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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Commit to a major customer.

Intellectual Property 261

Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator Bootstrapping 261

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 7, 2024

Companies are turning to AI to streamline their operations, notably in areas like customer service, cybersecurity, and fraud prevention. From identifying your audience to understanding the market and mapping out your finances, entrepreneurs have found they have a lot to do before building a successful venture.

Artificial Inteligence 118

Artificial Inteligence Entrepreneur Algorithm Cofounder 118

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 30, 2020

As prices for hardware and sensors continue to drop, organizations can now cost-effectively add intelligence and connectivity to their industrial infrastructure. Oil and gas companies have a pain point: the need to remotely manage their sites more cost-effectively , reduce their carbon footprint and improve the safety of their workers.

Revenue 170

Revenue Technical Review Cost Operations 170

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 17, 2021

It wasn’t so many years ago that starting a new e-commerce business on the Internet was a complex custom development project, usually costing a million dollars or more. Almost anyone can start a company today on a shoestring budget, following these cost-cutting recommendations: Establish a solid legal structure for your business.

Cost 405

Cost Entrepreneur Burn Rate Social Media 405

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 26, 2016

The key to being able to run a business that isn’t yet profitable (on operating margin) is availability of capital to finance losses and preferably at a cost that isn’t too punitive to the founders and employees. So I spend an inordinate amount of time with entrepreneurs focused on payback. Customer acquisition cost.

Metrics 150

Metrics Cost Acquisition Startup 150

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Commit to a major customer.

Entrepreneur 283

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 283

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 29, 2018

Without enough capital, entrepreneurs don’t have the means to invest in the development and growth of their brand. Though you may not have much to work with now, if your startup is to succeed, you must work consistently at finding and executing plans to increase your revenue. Review the Costs of Products or Services.

Revenue 100

Revenue Startup Audience Social Media 100

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Commit to a major customer.

Finance 320

Finance Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 320

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

Entrepreneurs see “no risk” as meaning “no reward.” There are no guarantees in business, but it pays to learn from the experiences of entrepreneurs and business experts who have gone before you. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers.

Forecast 304

Forecast Stock Options Technical Review Metrics 304

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 23, 2018

More revenue. 2017 has been a good year for growing revenue. 69% of small business owners expected revenue growth this year. They expected hearty growth, too: 38% expected revenue to rise by more than 5%. Write a page on your site about what your customers should know before they work with you. You ask for them.

Revenue 174

Revenue Small Business Technical Review .Net 174

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2022

I see more and more entrepreneurs who seem to have everything going for them – vision, motivation, passion, even a good business plan, product, and money, and yet they can’t close customers. Great businesses begin with a customer problem that has a big and monetizable pain point. Nail the solution. Nail the business model.

Angel Investor 359

Angel Investor Technical Review Incubator Business Model 359

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 19, 2023

Entrepreneurs who experience success with their first startup are often amazed to realize that the risks and fears of doing it right the second time go up, rather than down. Encores are tough, especially in the high-risk world of startups, yet every entrepreneur I know can’t wait to start over and do it again. Eat your own dog food.

Technical Review 229

Technical Review Due Diligence Business Model Demand 229

Hearpreneur

OCTOBER 25, 2023

We asked entrepreneurs, and business owners their tips on building an e-commerce business and here are the responses. #1- The expansion of e-commerce should also bring about seeing returns as a strategic lever, similar to how companies used faster delivery to drive customer experience and revenue.

eCommerce 127

eCommerce Omaha Entrepreneur SEO 127

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 1, 2020

Every entrepreneur I know finds it a challenge to balance the joys of entrepreneurship against a set of frustrations they never anticipated. Of course, most of you expect that raising money will be difficult, as well as staving off competitors, and handling that occasional toxic customer.

Due Diligence 306

Due Diligence Entrepreneur Startup Acquisition 306

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 26, 2022

Entrepreneurs that are not listening, not engaging, and not changing are destined to be left behind even in the best of times. Business agility is defined as the ability to adapt rapidly and cost efficiently. Every entrepreneur must be alert enough to spot the change early, and agile enough to adapt quickly.

Agile 379

Agile Technical Review Leadership Social Media 379

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 28, 2020

The rate of new entrepreneurs increased between 2013 and 2019, from 280 out of 100,000 to 310 out of 100,000 of the adult population. Of course, that’s both the good news and the bad news for aspiring entrepreneurs, since it means more competition, and the business landscape is changing faster than ever.

Intellectual Property 404

Intellectual Property Startup Angel Groups Social Media 404

Hearpreneur

JANUARY 1, 2023

During such times a firm should take measures that have historically been thought to safeguard it, such as cutting costs, lowering goals, and keeping an eye on cash flow to weather the impending storm. We asked entrepreneurs to share how they will prepare for the bad economy and here is what they have to say. #1- 1- Make a budget.

Entrepreneur 90

Entrepreneur Software Review Technical Review Revenue 90

Hearpreneur

OCTOBER 27, 2023

Being an entrepreneur or business owner has its share of ups and downs. While the downs can be pretty low the ups always seem to triumph for a true entrepreneur at heart. Milestones are what entrepreneurs and business owners work towards. Once you finally reach a certain point then reflection can truly begin.

Entrepreneur 102

Entrepreneur Jordan Software Review Technical Review 102

ConversionXL

SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

And while spelling mistakes haven’t been heavily researched in relation to revenue, optimization , or growth, there is a small amount of research that suggests spelling mistakes impact credibility in negative ways. Then there are some business experts that directly relate spelling mistakes to lost revenue. It’s OK.

Cost 124

Cost Social Media Audience Software Review 124

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Commit to a major customer.

Intellectual Property 219

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 219

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 6, 2021

I’m sure all you accountants will agree that fixing the mistakes listed here does not require rocket science, but I’ve seen them so often that to be forewarned is to be forearmed: Failing to factor in fixed costs when pricing. Always use a break-even analysis to measure what volume and price are required to offset total costs.

Technical Review 379

Technical Review Finance Startup Salary 379

Hearpreneur

JANUARY 2, 2022

In the last few days of 2021, we took some time to ask a few entrepreneurs and businesses what their biggest business accomplishments were. #1- I'm proud of the fact that we've managed to bring down costs and managed to solve many of the problems we initially had. So, I've never conveyed mixed cost signals like that to our staff.

Entrepreneur 123

Entrepreneur Jordan Employee Revenue 123

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

As an advisor to new hardware entrepreneurs, I often hear the myth that a business plan is no longer required to find an investor, if your idea is good enough. What you don’t realize is these famous investors only deal with entrepreneurs who sold their last company for a $100M dollars or more.

Business Plan 423

Business Plan Product Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch 423

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 30, 2020

Every aspiring entrepreneur I know is talking about the fact that there are over 2,000 billionaires in the world today, and how their innovative idea could make them one of the next ones. Becoming an entrepreneur is actually a commitment to a new lifestyle, certainly very exciting, but also facing many unknowns and risks.

Merger 386

Merger Software Review Acquisition Social Media 386

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 17, 2021

Most aspiring entrepreneurs believe that a great idea alone will assure business success. Yet in this age when customers have a thousand alternatives, and are overwhelmed by a multitude of messages, sales efforts can make or break a business. You can either find customers for your solution or you can find solutions for your customers.

Sales 348

Sales Startup Bootstrapping Technical Review 348

VC Cafe

MARCH 1, 2024

That’s why lists like Ycombinator’s Requests for Startups (RFS) help entrepreneurs thinking about starting a company (or picking a problem) and can be a good barometer for founders on what’s interesting to investors right now. Looking for companies creating tools to facilitate construction of or fine tuning models.

Artificial Inteligence 176

Artificial Inteligence Technical Review Software Review Generative AI 176

Hearpreneur

MARCH 4, 2022

Being in love with your business, when you’re an entrepreneur, is even better. Although there are days when tossing in your hat seems like a viable option, remembering how much you love your “job” can quickly snap an entrepreneur out of that mentality. When you're an entrepreneur, you have to make a lot of compromises.

Entrepreneur 124

Entrepreneur Technical Review Restful Colorado 124

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2013

I hear a lot of entrepreneurs contemplating their great “idea” for several years with little discernable progress, and looking for money to start. Don’t expect them to believe your $100M revenue projection, if you are still waiting for the first revenue dollar. Get a real customer and real revenue.

Intellectual Property 281

Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Sweat Equity CTO Hire 281

Duct Tape Marketing

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

How to Navigate the New Era of Customer Expectations written by John Jantsch read more at Duct Tape Marketing Marketing Podcast with Jay Baer In this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast , I interview Jay Baer, a business growth and customer experience author, researcher, and advisor. What does that mean? [02:46]

Customer 85

Customer Indiana Framework Mexico 85

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

So you’re interested in raising capital from a Revenue-Based Investor VC. A new wave of Revenue-Based Investors (“RBI”) are emerging. For background, see Revenue-Based Investing: A New Option for Founders who Care About Control. At least 12 months of customer history, generally 20+ enterprise customers or 200+ SMB customers.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

www.forentrepreneurs.com

FEBRUARY 2, 2010

Blog About Log in Register Startup Killer: the Cost of Customer Acquisition In the many thousands of articles advising entrepreneurs on what they have to focus on to build successful startups, much has been written about three key factors: team, product and market, with particular focus on the importance of product/market fit.

Acquisition 103

Acquisition Cost Customer Entrepreneur 103

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2023

In my experience, consummate entrepreneurs tend come up with more startup ideas than they can ever implement, and some of the ideas may not even make business sense. But how does any entrepreneur know which ideas to implement, and which ones are best left behind? Check for intellectual property barriers in your way.

Technical Review 267

Technical Review Due Diligence Intellectual Property Internet 267

Hearpreneur

DECEMBER 29, 2021

Often entrepreneurs and business owners create their New Year’s Resolutions around their business. It could be more revenue, hiring clients, or launching a new product or service, but every new year is an exciting time because it’s ripe with opportunity. Your customer is the determining factor in whether or not you succeed.

Entrepreneur 136

Entrepreneur Social Media Employee Los Angeles 136

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2021

As a long-time business advisor, and an investor in startups along the way, I’m always on the lookout for an entrepreneur who is responding first to a problem in the marketplace , rather than bringing a new technology to the market, assuming it will find a problem to solve. A recurring expense was turned into a recurring revenue.

Social Media 330

Social Media Entrepreneur Revenue Internet 330

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2014

I see more and more entrepreneurs who seem to have everything going for them – vision, motivation, passion, even a good business plan, product, and money, and yet they can’t close customers. Great businesses begin with a customer problem that has a big and monetizable pain point. Nail the solution. Nail the business model.

Entrepreneur 283

Entrepreneur Startup Angel Investor Technical Review 283

Hearpreneur

DECEMBER 14, 2022

Often entrepreneurs and business owners create their New Year’s Resolutions around their businesses. It could be more revenue, hiring clients, or launching a new product or service, but every new year is an exciting time because it’s ripe with opportunity. Beyond that, we also want to expand our customer base beyond our local market.

Entrepreneur 105

Entrepreneur Retention SEO Employee 105

Hearpreneur

AUGUST 11, 2021

Some entrepreneurs will say the future is definitely bright but to others, some of these changes are meant to work against their expansion and business operations. We asked entrepreneurs their thoughts on the future of entrepreneurship and here’s what they had to say; #1- It's like freelancing. Photo Credit: Richard Burner.

Entrepreneur 126

Entrepreneur Technical Review Social Media Bootstrapping 126