Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 23, 2009

We’ve managed startups like this forever; there is no other way to manage them.” To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 125

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Steve Blank

AUGUST 13, 2009

This could be useful information for those that want to get involved with a early stage start-up and want to evaluate it but not necessarily for funding. It took me 8 startups and 21 years to get it right, (and one can argue success was due to the Internet bubble rather then any brilliance.) To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print!

Silicon Valley 179

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Steve Blank

JUNE 3, 2009

Simulation to Reduce Invention Risk If you’re in a vertical where “invention risk” is dominant, then you want to do everything you can to manage and reduce those risks. When I wrote the Four Steps to the Epiphany , the Customer Development text, I hadn’t yet thought about what vertical markets it might be appropriate for.)

Vertical 128

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Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 16, 2009

One can even make the case that getting Market Type right is the most valuable thing a marketer can do to add value and affect success in an early stage venture. This a hard concept and even harder to implement. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Customer Development 219

Customer Development Web Developer Customer 219

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 5, 2009

To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

North Carolina 125

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Steve Blank

JUNE 25, 2009

To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Technology 138

Technology Silicon Valley Fractional VPE Part-Time VPE 138

Steve Blank

MAY 22, 2009

Go to trade shows like it matters. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 128

Silicon Valley RSS California Customer Development 128

Steve Blank

JUNE 5, 2009

One of the key tenets of entrepreneurship is that you start your company with insufficient resources and knowledge. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 212

Silicon Valley RSS Vertical California 212

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 23, 2009

And even more importantly, was there any way to reduce risk in early stage ventures? This product development diagram had become part of the DNA of Silicon Valley. So much so that after I started teaching I’d ask, “Can anybody recognize this model of startups? Is there any way to predict success or failure? Now In Print!

Product Development 143

Product Development Developer Silicon Valley Product 143

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 23, 2009

Eighty some pages later I realized that a) I had some great war stories as a good marketeer and failed CEO, b) I’d have to pay my wife and kids to read them, c) the three of them were probably the entire total available market, and d) when I looked at what I had done and what other entrepreneurs had done at their startups, that there was a pattern.

Redemption 126

Redemption Silicon Valley RSS California 126

Steve Blank

APRIL 29, 2009

Every potential startup founder should think about their level of comfort operating in chaos and uncertainty. It may not be for you. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 170

Silicon Valley Iraq RSS Vietnam 170

Steve Blank

AUGUST 20, 2009

That’s why early stage companies aren’t run by accountants with spreadsheets. An Existing Market All four were trying to resegment an “Existing Market.” weeks ago, positioning it as a tool designed to help small businesses effectively manage their social media efforts. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print!

Silicon Valley 181

Silicon Valley Startup RSS Customer Development 181

Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 23, 2009

Yet the processes that early-stage companies were using were identical to that of large corporations. So what is it that makes some startups successful and leaves others selling off their furniture? Simply this: startups are not small versions of large companies. It is the path that is hidden in plain sight. Now In Print!

Silicon Valley 127

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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. What are Early Stage VC’s Really Asking? To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Customer Development 262

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 262

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

The Customer Development model delineates all the customer-related activities in the early stage of a company into their own processes and groups them into four easy-to-understand steps: Customer Discovery , Customer Validation , Customer Creation , and Company Building. Its strength is its rigor and flexibility. Now In Print!

Customer Development 242

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 242

Steve Blank

JULY 9, 2009

I was now a CEO of Rocket Science, and having a great time building the company (more about that in future posts.) Don’t confuse your passion for your tools with why your customers will buy your product. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 139

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Steve Blank

APRIL 23, 2009

Filed under: Customer Development , SuperMac | Tagged: Steve Blank , Entrepreneurs , Early Stage Startup « Killing Innovation with Corner Cases and Consensus The Secret History of Silicon Valley Part VI: Every World War II Movie was Wrong » 7 Responses David , on April 23, 2009 at 8:58 am Said: Excellent!

Silicon Valley 120

Silicon Valley RSS California Customer Development 120

Steve Blank

MAY 21, 2009

Did this help them to understand your company/product Part 2 of the memo, to be posted tomorrow: using a trade show to generate leads. Plus tips on overall trade show strategy. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 178

Silicon Valley RSS California Customer Development 178

cdixon.org

SEPTEMBER 17, 2011

But it’s probably wise to be more secretive in some vertical markets: [link]. Great points, though your bio does read “Personal investor in early-stage technology companies, including … a handful of other startups that are still in stealth mode!” cdixon.org - chris dixons blog. Follow @cdixon. Eric Paley.

Stealth 68

Stealth Startup NDA Cofounder 68

Steve Blank

AUGUST 27, 2009

Filed under: Customer Development | Tagged: Customer Development , Early Stage Startup , Entrepreneurs , Tips for Startups « The End of Innocence The Customer Development Manifesto: Reasons for the Revolution (part 1) » 21 Responses Kulveer Taggar , on August 27, 2009 at 11:18 am Said: Great post. Now In Print!

Silicon Valley 260

Silicon Valley Product Startup Product Development 260

Steve Blank

MAY 26, 2009

Verticals Are Different I began to realize that entrepreneurs (and their professors) act like every vertical market and industry has the same set of rules. So the first heuristic is: do not assume the startup rules are the same for all vertical markets. Just for discussion, the markets I chose were: Web 2.0,

Vertical 149

Vertical Silicon Valley Intellectual Property RSS 149

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 2, 2009

I see a lot of early-stage entrepreneurs waste too much time chasing money rather than figuring this out first. I think your definition of hitting a “repeatable and scalable sales model&# also answers the question for a lot of people about “when&# to take VC money. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print!

Lean 244

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Steve Blank

JUNE 22, 2009

To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 164

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Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 12, 2009

Reply Dan Hodgins , on November 13, 2009 at 1:12 am Said: Hi Steve, Just listened to your “Retooling Early Stage Development&# for about the 10th time tonight as I was cleaning my room. This is my new favorite post on your blog. 9 companies in 6 years… did any of those other ones catch on? To Order Outside of the U.S.

Venture Capital 209

Venture Capital Silicon Valley RSS Hockey Stick 209

Steve Blank

JULY 2, 2009

Entrepreneur-in-Residence After SuperMac I had been approached by one of our venture investors to be an entrepreneur in residence (EIR), a Silicon Valley phrase which says one thing but means another. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 120

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Steve Blank

MAY 7, 2009

Filed under: Marketing , Technology , Venture Capital | Tagged: Steve Blank , Venture Capital , Entrepreneurs , Early Stage Startup , Tips for Startups « Customer Analytics – From Those Who Should Know SuperMac War Story 10: The Video Spigot » 14 Responses Michael F. I hate business plan competitions.

Business Plan 140

Business Plan Silicon Valley RSS Venture Capital 140

Steve Blank

JULY 20, 2009

To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 175

Silicon Valley Chad RSS San Francisco 175

Steve Blank

MAY 18, 2009

Filed under: Customer Development , Family/Career , Technology | Tagged: Steve Blank , Entrepreneurs , Startups , Early Stage Startup , Tips for Startups « The Curse of a New Building Going to Trade Shows Like it Matters – Part 1 » 33 Responses William , on May 18, 2009 at 5:44 am Said: Heh.

Founder 297

Founder Silicon Valley RSS China 297

Steve Blank

JULY 16, 2009

Filed under: Customer Development , Rocket Science Games | Tagged: Steve Blank , Entrepreneurs , Early Stage Startup « Rocket Science 4: The Press is Our Best Product Burnout » 7 Responses Steve , on July 16, 2009 at 9:10 am Said: Steve, This is an excellent post. Make sure they are. Now In Print!

Silicon Valley 207

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Steve Blank

JULY 13, 2009

To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 122

Silicon Valley Product RSS California 122

Steve Blank

APRIL 7, 2009

You don’t get grades for having resiliency, curiosity, agility, resourcefulness, pattern recognition and tenacity. You just get successful. To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 327

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mashable.com

OCTOBER 11, 2011

Not to mention, early-stage startups usually only employ a few people focused on product and development. Then research which journalists at that publication cover the vertical in which your startup or its news would fall. RSS Feed 550,078+ Subscribers. Good tips for any #PR pro, not just startups. Flag this comment.

PR 103

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Steve Blank

OCTOBER 22, 2009

Getting Out of the Building Wasn’t Entertainment – Discovery and Validation Now that I was the master of the “facts” about customer needs in these specialized vertical markets , and with my team of vertical marketers , I thought I had achieved absolution and redemption. But there was one fatal flaw. Now In Print!

Silicon Valley 172

Silicon Valley RSS Vertical California 172

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

OCTOBER 24, 2011

You can listen by subscribing to my podcast on iTunes , or it’s enclosed in this blog’s RSS feed , or you can just download the mp3 of the first hour. Michael: Well, I’m very in the early stage, and my question reflects that. Why listen? Especially if you don’t normally listen to podcasts? Jason: Nice.

Cofounder 208

Cofounder Technical Review Software Review Differentiation 208

Steve Blank

MAY 4, 2009

In an early stage startup, instead of sales being up front, the point departments are likely to be product development and customer development. At some point in my career as I began to formulate thoughts about mission and intent , I started to think about the broader role of marketing in a growing technology company. Now In Print!

Silicon Valley 126

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Steve Blank

OCTOBER 8, 2009

To Order Outside of the U.S. Now In Print! Steve Blanks 30 years of Silicon Valley startup advice.

Silicon Valley 271

Silicon Valley RSS Customer Development California 271

www.businessinsider.com

SEPTEMBER 6, 2012

First, the valuation of early-stage startups remains frothy and fraught with uncertainty. While all Google Ventures partners make some seed investments, the firm recently hired Digg founder Kevin Rose as a partner ; Rose focuses on early-stage and seed investments, drawing on his extensive experience as an angel investor.

Silicon Valley 54

Silicon Valley Startup Valuation Venture Capital 54