Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

This required a repeatable and scalable sales process, which required a professional sales staff and a product stable enough that customers wouldn’t return it. And in later stage rounds an explosion of corporate VCs and hedge funds now want in to the next unicorns. People had to actually pay you for your product.

Founder 245

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 245

Up and Running

MARCH 31, 2021

Uncertainty was a constant, sales and customer interest were wildly volatile and for many businesses, it became less about planning for the rest of the year and more about surviving the next few months. . When the pandemic hit, we were all left with a bitter taste in our mouths — especially as business owners.

Small Business 116

Small Business Angel Investor Technical Review Elevator Pitch 116

Steve Blank

MARCH 17, 2020

All your assumptions about customers, sales cycle and most importantly, revenue, burn rate and runway are no longer true. If you are selling to businesses (a B-to-B market) have your customers’ sales dropped? If so, whatever revenue forecast and sales cycle estimates you had are no longer valid. Or you change sales strategy.

Burn Rate 436

Burn Rate Startup Valuation Sales Cycle 436

Steve Blank

MAY 9, 2017

Fourth, in the last decade, corporate investors and hedge funds have jumped into later stage investing with a passion. Their need to get into high-profile deals has driven late-stage valuations into unicorn territory. The response was inevitably “great pipeline.” (Great pipeline means no real sales.).

Restful 222

Restful Silicon Valley Puerto Rico San Jose 222

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 22, 2020

Websites offer a good platform for point of contact and a sales lead magnet. Acts as a Sales Generator. The goal of websites is to generate sales and grow their businesses. Good content offers the ability to generate leads, warm them, and transit them into the later stages of the sales journey.

Affiliate 230

Affiliate Startup Later Stage Search 230

Hunter Walker

DECEMBER 11, 2023

It might ‘exit’ again at a later point (anything from a sale to an IPO), but it’s no long dependent on VC funding. Originally backed by venture capital, in 2021 Daniel worked with TPG , a large private equity firm, to make them the majority investor.

Private Equity 78

Private Equity Equity DC Leveraged Buyout 78

ConversionXL

MAY 1, 2019

Client education is central to marketing messaging, too, especially for sellers with long sales cycles. The same is true in marketing, especially for companies with long sales cycles. Catalog the information you’ll need to convey at a later stage. Their sales page speaks directly to practitioners.

Marketing 124

Marketing Sales Cycle Retention Differentiation 124

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

Even for later-stage companies with predictable financials, the lack of liquidity, audited financials, and standardized metrics creates real challenges to scaling quantitative investing. I previously posted a detailed presentation with sales technology tools useful for B2B sales. Pitchbot.vc 3) Originate investments.

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Venture Capital Equity Technical Review 60

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 27, 2013

In this period (less than 2 years) he has brought on incredibly talented senior execs is sales, marketing, product management, client services, finance, vp engineering and more. I would say the norm for many early-stage companies is somewhere between 6-10 in-person meetings per year. In his spare time he raised nearly $30 million.

Advisory Board 365

Advisory Board CTO Hire Fractional CTO Los Angeles 365

Gust

JANUARY 4, 2012

Later stage companies have some additional concerns: What favorable impact could IP have for PR, marketing and investor relations purposes, or as an attraction to potential acquirors? Sales and marketing plans , lists of prospects, supplier and subcontractor relationships, pricing data, media buying plans and strategies, etc.

Intellectual Property 143

Intellectual Property IP Startup United States 143

Feld Thoughts

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

In this case, the convertible debt document doesn’t allow the debt to convert into anything, but at the same time mandates that upon a sale the debt must be paid off. Usually we see 2-3x, but in later stage companies, this multiple can be even higher. So the lenders don’t see any of the upside on the acquisition.

Conversion 96

Conversion Sales Later Stage Preferred Stock 96

David Teten

DECEMBER 3, 2019

I previously posted a detailed presentation with sales technology tools useful for B2B sales. Data companies focused on early-stage startups include Aingel , fundsUP , Preseries , PredictLeads , and Sploda. We can use technology to make sales far more efficient. . They read reviews of the products of target investments.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Software Review Analytics Private Equity 78

ConversionXL

SEPTEMBER 15, 2020

Could it be that appealing to customer’s vanity and emotions through copy and testimonials are driving more online sales for Jos A. Take the humorous video from Point of Sales app Clover , for example. If only the sales process were so neat that everyone would get up and buy our product as soon as they saw the first piece of marketing.

Video 98

Video Spain Software Review Conversion 98

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 19, 2017

Venture capital fundraising can be divided into three stages: seed, early stage, and later stage. According to the same report by KPMG, the median deal size is the largest for later-stage funding, at $26 million. The constant innovation thus drives development in technology throughout the region.

Venture Capital 196

Venture Capital Asia Artificial Inteligence Later Stage 196

VC Cafe

JANUARY 24, 2012

Mid and later stage companies attracted $1.48 Seed stage companies attracted 5%, a slight increase from 3% in 2010, and Early stage companies accounted for 26% of the investment, down from 35% in 2010 and 29% in 2009. An impressive number of mature Israeli companies have reached substantial sales.

Technical Review 111

Technical Review IPO Seed Stage 111

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 31, 2019

If you’re managing the company effectively, you have a clear set of objectives and the ability to determine if you are on or off track from accomplishing those: did we hit our sales numbers, did we ship the product, etc.?

Lean 108

Lean Venture Capital Conversion IPO 108

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 27, 2021

They sold 2 years later for $16 million In the financial crisis of 2008 we had a company that had jointly hired lawyers to consider a bankruptcy and also pursued (and achieved!) the sale of the company for $1 billion. It was ~30 days from bankruptcy. The right number of deals will depend on your strategy.

Bankruptcy 294

Bankruptcy Bridge Financing Portfolio Angel Investor 294

Eric Friedman

NOVEMBER 18, 2022

They can help open doors and close sales. In cases where there are smaller outcomes, acquisitions for stock in another company, or buyouts from later stage investors the outcomes can vary. They can tactically help in one or many ways. They can help recruit and close candidates.

Early Stage 103

Early Stage Equity Vesting Cap Table 103

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 3, 2018

Now you design a sales and marketing strategy. And lastly summarise all the above points for easy referencing at later stages. Then you give an elaboration about your app where you define every single thing about it. You then draw the hierarchy of your operational and managerial roles. Then you figure out all the finances.

Mobile 113

Mobile Developer Social Media Later Stage 113

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

The earlier you invest the higher the chances the company won’t work out and thus you pay a lower price than later-stage investors. Then you can do a little bit of research and find out that very few companies ever achieve this valuation in a trade sale so you’re clearly gunning for an IPO. Here’s the problem.

Pre-Money Valuation 336

Pre-Money Valuation Valuation Silicon Valley Stock 336

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 6, 2014

CFOs often know the other CFOs and same for heads of sales, marketing, tech, etc. I know that in later-stage growth equity deals some firms even hire third-parties who will do the reference calls. You can ask VCs, customers, competitors or somebody who had a similar job function in the same general community.

Technical Review 302

Technical Review Hiring Later Stage Employee 302

David Teten

MARCH 18, 2021

VCs investing abroad or in binational companies, typically with technology based in a 2nd or 3rd tier market, and sales/marketing in a 1st tier market. Alexander Jarvis , startup mentor, said, “Even at a later stage, it’s better to be talked about something than nothing at all. Real sees 80% of all seed deals in Canada.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Cofounder Venture Capital Deal Flow 78

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 23, 2015

” If the “nut” is too high I usually veer them towards later-stage opportunities (post B or C round) where the comp is higher, the exit is more likely / nearer, the upside is still nice but obviously not the same as if you joined early). It will likely IPO in the coming years.

Technical Review 150

Technical Review Liquidation Preference Silicon Valley IP 150

This is going to be BIG.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2012

They're just not very good at raising venture capital--which, in the later stage, has more to do with your own ability to run a sales process. The industry has made it very easy for companies to raise seed money through online marketplaces like Angel List, accelorators.

Venture Capital 114

Venture Capital Marketing Term Sheet Software Review 114

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 22, 2010

This states how the proceeds from a sale or dissolution of the company will be distributed. I also won’t say there is never a time for “participating preferred&# but it tends to be in later-stage rounds and particularly in the case where the founders are getting an exceedingly high valuation relative to the norm.

Valuation 405

Valuation Liquidation Preference Pre-Money Valuation Term Sheet 405

Reid Hoffman

MARCH 9, 2021

But I knew that there was a ton of work to be done to scale the business into multiple business lines, and that we would be better off with a CEO who was a grand master of organizational growth and had the product vision to serve as a later-stage co-founder. Sometimes, it’s not obvious.

Leadership 42

Leadership Technical Review Cofounder Later Stage 42

Berkonomics

AUGUST 3, 2023

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder can self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). For those of you who fit that description, nice work. There is a lot to say about retaining control.

Private Equity 118

Private Equity Valuation Cap Table Accredited Investor 118

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 31, 2012

Jeff (also an HBS alum) co-teaches the LTV course with Professor Eisenmann about a student of theirs who had written a blog post about sales taking on some of my previous assertions. That student is Erin McCann who formerly worked in sales at Google, so she has some ground to stand on in her assertions. Specifically, 1.

Startup 319

Startup Early Stage Sales Cofounder 319

Feld Thoughts

DECEMBER 10, 2014

The number of large, “later stage” financings are remarkable – both in size and velocity. But they are often extremely frustrating to strong, mid and later stage companies growing 25%+ year over year. enterprise software license sales) that is no longer trendy. We aren’t momentum investors.

Later Stage 142

Later Stage Syndicate Syndication Portfolio 142

VC Cafe

JANUARY 24, 2012

Mid and later stage companies attracted $1.48 Seed stage companies attracted 5%, a slight increase from 3% in 2010, and Early stage companies accounted for 26% of the investment, down from 35% in 2010 and 29% in 2009. An impressive number of mature Israeli companies have reached substantial sales.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review IPO Seed Stage 60

Steve Blank

JUNE 11, 2013

These are great, but they are not repeatable by a sales organization. The test is: If you add one more sales person or spend more marketing dollars, does your sales revenue go up by more than your expenses? • Business model : A business model answers the basic questions about your entire business: Who are the customers?

Venture Capital 333

Venture Capital IRR Liquidity Event Business Model 333

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 13, 2020

This means that when people are in the later stages of their decision making process they will turn to Youtube to see if they can find that last bit of information to solve their problem. Or, you can give them a commission for every sale that comes from the video by giving them a coupon code for their viewers to use at checkout.

eCommerce 194

eCommerce Video Conversion Channel 194

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 28, 2019

A robust knowledge of your target demographic will make it easier to convert sales. Cat food grain-free,” “cat food senior cat formula,” and “cat food for kittens” are all more likely to result in a conversion because these consumers are at a later stage in their journey and have a better idea of what they want.

Audience 164

Audience Algorithm eCommerce Cofounder 164

Seeing Both Sides

AUGUST 28, 2017

But once entrepreneurs have their initial team and product in place, a few smart advisors around the table and the social proof required to attract great talent, why would they raise additional dilutive equity capital if they can raise non-dilutive capital through the sale of tokens? But many are. Fuzzy Governance.

Early Stage 20

Early Stage Equity Venture Capital Government 20

Seeing Both Sides

AUGUST 28, 2017

But once entrepreneurs have their initial team and product in place, a few smart advisors around the table and the social proof required to attract great talent, why would they raise additional dilutive equity capital if they can raise non-dilutive capital through the sale of tokens? But many are. Fuzzy Governance.

Early Stage 20

Early Stage Equity Venture Capital Government 20

ReadWriteStart

MARCH 3, 2021

Still, you need to find some way to pull your company out of this early-stage quicksand. You’ll build momentum with marketing, advertising, sales, and other strategies optimized for quick, self-sustaining growth. What are the best tactics to accomplish these goals? Core Challenges to Overcome in Growth Strategies.

Early Stage 125

Early Stage PPC Retention Churn Rate 125

ConversionXL

FEBRUARY 21, 2014

Could it be that appealing to customer’s vanity and emotions through copy and testimonials are driving more online sales for Jos A. Take the humorous video from Point of Sales app Clover , for example. If only the sales process were so neat that everyone would get up and buy our product as soon as they saw the first piece of marketing.

Video 134

Video Spain Software Review Conversion 134