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. Join a startup incubator. Use crowd funding.

Intellectual Property 219

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 219

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

especially if the startup already has a product and revenue? While the answers are somewhat semantic, the pre-seed funding round is making a comeback in 2024 startup financing. Pre-seed round tends to be the first ‘institutional’ round of funding in a startup. A founder asked me what makes a $2M round “pre-seed”?

Valuation 186

Valuation Software Review Generative AI Technical Review 186

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. Join a startup incubator. Commit to a major customer.

Finance 320

Finance Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 320

NZ Entrepreneur

JUNE 19, 2023

A new batch of enterprising New Zealanders are being given the opportunity to fast track their ventures from idea through to startup, thanks to an online education initiative backed by Callaghan Innovation and entrepreneur education platform Startup NZ.

New Zealand 98

New Zealand Technical Cofounder Early Stage Entrepreneur 98

Steve Blank

APRIL 23, 2014

For decades large companies have gone shopping in Silicon Valley for startups. What can companies learn from others’ failed efforts to integrate startups into large companies? The answer - there are two types of integration strategies, and they depend on where the startup is in its lifecycle. The Innovation Portfolio.

Acquisition 333

Acquisition Intellectual Property Silicon Valley Startup 333

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 4, 2019

by Bruce Cleveland, Founding Partner at Wildcat Venture Partners and author of “ Traversing the Traction Gap “ As we continue our exploration of the Traction Gap Framework® – a step-by-step approach that startup teams can use to go from ideation to preparing to scale – I will walk you through the principles.

Framework 127

Framework Architecture Cleveland Early Stage 127

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2022

As a startup mentor, I’m always amazed that some entrepreneurs seem to be an immediate hit with investors, while others struggle to get any attention at all. As with most business and personal interactions, first impressions tend to become lasting ones. Message delivery must be customized for each investor.

Intellectual Property 278

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Early Stage Venture Capital 278

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 1, 2023

By Daniel Sokolovksy, Co-Founder and CEO, WARP and Troy Lester, Co-Founder and CRO, WARP The dissolution of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was more than just a bank collapse, it was a reality check for both startups and the VCs that fund them. As an early-stage company that just closed our seed round at $8.1 That includes us.

Early Stage 124

Early Stage Los Angeles Silicon Valley Cofounder 124

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

I have often been asked about Startup Funding by entrepreneurs. Many myths surround the subject of startup funding. Here is Startup Funding, a Comprehensive Guide for Entrepreneurs. Funding might be a need in some cases — but it’s not an absolute necessity. ? The business should be self-sustainable.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

YoungUpstarts

MAY 24, 2019

by Bruce Cleveland, Founding Partner at Wildcat Venture Partners and author of “ Traversing the Traction Gap “ As we continue our exploration of the Traction Gap Framework® – a step-by-step approach that startup teams can use to go from ideation to preparing to scale – I will walk you through the principles.

Framework 113

Framework Architecture Cleveland Early Stage 113

Steve Blank

JUNE 27, 2017

As more and more companies face disruption from globalization, new technology, and startups that have more capital than the incumbents, the continuing cry from Wall Street investors is, “Why can’t companies be as innovative as startups?”. Here’s one reason why: Startups can do anything. Startups can do anything.

Startup 301

Startup New York City Valuation Distribution 301

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 6, 2011

I’m going to take that thought out into the field and validate it with my customers." I’ve spoken to dozens of customers, I have a validated customer persona, built an MVP to test key behavioral hypotheses, and the data doesn’t back what you’re saying." Customer Validation 101. " OR… "You’re wrong.

Customer 227

Customer Fractional CTO Viral Lean 227

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. Join a startup incubator. Commit to a major customer.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

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. Join a startup incubator. Use crowd funding.

Intellectual Property 309

Intellectual Property Technical Review Venture Capital Startup 309

Steve Blank

AUGUST 29, 2011

What makes startups succeed or fail? More than 90% of startups fail, due primarily to self-destruction rather than competition. For the less than 10% of startups that do succeed, most encounter several near death experiences along the way. Three months ago I wrote about my ex-student Max Marmer and the Startup Genome Project.

Software Review 298

Software Review Early Stage Technical Review Startup 298

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 4, 2013

I recommend you read Fred Wilson’s recent blog post about the need for a well articulated business strategy before pushing a particular business model. He then brought her to board meetings so nobody could accuse him of not having a business model. My take on his argument is this: 1.

Technical Review 401

Technical Review Startup Business Model Non-Compete 401

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 7, 2023

Unfortunately, for startups entering a regulated market following this advice this might not be the optimum path. And why was Bill’s advice of staying away from Washington flawed for startups? All businesses have regulations to follow – paying taxes, incorporating the company, complying with financial reporting. Why is it bad?

Washington 310

Washington Government Marketing Silicon Valley 310

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 1, 2011

Not understanding and agreeing what “Entrepreneur&# and “Startup” mean can sink an entire country’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Six Types of Startups – Pick One. For policy makers, the first order of business is to methodically think through which of these entrepreneurial paths they want to help and grow. There are 5.7

Government 335

Government Silicon Valley Startup Venture Capital 335

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 16, 2009

I was in New York last week with my class at Columbia University and several events made me realize that the Customer Development model needs to better describe its fit with web-based businesses. In it, I got asked a question I often hear: “What if we have a web-based business that doesn’t have revenue or paying customers?

Customer Development 228

Customer Development Web Developer Customer 228

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 13, 2020

As a startup mentor, I’m always amazed that some entrepreneurs seem to be an immediate hit with investors, while others struggle to get any attention at all. As with most business and personal interactions, first impressions tend to become lasting ones. Message delivery must be customized for each investor.

Intellectual Property 316

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Early Stage Venture Capital 316

Steve Blank

JULY 9, 2015

He’s now run several Lean LaunchPad classes and has seen a ton of healthcare startups. Here’s his advice for startups in this space. Over the past couple of years as Director of Innovation for Intermountain Healthcare I’ve mentored and worked with many Healthcare-focused startups.

Startup 120

Startup Early Stage Azure Lean 120

David Teten

DECEMBER 12, 2017

As a globally focused LP in early stage VC funds, we at Blue Future Partners have observed a growing trend of firms investing substantially in software tools, whether developing proprietary solutions or adopting off the shelf tools. But what tools are they using themselves to automate their own processes?

Early Stage 60

Early Stage Technical Review Software Review Venture Capital 60

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

Unfortunately in early stage startups the drive for financing hijacks the corporate DNA and becomes the raison d’etre of the company. Chasing funding versus chasing customers and a repeatable and scalable business model, is one reason startups fail. What are Early Stage VC’s Really Asking?

Customer Development 267

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 267

ReadWriteStart

MARCH 8, 2021

Every startup entrepreneur wants to see their company grow. They want to snowball their customer acquisition, attracting thousands of new people to the brand, and reach diverse new audiences in new locations. So what are the biggest barriers startup entrepreneurs experience in their route to achieve long-term growth? Or is it?

Startup 127

Startup Retention Acquisition Agile 127

Mucker Lab

APRIL 6, 2023

Hila Qu joined Mucker’s Tony Yang for an Ask-Me-Anything (AMA) conversation about Product-Led Growth (PLG) for Startups to kickoff the 2023 Mucker Growth Series. Hila Qu has been the Head of Growth or VP of Growth at a number of different companies and startups, most notably Acorns and GitLab. That is a natural hurdle for PLG motion.

Product 78

Product CTO Hire Startup Fractional CTO 78

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. Join a startup incubator. Use crowd funding.

Entrepreneur 283

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 283

SoCal CTO

MARCH 5, 2007

There are quite a few other Software Development Companies in Southern California working on open source and/or freemium business models. Common revenue streams are consulting, training, support, customization, upgraded versions for corporate applications, etc. Early Stage Marketing and Branding – Farida Fotouh.

Open Source 150

Open Source Business Model Technical Cofounder Southern California 150

Hunter Walker

AUGUST 31, 2023

At the time Melania was in discussions with Ethena about joining the startup as VP People, happily employed at a larger company but knowing she wanted new challenges. Hunter Walk: One of my favorite things to do for founders is speaking with people who are considering joining their startup. In my opinion, this is a hugely risky move.

Employee 113

Employee Startup Vertical Leadership 113

ReadWriteStart

MARCH 3, 2021

Growing a business is always challenging, but it’s often the hardest in the earliest stages of development. You’ll be operating with limited resources, limited knowledge, and quite possibly, a business model poised to change in the immediate future. What are the best tactics to accomplish these goals? Limited capital.

Early Stage 125

Early Stage PPC Retention Churn Rate 125

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. Join a startup incubator. Use crowd funding.

Product Development 177

Product Development Cost Developer Product 177

NZ Entrepreneur

SEPTEMBER 29, 2021

It is our startup sector which will drive this innovative progress. Startup founders are our ambitious problem solvers. To generate growth in a startup, it is almost always necessary to raise external capital to run the necessary. experiments to build a product, find customers, test business models and hire amazing people.

Technical Review 88

Technical Review Software Review New Zealand Due Diligence 88

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 2, 2022

With the investor slowdown we’ve seen so far in 2022, approximately 30% globally in Q2 2022 (compared to the equivalent period last year, according to Crunchbase ) it’s more difficult for startups to get funded, which increases the important of finding the right investor, as quickly as possible.

Technical Review 166

Technical Review Early Stage Cofounder Portfolio 166

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023

In the early stages of a startup your hypotheses about all the parts of your business model are your profound beliefs. You can’t be an effective founder or in the C-suite of a startup if you don’t hold any. Here’s how I learned why they were critical to successful customer development.

Business Model 345

Business Model Product Development Early Stage Customer Development 345

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2012

For a business, you must define the absolute minimum features you need to satisfy the customer problem, and test it in the market. By using a laser focused approach for the first iteration, you may actually produce something and get a customer without funding. Get a real customer and real revenue. Become a visible expert.

Intellectual Property 260

Intellectual Property Sweat Equity CTO Hire Fractional CTO 260

Steve Blank

MARCH 17, 2020

With the Covid-19 virus a worldwide pandemic, if you’re leading any startup or small business, you have to be asking yourself, “What’s Plan B? If you’re running a startup or small business, your first priority (after your family) is keeping your employees and customers safe. “Winter is coming.”. Laying off people?

Burn Rate 436

Burn Rate Startup Valuation Sales Cycle 436

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 29, 2023

As an advisor to early-stage entrepreneurs, I see a lot of dreams, but not so many business results. The business world doesn’t thrive with yet another social media or dating site – it’s begging for paradigm shifts in the technology or business model. Never give up in the face of adversity.

Startup 264

Startup Early Stage Social Media Business Model 264

View from Seed

JUNE 23, 2022

Automating their end-to-end eCommerce operations (from managing inventory to order fulfillment to customer service). RH: Who are your customers? About a year and a half after starting my own eCommerce businesses, I realized the opportunity to do this for other creators and at a much larger scale and started Influencer Direct.

DC 156

DC Cambodia eCommerce Social Media 156