Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2022

I still have to tell some entrepreneurs that even with the best idea, they have to move to Silicon Valley to find the investors they need, or they need to move to the U.S. Also, investors from the super-hubs (Silicon Valley, New York, or Boston), probably won’t assume anyone outside their domain has the savvy and resources to make it happen.

Las Vegas 309

Las Vegas Silicon Valley Arizona Montana 309

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 4, 2022

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Commit to a major customer. Apply for contests and business grants.

Intellectual Property 261

Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator Bootstrapping 261

Up and Running

MAY 23, 2016

Since the term “cloud computing” was coined in 1996—at least as we have come to understand its meaning—the software as a service industry has exploded. If you use software like LivePlan, you can create this initial “lean plan” in under an hour and then spend your time where it really matters—on validating your idea.

Software Review 74

Software Review Software Delaware Forecast 74

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2020

In addition to being the startup entrepreneur, there are other key roles where Boomers can be a force in driving successful startups, in concert with leaders from Gen-X and Gen-Y: Early-stage angel investors. Manage customer service. Software and hardware development architects and designers.

Advisory Board 312

Advisory Board Startup Dividend Angel Investor 312

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 11, 2020

Starting something new is risky, no matter how many experts have reviewed it, or how much money you have. As an angel investor, you can bet I wasn’t convinced he would ever start his next proposal. Most people don’t remember that Bill Gates first software venture, called Traf-O-Data , was a dismal failure.

Entrepreneur 329

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Stealth Angel Investor 329

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 1, 2014

The second is that the retailers were constrained by their high costs of local real estate and service staff relative to the costs of centralized warehouses where goods could be stacked high, sorted by robots, managed by RFIDs and then shipped via overnight to eager, cost-conscious customers across the US. 10x the experience.

Technical Review 380

Technical Review Software Review Cofounder CTO Hire 380

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 16, 2018

The market is changing so fast these days, and if you are not planning a solution today for tomorrow’s customers, you may be setting yourself up for failure and don’t even realize it. As an angel investor, I routinely toss business plans that focus too much on today, and don’t talk about tomorrow.

Customer 144

Customer Advisory Board Technical Review Angel Investor 144

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 16, 2017

As a long-time business advisor and angel investor, I’m a believer that “two heads are better than one” in building a new business. If both of you are experts at software development, even though one loves design and the other loves coding, that still won’t get the marketing done. Conflicting visions won’t work.

Partner 140

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Cofounder 140

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 6, 2019

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Commit to a major customer. Apply for contests and business grants.

Finance 320

Finance Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 320

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 26, 2019

As an advisor to business owners, and an occasional angel investor, my job is to separate the actual challenges from the common misconceptions that distract many promising entrepreneurs while building the leadership team required for your solution, marketing, and finance success. Partner with experts who share the risk.

Bandwidth 246

Bandwidth Software Review Salary Angel Investor 246

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JULY 19, 2010

About twenty people on Answers OnStartups have asked this question in one form or another: When I meet an angel investor, he may ask: "What if a big company copies your idea and develops the same website as yours after your website goes public?". This is Part 2 of the series: 5 lessons from 150 startup pitches.???

Software Review 325

Software Review Technical Review Development Team Review Bolivia 325

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 11, 2021

Most businesses use spreadsheet software like Microsoft Excel to track their revenue and expenses when they first start operating, but this system requires a lot of manual data entry, so it can be time-consuming and easy to make mistakes. Don’t underestimate the importance of your chart of accounts; invest time in setting it up properly.

Small Business 208

Small Business Startup Cofounder Vertical 208

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 9, 2019

I still have to tell some entrepreneurs that even with the best idea, they have to move to Silicon Valley to find the investors they need, or they need to move to the U.S. Also, investors from the super-hubs (Silicon Valley, New York, or Boston), probably won’t assume anyone outside their domain has the savvy and resources to make it happen.

Las Vegas 243

Las Vegas Silicon Valley Arizona Montana 243

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 30, 2019

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Commit to a major customer. Apply for contests and business grants.

Intellectual Property 219

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 219

YoungUpstarts

JULY 21, 2019

You can find free software on the internet that does almost the same thing as your subscription-based software. Review if you need the extra perks of the costlier alternative, and see if you can make do with the cheaper one. The internet has a ton of open-source software and other free services you can use for your business.

Software Review 191

Software Review Entrepreneur Cost Cofounder 191

David Teten

DECEMBER 3, 2019

However, in private markets, there is more room to optimize across all 11 steps of the investing process: firm management , marketing, fundraising , origination , manage relationships, due diligence, negotiation, monitoring, portfolio acceleration , reporting, and. 3) Raise capital.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review Software Review Analytics Private Equity 78

Up and Running

JULY 6, 2016

To explain the difference, let’s take me as an example: I’m a software entrepreneur, and, in recent years, a member of an angel investment group. I get involved in detail when the group is looking at startups in software, web, mobile apps, or financial forecasting. It’s reviewed and revised frequently.

Technical Review 72

Technical Review Software Review Business Plan Development Team Review 72

NZ Entrepreneur

DECEMBER 10, 2020

Kiwi inventory forecasting software StockTrim achieved international sales in the UK, Australia and US immediately after launching in 2017. I was then able to say to the rest of the angel groups that the others invested.”. He found many private investors were interested in him as much as StockTrim. “It

Technical Review 104

Technical Review Software Review Due Diligence Startup 104

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 25, 2014

The final proof of a compelling technical vision is that customers were interested—the phone was always ringing. Basically if you didn’t code or sell, you were semi-worthless. Angel investor Don Lucas had his office above ours. What a gift! Not every startup gets to have this—but if you don’t, you’ve got a problem.

Technical Review 334

Technical Review Venture Capital Software Review Database 334

ReadWriteStart

FEBRUARY 21, 2021

Even if you have an angel investor or a venture capital (VC) firm backing you, you’ll have an abundance of expenses, limited income, and a finite amount of time before the money completely runs out. Just be sure to review the condition of these products carefully to verify that you’re getting a good deal.

Startup 106

Startup Software Review Open Source Technical Review 106

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 1, 2014

In addition to being the startup entrepreneur, there are other key roles where Boomers can be a force in driving successful startups, in concert with leaders from Gen-X and Gen-Y: Early-stage Angel investors. Manage customer service. Software and hardware development architects and designers.

Entrepreneur 266

Entrepreneur Advisory Board Dividend Angel Investor 266

Hearpreneur

AUGUST 5, 2020

Carbon farming is coming upon us rapidly it’s progress is already under the transforming influence of technological innovation, and rapidly gaining widespread attention among Venture Capitalists and angel investors. 9- Online management and accountability software. I think the writing is on the wall: go digital or die.

Technical Review 157

Technical Review Software Review Entrepreneur China 157

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2018

Most of you new venture founders I meet as an angel investor seem convinced that starting the business is the hardest part. As the Global Customer Growth Evangelist at Salesforce, with implementation roles at many other companies, she makes a host of relevant observations for every business owner.

Angel Investor 167

Angel Investor Dilution Software Review Distribution 167

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 14, 2014

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Commit to a major customer. Apply for contests and business grants.

Entrepreneur 283

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 283

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 1, 2017

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Commit to a major customer. Apply for contests and business grants.

Product Development 177

Product Development Cost Developer Product 177

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 20, 2016

Thus the top priority of every entrepreneur who wants funding should be to build and highlight their “dream team” of co-founders, executives and advisers, to attract the biggest and best investors. Solo entrepreneurs rarely find an investor. Focus on prior results, not titles. Business credentials and functional coverage.

Sweat Equity 152

Sweat Equity Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Software Review 152

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 19, 2013

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Commit to a major customer. Apply for contests and business grants.

Intellectual Property 309

Intellectual Property Technical Review Venture Capital Startup 309

Steve Blank

JANUARY 22, 2014

Success depends on finding startups that have identified acute customer pains in large markets where conditions are ripe for a new entrant. However, four critical advances over the past decade (cloud, accelerators, Lean, and Angels) not only changed the math for tech investing but made regional tech clusters possible. ——-.

Early Stage 290

Early Stage Silicon Valley Oregon Technical Review 290

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 12, 2018

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Commit to a major customer. Apply for contests and business grants.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

ReadWriteStart

MAY 22, 2012

While some lucky startups attract angel investors or have access to money from friends and family, the vast majority are on their own, at least at first. So far, Herman has put about $60,000 on his credit cards, using them mostly to finance software development. It hasn’t all been smooth sailing. “At

Technical Review 118

Technical Review Software Review Angel Investor Startup 118

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 2, 2017

I still have to tell some entrepreneurs that even with the best idea, they have to move to Silicon Valley to find the investors they need, or they need to move to the U.S. Also, investors from the super-hubs (Silicon Valley, New York, or Boston), won’t assume anyone outside their domain has the savvy and resources to make it happen.

Silicon Valley 149

Silicon Valley Las Vegas Arizona Montana 149

Up and Running

OCTOBER 28, 2022

Many will seek outside support—angel investors, personal investors, venture capitalists, and peer-to-peer lenders generally top the list. However, each “type” of investor brings a different level of risk — and, let’s be honest, not all businesses are attractive to investors.

Cost 138

Cost Startup Early Stage Vesting 138

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022

Download our free Startup Checklist and review the complete guide for starting a small business. It can be the idea, the customers, the mission, the grind—whatever it is; there’s something that keeps you going. Sure, your friends and family say they love it, but that doesn’t guarantee that actual customers will.

Forecast 154

Forecast Software Review Bootstrapping Finance 154

Austin Startup

MAY 14, 2021

STRAP has developed a range of hardware and software solutions that address the mobility challenges that the blind and visually impaired encounter daily. The company has received significant pre-orders from over 6,000 customers across North and Latin America and will ship its devices in Q4 2021.

Technical Review 70

Technical Review Technology Angel Investor Software Review 70

SoCal CTO

AUGUST 3, 2010

5 Lessons from 150 startup pitches - A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks , July 11, 2010 I just reviewed several hundred startup pitches for Capital Factory. Between this blog and reviewing applications to Capital Factory I see hundreds of pitches a year. Most were on paper and video; 20 were invited to pitch in person.

Software Review 217

Software Review Startup Venture Capital Technical Review 217

Up and Running

AUGUST 30, 2021

When we graduate, we don’t really know what a “good customer” is. For Alex at Origin , a scheduling and booking platform for outdoor guiding companies, he soon realized that for the company to grow exponentially, they’d need thousands of customers because of how fragmented the market is. But he has passion. It’s not just startups.

Entrepreneur 132

Entrepreneur Lean Colorado Engineer 132

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 7, 2013

I still have to tell some entrepreneurs that even with the best idea, they have to move to Silicon Valley to find the investors they need, or they need to move to the U.S. Also, investors from the super-hubs (Silicon Valley, New York, or Boston), won’t assume anyone outside their domain has the savvy and resources to make it happen.

Silicon Valley 256

Silicon Valley Las Vegas Phoenix Montana 256