Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

Most entrepreneurs today don’t remember the Dot-Com bubble of 1995 or the Dot-Com crash that followed in 2000. When Netscape went public, it unleashed a frenzy from the public markets for anything related to the internet and signaled to venture investors that there were massive returns to be made investing in anything internet related.

Lean 335

Lean Burn Rate Startup IPO 335

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 11, 2023

It is necessary to cover the early stages of product development, thorough market research, and other processes during the initial step. Seed capital is a component of the initial investments made in young businesses. After that, the money is used to maintain the company’s expansion.

Seed Stage 130

Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 130

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 7, 2009

Finally, I’ll write about how Eric Ries and the Lean Startup concept provided the equivalent model for product development activities inside the building and neatly integrates customer and agile development. Part 4 of the Customer Development Manifesto to follow.

Customer Development 232

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 232

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2015

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Commercial product prototypes.

Product Development 120

Product Development Developer Product Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 12, 2018

The problem is that professional investors (angels and venture capital) want a proven business model before they invest, ready to scale, rather than early projections and product development. Consider licensing your product or intellectual property, and “white labeling.” Apply for contests and business grants.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2023

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Commercial product prototypes.

Angel Investor 256

Angel Investor Early Stage Incubator Government 256

David Teten

JUNE 25, 2012

I have a great idea for a product. I’m looking for an entrepreneur to start a company to provide this product, or a development shop which wants to bid on this project. I envision a software tool which makes your underlying software irrelevant, by standardizing the UI across all different products.

Developer 144

Developer Venture Capital Startup Valuation 144

Women Entrepreneurs Can

NOVEMBER 19, 2022

A Venture Capital Firm is a firm that invests in startups and early-stage companies. However, not all firms are venture capital firms. One of the most common ways of investing in a startup is by leveraging the expertise of a venture capital firm. Early-Stage Investments vs. Mid-Stage Investments.

Venture Capital 52

Venture Capital Early Stage Liquidity Event SEC 52

Version One Ventures

MAY 3, 2023

I just returned from a weeklong trip to India, having spent a few days each in Delhi and Bangalore to meet with local entrepreneurs and investors. Many of the most talented entrepreneurs and engineers left India to study and then work in the US and Canada. Venture Capital The VC scene is dominated by US and US-affiliated funds.

India 86

India LP Silicon Valley Vertical 86

David Teten

JUNE 25, 2012

I have a great idea for a product. I’m looking for an entrepreneur to start a company to provide this product, or a development shop which wants to bid on this project. I envision a software tool which makes your underlying software irrelevant, by standardizing the UI across all different products.

Developer 114

Developer Venture Capital Startup Valuation 114

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2021

Angel investors and venture capitalists are looking for startups with real products and a proven business model, ready to scale. Yet I still get too many business plans that clearly are looking for money to do research and development (R&D) on a new and unproven technology. Commercial product prototypes.

Early Stage 412

Early Stage Angel Investor Incubator Government 412

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 23, 2009

This product development diagram had become part of the DNA of Silicon Valley. And even more importantly, was there any way to reduce risk in early stage ventures? Reply Best books for the lean product managers — Justin Gibbs , on April 28, 2009 at 2:44 pm Said: [.] familiar with Customer Development you should be.

Product Development 159

Product Development Developer Silicon Valley Product 159

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 20, 2019

I’ve been fortunate enough to be on both sides of the table, as an entrepreneur and a VC, and I’ve observed that most investors look for the same things I do when deciding whether to invest in a company. When I started my last company, we were focused on developing technology to lower the cost of detecting and diagnosing Type 2 diabetes.

Technical Review 140

Technical Review Due Diligence Early Stage Differentiation 140

View from Seed

MARCH 24, 2021

At NextView Ventures we have written many pieces about venture capital — how to raise it, build your business, engage with investors, iterate your product, navigate expanding industries, etc. 7 Common Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make in VC Pitches and How to Fix Them “Different partners in a VC firm are different.

Seed Stage 178

Seed Stage Hiring IPO Analytics 178

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

Yet as a business advisor I am convinced that making the jump from a startup to a the next unicorn takes a different mindset, and actions most entrepreneurs are reluctant to face. In my experience, here are some of the key elements of that “second-stage” of entrepreneurship: Move from small investors to major venture capital.

Merger 379

Merger Due Diligence SEC IPO 379

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 3, 2009

This is part of my ongoing Raising Venture Capital (VC) series. Yesterday I had lunch with a really interesting and capable serial entrepreneur who is raising his A round. Many serial entrepreneurs who have been burned would use something less kind than quotes. The topic of &# strategic&# investors came up.

Strategic Investors 279

Strategic Investors Venture Capital Due Diligence Early Stage 279

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2016

Whether you are talking to peers, competitors or investors, you as an active entrepreneur will be judged on your familiarity with today’s startup and funding jargon. In that context, I offer you my latest collection of popular investor-to-entrepreneur terms and concepts. Frothy is good for entrepreneurs. Seed-round investment.

Software Review 120

Software Review Sweat Equity Accredited Investor Angel Investor 120

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 8, 2009

Traction can simply mean showing that you’re making progress with customers, product development, channel partners, initial revenue as a proof point, attracting well-known angel investors, winning industry awards / recognition. Funding is about developing a relationship over time. VC’s are the same.

Technical Review 309

Technical Review Term Sheet Venture Capital Revenue 309

crowdSPRING Blog

SEPTEMBER 19, 2014

The Myth of Venture Capital | Re/code by Jon Oringer – crowdspring.co/1tNFeV7. The Paradoxical Traits of an Entrepreneur | by Jody Porowski – crowdspring.co/1piN6X6. Bad Notes on Venture Capital – crowdspring.co/1u3NJvn. Why Introverts Make Great Leaders – crowdspring.co/1yhmaS5. 1m69Rmd.

Social Media 94

Social Media Small Business Design Media 94

Steve Blank

MARCH 16, 2016

But startups require money upfront for product development and later to scale. Luckily in the last quarter of the 20 th century a new source of money called risk capital emerged. At its core Venture Capital is nothing more than a small portion of the Private Equity financial asset class. ——-.

Liquidity Event 120

Liquidity Event Founder Liquidation Preference Private Equity 120

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 23, 2009

I was consulting for the two venture capital firms who between them put $12 million into my last failed startup. I began to gain an appreciation of how world-class venture capitalists develop pattern recognition for these common types of problems.

Silicon Valley 131

Silicon Valley RSS Venture Capital Customer Development 131

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. RBI normally requires founders to pay back their investors with a fixed percentage of revenue until they have finished providing the investor with a fixed return on capital, which they agree upon in advance.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

Up and Running

JULY 6, 2016

Are we developing what we should? As you develop technology descriptions, priorities, milestones and such in your own business plan, consider first the business plan’s purpose. To explain the difference, let’s take me as an example: I’m a software entrepreneur, and, in recent years, a member of an angel investment group.

Technical Review 72

Technical Review Software Review Business Plan Development Team Review 72

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 3, 2009

This post describes how the traditional product development model distorts startup sales, marketing and business development. The Use of a Product Development Model to Measure Sales Using the product development diagram for startup sales activities is like using a clock to tell the temperature.

Customer Development 228

Customer Development Developer Silicon Valley Customer 228

crowdSPRING Blog

JULY 10, 2014

4 Mistakes New Product Managers Make – crowdspring.co/1rXNZrC. In Venture Capital, Birds of a Feather Lose Money Together (you want contrasting opinions) – crowdspring.co/1o1YA2b. Good insight on startups and product development in this AMA with Jason Fried – crowdspring.co/TmVP1. 1pWZxdc.

Social Media 97

Social Media Small Business Design Silicon Valley 97

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

This post describes a solution – the Customer Development Model. In future posts I’ll describe how Eric Ries and the Lean Startup concept provide the equivalent model for product development activities inside the building and neatly integrates customer and agile development. This post describes such a model.

Customer Development 253

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 253

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 8, 2019

This year, The Startup Magazine is proud to sponsor the entrepreneurship and venture capital conference, SeedCon, run by the Chicago Booth business school. Investors and Entrepreneurs. Each year, SeedCon brings together hundreds of investors, founders, entrepreneurs and students from across Chicago and the country.

Chicago 101

Chicago Venture Capital Cofounder Incubator 101

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 12, 2019

Most startups view venture capital funding as a blessing from above — eager to take it as soon as they can get it. Tempted by large sums of money and the perceived validation that comes along with being funded, founders turn to venture capitalists to accelerate their company’s growth. Focus on Product Development First.

Early Stage 85

Early Stage Venture Capital Bootstrapping Pre-Money Valuation 85

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 10, 2009

In future posts I’ll describe how Eric Ries and the Lean Startup concept provided the equivalent model for product development activities inside the building and neatly integrates customer and agile development. They never understood Market Type. Why does Market Type matter?

Customer Development 220

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 220

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 24, 2009

Pattern Recognition One of the great things about being an entrepreneur is that you are constantly running a pattern recognition algorithm against a continual collection of customer and market data. But at times it’s why entrepreneurs can sink their own companies. More on this in later posts.)

Customer 216

Customer Silicon Valley RSS California 216

Genuine VC

NOVEMBER 5, 2012

But the other archetype is a thirty-something entrepreneur who, taking his experience seeing the playbook of success at larger growing startups or even “established” companies, utilizes that domain and functional expertise as unique insight into founding a company. My own personal story fits in with this narrative.

Boston 206

Boston Internet Entrepreneur .Net 206

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

This post describes how companies using the Customer Development model can increase their credibility, valuation and probability of getting a first round of funding by presenting their results in a “Lesson Learned&# venture pitch. The goal of their startup in this stage becomes “getting funded.”

Customer Development 267

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 267

Up and Running

JULY 2, 2014

We developed a kick-ass investor pitch and we started pitching it to family, friends, angel investors, and even venture capitalists for feedback. Now, if you’re a savvy investor or entrepreneur, I’m sure your jaw just dropped as you read that. Please add to it in the comments if you have other tips for entrepreneurs!

Technical Review 118

Technical Review Angel Investor Due Diligence Dilution 118

crowdSPRING Blog

MAY 11, 2012

Six Myths of Product Development – [link]. Unlimited Vacation Doesn’t Create Slackers–It Ensures Productivity – [link]. What I learned from raising venture capital – [link]. Six Myths of Product Development – [link]. Better Agile Than Smart – [link].

Social Media 92

Social Media Small Business Design Media 92

ReadWriteStart

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Increased venture funding has been helping to develop a robust tech ecosystem with major hubs in Vancouver, Ottawa, Montreal, and Toronto. Here’s how public venture funding can help build Canada’s tech talent. These workers are recruited to work in international development offices.

Canada 127

Canada Government Venture Capital Early Stage 127

YoungUpstarts

MAY 16, 2018

Schramm, author of “ Burn the Business Plan: What Great Entrepreneurs Really Do “ If I asked you to describe the prototypical successful entrepreneur, you may share a story mythologized in our culture of a brilliant young man with an idea so good and so disruptive that he just can’t waste any time finishing college.

Silicon Valley 157

Silicon Valley Forecast Venture Capital Business Plan 157

Steve Blank

MAY 28, 2009

Market Risk vs. Invention Risk - Click to Enlarge For companies building web-based products, product development may be difficult, but with enough time and iteration engineering will eventually converge on a solution and ship a functional product - i t’s engineering, not invention. Am I in a company with “invention risk?

Vertical 162

Vertical Silicon Valley Marketing Customer 162