups involved?

San Francisco 123

San Francisco New York Audio Software Review 123

Rob Go

SEPTEMBER 3, 2012

Another year, another guide. Summer is always the time when large numbers of new participants in the tech ecosystem arrive and start to get their bearings. This is why this guide exists, and why I try to refresh it every year with the most interesting meetups, companies, and folks to follow online. Boston is a great place to start and build a company.

Boston 72

Boston Community CTO Hire Cofounder 72

Gregg Fraley, Author of Jack's Notebook

SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

I’ve been involved* these past two years with a creativity conference in Oklahoma, now called the State of Creativity Forum. This conference has energy to spare, it feels like an accelerating fire of innovative energy. Last year’s event (for a summary look at this post ) exploded with dynamic speakers, cultural, and artist happenings. Even the governor, Mary Fallin, was there to support the notion that creativity and innovation is how Oklahoma moves forward.

Oklahoma 91

Oklahoma Oklahoma City Angel Investor Technical Review 91

Duct Tape Marketing

SEPTEMBER 24, 2012

Talk about mobile and tablet usage dominates computer hardware conversations and the implications are one of the hottest topics in marketing right now as well. photo credit: waferbaby via photopin cc. Website visitors are now consuming content from our sites in a dizzying array of devices, formats and orientations. There was a time when browser compatibility was a designer’s primary concern.

Mobile 75

Mobile Widget Design Media 75

crowdSPRING Blog

SEPTEMBER 21, 2012

Every day on the crowdSPRING Twitter account and on my own Twitter account , I post links to posts or videos I enjoyed reading or viewing. These posts and videos are about logo design , web design , startups, entrepreneurship, small business, leadership, social media, marketing, and more! Here are some of the links that I’ve liked and shared this past week!

Social Media 94

Social Media Small Business Design Media 94

techcrunch.com

SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

Home. Startups. Mobile. Gadgets. Europe. Video. More. Enterprise. Venture. Social. GreenTech. Gaming. Opinion. Drama. Guides. Smartphones. Tablets. Digital Cameras. Laptops. Headphones. Events. CrunchBase. Hot topics. Apple. Facebook. Twitter. Google. Android. Disrupt SF. Hackathon. news. Comment. Convertible Equity, A Better Alternative To Convertible Debt?

Equity 87

Equity San Francisco Technical Review Angel Investor 87