Steve Blank

APRIL 23, 2014

Most large companies manage three types of innovation: process innovation (making existing products incrementally better), continuous innovation (building on the strength of the company’s current business model but creating new elements) and disruptive innovation (creating products or services that did not exist before.).

Acquisition 332

Acquisition Intellectual Property Silicon Valley Startup 332

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

Thus I offer the following outline for how to organize and present your business plan, with specific examples: Start with outlining the customer problem, and your solution. For example, “We just patented a new battery technology that will cut your smartphone charge time and cost in half.” Use non-fuzzy terms to quantify customer value.

Business Plan 423

Business Plan Product Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch 423

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 14, 2023

Simply stated, it means that your business has the potential to multiply revenue with minimal incremental cost. Ready to scale is when you have a proven product and a proven business model, about to expand to new geographies and markets. Use a minimum viable product (MVP) to validate the model.

Hockey Stick 339

Hockey Stick Intellectual Property Non-Compete Business Model 339

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 26, 2021

Of course, you can find these elements embodied in many of the business plan templates and tools out there, such as the Business Model Canvas. Free” is not an exciting business model for investor interest. Show a cost margin of at least fifty percent. Identify your intellectual property or “secret sauce.”

Intellectual Property 332

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Business Model Channel 332

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 29, 2024

Designing Your Business Model Crafting a business model is like building a blueprint for your venture. Revenue streams are another critical component of your business model. Will you opt for direct sales, subscriptions, or a freemium model? However, do so with caution and strategic planning.

Intellectual Property 132

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Business Model Bootstrapping 132

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2017

An effective tool I see used more and more, as a prelude to a more detailed business plan, is the Business Model Canvas , first introduced by Alexander Osterwalder back in 2008. In my experience as a new business advisor, a business is nothing until people are aligned and work in sync. Key resources.

Business Model 143

Business Model Intellectual Property Startup Angel Investor 143

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 19, 2020

Simply stated, it means that your business has the potential to multiply revenue with minimal incremental cost. Ready to scale is when you have a proven product and a proven business model, about to expand to new geographies and markets. Use a minimum viable product (MVP) to validate the model.

Hockey Stick 386

Hockey Stick Intellectual Property Startup Non-Compete 386

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 11, 2013

This post is an update of what we learned about life science distribution channels. Life Science/Health Care distribution channels differ by Category. It turns out that for commercialization, the business model (Customers, Channel, Revenue Model, etc.) Channel Cost = $350-400,000 per sales team.

Distribution 224

Distribution Channel Lean Intellectual Property 224

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 13, 2019

An effective tool I see used more and more, as a prelude to a more detailed business plan, is the Business Model Canvas , first introduced by Alexander Osterwalder back in 2008. In my experience as a new business advisor, a business is nothing until people are aligned and work in sync. Key resources.

Intellectual Property 250

Intellectual Property Business Model Angel Investor Channel 250

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 11, 2022

Undefined business model or very low gross margins. Potential return on investment cannot be calculated without a clear understanding and evidence of actual costs, revenue flows, and margins. Lack of intellectual property. All internal teams need to have relevant skills and experience.

Due Diligence 271

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Preferred Stock 271

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 3, 2016

I certainly agree that starting a business is fraught with risk, and none of us get it all right the first time. It’s important to learn from your own mistakes, but it’s even smarter to learn from someone else’s mistakes, without paying their high price in time lost, cost, and pain. Assume passion level defines business opportunity.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Startup Angel Investor Viral 120

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 1, 2015

I certainly agree that starting a business is fraught with risk, and none of us get it all right the first time. It’s important to learn from your own mistakes, but it’s even smarter to learn from someone else’s mistakes, without paying their high price in time lost, cost, and pain. Assume passion level defines business opportunity.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Viral Distribution 120

Steve Blank

MARCH 31, 2014

Just look at the disruptive challenges that businesses face today– globalization, China as a manufacturer, China as a consumer, the Internet, and a steady stream of new startups. The first will be commodity businesses that are valued for their ability to execute their current business model. Act Like a Startup.

Private Equity 325

Private Equity Metrics China Intellectual Property 325

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2020

Undefined business model or very low gross margins. Potential return on investment cannot be calculated without a clear understanding and evidence of actual costs, revenue flows, and margins. Lack of intellectual property. All internal teams need to have relevant skills and experience.

Due Diligence 308

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Preferred Stock Seed Stage 308

VC Cafe

APRIL 15, 2024

The creation of content, but especially the sharing of content became a zero cost game. Initially, many publishers were slow to recognize the internet’s impact on their business model as distribution and the classifieds and ad worlds split – or what Ben Thompson calls the “ Great Unbundling ”.

Generative AI 142

Generative AI Media Artificial Inteligence Vertical 142

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 25, 2014

Over 10 weeks each team gets out of the building talking to 100 customers to test their hypotheses across all 9 boxes in the business model canvas. We track each team’s progress as they test their business model hypotheses. It’s flexible enough to be modified for industry-specific business models.

Incubator 310

Incubator Intellectual Property Startup Lean 310

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 11, 2013

But why not learn as well from the mistakes of others, without suffering their cost, time, and pain? Don’t believe the old urban legend that a business plan isn’t worth the effort. The discipline of writing down a plan is the best way to make sure you actually understand how to transform your idea into a business.

Intellectual Property 251

Intellectual Property Startup Viral Early Stage 251

Up and Running

MAY 1, 2014

If your business model (i.e., “how If you are raising money to start or grow your business, you need to include the details of what you need in the executive summary. Remember, your goal is to keep your business plan as short as possible, so too much detail here could easily make your plan much too long. Social Media.

Business Plan 163

Business Plan Forecast Balance Sheet Distribution 163

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 7, 2013

Simply stated, it means that your business has the potential to multiply revenue with minimal incremental cost. Ready to scale is when you have a proven product and a proven business model, about to expand to new geographies and markets. Use a minimum viable product (MVP) to validate the model.

Hockey Stick 278

Hockey Stick Intellectual Property Startup Non-Compete 278

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 1, 2012

But why not learn as well from the mistakes of others, without suffering their cost, time, and pain? Don’t believe the old urban legend that a business plan isn’t worth the effort. The discipline of writing down a plan is the best way to make sure you actually understand how to transform your idea into a business.

Intellectual Property 274

Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Viral Early Stage 274

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 27, 2018

This implies high odds of a scalable business, simply needing an investment to lead to success. Business model showing costs, pricing, and margins. Intellectual property and sustainable competitive advantage. Of course, you wouldn’t include this data in your customer product pitch.

Product 145

Product Intellectual Property Liquidity Event Exit Strategy 145

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 18, 2016

If you have a proven business model with some sales, it’s credible to apply a multiplier of five to 10 times this number for the first element of valuation. Connections to industry experts and channels are another positive to highlight. Registered intellectual property adds value.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Startup 120

Gust

NOVEMBER 3, 2013

But why not learn as well from the mistakes of others, without suffering their cost, time, and pain? Don’t believe the old urban legend that a business plan isn’t worth the effort. The discipline of writing down a plan is the best way to make sure you actually understand how to transform your idea into a business.

Intellectual Property 183

Intellectual Property Startup Viral Early Stage 183

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2016

Simply stated, it means that your business has the potential to multiply revenue with minimal incremental cost. Ready to scale is when you have a proven product and a proven business model, about to expand to new geographies and markets. Use a minimum viable product (MVP) to validate the model.

Hockey Stick 120

Hockey Stick Intellectual Property Non-Compete Business Model 120

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2012

Explain in terms your mother could understand, and quantify the “cost-of-pain” in dollars or time. Do describe your intellectual property and “secret sauce”. Clearly define the customer, channel, and revenue model associated with this solution. Explain the business model. Focus is the keyword here.

Business Plan 283

Business Plan Sweat Equity Exit Strategy Intellectual Property 283

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2015

How the solution and business model work to fund the business. Every customer understands that your solution has to generate more revenue than cost, but you should not put that data in a customer pitch. Investors will impatiently expect a winning business model, customer segment definitions and volume projections.

Product 120

Product Intellectual Property Liquidity Event Burn Rate 120

Steve Blank

MARCH 11, 2010

Our goal is to teach students the key concepts of the startup process and help them understand that a startup is a search for a profitable business model. Students formed 5-person teams, came up with a business idea then got out of the building to validate their business model. What is a business model?

Intellectual Property 226

Intellectual Property Business Model Customer Development Distribution 226

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 11, 2015

Simply stated, it means that your business has the potential to multiply revenue with minimal incremental cost. Ready to scale is when you have a proven product and a proven business model, about to expand to new geographies and markets. Use a minimum viable product (MVP) to validate the model.

Hockey Stick 120

Hockey Stick Intellectual Property Non-Compete Business Model 120

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 1, 2016

Undefined business model or very low gross margins. Potential return on investment cannot be calculated without a clear understanding and evidence of actual costs, revenue flows, and margins. Lack of intellectual property. All internal teams need to have relevant skills and experience.

Due Diligence 120

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Preferred Stock Seed Stage 120

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 25, 2016

Investors are wary of startups with no intellectual property, even with a first-mover advantage. It costs very little to file a provisional patent to begin your protection. Secret sauce' or competitive advantage is not clear. Revenue and profit projections are not credible.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Accredited Investor Angel Investor Reputation 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2011

Explain in terms your mother could understand, and quantify the “cost-of-pain” in dollars or time. Do describe your intellectual property and “secret sauce”. Clearly define the customer, channel, and revenue model associated with this solution. Explain the business model. Focus is the keyword here.

Business Plan 290

Business Plan Sweat Equity Exit Strategy Intellectual Property 290

Steve Blank

MARCH 25, 2011

Week 3 of the class and our teams in our Stanford Lean LaunchPad class were hard at work using Customer Development to get out of the classroom and test the first key hypotheses of their business model: The Value Proposition. Value Proposition is a ten-dollar phrase describing a company’s product or service. The Nine Teams Present.

Cloud 228

Cloud Intellectual Property Lean Customer Development 228

Gust

AUGUST 5, 2012

Explain in terms your mother could understand, and quantify the “cost-of-pain” in dollars or time. Do describe your intellectual property and “secret sauce”. Clearly define the customer, channel, and revenue model associated with this solution. Explain the business model. Focus is the keyword here.

Business Plan 182

Business Plan Sweat Equity Exit Strategy Intellectual Property 182

Steve Blank

AUGUST 5, 2010

Fairchild Semiconductor became the progenitor of a flood of Silicon Valley chip companies and at the same time the adoption of the limited partnership as the model for Venture Firms gave VC’s their own profitable business model. One could argue that there’s nothing new here, as Internet distibution models started in 1995.

Lean 258

Lean Internet Silicon Valley Venture Capital 258

Business Plan Blog

SEPTEMBER 10, 2013

What makes an idea compelling to an investor is 2 fold: 1) does the idea offer a solution to a big problem or opportunity, and 2) is the idea protected via intellectual property or some other barrier to entry. They also show your ability to turn a business concept into a realistic, attractive business model.

Intellectual Property 53

Intellectual Property Venture Capital Equity Business Plan 53

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2010

Explain in terms your mother could understand, and quantify the “cost-of-pain” in dollars or time. Do describe your intellectual property and “secret sauce”. Clearly define the customer, channel, and revenue model associated with this solution. Explain the business model. Focus is the keyword here.

Business Plan 186

Business Plan Exit Strategy Sweat Equity Intellectual Property 186

David Teten

DECEMBER 3, 2019

A tool like Quuu identifies relevant, shareable content to keep your social media channels active. . Lean Case provides standard business models & metrics, so you can apply a standard approach to business planning, modeling, and profitability tracking.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Software Review Analytics Private Equity 78