Steve Blank

MAY 27, 2010

Startups need to have a great lawyer, accountant, patent attorney, etc. But founders need to know how to ask for their advice and when to ignore it. Why Entrepreneurs Hate Lawyers. I was having coffee with a friend who teaches at the U.C. Berkeley Boalt Law School and runs their entrepreneurship program. Our conversation led us to Scott Walkers post Why Entrepreneurs Hate Lawyers and why we both recommend that entrepreneurs print it out and tape it to their wall.

CTO Hire 287

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Software Review Startup 287

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MAY 24, 2010

This is a guest post by Steve Hanov , who blogs about programming and startups. For a micro-ISV, selling to big businesses can be more lucrative than selling to consumers. Instead of making a few dollars per sale and hoping for thousands of sales, you sell to only a few customers, and charge much higher rates. But the rates are high for a reason. It takes more time and money to sell to businesses, especially the big ones.

Software Review 233

Software Review Technical Review Sales Software 233

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2010

A week ago I talked about how and where to find a co-founder in “ How to Select an Ideal Startup Co-Founder ”. The feedback was good, but some readers asked me to be a bit more specific on attributes that might indicate an ideal business partner. Even if you are looking in all the right places, it helps to know what you are looking for. In this article, I’m broadening the definition of partner from co-founder to “business partner.

Partner 230

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Fractional CTO 230

SoCal CTO

MAY 27, 2010

I was just interviewed by Frank Peters - Tony Karrer and the Founder-Developer Gap. It was a lot of fun for me. I’ve listened to Frank’s show for several years. And I always recommend it to people involved in early stage startups. I received a follow-up question from an early-stage startup about the Founder Developer Gap that I’ve described before and that was part of the interview with Frank.

CTO Hire 170

CTO Hire Developer Founder Startup 170

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

mashable.com

MAY 28, 2010

Top Topics Twitter YouTube Facebook iPhone Google Video Google Buzz Social media Music Business Advertise Network Blippr iPhone App Mashable France MashDeck Twitter App Mobile Site Social Media Events Twitter Guide Book Facebook Guide Book Partners App Development WordPress Experts MaxCDN Content Delivery Dynect Managed DNS Rackspace Hosting Intridea About Us Submit a Tip!

Naming 94

Naming Technical Review Social Media Startup 94

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2010

I’ve had this conversation so many times it’s painful. A friend calls me up from “you name it&# city: Boston, New York, Chicago, San Francisco and says, “I’m thinking about moving to Los Angeles (or SF, NY, etc) and I’d love to start interviewing. Let me know if you hear of anything interesting.&#. I guess when I hear things like this I revert back to my shock jock instincts and say, “Don’t bother.

Los Angeles 326

Los Angeles San Francisco Chicago Investment Bankers 326

Software By Rob

MAY 24, 2010

Software by Rob Passionate about Startups and MicroISVs Lessons Learned by a Serial Entrepreneur home about press micropreneurs archives ← iMemories VHS to DVD Conversions Don’t Plan to Get Rich from Your Startup → Late Stage Co-Founder Wanted, Screencasting Handbook Released, Triumph of the Nerds on DVD, and more… Cool News, Links & Reviews If youre trying grow your startup youve come to the right place.

Cofounder 39

Cofounder Founder Software Review Ruby 39

deal architect

MAY 25, 2010

Charlie Wood tweeted yesterday about ARPU. And I asked him why he was using a telecom industry term and he responded it also applies to his subscription service. Byron Deeter who has several SaaS investments in his VC firm, Bessemer. Tags: Industry Commentary.

Metrics 210

Metrics 210

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 23, 2010

Often when startups who have raised venture capital need another round of financing they will turn to their existing investors to give them money before raising from outsiders. This happens when the company has been making steady progress but hasn’t built enough “ proof &# to raise its next round of financing from external investors. The traditional way that this type of financing is offered is what is known as “convertible debt.&# This means that the investment does not have

Startup 290

Startup Burn Rate Warrant Bankruptcy 290

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2010

Investors are people too. They evaluate you like you should assess a possible co-founder or first employee. What are your credentials? What have you done that would convince me that my money is safe in your hands? Only after they’re sold on you, do they want to see your plan and hear your idea, not the other way around. Even with great credentials, it is all too possible for an entrepreneur to come across as a high risk investment.

Bootstrapping 242

Bootstrapping Cofounder Business Plan Entrepreneur 242

Software By Rob

MAY 23, 2010

Software by Rob Passionate about Startups and MicroISVs Lessons Learned by a Serial Entrepreneur home about press micropreneurs archives ← How to Avoid the Three Startup Danger Points Late Stage Co-Founder Wanted, Screencasting Handbook Released, Triumph of the Nerds on DVD, and more… → iMemories VHS to DVD Conversions Cool News, Links & Reviews If youre trying grow your startup youve come to the right place.

Conversion 34

Conversion Software Review RSS Software Developers 34

deal architect

MAY 23, 2010

Asked Dennis Howlett after SapphireNow ended last week. It was quite a show. Superb logistics, great SAP hospitality, nice visits with several Mentors, bloggers, folks I seem to see each year at Sapphire. Honestly, though, reality was all around the.

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210

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 25, 2010

I have read much commentary on my Twitter stream (ironically) and in the press about how investors are going to abandon investments in the Twitter ecosystem because they seem to appear hostile to ecosystem partners. Let me be the first to say that I don’t agree with this notion. Let me explain. 1. Regarding protecting the quality of the stream from an influx of low quality advertising, I emphatically agree with (what I perceive to be**) Twitter’s positioning.

Advertising 276

Advertising PR Revenue Hiring 276

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 23, 2010

When you are not presenting to investors or your team, try to spend more time listening than talking. You can’t learn anything new while you’re talking, but many entrepreneurs seem to never stop. It’s a sad spiral, since the more you talk, the less people really hear, meaning they don’t learn anything either. If someone left this article on your desk, read extra carefully.

Entrepreneur 233

Entrepreneur Conversion Naming Developer 233

Steve Blank

MAY 24, 2010

I pulled a few pranks in the military, but the one that got pulled on me took years off of my life. Alone in the Cockpit. There isn’t anything cooler for a 19-year old then getting into the cockpit of a fighter plane. While most of my time was spent in the shop repairing electronic warfare receivers, every once in awhile I got called out to the flightline to troubleshoot a problem that couldn’t be duplicated on the bench.

Thailand 202

Thailand Florida Engineer Design 202

Venture Chronicles

MAY 26, 2010

This is the “tastes great, less filling&# debate that recurs on a regular basis in the venture capital and entrepreneur communities. Back in March, Ben Horowitz of Andreessen Horowitz wrote a post called The Case For The Fat Startup, where he outlined some of the reasons why a fledging company might want to consider taking a large amount of funding — a strategy that contrasts with the ‘lean startup’ model that has become common in Silicon Valley.

Lean 40

Lean Early Stage Valuation Startup 40

Feld Thoughts

MAY 28, 2010

One of my blog readers – Boaz Fletcher – sent me an awesome video this morning from RSA Animate. It’s 11 minutes long and is a fascinating lecture by Dan Pink about The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. I love the RSA Animate format – an artist animates the talk on a giant whiteboard in real time. In this case Pink takes on the question of “Does More Money Motivate Higher Performance?

Video 187

Video Technology Entrepreneur Management 187

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 27, 2010

Paul Newman wasn’t the last person to suffer from a “failure to communicate” ( Cool Hand Luke, 1967 ). I see it happen almost every day with startups trying to sell investors and business leaders, mostly of another generation, on the value of a new product or service. Presenting an idea as an employee to an executive, or presenting your startup as a founder to an investor, requires that you effectively communicate, or “translate”, the value proposition into terms that the receiver can fully unde

Entrepreneur 220

Entrepreneur Agile Architecture Distribution 220

crowdSPRING Blog

MAY 28, 2010

I found this talk (and video) fascinating and wanted to share it with you. The speaker, Daniel Pink, authored four books about the changing world of work (two of the books – A Whole New Mind and Drive – are New York Times bestsellers). Dan recently spoke at the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) about motivation and his latest book (Drive).

Social Media 116

Social Media New York Video Small Business 116

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 28, 2010

Are you a business co-founder who just suddenly realized that just setting up a company Twitter account isn’t driving as much traffic as you had hoped? Feel like you need some meat on the bones the customer acquisition strategy investors have been asking about? Maybe you’re a newly hired entry-level marketer who wants to learn the soup to nuts of everything you need to master to one day become the top VP of Marketing or CMO of a huge venture backed startup.

Marketing 106

Marketing Affiliate Venture Capital Cofounder 106

Feld Thoughts

MAY 25, 2010

I do not want to tangle with an army of 10,000 of these. Especially ones that have lots of sharp pokey electrocution things built in to their foreheads. I wonder what my golden retriever would think of these dudes. Now, what would have really been sweet is if I had one of these when I was 10 and could put it in my brother’s bedroom at night. Bwahahahahahahahahaha.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 26, 2010

One of the most common complaints I hear from entrepreneurs is that they are overwhelmed by the workload and stress of starting their company. Then there are the additional challenges of balancing the demands of family and friends. Having too much on your plate can turn your dream into a nightmare. Some people will tell you to just get a bigger plate, meaning hire some help.

Startup 139

Startup Demand Entrepreneur Management 139

crowdSPRING Blog

MAY 24, 2010

Since we launched crowdSPRING, we have created several screencasts about the site, for both presentational and educational purposes. A screencast is a great way to quickly show your customers how something works, or to instruct them in using a feature of your site. Some users simply don’t like to read technical or instructional content, so video can be an engaging alternative for these folks.

Small Business 89

Small Business Audio Video Startup 89

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 23, 2010

So the New York City government has decided it needs a little social media savvy—you now, since that newfangled Twitter thing came out, they feel like they need to be jumping on board with technology as an early adopter. So, they’ve posted an open position for a Chief Digital Officer ( PDF posting ). The position will: “help develop forward-thinking policies on social media, digital communications, web 2.0 initiatives and other tools to better serve the public” and it’s responsible a host of stu

Social Media 94

Social Media Government New York City Media 94

Feld Thoughts

MAY 24, 2010

Last week, Microsoft sued Salesforce.com claiming infringement of 9 software patents. This comes shortly after Nokia sued Apple who sued Nokia over software patents, and after Apple sued HTC who sued Apple over software patents. As an example of the ridiculous nature of software patents, Microsoft’s claims cover user interface features, including a "system and method for providing and displaying a Web page having an embedded menu" and a "method and system for stacking toolbars

Software 128

Software Campaign Web 128

Start Up Blog

MAY 23, 2010

I love the story of James Podsiadly for one reason. He has broken convention and in doing so, will change peoples perception forever. For the uninitiated, James managed to break into the AFL ranks for the first time at the age of 28. Playing his first game for Geelong in season 2010. In football terms he’s a senior citizen. In fact, most people start retiring around that vintage.

Reputation 83

Reputation Management Startup Entrepreneur 83

crowdSPRING Blog

MAY 24, 2010

When most people talk about or plan marketing campaigns, they talk about or plan broad, strategic tactics focused on large groups of customers or potential customers. Adwords, banner ads, print ads, radio advertising, email marketing – these are all common tactics used by businesses to market their products and services. It’s easy to forget that some of the most important marketing opportunities take place when you communicate with your customers or potential customers one-to-one.

Small Business 87

Small Business Marketing Social Media Startup 87

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 27, 2010

Ok, so we’re all doing social TV now. Geolocation is so 2009. Haven’t you heard? Kinda seems like that sometimes, right—that the venture capital community seems to chase after the bright shiny object of the moment in droves and then just as quickly moves on to the next new new thing. I can be frustrating for entrepreneurs who can’t seem to get a VCs interest until someone else is interested as well, but there’s actually a logic behind it, believe it or not.

Venture Capital 74

Venture Capital Dilution Partner PR 74

Feld Thoughts

MAY 27, 2010

I’ve always enjoyed hanging out with Om Malik. We’ve had a handful of nice, relaxed discussions about some deep stuff. Last week I took a break from Google I/O and spent an hour and a half with him. We spent about an hour talking about life and some very personal things and then did a thirty minute interview which includes a really nice post on GigaOm about me and Foundry Group.

Email 124

Email 124

Start Up Blog

MAY 26, 2010

It was Friday night and I was having a drinks with colleagues who were discussing the relative taste profiles of various beers. I went on challenge the crowd that they wouldn’t know which beers was which in a blind taste test. None of them believed me. Turns out it’s true. I once worked in a marketing role at Fosters, and 90% of beer drinkers cannot pick any brand within the same type (eg lager, pillsner, bitter ale).

Differentiation 76

Differentiation Advertising Entrepreneur Customer 76

Entrepreneurs-Journey.com by Yaro Starak

MAY 28, 2010

I just wrapped up watching the third video from Eben Pagan , as part of his Guru Blueprint launch. You can watch it here now -. Guru Blueprint by Eben Pagan – Video 3. (You will need to enter your name and email to access it.). Eben’s first video focused on the potential of selling information, especially if you can marry the convergence between what you know and what people go looking for information about.

Product 80

Product Warrant Video Affiliate 80

crowdSPRING Blog

MAY 25, 2010

In our 12 Questions blog series, we feature interviews with someone from the crowdSPRING community. For these interviews, we pick people who add value to our community – in the blog, in the forums, in the projects. Plainly – activities that make crowdSPRING a better community. Be professional, treat others with respect, help us build something very special, and we’ll take notice.

Canada 74

Canada Spain Ruby Community 74

Feld Thoughts

MAY 25, 2010

We’re doing the TechStars Founders video serious again this year. The Rackspace Cloud has sponsored the series so look for some new and exciting twists. Episode 1 follows! "The Question is Why" The Founders | TechStars Boulder | Episode 1 from TechStars on Vimeo. Tags: TechStars the founders.

Founder 123

Founder Cloud Video 123

Gregg Fraley, Author of Jack's Notebook

MAY 26, 2010

I grew up drinking beer. I always took nips from my Dad’s quart bottle when he wasn’t looking. Taste develops that way. Wine entered my life in high school. Boone’s Farm Apple Wine I am sad to report (nice label). I thought I was moving up in the world when I started drinking Mateus from that stone-like [.]. Tags: Entrepreneurial Innovation Marketing packaging Artisan wines Boone's Farm California wines Chateauneuf du Pape green green innovation Mateus Monthaven Winery Octav

Green 68

Green California Developer Marketing 68

Entrepreneurs-Journey.com by Yaro Starak

MAY 26, 2010

Last Tuesday I spoke at the monthly HIVE entrepreneur networking event in Brisbane (there’s also a Sydney and Melbourne branch). My talk was recorded by the organizers (hi to Mike, Walter and Nick – thanks for another great event!), and you can now find the videos on YouTube, which I will embed here. Make sure you watch to the end – all five videos – if you want to catch my entire “business story&# , hear tips on how you can launch a successful online business, buil

Social Network 75

Social Network Video Networking Restful 75

Life Beyond Code

MAY 26, 2010

Talking about ideas, here is one for the super markets. This is from my eleven year old son Sumukh. Any feedback for him would be greatly appreciated. I have pasted his email here in its entirety. Hi Pappa, Idea for Supermarket Drive-Thru. In this idea, I present an idea for a supermarket drive-thru. It is only allowed for less than ten items. Following are the highlights of the drive-thru solution.

Cost 62

Cost Email Sales Marketing 62