Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

I say this not to discourage you from acting on your idea, but to encourage you to anticipate the work required to get you from inspiration to a sustainable and satisfying business. Thus, I’m more impressed with entrepreneurs who ask me to review their implementation plan, rather than listen again to their idea.

Intellectual Property 235

Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch Harvest Technical Review 235

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 17, 2013

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. The key here is to create a win-win partner situation for your investors. Lack of clear objectives/goals.

Software Review 265

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Startup 265

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2018

The biggest challenge for every entrepreneur and every startup today is to get noticed and remembered in today’s information overload. The number of entrepreneurs worldwide is huge, starting an estimated 50 million new businesses per year, or 137,000 per day. Every story needs a main character. The obstacle or the painful need.

Elevator Pitch 211

Elevator Pitch Technical Review Boston Sales 211

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2010

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. On the top line, angel investors look to invest in entrepreneurs that have an almost unwavering passion and sense of urgency. Listens before answering questions. Marty Zwilling.

Angel Investor 241

Angel Investor Technical Review Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch 241

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2015

Every entrepreneur needs a value proposition statement for his or her startup that can hook potential investors and partners in less than a minute -- the short time you might join them in an elevator on the way to their offices. Limit your elevator pitch message to about 150 to 225 words in 30 to 60 seconds.

Elevator Pitch 120

Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Differentiation Business Plan 120

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2013

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. On the top line, angel investors look to invest in entrepreneurs that have an almost unwavering passion and sense of urgency. Listens before answering questions. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 273

Technical Review Intellectual Property Angel Investor Elevator Pitch 273

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2010

An "elevator pitch" is a concise, well-practiced description of your startup and your plan, delivered with conviction and enthusiasm, that your mother should be able to understand in the time it would take to ride up an elevator. A good elevator pitch is not just for an elevator discussion.

Elevator Pitch 233

Elevator Pitch Startup Distribution Channel 233

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2011

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. The key here is to create a win-win partner situation for your investors. Lack of clear objectives/goals.

Software Review 246

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Early Stage 246

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2020

As a business advisor, I listen to many of you entrepreneurs talking about achieving your dreams, but too few of you have structured that dream, and can express it in a set of specific goals, with a timeline for getting there. Develop an “elevator pitch” as an initial path to your goal.

Elevator Pitch 347

Elevator Pitch Incubator Matching Business Plan 347

Up and Running

OCTOBER 17, 2018

With the help of my friend Jeff, from the University of Oregon, I’ve been looking at academic research on business planning—the actual science around planning and how it impacts both startups and existing businesses. But, before we dive into the data, why do we even need to look at research on business planning?

Business Plan 263

Business Plan Oregon Lean Elevator Pitch 263

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2022

This probably seems obvious to military types, but I see entrepreneurs violating this rule all the time. They approach key potential investors way too early, trying to talk their way up the hill, with no supporting business plan, and before they have a support team around them. Napkins don’t really work as your business plan.

Elevator Pitch 316

Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Venture Capital Business Plan 316

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2013

Sure, there will always some seed funding (10% of overall deal flow), but you can bet that this money goes to entrepreneurs who have been there before and won. So what can entrepreneurs do to get to the head of the venture capital investment queue and position their startup for a winning IPO?

Venture Capital 252

Venture Capital IPO Elevator Pitch Initial Public Offering 252

Up and Running

NOVEMBER 13, 2012

Whether you are trying to raise money for your business or just want to perfect your business strategy, a solid elevator pitch is an essential tool for achieving your goals. An elevator pitch can be delivered either verbally, ideally in 60 seconds or less, or as a one-page overview of your business.

Elevator Pitch 166

Elevator Pitch Forecast Oregon Differentiation 166

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2023

Entrepreneurs looking for investor funding often fail to realize that all money comes with strings. For example, if you have watched the Shark Tank TV series, you probably noticed that the Sharks always ask the entrepreneurs for their intended “use of funds.” These must remain focused on scaling the business.

Elevator Pitch 228

Elevator Pitch Salary Angel Investor Viral 228

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

Don’t think for a minute that any serious investor would ever read a summary memo, or watch a pitch, much less read a business plan, when it looks like it’s being sent in bulk to multiple investors. That idea dates back to the 1980s when people imagined that VCs were looking at business plans coming in unsolicited.

Software Review 124

Software Review Due Diligence Venture Capital Elevator Pitch 124

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 18, 2014

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. For aspiring entrepreneurs, or if your last startup failed, it’s all about standing out above the crowd of others like you.

Entrepreneur 270

Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Due Diligence Angel Investor 270

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 2, 2020

One thing I have learned the hard way in business is that implementing new ideas is usually much more difficult than conceiving the idea in the first place. That’s why I caution my aspiring entrepreneur clients against proclaiming to investors that they are a great “idea” person. A full plan may be no more than 20 pages.

Elevator Pitch 315

Elevator Pitch Cofounder Dividend Leadership 315

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 12, 2020

Entrepreneurs looking for investor funding often fail to realize that all money comes with strings. For example, if you have watched the Shark Tank TV series, you probably noticed that the Sharks always ask the entrepreneurs for their intended “use of funds.” These must remain focused on scaling the business.

Elevator Pitch 336

Elevator Pitch Salary Angel Investor Viral 336

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

Chasing funding versus chasing customers and a repeatable and scalable business model, is one reason startups fail. Product Development – Getting Funded as The Goal In a traditional product development model, entrepreneurs come up with an idea or concept, write a business plan and try to get funding to bring that idea to fruition.

Customer Development 262

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 262

Austin Startup

JANUARY 2, 2018

Originally published on the Shep Blog As an entrepreneur, particularly at the beginning of your journey, you will constantly have to come up with and refine your message in a multitude of different formats. So get out there and practice your pitch to your partner, co-founder, Mom, and, most importantly your mirror.

Elevator Pitch 54

Elevator Pitch Startup Technical Review Cofounder 54

YoungUpstarts

APRIL 9, 2019

Whether your support system is friends and family offering words of encouragement or business partners who come in every morning bringing ideas to the table, these individuals are highly valuable to your team and your process. A Grounded Business Plan. What would a business be without an effective business plan?

Elevator Pitch 279

Elevator Pitch Social Media Business Plan Advertising 279

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 26, 2012

An "elevator pitch" is a concise, well-practiced description of your startup and your plan, delivered with conviction and enthusiasm, that your mother should be able to understand in the time it would take to ride up an elevator. A good elevator pitch is not just for an elevator discussion.

Elevator Pitch 283

Elevator Pitch Startup Differentiation Distribution 283

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 25, 2019

You might have an elevator pitch prepared for your business. These terms are often confused, and tend to serve as afterthought additions to your company’s business plan. If you’re writing out a business plan, or if you have one already, you may see your vision and mission statements as unnecessary.

Elevator Pitch 154

Elevator Pitch PR Forecast Advertising 154

Steve Blank

MARCH 8, 2011

We were positing that 20 years of teaching “how to write a business plan” might be obsolete. Startups, are not about executing a plan where the product, customers, channel are known. Startups are in fact only temporary organizations, organized to search –not execute–for a scalable and repeatable business model.

Lean 298

Lean Business Model Customer Development Guinea 298

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 20, 2018

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. There is no crowd of successful entrepreneurs. Investor and strategic partner pitch. Pitch your company, not your product.

Elevator Pitch 164

Elevator Pitch Due Diligence Angel Investor Business Plan 164

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2019

This probably seems obvious to military types, but I see entrepreneurs violating this rule all the time. They approach key potential investors way too early, trying to talk their way up the hill, with no supporting business plan, and before they have a support team around them. Napkins don’t really work as your business plan.

Elevator Pitch 214

Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Venture Capital Business Plan 214

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 25, 2012

This probably seems obvious to military types, but I see entrepreneurs violating this rule all the time. They approach key potential investors way too early, trying to talk their way up the hill, with no supporting business plan, and before they have a support team around them. Napkins don’t really work as your business plan.

Elevator Pitch 236

Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur Angel Investor Venture Capital 236

Up and Running

APRIL 27, 2016

Writing a business plan can seem intimidating. You’re committing your great idea to paper and fleshing out the details of how you’re actually going to start and grow your business. For over 15 years, I’ve been writing business plans, reading plans for major business plan competitions, and raising money for startups.

Business Plan 60

Business Plan Forecast Angel Investor Entrepreneur 60

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 8, 2017

Unless you are a serial entrepreneur with a string of successes behind you, you need a business plan to convince investors that you can build a business out of the dream that has been driving your passion to change the world. This is your elevator pitch hook, which you must be able to deliver in 30 seconds.

Elevator Pitch 163

Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Silicon Valley Revenue 163

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 24, 2021

In order to determine your course of action and overall business strategy (financial, marketing etc.), it’s wise to create and implement some kind of business plan with a lean canvas approach as your guide. Since the traditional business plans tend to take weeks or even months to prepare, they’re also rarely updated.

Lean 88

Lean Elevator Pitch Startup Business Plan 88

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 26, 2010

A fter years of talking with many of you in the Israeli startup industry, investors and entrepreneurs alike, I was invited to present some tips for entrepreneurs at the Launch48 conference in London this weekend. Also, make sure you practice your elevator pitch. Business Plan. When to raise?

Elevator Pitch 102

Elevator Pitch Incubator Technical Review Startup 102

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 25, 2014

This probably seems obvious to military types, but I see entrepreneurs violating this rule all the time. They approach key potential investors way too early, trying to talk their way up the hill, with no supporting business plan, and before they have a support team around them. Napkins don’t really work as your business plan.

Elevator Pitch 268

Elevator Pitch Venture Capital Startup Angel Investor 268

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 12, 2010

This probably seems obvious to military types, but I see entrepreneurs violating this rule all the time. They approach key potential investors way too early, trying to talk their way up the hill, with no supporting business plan, and before they have a support team around them. Napkins don’t really work as your business plan.

Elevator Pitch 217

Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur Angel Investor Venture Capital 217

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 26, 2018

For other investment options, like small business loans, venture capital, and angel investing, you’ll need a solid business plan and proof of concept before anyone will be interested in investing. Today, I’m the life of the party, and I’ve even met business partners at these events. What changed?

Elevator Pitch 242

Elevator Pitch Due Diligence Networking Venture Capital 242

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 8, 2017

This probably seems obvious to military types, but I see entrepreneurs violating this rule all the time. They approach key potential investors way too early, trying to talk their way up the hill, with no supporting business plan, and before they have a support team around them. Napkins don’t really work as your business plan.

Elevator Pitch 151

Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Venture Capital Business Plan 151

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2014

Entrepreneurs looking for investor funding often fail to realize that all money comes with strings. For example, if you have watched the Shark Tank TV series, you probably noticed that the Sharks always ask the entrepreneurs for their intended “use of funds.” These must remain focused on scaling the business.

Elevator Pitch 285

Elevator Pitch Salary Angel Investor Viral 285

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 15, 2015

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. There is no crowd of successful entrepreneurs. Investor and strategic partner pitch. Pitch your company, not your product.

Elevator Pitch 120

Elevator Pitch Due Diligence Startup Angel Investor 120