Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 11, 2022

We had nascent revenues, ridiculous cost structures and unrealistic valuations. In those years I learned to properly build product, price products, sell products and serve customers. Almost no financings, many VCs and tech startups cratered for the second time in less than a decade following the dot com bursting.

Valuation 466

Valuation San Francisco Ratchet Liquidation Preference 466

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 11, 2023

This could be a proportion of the company’s equity or investment; in other instances, it could be a portion of its later-stage profits. Seed venture capital firms can make more significant follow-on investments to keep or increase their equity stake in the company. How does the funding for the seed stage work?

Seed Stage 130

Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 130

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 18, 2023

Every startup founder loves to prompt for questions from investors and potential key team members about their vision, and the huge opportunity that can be had with their disruptive technology. Most founders like to talk about their many months or years of sweat-equity , but cash invested is a stronger commitment.

Sweat Equity 207

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 207

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 16, 2022

They couldn’t possibly understand the new social media culture, new technologies, or have the determination to beat their younger counterparts in the market. In fact, they are well-qualified overall, having worked with high technology and computers for at least 20 years, are highly educated, and highly motivated.

Advisory Board 368

Advisory Board Dividend Angel Investor Cofounder 368

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. This structure offers some of the benefits of traditional equity VC, without some of the negatives of equity VC. Rational burn profile, up to 50% of revenue at close, scaling down.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

The Startup Magazine

FEBRUARY 21, 2024

Billion in investments across a range of industries, including technology, sustainability, traditional and alternative energy, mining, construction services, transportation, and healthcare. Are there new revenue streams you can tap into? The firm has made more than $4.5 It is also the time to take a hard look at your business model.

Technical Review 137

Technical Review Due Diligence Bankruptcy Intellectual Property 137

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. Get a loan or line-of-credit.

Intellectual Property 219

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 219

ReadWriteStart

AUGUST 28, 2012

But when it comes to core technical skills, more and more entrepreneurs are opting to partner with technical co-founders rather than hiring someone for an in-house position. How Innovative Is Your Technology? If you want to start a tech company, you must understand the space. You Need To Know Tech Basics.

Technical Review 131

Technical Review Cofounder Founder Software Review 131

David Teten

AUGUST 20, 2019

A new wave of Revenue-Based Investors are emerging who are using creative investing structures with some of the upside of traditional VC, but some of the downside protection of debt. I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. ” .

Revenue 60

Revenue Cofounder Founder Venture Capital 60

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 8, 2024

However, they often come with variable interest rates and may require periodic creditworthiness reviews. It enables businesses to stay competitive by acquiring the latest technology and machinery without draining their cash reserves. They offer flexibility for short-term expenses or help in unexpected opportunities.

Finance 127

Finance Technical Review Metrics .Net 127

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JANUARY 4, 2018

The Silicon Valley-oriented technology press outlets don’t cover us because we’re not in San Francisco, even though we’re more successful than most of the startups they cover. Late last year we passed $100M in annual recurring revenue. This week we closed $250M in financing from Silver Lake , the premier technology private equity firm.

Engineer 152

Engineer Revenue San Francisco Security 152

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. Get a loan or line-of-credit.

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Get a loan or line-of-credit.

Product Development 177

Product Development Cost Developer Product 177

David Teten

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017

Private equity and venture capital investors are copying our sisters in the hedge fund and mutual fund world: we’re trying to automate more of our job. VCs tout themselves as frontier technology investors, but most are using the same infrastructure tools they have used for the past 20+ years: Excel and recent college grads searching Google.

Private Equity 60

Private Equity Venture Capital Equity Technical Review 60

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2020

They couldn’t possibly understand the new social media culture, new technologies, or have the determination to beat their younger counterparts in the market. In fact, they are well-qualified overall, having worked with high technology and computers for at least 20 years, are highly educated, and highly motivated.

Advisory Board 312

Advisory Board Startup Dividend Angel Investor 312

Steve Blank

MAY 19, 2015

But over time code/hardware written/built to validate hypotheses and find early customers can become unwieldy, difficult to maintain and incapable of scaling. These shortcuts add up and become what is called technical debt. You fix technical debt by refactoring , going into the existing code and “cleaning it up” by restructuring it.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Salary Early Stage Software Review 120

NZ Entrepreneur

SEPTEMBER 29, 2021

If we want to maintain and support sustainable economic growth while meeting the broader needs of society, we will need an economy underpinned by innovation and new technologies. Addressing real world problems, they thrive in uncertainty, generating new jobs and new revenue streams in new markets. This equity will vest over 2-3 years.

Technical Review 88

Technical Review Software Review New Zealand Due Diligence 88

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Get a loan or line-of-credit.

Intellectual Property 309

Intellectual Property Technical Review Venture Capital Startup 309

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Join a startup incubator.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 27, 2016

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. Even social entrepreneurs need milestones, quantifiable results, and revenue to sustain their value.

Technical Review 134

Technical Review Intellectual Property Due Diligence Angel Investor 134

ReadWriteStart

AUGUST 28, 2012

But when it comes to core technical skills, more and more entrepreneurs are opting to partner with technical co-founders rather than hiring someone for an in-house position. How Innovative Is Your Technology? If you want to start a tech company, you must understand the space. Laura Roeder , LKR 2.

Technical Review 79

Technical Review Cofounder Founder Software Review 79

Board Effect

MARCH 22, 2022

In recent years, economic disruptions and technological advancements were already challenging community bank boards when COVID-19 emerged. The pandemic revealed just how innovative and agile community banks could be as they moved swiftly to adapt their operating strategies and continue serving the new needs of their customers.

Community 98

Community Technical Review Agile Non-Compete 98

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

A new wave of Revenue-Based Investors are emerging who are using creative investing structures with some of the upside of traditional VC, but some of the downside protection of debt. I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. So what is Revenue Based Investing?

Revenue 60

Revenue Term Sheet Founder Technical Review 60

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

At Rev1, we’re knee deep in helping startups build and scale in the Midwest, including direct support for attracting executive and tech talent. stars*, Tech Elevator, Bunker Labs and others in your community which provide access to diverse developers, business leaders, mentors, and board members. Be honest about your weaknesses.

Hiring 100

Hiring Technical Review Silicon Valley Due Diligence 100

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2015

Every startup founder loves to prompt for questions from investors and potential key team members about their vision, and the huge opportunity that can be had with their disruptive technology. Most founders like to talk about their many months or years of sweat-equity , but cash invested is a stronger commitment. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2015

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. Join a startup incubator.

Entrepreneur 120

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 120

YoungUpstarts

FEBRUARY 10, 2016

Over the last years, there has been an explosion of online trading platforms that offer the option to trade online with the best technology and the lowest-priced account that maximizes the premium features your customers can actually use. If your customers are online, you should be too. ROI of Customer Experience.

Customer 100

Customer Technical Review Mobile Web 100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2015

I usually envision a 50-50 ownership split for their efforts, but every engineer believes the technology side deserves the majority share. If you consider yourself a technologist, you probably believe and may be propagating one of the following myths: The first priority for funding should be to develop the technology.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Intellectual Property Cofounder Bootstrapping 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2012

Just don’t quit your day job before your new company is producing revenue. Use this approach before you have a real valuation, a real product, or any real customers. This source often gets overlooked, but it should be a major focus these days due to government initiatives on alternative energy and technology.

Technical Review 257

Technical Review Bootstrapping Venture Capital Incubator 257

ConversionXL

JANUARY 18, 2022

In 2018, after two short years and $3 million raised in startup funds, recruitment AI company Ansaro shut down due to bad market fit. Muun found a market need but failed to compete with bigger names that provided customers with authoritative content and resources. Muun’s more well-known competitors had more features and better pricing.

Marketing 110

Marketing Product Audience Equity 110

Hunter Walker

JANUARY 2, 2017

When Satya and I started Homebrew in 2013 one of our bets for the coming decades was that non-traditional acquirers would become more aggressive in their pursuit of technology startups. We had our first taste of this trend playing out early in 2016 when GM acquired self-driving tech startup Cruise for north of $1b.

Technical Review 115

Technical Review Cap Table Acquisition Startup 115

Duct Tape Marketing

MAY 8, 2024

Adapting to evolving consumer behaviors and leveraging tools like AI are crucial for staying ahead in the dynamic marketing landscape, where brand equity and delivering value play pivotal roles in driving business success. Click on over and give us a review on iTunes, please! It's time to transform your approach. So where do we go?

Lean 70

Lean Technical Review ChatGPT Audience 70

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 1, 2014

They couldn’t possibly understand the new social media culture, new technologies, or have the determination to beat their younger counterparts in the market. In fact, they are well-qualified overall, having worked with high technology and computers for at least 20 years, are highly educated, and highly motivated.

Entrepreneur 266

Entrepreneur Advisory Board Dividend Angel Investor 266

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 21, 2016

Lead with your intent to offer the solution free to customers. Of course, customers love free, but investors hate it. Even non-profits need money to scale, but their pitch should be to philanthropists, not equity investors. Terms “paradigm shift” or “disruptive technology” used more than once. Skip the hype.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Valuation Technical Review Equity 120

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2016

Every startup founder loves to prompt for questions from investors and potential key team members about their vision, and the huge opportunity that can be had with their disruptive technology. Most founders like to talk about their many months or years of sweat-equity , but cash invested is a stronger commitment.

Sweat Equity 120

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2011

Just don’t quit your day job before your new company is producing revenue. Use this approach before you have a real valuation, a real product, or any real customers. This source often gets overlooked, but it should be a major focus these days due to government initiatives on alternative energy and technology.

Technical Review 233

Technical Review Bootstrapping Startup Venture Capital 233

Steve Blank

MARCH 12, 2014

We realized that past K-12 Entrepreneurial classes taught students “the lemonade stand” version of how to start a company: 1) come up with an idea, 2) execute the idea, 3) do the accounting (revenue, costs, etc.). Customer Discovery in the Real World. Hawken students practicing Customer Discovery in a mall.

Lean 334

Lean Customer Development Startup Silicon Valley 334