Berkonomics

OCTOBER 5, 2023

Since this number is budgeted and pre-authorized, managers tend to focus upon other things such as sales, marketing and product development issues. Not long after, the company was sold in a “fire sale” amounting to slightly less than the debt on the books. All investors, including the VC firm, lost everything.

Silicon Valley 118

Silicon Valley Burn Rate Angel Investor Down Round 118

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 17, 2020

Many companies seek angel investors, venture capital and even family and friends’ money when they’re planning to start a company. The profit margin must account not only for the costs to produce the product or service, but the additional money needed to cover operating expenses, such as costs of debt. .

Finance 217

Finance Forecast Balance Sheet Angel Investor 217

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2014

Waiting until you have something to sell before bringing on a sales and operations staff. Getting a sales contract before manufacturing inventory. For example, a software development startup raising $250,000 from angel investors better be able to operate on $25,000 per month.

Burn Rate 262

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Entrepreneur Salary 262

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 4, 2020

They aren’t operating on big bankrolls of venture capital (at least initially), and they don’t have trust funds to fall back on if the business fails. For example, do you fly out to a big indus­try conference to close some sales, or do you stay home to attend your daughter’s high school graduation? If they don’t come through, who will?

Entrepreneur 205

Entrepreneur Venture Capital Silicon Valley Bandwidth 205

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. Very few entrepreneurs have the range of skills and experience to be the solution creator as well as business creator, or operational as well as sales leader.

Partner 140

Partner Software Review CTO Hire Cofounder 140

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2014

It’s your startup, so you can give early partners any title you want, but be aware of potential investor and peer implications. 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. Chief Sales Officer (VP Sales).

CTO Hire 252

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Angel Investor Public Relations 252

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 29, 2024

Will you opt for direct sales, subscriptions, or a freemium model? Optimising Your Operations Efficiency is the name of the game when it comes to operations. Whether it’s managing your supply chain or automating customer service, look for ways to optimise every aspect of your operations.

Intellectual Property 158

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Business Model Bootstrapping 158

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 11, 2023

The fundamental objective and aim of seed investment is to assist a company in launching its operations successfully. Seed money can range from a relatively modest sum to a sizeable one, depending not only on the nature of the startup, the sector in which it will operate, and any other pertinent business aspects.

Seed Stage 148

Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 148

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

Waiting until you have something to sell before bringing on a sales and operations staff. Getting a sales contract before manufacturing inventory. For example, a software development startup raising $250,000 from angel investors better be able to operate on $25,000 per month.

Burn Rate 120

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Startup Salary 120

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 22, 2013

It’s your startup, so you can give early partners any title you want, but be aware of potential investor and peer implications. 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. Chief Sales Officer (VP Sales).

CTO Hire 244

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Startup Angel Investor 244

Up and Running

AUGUST 17, 2022

Can you increase sales tenfold without having to increase your headcount proportionately? One of the lesser-understood facts of outside investors is they don’t make money with a healthy growing company that is cash-flow independent and doesn’t want to bring in more money to grow faster. They want your business to be able to scale up.

Venture Capital 146

Venture Capital Intellectual Property Angel Investor Bootstrapping 146

Growthink Blog

DECEMBER 27, 2017

And the desire to raise capital (whether from an individual “angel” investor or a venture capital firm) is often the key motivator in the business planning process. But how exactly will your business plan persuade investors to sign a check? The operations plan transforms the business plan from concept into reality.

Venture Capital 129

Venture Capital Business Plan Technical Review Private Placement 129

Up and Running

MARCH 14, 2018

I know what it’s like to pitch to investors—both angels and venture capitalists. I’ve raised close to $1 million from angel investors for my previous technology startups. Sometimes you only get 10 minutes to pitch your business opportunity to the investors (or less in some cases). Image via WOCinTechChat.

Hockey Stick 164

Hockey Stick Exit Strategy Technical Review Angel Investor 164

VC Cafe

JANUARY 22, 2021

Our dedicated startup resources provide support through technical validation, go-to-market support, and sales enablement to support startups at the speed they need. The program helps boost sales through its customer engagement tools (video content, dedicated storefront, editorial curation), merchandising, and strategic support.

Technical Review 174

Technical Review Startup Venture Capital Incubator 174

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

Reasons for funding. ? Scale up your operations. One of the most prominent reasons for funding is to scale up your operations, for expansion and achieve economies of scale. Now you may want to scale up your operations or expand your presence. The third reason is to fund your short term operational expenses or working capital.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

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. 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. Chief Sales Officer (VP Sales).

CTO Hire 171

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Angel Investor Public Relations 171

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 26, 2021

As a long-time advisor to entrepreneurs and occasional angel investor, I often see and hear innovative product pitches that sound exciting, but are missing one or more of the key business elements that investors deem critical for funding consideration. Specify a primary customer channel for sales.

Intellectual Property 332

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Business Model Channel 332

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 1, 2010

It’s your startup, so you can give early partners any title you want, but be aware of potential investor and peer implications. 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. Chief Sales Officer (VP Sales).

CTO Hire 227

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Startup Angel Investor 227

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 11, 2022

As a former angel investor, I look for this level of alignment and understanding in every funding presentation I hear. Popular revenue models today include recurring subscription charges, licensing, as well the traditional sale or lease model. It shows you how everyone works in synergy. Key activities.

Business Model 334

Business Model Intellectual Property Angel Investor Channel 334

Up and Running

AUGUST 30, 2021

The important thing is to gain experience with how fast-paced companies operate, the relationships you need to be successful, and all the different hats you’ll have to wear. Angel investors, venture capital firms, accelerators, and (maybe) the newer equity crowdfunding will look to see if you have previous experience in startups.

Entrepreneur 132

Entrepreneur Lean Colorado Engineer 132

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2023

As a mentor and advisor to entrepreneurs and startups, and an angel investor, my passion is to find and nurture those entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas and acumen, to make them into successful business owners. This is the stage where most entrepreneurs exit, get pushed out, or learn to operate as full-time business owners.

Matching 270

Matching Entrepreneur Startup Seed Stage 270

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 27, 2016

There is an old saying in the startup investor community, “Smart investors invest in the team, not the idea.” As an angel investor, I’ve learned to believe in this approach, since I have seen great ideas go astray, due to poor execution and I have seen apparently marginal ideas make millions, managed by a savvy entrepreneur.

Technical Review 134

Technical Review Intellectual Property Due Diligence Angel Investor 134

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 29, 2022

Diving into the financials, dealing with vendors, the hiring process, or a variety of other tasks—no one is passionate about every facet of business operations. You should map out who is present and dig into their operations, marketing tactics, and position in the market. That’s completely fine. What are their weaknesses?

Forecast 154

Forecast Software Review Bootstrapping Finance 154

Growthink Blog

OCTOBER 1, 2013

There are eight key things angel investors will look for when considering whether or not to fund your business. No matter how good your venture is, if the investor doesn''t like you, they generally won''t fund you. So, find investors who have an affinity for the type of venture you''re launching/running. #3 read more.

Angel Investor 88

Angel Investor Exit Strategy Equity Operations 88

Up and Running

MAY 15, 2018

Use a billing software to record the sales and invest in a relationship with a tax professional only when needed. All of these factors contribute to a scalable business model, which in turn, helps attract investors. All of these factors contribute to a scalable business model, which in turn, helps attract investors.

SBA 84

SBA Angel Investor Technical Review Startup 84

crowdSPRING Blog

FEBRUARY 14, 2019

Create a sales plan. Find partners or investors. Are you an expert in short sales? A business plan is a document that outlines the financial and operational goals of your business. This section gives a brief overview of the industry sector your business will operate in. Sales and marketing plan.

Angel Investor 85

Angel Investor Small Business Business Plan Intellectual Property 85

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 1, 2019

In the go-to-product phase, you can get help from a plethora of incubators, accelerators and angel investors. More than just sales, repeatability also means demonstrating product release repeatability, implementation success repeatability, and some marketing and lead generation repeatability. Minimum Viable Repeatability (MVR).

Cleveland 150

Cleveland Framework Marketing Early Stage 150

YoungUpstarts

JULY 21, 2019

You don’t have to worry at all about the space, as the operator will manage it. If you play your cards right, you’ll be able to use the money from your first sales (and succeeding sales) to grow your startup. If you need a professional address, though, consider getting an executive suite.

Software Review 191

Software Review Entrepreneur Cost Cofounder 191

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 7, 2016

So he announced the completion of the “Conversion Phase,” and initiated the kick-off of a “Sales Phase,” the purpose of which was to assess and implement new tactics to generate more sales for the business. She currently serves as a strategic advisor to CEOs and executives, a board member and an angel investor.

Cofounder 100

Cofounder Angel Investor Technical Review Conversion 100

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 26, 2020

For a Series A round you want to prove you have built a repeatable and scalable sales/revenue model and understand all parts of the business model. At the low-end this might come from friends, family or angel investors. At the high-end pre-seed angel funds might invest. 2M in 18 months.

Cofounder 431

Cofounder Seed Stage Valuation Metrics 431

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 8, 2010

My first company was founded in Ireland, headquartered in England and had country operations in the UK, France & Germany. Due to the language and culture issues in Europe we opted for a country structure with an MD in each country and local sales, marketing & customers support staff. It doesn’t seem fair.

Ireland 319

Ireland Sales Bankruptcy Germany 319

Up and Running

JANUARY 15, 2019

Look somewhere you might not have considered: the sales department. Cutting your teeth in sales. Can you consistently generate more sales each month without overspending? Can you predict your sales conversion rates, revenue, and overhead every month ? Building sales—and entrepreneurial—skills.

Sales 122

Sales Angel Investor Incubator B2B 122

Berkonomics

AUGUST 10, 2017

Since this number is budgeted and pre-authorized, managers tend to focus upon other things such as sales, marketing and product development issues. Not long after, the company was sold in a “fire sale” amounting to slightly less than the debt on the books. All investors, including the VC firm, lost everything.

Silicon Valley 97

Silicon Valley Burn Rate Angel Investor Down Round 97

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 10, 2020

As a mentor and advisor to entrepreneurs and startups, and an angel investor, my passion is to find and nurture those entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas and acumen, to make them into successful business owners. This is the stage where most entrepreneurs exit, get pushed out, or learn to operate as full-time business owners.

Matching 317

Matching Seed Stage Angel Investor Business Model 317

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 10, 2015

You need to ensure that your business operates a positive cash flow, otherwise the business will become insolvent. However, it is vital that the cash flow management is kept positive to sustain the business’s operations and growth. Not managing cashflow. When it comes to making your business succeed, managing cashflow is critical!

Due Diligence 100

Due Diligence Startup Angel Investor Hiring 100

Growthink Blog

MAY 13, 2012

But, when one of these factors are "out of whack," it can be a much tougher sale to make. Getting funding from angel investors is the same way. You prepare by making sure angel investors will want to invest in your company. The point -- you can get a job done with a lot less effort when you are fully prepared.

Angel Investor 93

Angel Investor Exit Strategy Liquidity Event Angel Groups 93

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

FEBRUARY 26, 2019

Or you can start selling to enterprise — nothing wrong with that — but then your high cost-basis of marketing, sales, and service will not scale downward. Sales” is not a dirty word. If you haven’t operated at the executive level at a scaling startup, you don’t appreciate how different and difficult it is.

Restful 202

Restful Founder Revenue Acquisition 202