Up and Running

JANUARY 3, 2019

Almost every decision you make—what you sell, how much you sell it for, where you’re located, who you hire—is made with the intention of bringing in the maximum number of customers to your store, and to optimize the likelihood that they’ll buy your products while they’re there. How to create a persona for your business.

Software Review 130

Software Review Product Development Portland Software 130

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 1, 2013

Starting a business is a lot like starting a marriage. Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. Maybe he was the only guy around who could design the product you envisioned, but delivering a scalable, quality product is another story.

Founder 250

Founder Startup Software Developers Software Development 250

Steve Blank

MAY 6, 2015

Waterfall Development. While it sounds simple , the Build Measure Learn approach to product development is a radical improvement over the traditional Waterfall model used throughout the 20 th century to build and ship products. Waterfall Development was all about execution of the requirements document.

Lean 120

Lean Agile Business Model Customer Development 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2012

Starting a business is a lot like starting a marriage. Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. Maybe he was the only guy around who could design the product you envisioned, but delivering a scalable, quality product is another story.

Software Developers 229

Software Developers Software Development Business Model Product Development 229

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

Startups wrote business plans, generated expansive 5-year forecasts and executed (hired, spent and built) to the plan. First Movers” didn’t understand customer problems or the product features that solved those problems (what we now call product-market fit). Every startup is in a race against time. The result?

Lean 335

Lean Burn Rate Startup IPO 335

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 8, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Saturday, November 8, 2008 What is customer development? When we build products, we use a methodology. Steve Blank has devoted many years now to trying to answer that question, with a theory he calls Customer Development. a roadmap for how to get to Product/Market Fit." Heres the catch.

Customer Development 168

Customer Development Developer San Francisco Customer 168

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 6, 2011

Starting a business is a lot like starting a marriage. Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. Maybe he was the only guy around who could design the product you envisioned, but delivering a scalable, quality product is another story.

Startup 245

Startup Software Developers Software Development Business Model 245

Up and Running

FEBRUARY 12, 2022

Learn why the traditional way of writing a five-year business plan is often a waste of time and how to use a Lean Plan instead for smarter, easier strategic planning to establish your long-term vision. But, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t plan for the long term. What is a long-term plan?

Business Plan 83

Business Plan Lean Forecast Exit Strategy 83

Gust

APRIL 27, 2014

Software Development Process via Wikipedia. Even when your startup is a one-man show and lots of fun, a “business” needs some discipline and controls to keep it from being defined as a hobby by investors, and assure some financial return. Develop your business plan. Product development process.

Startup 187

Startup Institutional Investors Angel Investor Bootstrapping 187

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 1, 2010

With an out-of-this-world business plan. When it was spun out as a a separate company, Iridium’s 1990 business plan had assumptions about potential customers, their problems and the product needed to solve that problem. A Business Plan Frozen in Time. It is death in a rapidly changing business.

Business Plan 335

Business Plan Customer Business Model Customer Development 335

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 15, 2009

Steve Gilison worked as a market researcher and product manager at a startup where my company, TechEmpower , did the software / web development. I have about 11 years in the technology sector including roles doing market research, sales and product development. My focus has been marketing strategy and product development.

Los Angeles 179

Los Angeles Southern California Management Product 179

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 19, 2020

Capturing and analyzing data enables companies to get insights that benefit their companies in cost-saving, relevant marketing, product development, etc. With appropriate data analytics, a business can predict and comprehend the market, competition, customer demands, etc.

Technical Review 155

Technical Review Forecast Analytics Social Media 155

Steve Blank

MAY 9, 2017

Defense and Intelligence organizations drove the pace of innovation in Silicon Valley by providing research and development dollars to universities, and defense companies built weapons systems that used the Valley’s first microwave devices and semiconductor components. Not kind of wrong but going out of business wrong.

Restful 243

Restful Silicon Valley Puerto Rico San Jose 243

YoungUpstarts

MAY 23, 2018

Many founders or startup teams gravitate toward sales or design. Sometimes, it’s the lack of a proper business plan that really hurts the startup. Often, there’s a disconnect between the decision-makers and what might be thought of as the dry, boring realities of successful management.

Due Diligence 133

Due Diligence Startup Finance Leadership 133

Up and Running

JULY 19, 2016

It’s about what your business does for people that other businesses don’t do. See Also: Business Planning Guide. I’m not sure where this classic positioning statement template started, or whom to credit, but I’ve found it very useful for years of developing business plans. Positioning diagrams.

Business Plan 60

Business Plan Developer Marketing Social Media 60

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 3, 2009

This post describes how the traditional product development model distorts startup sales, marketing and business development. While these objectives provide an illusion of progress, in reality they do little to validate the business plan hypotheses about customers and what they will buy.

Customer Development 228

Customer Development Developer Silicon Valley Customer 228

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 27, 2010

One of the sayings I hear from talented managers in product development is, “good enough never is.&# And, most importantly, it helps team members develop the courage to stand up for these values in stressful situations. This is precisely the dilemma that the doctrine of minimum viable product is designed to solve.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Software Review 167

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 2, 2009

For those of you who have been following the discussion, a Lean Startup is Eric Ries ’s description of the intersection of Customer Development , Agile Development and if available, open platforms and open source. The Customer Development process (and the Lean Startup) is one way to do that.

Lean 260

Lean Silicon Valley Startup RSS 260

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2010

Starting a business is a lot like starting a marriage. Product development is stuck at that 90% mark, a key person leaves, and customers are talking but not buying. Maybe he was the only guy around who could design the product you envisioned, but delivering a scalable, quality product is another story.

Software Developers 122

Software Developers Software Development Business Model Design 122

Hearpreneur

JULY 10, 2017

That’s exactly what Ozmo Smart Bottles and Ap p are designed to do. Prior to starting Ozmo both Ming and I worked in a design house creating new and better products. On a personal level, running a business rather than being employed allows me greater freedom to exercise my creativity.

Entrepreneur 100

Entrepreneur Hungary Software Review Cofounder 100

Hearpreneur

DECEMBER 31, 2016

We asked 16 entrepreneurs to share their business goals and what they were looking forward to in 2017. #1 1 – Developing Software. One of our company’s primary goals for 2017 is to finish developing and begin using our proprietary software program. I have created a business plan to achieve those goals.

Entrepreneur 72

Entrepreneur Software Review New Zealand Mobile 72

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 18, 2010

After I retired, I began teaching Customer Development , a theory of how to reduce early stage risk in entrepreneurial ventures. The first time I taught the class at the Haas Business School, U.C. 15,000 copies later, the horrifically bad proofreading, design and layout is now a badge of honor. Customer Development Manifesto.

Silicon Valley 228

Silicon Valley Customer Development IP Developer 228

The Next Web

AUGUST 26, 2012

For many start-ups, the central focus is developing a product that offers value to a target audience. For this reason you should find out as quickly as possible if the product is indeed offering real value to your customers by looking at real data. Develop a strong backbone. Listen to the right data.

Bankruptcy 121

Bankruptcy Technical Review Intellectual Property Due Diligence 121

Steve Blank

MAY 14, 2012

The excerpts, which appeared first at Inc.com , highlight the Customer Development process, best practices, tips and instructions contained in our book. ———– Whether your venture is a new pizza parlor or the hottest new software product, beware: These nine flawed assumptions are toxic.

Balance Sheet 335

Balance Sheet Business Model Customer Development Metrics 335

Hearpreneur

SEPTEMBER 25, 2022

Businesses that clearly define their short-term and long-term goals tend to achieve their goals faster and more efficiently than those without any plan. Besides the general focus on customer and product development, an entrepreneur should foresee the next moves that will serve to guide him on the right path.

Forecast 127

Forecast Artificial Inteligence Entrepreneur Technical Review 127

Up and Running

JUNE 20, 2016

The competitive matrix is important in a business plan for several reasons. Second, it can develop and explain positioning. Third, it is one of the most obvious, strategic visuals that business plan readers expect. See Also: Highlighting Risks in Your Business Plan Will Help You Get Funding.

Developer 65

Developer Business Plan Advertising Differentiation 65

Up and Running

DECEMBER 22, 2015

I have to admit, I’ve seen some judges of graduate-level business plan competitions care about IRR, but never an actual angel investor during actual due diligence. Please, get a clue: Real businesses usually turn out net profits in single digits, and only rarely up as high as 20%. You’re out of school now. Get a clue.

Angel Investor 60

Angel Investor IRR Software Review Startup 60

Up and Running

JUNE 14, 2017

Some believe in the all-in approach to product development: build an advanced app. An entrepreneur can quantitatively test potential buyers’ real intentions and develop a genuine understanding their needs before building out the product (app). It’s hard to imagine product functionality.

Technical Review 96

Technical Review Distribution Redemption Demand 96

www.quora.com

JANUARY 16, 2011

" Web Development Startups Solo Founders I am a creative guy with a startup idea. Where is the best place to find a rockstar developer to bring it to life? " => I have not bothered to put up a landing page, survey to test customer demand, or done any customer development whatsoever. Rockstar v.

Developer 42

Developer Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder 42

Steve Blank

MARCH 4, 2014

These groups are adapting or adopting the practices of startups and accelerators – disruption and innovation rather than direct competition, customer development versus more product features, agility and speed versus lowest cost. For most companies it feels like innovation can only happen by exception and heroic efforts, not by design.

IRR 335

IRR Startup Business Model Agile 335

Up and Running

MAY 23, 2016

Step 1: Start with a lean plan. Instead of sitting down to write a 40-page business plan, start with a one-page pitch. It’s the fastest way to get your idea onto paper, and it’s the very first step in the lean planning process, which is much easier and more iterative than traditional business planning methods.

Software Review 74

Software Review Software Delaware Forecast 74

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 18, 2010

Notice that the traditional product introduction model leads to a product launch and the execution of a revenue plan. The revenue numbers and revenue model came from a startups original Business Plan. that make up a business model. We were changing the business model when we changed executives.

Burn Rate 251

Burn Rate Management Business Model Customer Development 251

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 6, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, October 6, 2008 When NOT to listen to your users; when NOT to rely on split-tests There are three legs to the lean startup concept: agile product development , low-cost (fast to market) platforms , and rapid-iteration customer development. Thats what business is designed to do.

San Francisco 128

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Agile 128

Steve Blank

AUGUST 27, 2009

This series of posts is a brief explanation of how we’ve evolved from Product Development to Customer Development to the Lean Startup. The Product Development Diagram Emerging early in the twentieth century, this product-centric model described a process that evolved in manufacturing industries.

Silicon Valley 269

Silicon Valley Product Startup Product Development 269

Steve Blank

MARCH 11, 2015

I suggested the best place to start the conversation is with the 21 st century definition of a startup: A startup is a temporary organization designed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model. Startups have finite time and resources to find product/market fit before they run out of money.

Widget 120

Widget Lean Business Model Metrics 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 4, 2014

I’m continually amazed at the number of entrepreneurs who go for months into a new business without really keeping a formal record of money spent or assets acquired. Use a simple accounting tool like QuickBooks, get away from co-mingled funds, and you have the first business process you need. Develop your business plan.

Startup 268

Startup Institutional Investors Angel Investor Bootstrapping 268

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 25, 2012

In this book, Daniel Pink explains why creativity and innovation will soon be at the heart of every business strategy in the 21st century and why you shouldn’t ignore the valuable, though perhaps less practical lessons, provided by your right brain. The Design of Business: Why Design Thinking is the Next Competitive Advantage by Roger L.

Merger 228

Merger Leadership Design Management 228