Both Sides of the Table

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Are Business Plans Still Necessary?

Both Sides of the Table

In an era of “launch and learn&# is there a need for a business plan? I have seen really great product people espouse the death of the business plan. So, definition: when I talk about a business plan I’m not talking about a 40-page Word document outlining your market approach.

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How Much Should You Raise in Your VC Round? And What is a VC Looking at in Your Model?

Both Sides of the Table

There are many things a VC is looking for in reviewing your business plan but beyond things the like the quality of revenue, margins, OPEX and CAPEX there’s a really simple rule I call, “Cash In, Cash Out, Milestones Achieved.” So it’s incumbent on you to know what a smart business plan and use of cash looks like.

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Here’s Why a Booming Tech Market May Fool You into Thinking You’re Successful

Both Sides of the Table

And importantly we’ve had revenue. Consumers buying through smart phones, travelers using the new, shared economy and businesses replacing old software with modern cloud-based solutions. When I start to see revenue figures I always want to know the details behind the revenue: Who championed the project?

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What Makes an Entrepreneur? Four Letters: JFDI

Both Sides of the Table

He refined his business plan and he got commitments for $150-200k but needed some lead angels to commit first. When he re-approached me he had a much better plan and he had a prototype! The CEO had 60-page Powerpoint presentations analyzing every micro detail of the business. But then something awesome happened.

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What Makes an Entrepreneur (3/11) – Ability to Pivot

Both Sides of the Table

They went away and made progress in their business. The next time they came back they had changed their business plan to become a variable rate pricing mechanism for image owners to sell to websites and had created an image-based ad-network platform for remnant photos. They had signed up Gawker Media and the New York Post.

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Venture Capital Q&A Session

Both Sides of the Table

People buy companies for 3 primary reasons: 1) they want the management team / talent 2) they want the technology or 3) they want the market traction (revenue, customer base, profits, etc). In fact, far better if you haven’t raised venture capital. People also buy for defensive reasons or ego but that’s a different story.

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Fauxmentum

Both Sides of the Table

Let me give you some examples I see of fauxmentum: In the SaaS world I see many business plans where companies have achieved 100-300% year-over-year growth and this is truly impressive. I see another breed of startups who are dependent on startups for the majority of their revenue.