Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 5, 2023

But operating in stealth mode, or waiting for that perfect investor to find you, or feeling entitled, is even less effective. Angel investors typically provide early-stage rollout funding, while venture capital firms won’t be interested until you have real traction and revenue during scaling.

Angel Investor 246

Angel Investor Stealth Bootstrapping Early Stage 246

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 22, 2020

But operating in stealth mode, or waiting for that perfect investor to find you, or feeling entitled, is even less effective. Angel investors typically provide early-stage rollout funding, while venture capital firms won’t be interested until you have real traction and revenue during scaling.

Stealth 434

Stealth Startup Angel Investor Bootstrapping 434

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2016

Startups in stealth mode can’t get feedback from real customers and can’t be perceived as experts in their industry. Simplicity is preferred at this stage. Highlight existing presence on the Internet and social media. In today’s world, if your startup is not visible on the Internet, you haven’t started yet.

Angel Investor 120

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Accredited Investor Angel Groups 120

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 4, 2012

They try to confirm from industry analysts that your differentiators are indeed unique, and that there are no future competitors or big gorillas in stealth mode just around the corner. The kiss of death is for investors to find unanticipated competition you neglected to mention. Business and financial status.

Technical Review 237

Technical Review Due Diligence Intellectual Property Private Equity 237

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2021

Many entrepreneurs are reluctant to expose their idea to others early, often called stealth mode, for fear of it being stolen. You may be a product expert, but have little experience with running a business, or marketing, or sales. Successful people look for complementary co-founders, and hire a multi-faceted team.

Stealth 406

Stealth Startup Metrics Viral 406

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 3, 2021

Some entrepreneurs I know attempt to retain control, or save money, by eschewing advisors and using stealth mode. In this age of total access via the Internet, you can’t hide relationships, or the lack of them. In the early days of the IBM PC, I had the opportunity to know and work with Bill Gates at Microsoft.

Stealth 362

Stealth Leadership Viral Social Media 362

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 13, 2021

Aspiring entrepreneurs who are determined to operate in stealth mode, for fear of giving away their secrets, will find they lose more than they could gain by sharing. It’s amazing how much you can learn from people who have been there, and love to talk about their successes as well as their failures.

Entrepreneur 339

Entrepreneur Stealth Social Network Business Plan 339

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 30, 2015

Startups that operate in stealth mode until their solution is perfect usually acquire customers and investors very slowly. Even before you build a product, you should be interacting with potential customers in person, and through social media. Accumulate customer advocates, testimonials and “letters of intent.”

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Preferred Stock Stealth 120

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2016

It’s still popular these days for startup founders to operate in stealth mode, meaning no details about the idea or progress are shared with anyone until the big reveal and rollout. Startups in stealth mode often have a false sense of security that they can take extra time to do the job right the first time.

Stealth 120

Stealth Startup Early Stage Social Media 120

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 27, 2015

Startups which insist on operating in stealth mode in fear of competitor response miss the more important customer response. Iterating this process, until you see some real traction, is far less risky and expensive than the big-bang rollout. Let me summarize the advantages of this to your startup: Immediate real customer feedback.

Hockey Stick 120

Hockey Stick Startup Stealth Agile 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 22, 2010

They try to confirm from industry analysts that your differentiators are indeed unique, and that there are no future competitors or big gorillas in stealth mode just around the corner. The kiss of death is for investors to find unanticipated competition you neglected to mention. Business and financial status.

Technical Review 225

Technical Review Due Diligence Intellectual Property Private Equity 225

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 10, 2010

Every time I hear about a new startup that is in stealth mode, I wonder what problem they are hiding from whom. I believe stealth makes sense for large companies who can be sued for “pre-announcing” a new product to stall the market or kill a competitor. “No These things can’t be done while in stealth mode. Marty Zwilling.

Stealth 229

Stealth Startup Incubator Engineer 229

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 28, 2017

You learn more by talking to people early, versus stealth mode. Stealth mode entrepreneurs won’t tell people about their idea early, or ask for feedback, for fear of the idea being stolen or copied. Young entrepreneurs seem to understand this, and have no hesitation making changes. Others can be very stubborn and charge blindly ahead.

Stealth 202

Stealth Angel Investor Entrepreneur Revenue 202

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 13, 2017

In the past, companies avoided sharing knowledge or technology, preferring stealth mode and relying on internal expertise to stay safe. Enable customers to customize your offerings, and learn from the choices they make. Continually look outside for talent, data, and technology.

Malaysia 151

Malaysia Stealth United States Social Media 151

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 11, 2020

Too many early entrepreneurs go into stealth mode, or are unwilling to share what they know, for fear of ideas being stolen. For example, the hotel chain Ritz-Carlton , incents employees to try new ideas by allowing them to spend up to $2,000 per guest to overcome a particular problem.

Entrepreneur 329

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Stealth Angel Investor 329

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 20, 2016

Keep innovations in stealth mode until ready to ship. Great companies, like Apple or IBM, have a large customer base and quality products, so new technology along the same lines will be found. A startup has no brand, so new products, no matter how great, need real marketing, social-media advocates and education efforts to attract customers.

Stealth 120

Stealth Startup Social Media Entrepreneur 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2016

But operating in stealth mode, or waiting for that perfect investor to find you, or feeling entitled, is even less effective. Angel investors typically provide early-stage rollout funding, while venture capital firms won’t be interested until you have real traction and revenue during scaling.

Stealth 120

Stealth Startup Angel Investor Bootstrapping 120

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 24, 2015

Every entrepreneur in stealth mode who insists on waiting for their product runs the risk of being a non-starter. Every new startup rolling out an innovative solution is the start of a new cycle. Early hype actually should precede the final product, and consists of proof-of-concept stories, media events and industry exposure.

Management 120

Management Startup Stealth Seed Stage 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2023

Savvy entrepreneurs start testing their ideas on potential customers even before the concept is fully cooked. They have enough confidence in their ability to deliver that they don’t worry about someone stealing the idea to get there first, and they don’t forget to listen carefully to critical feedback.

Elevator Pitch 315

Elevator Pitch Public Relations Social Media Startup 315