Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 28, 2020

He nails the current key startup parameters, including the following: Crafting a lean business plan as your road map. The days of lengthy, text-heavy, business plan documents prepared by expensive experts are behind us. Incorporating a business entity early through online services.

Intellectual Property 404

Intellectual Property Startup Angel Groups Social Media 404

YoungUpstarts

MAY 21, 2020

You envision your business as the next Uber or Spotify, yourself as the next Steve Jobs or Elon Musk, reaching that prestigious ‘unicorn’ startup status in record time. Like most entrepreneurs, you’ve probably mapped out the business plan, dreamed up the layout and you’re already snapping up domains and emailing developers with your plan.

Product 264

Product Cofounder Audience Product Development 264

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2015

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Business commercialization.

Product Development 120

Product Development Developer Product Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 17, 2020

In that spirit, I offer my perspective on ten common startup failure sources that rarely get admitted by entrepreneurs: Choose to skip the written business plan. A business plan is for you first, not investors. Marketing should start before product development. No startup can afford to do these serially.

Intellectual Property 436

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Viral Distribution 436

Up and Running

MARCH 17, 2022

Many business owners know and understand the value of a business plan. The business plan is a key component of the startup and fundraising process and serves as a foundation for your organization. What is a business plan? It lays out who is running the business and what the business does.

Business Plan 145

Business Plan Operations Lean Forecast 145

ReadWriteStart

NOVEMBER 12, 2022

Frugal innovation has its roots in the developing world, where resource constraints have always necessitated a more creative approach to problem-solving. In recent years, however, frugal innovation has also gained traction in developed countries. Mobile banking in developing countries. Examples of successful frugal innovations.

Startup 198

Startup Technical Review Ghana Guerilla 198

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 19, 2017

by Steve Owens, Founder and CTO of Finish Line Product Development Services. The lean start-up movement has been based on a single insight – which the purpose of a start-up is to discover a business model that works. Reducing product turn time. Specifically, we show that OPD leads to: Increasing the ability to pivot.

Product Development 153

Product Development Lean Developer Product 153

Up and Running

MAY 2, 2011

Tweet Your business plan is the foundation of your business. It’s also an invaluable tool when it comes time to apply for a business loan. When lenders ask for a business plan, they are looking specifically for the following items: History of the business. About the Author.

Business Plan 92

Business Plan SBA Revenue Finance 92

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 11, 2023

It is necessary to cover the early stages of product development, thorough market research, and other processes during the initial step. Seed capital is a component of the initial investments made in young businesses. During the pre-seed fundraising stage, investors need a viable business plan to base their investments on.

Seed Stage 131

Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 131

Up and Running

FEBRUARY 10, 2021

A key to making this entire process much easier is to invest a little time and write a business plan. It’s true — not all investors will ask to see your business plan. Why do investors want to see a business plan? The business plan document itself isn’t what’s important to investors.

Business Plan 138

Business Plan Forecast Balance Sheet Exit Strategy 138

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2023

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Business commercialization.

Angel Investor 256

Angel Investor Early Stage Incubator Government 256

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 2, 2019

Most of you aspiring entrepreneurs have no idea how dramatically your own role has to evolve as you develop a solution, start a business, and expect it to scale into a successful self-managed company. Thus my job as a small business advisor really is really more about getting you developed than perfecting the business.

Leadership 248

Leadership Technical Review Cofounder Social Media 248

Up and Running

FEBRUARY 12, 2022

Learn why the traditional way of writing a five-year business plan is often a waste of time and how to use a Lean Plan instead for smarter, easier strategic planning to establish your long-term vision. But, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t plan for the long term. What is a long-term plan?

Business Plan 83

Business Plan Lean Forecast Exit Strategy 83

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 8, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Saturday, November 8, 2008 What is customer development? When we build products, we use a methodology. Steve Blank has devoted many years now to trying to answer that question, with a theory he calls Customer Development. a roadmap for how to get to Product/Market Fit." Theory of market types.

Customer Development 168

Customer Development Developer San Francisco Customer 168

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 17, 2021

In that case, it is worth thinking about the many benefits that further online business education has to offer you and your company. The journey to success often requires consistent self-development, an area that an advanced qualification can help you thrive. This is a factor that can be improved upon through the lens of education.

Analytics 176

Analytics Technical Review Social Media Software Review 176

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

Startups wrote business plans, generated expansive 5-year forecasts and executed (hired, spent and built) to the plan. First Movers” didn’t understand customer problems or the product features that solved those problems (what we now call product-market fit). The result? Carpe Diem – Seize the Cash.

Lean 335

Lean Burn Rate Startup IPO 335

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2021

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Business commercialization.

Early Stage 412

Early Stage Angel Investor Incubator Government 412

Steve Blank

MAY 6, 2015

Waterfall Development. While it sounds simple , the Build Measure Learn approach to product development is a radical improvement over the traditional Waterfall model used throughout the 20 th century to build and ship products. Waterfall Development was all about execution of the requirements document.

Lean 120

Lean Agile Business Model Customer Development 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 16, 2013

Serious investors expect founders to have their homework done before the first interaction – documented executive summary, business plan, and financial model. Product development. For a great idea person, the product details keep changing for the better, but nothing ever gets finished. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 275

Entrepreneur Technical Review Software Review Retention 275

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 1, 2013

Starting a business is a lot like starting a marriage. Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. The product is behind schedule. When I was a software development manager, I tried to get a “bottoms up” time estimate from the team, and then pad it by 50%.

Founder 250

Founder Startup Software Developers Software Development 250

Gust

APRIL 27, 2014

Software Development Process via Wikipedia. Even when your startup is a one-man show and lots of fun, a “business” needs some discipline and controls to keep it from being defined as a hobby by investors, and assure some financial return. Develop your business plan. Product development process.

Startup 187

Startup Institutional Investors Angel Investor Bootstrapping 187

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2012

Starting a business is a lot like starting a marriage. Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. The product is behind schedule. When I was a software development manager, I tried to get a “bottoms up” time estimate from the team, and then pad it by 50%.

Software Developers 229

Software Developers Software Development Business Model Product Development 229

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 6, 2011

Starting a business is a lot like starting a marriage. Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. The product is behind schedule. When I was a software development manager, I tried to get a “bottoms up” time estimate from the team, and then pad it by 50%.

Startup 245

Startup Software Developers Software Development Business Model 245

Business Plan Blog

AUGUST 20, 2013

Web Development Firm hired to do “Conceptualization Phase” – This usually includes thorough wire-framing (Paid per project). Many entrepreneurs think they can bypass this team member by simply going to a web development firm and asking for a free proposal. Development Plan (Timelines/Costs/Budgets).

CTO Hire 55

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Architecture Cofounder 55

Up and Running

JULY 19, 2016

It’s about what your business does for people that other businesses don’t do. See Also: Business Planning Guide. I’m not sure where this classic positioning statement template started, or whom to credit, but I’ve found it very useful for years of developing business plans. Positioning diagrams.

Business Plan 60

Business Plan Developer Marketing Social Media 60

YoungUpstarts

MAY 6, 2019

According to Lee M Von Kraus, PHD and a mentor at Clarity.fm, “Early stage startups are usually pre-money startup that are bootstrapping the early development of a product.”. Product development. Initial product development usually consists of prototyping and MVP. Business plan. Prototyping.

Startup 113

Startup Technical Cofounder Merger Early Stage 113

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 15, 2009

Steve Gilison worked as a market researcher and product manager at a startup where my company, TechEmpower , did the software / web development. I have about 11 years in the technology sector including roles doing market research, sales and product development. My focus has been marketing strategy and product development.

Los Angeles 179

Los Angeles Southern California Management Product 179

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 4, 2016

He nails the current key startup parameters, including the following: Crafting a lean business plan as your road map. The days of lengthy, text-heavy, business plan documents prepared by expensive experts are behind us. Incorporating a business entity early through online services.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Startup Angel Groups Social Media 120

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 3, 2009

This post describes how the traditional product development model distorts startup sales, marketing and business development. While these objectives provide an illusion of progress, in reality they do little to validate the business plan hypotheses about customers and what they will buy.

Customer Development 215

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 215

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 15, 2010

Serious investors expect founders to have their homework done before the first interaction – documented executive summary, business plan, and financial model. Product development. For a great idea person, the product details keep changing for the better, but nothing ever gets finished. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 237

Entrepreneur Technical Review Software Review Retention 237

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 20, 2019

On the other hand, if you arrive at a VC pitch without a comprehensive understanding of the industry you’re hoping to compete in, or without a clear path to profitability or a thoughtful product-development road map, you’ll likely leave empty-handed. Do you lack the skills needed to develop a viable product?

Technical Review 140

Technical Review Due Diligence Early Stage Differentiation 140

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 19, 2020

Capturing and analyzing data enables companies to get insights that benefit their companies in cost-saving, relevant marketing, product development, etc. With appropriate data analytics, a business can predict and comprehend the market, competition, customer demands, etc.

Technical Review 155

Technical Review Forecast Analytics Social Media 155

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 7, 2024

Plan Long Term It seems obvious that every company should have a business plan, yet experiencing sudden growth can affect these plans and too many entrepreneurs are eager to leap ahead without considering how it could affect the business. However, they don’t need to be perfect yet.

Startup 115

Startup Forecast Social Media Cost 115

Steve Blank

AUGUST 18, 2010

Here’s his story of when Customer Development failed. We were lucky to learn about Customer Development early on in the life of our startup. It made more sense than our 60 page business plan predicated on a B-school class and a supernatural ability to predict the future. So how did Customer Development fail us?

Customer Development 230

Customer Development Developer Customer California 230

Up and Running

JULY 3, 2014

Pick the one that works best for you, keeping in mind that you can shorten the analysis while keeping the major components of the plan intact. The back-of-the-napkin export business plan (suitable for born-global entrepreneurs). The traditional-export business plan. The Laurel export business plan.

Business Plan 74

Business Plan Widget France Global 74

YoungUpstarts

MAY 3, 2017

From product development to market research, many startups are one-person operations in their early days. Even as their teams grow, entrepreneurs often feel that they must tend to every aspect of the business, including low-level tasks that distract from revenue-generating activity. Wearing Your Many Hats With Style.

Technical Review 113

Technical Review Management Arizona Software Review 113

YoungUpstarts

MAY 23, 2018

Sometimes, it’s the lack of a proper business plan that really hurts the startup. If the business was launched off of a vision, product idea or loose handshake agreements, but there was no due diligence in building a thorough business case, then the unknowns can sweep in and cripple forward momentum.

Due Diligence 133

Due Diligence Startup Finance Leadership 133