Gust

APRIL 20, 2014

It’s your startup, so you can give early partners any title you want, but be aware of potential investor and peer implications. Image via Wikimedia Commons. VCs and Angel investors like to see a startup that is running lean and mean, with no more than three or four of the conventional C-level or VP titles.

CTO Hire 171

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Angel Investor Public Relations 171

Gust

MAY 7, 2014

The general partners of a venture capital fund make money… …by raising the bulk of the capital that the fund’s investable capital from “Limited Partners”, usually institutions such as university endowments, insurance companies and pension funds. original post can be found on Quora @ [link] *.

Venture Capital 154

Venture Capital IPO Limited Partner Carried Interest 154

Gust

MARCH 22, 2014

There are some great answers here already (and there’s no way I’m going to try to top Terrence Yang ‘s magnum opus , so I will simply point you to a first-hand account of the challenges of VC fund-raising by Alan Patricof , the founder of Greycroft Partners. (Of original post can be found on Quora @ [link] *.

Venture Capital 146

Venture Capital Partner Design Founder 146

Gust

OCTOBER 29, 2014

IBM partnered to provide sponsorship and hosting on it’s Bluemix cloud platform. Digital.NYC is the result of a public-private partnership between NYCEDC, the NYC Mayor’s Office, IBM, and Gust. The concept originated with the City and was ultimately built by Gust.

Early Stage 133

Early Stage Technical Review New York Deal Flow 133

Gust

SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

Even experienced entrepreneurs need a partner to back up each other and improve fundability. The question is how to find that elusive perfect-fit partner. First, I will admit there is no magic formula here, just like in real life when trying to find a relationship partner. Join online “dating” sites for business partners.

Cofounder 170

Cofounder Silicon Valley Non-Compete Startup 170

Gust

JUNE 17, 2012

Partner with distributor or beneficiary. An example would be getting free office space by agreeing to be the property manager for the owner. Exchanging equity for services is worth negotiating with legal counsel, accountants, engineers, and even sales people.

Technical Review 164

Technical Review Bootstrapping Venture Capital Incubator 164

Gust

MARCH 11, 2014

By Tomasz Tunguz , Partner at Redpoint Ventures. According to analysis by my partner Jamie Davidson on typical periods between financings peaks around 9 months so the follow on rates for Series Bs should be accurate up until the 2011 class, which gives these startups more than 2 years to raise their B.

Seed Stage 169

Seed Stage Seed Capital Startup Green 169

Gust

MARCH 16, 2014

As the company builds value, shares allocated later for employees or partners will have an appropriate price. Most Founder vesting is not subject to the one year cliff because partners should already know and trust each other. Vesting with no cliff. Right of repurchase in favor of the company.

Stock 175

Stock Vesting Common Stock Founder Vesting 175

Gust

DECEMBER 29, 2013

Rely on informal agreements with partners. The same principles apply to strategic partners. Later, when your venture is trying to close on financing, or even going public, that forgotten partner surfaces, demanding their original share. Make it a rule to not fraternize with your employees, and choose your partners wisely.

Startup 183

Startup Intellectual Property LLC Burn Rate 183

Gust

MAY 18, 2014

Thus customers and partners rely more and more on personal engagement with people. Use the power of available tools to provide video, interactive, and highly targeted messages to each segment of your audience, and each business partner. Try branding yourself, not selling a product.

Customer 166

Customer Audience Advertising Social Media 166

Gust

JUNE 15, 2014

If you are not yet ready to commit, you should consider getting more experience in your relevant business domain, or taking on a partner who has run a small business. To make it work, you must trust yourself, your partners, and your startup. “I trust my team, and I’m convinced that the total is more than the sum of the parts.”.

Entrepreneur 174

Entrepreneur Bootstrapping Employee Restful 174

Gust

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

or to cast the blame on the powers that be: “The economy killed me,” “My partner was a jerk,” or “Investors stole my business.” Try answers like: “My timing was wrong,” “I picked the wrong partner,” or “I’m better at bootstrapping.” However, the blame game is an energy drain and will leave you without the energy to move on.

Startup 165

Startup Bootstrapping Partner Entrepreneur 165

Gust

DECEMBER 21, 2011

You are much more flexible than VCs or strategic partners – they prefer not to travel, a they have lots of local opportunities to invest their money. Your chances of raising funds from a Valley VC for a startup in the Bay Area are much higher than they would be in other locations.

Silicon Valley 107

Silicon Valley Southern California Tucson Seattle 107

Gust

NOVEMBER 11, 2011

The worst was one where the startup founder took it as a prize for winning, and never saw the angel investors as partners, or, for that matter, anything except usurpers. I’ve seen several of these fall apart. Why did they want to act as if they owned a piece of her business?

Software Review 79

Software Review Term Sheet Due Diligence Angel Investor 79

Gust

DECEMBER 7, 2014

The best partners are ones who share costs and risks. When you put your own financing on the line, your partners, your team, and eventually your customers will know that you are committed to solving their problem. Investors like a well-rounded team, working in a highly parallel fashion.

Bootstrapping 191

Bootstrapping Entrepreneur Startup Burn Rate 191

Gust

JUNE 23, 2014

Find potential partners. Most of the people you would want as co-founders are now cruising the relevant blogs for ideas and partners. Feedback from your blog will tell you quickly whether anyone agrees with your assessment, and whether you have a customer base waiting.

Startup 174

Startup Cofounder Social Media SEO 174

Gust

MARCH 26, 2014

Typically, only 1% or so of the money in a VC fund would come from the general partners themselves.]. A venture capitalist (colloquially known as a VC) is a professional money manager who gets paid to manage *other* people’s money, not his or her own.

Angel Investor 138

Angel Investor Early Stage Venture Capital Partner 138

Gust

JANUARY 26, 2014

Today’s learner-centered mentoring is a dynamic and two-way relationship that involves critical reflection and full participation in short period increments by both partners. The mentee becomes a proactive and equal partner, helping direct the relationship and set its goals. The mentor assumes a role of a facilitator.

Partner 161

Partner Leadership Software Design 161

Gust

MARCH 9, 2014

Establish partners and referrals. Find partners and channels which are complementary, and not directly competitive. Figure out what is valuable to your audience. Customers who enjoy doing business with you are more than happy to spread the word.

Marketing 146

Marketing SEM Viral Social Media 146

Gust

DECEMBER 15, 2011

we gave considerable thought to branding issues as the company branched out from its flagship eHarmony online dating service, adding other services under names like Compatible Partners and Jazzed. For example, during my tenure at eHarmony, Inc. ,

Naming 141

Naming Delaware Tajikistan Database 141

Gust

FEBRUARY 23, 2014

As with all aspects of business relationships, funding, and partners, nothing beats a pre-existing relationship, or at least a warm introduction. You must be ready with the right array of retail partners, manufacturing, and distribution arrangements before the demand hits. How to find and connect with the celebrity you want.

Matching 151

Matching Campaign Stock Distribution 151

Gust

MAY 31, 2014

But typically, the Common seats will be filled by the founder(s); the investor seats by the lead angel (for an angel deal) or the VC partner and/or an associate (for a venture-led deal); and the independent seat(s) by someone experienced and knowledgable acceptable to all parties. original post can be found on Quora @ [link] *.

Common Stock 159

Common Stock Startup Stock Founder 159

Gust

OCTOBER 18, 2011

He’d treated us – a group of local investors – to a pitch punctuated with detailed stories of how previous partners, an investor , and an attorney had screwed him. Complaining about past partners, investors, competitors, lawyers, or even plain rotten luck doesn’t usually spark investor interest. We sat in stunned silence.

Intellectual Property 124

Intellectual Property Valuation Partner Revenue 124

Gust

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

Instead, they have a limited amount of money entrusted to them by limited partners, and they invest in a very, very few companies each year. Next, VCs don’t have an unlimited amount of money that is given to companies as long as they deserve it. As such, its not like applying for a loan at a bank.

Limited Partner 116

Limited Partner Venture Capital Operations Partner 116

Gust

JULY 10, 2012

Partner up. If you’ve never worked with a startup, then find a partner or two who have. Reduce the risk on the big questions of viability and market. Lower your valuation. Create smaller milestones for the short term. . The most common hurdle is the credibility of experience.

Bootstrapping 165

Bootstrapping Valuation Restful Sales 165

Gust

JUNE 22, 2014

Find potential partners. Most of the people you would want as co-founders are now cruising the relevant blogs for ideas and partners. Feedback from your blog will tell you quickly whether anyone agrees with your assessment, and whether you have a customer base waiting.

Startup 125

Startup Cofounder Social Media SEO 125

Gust

NOVEMBER 20, 2014

Department of State and several other private sector partners to launch The GIST Network (GIST Net), an interactive online network connecting science and technology entrepreneurs in emerging economies. Today, Gust is proud to join the U.S.

.Net 79

.Net Networking Partner Technology 79

Gust

JULY 12, 2012

It was organized by Diane Roberts of Xcell Partners and held at the StartupBaseCamp accelerator in Dublin. On Wednesday, April 18th, I gave a keynote speech on US Startup Valuation Trends for the 1st Irish Angel Meetup. Two hundred angels, entrepreneurs and members of the startup community attended this inaugural event.

Community 121

Community Estonia Ireland Finland 121

Gust

NOVEMBER 9, 2013

Similarly, while venture capitalists typically invest in only one out of every 400 companies they see, for them to have the *opportunity* to invest in that one, they need to convince all 400 that they would make great, long-term partners.

Angel Investor 146

Angel Investor Operations Partner Entrepreneur 146

Gust

JUNE 25, 2014

Instead, AngelList has a “Featured” section where a small set of companies curated by the AngelList team are highlighted for investors, a “Trending” section highlighting companies that are seeing current activity, and a “following” system, through which investors can be alerted to activity (such as recommendations (..)

Angel Groups 138

Angel Groups Curation Early Stage Search 138

Gust

JANUARY 26, 2014

Today’s learner-centered mentoring is a dynamic and two-way relationship that involves critical reflection and full participation in short period increments by both partners. The mentee becomes a proactive and equal partner, helping direct the relationship and set its goals. The mentor assumes a role of a facilitator.

Partner 116

Partner Leadership Software Design 116

Gust

MAY 10, 2014

If you mean someone investing mostly other people’s money through a seed fund, they are venture capitalists, and their days are spent like other VCs, meeting with prospective investments, mentoring portfolio companies, raising money from limited partners, negotiating deals, and so forth.

Angel Investor 132

Angel Investor Accredited Investor Limited Partner Portfolio 132

Gust

JUNE 19, 2012

Managing Partner , Tangent Capital. Angel Investor , Frontier Angel Fund. Antone Johnson. Founding Principal , Bottom Line Law Group. Martin Zwilling. Founder and CEO , Startup Professionals. CEO , Gust. Ilana Grossman. CMO , Gust. Hundreds of tips from top investors. Watch now.

Startup 180

Startup Forecast Angel Investor Software 180

Gust

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

If you are looking for a potential business partner, count on building a relationship over several months, before you really know the person. Resumes don’t provide much of a picture in this regard. Supplement this with networking input, references, and your own personal interactions.

Entrepreneur 195

Entrepreneur Hiring Partner Networking 195

Gust

OCTOBER 31, 2011

If you or any of your partners really don’t have the credentials, the commitment or the interest, you won’t succeed. Every partner and employee can kill your success potential in a heartbeat, so don’t take shortcuts on your hiring and training practices. Customers don’t like people who don’t show their passion and love for the job. .

Angel Investor 143

Angel Investor Venture Capital Partner Networking 143

Gust

MARCH 5, 2014

Typically, this would be done by having different partners represent the fund on the two different boards, and even recusing themselves from voting or discussions if board level deliberations verge into specifically competitive areas.

Portfolio 121

Portfolio Business Model Engineer Search 121

Gust

AUGUST 5, 2012

Marketing, sales, and partners. Convince investors that you have lined up sales channels, strategic partners, and a viable marketing strategy. Competing with IBM, Microsoft, and other large companies should never be minimized. Describe your market penetration strategy, sales channels, pricing, and strategic partnerships.

Business Plan 182

Business Plan Sweat Equity Exit Strategy Intellectual Property 182