Tim Keane

MARCH 9, 2011

But, what constitutes success for the parties involved – investors, entrepreneurs, employees, and customers – can vary dramatically. Misaligned interests that lead to poor financing choices are often very problematic for first time entrepreneurs in young companies.   I’ve written a lot about that topic ( [link] ).

Finance 83

Finance Bootstrapping Startup Equity 83

Tim Keane

OCTOBER 8, 2012

Long term thinking -- for entrepreneurs. While it isn't always top of mind for entrepreneurs caught up in the rush of running and growing their businesses, long term thinking, including thinking about relationships, is pretty important. Long term thinking -- for entrepreneurs.  It preserved their reputation.

Wisconsin 68

Wisconsin Entrepreneur Illinois Startup 68

Tim Keane

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

") Every entrepreneur who's ever talked to investors knows there are a couple of different things going on.  The one that's obvious - what the product is, etc. -- is the least important.     "In a networked world, trust is the most important currency. Posted at 11:46 AM | Permalink.

Pennsylvania 68

Pennsylvania Wisconsin Angel Investor Bootstrapping 68

Austin Startup

JUNE 24, 2017

It was established to honor Ewing Marion Kauffman, a billionaire entrepreneur from Kansas City, Missouri — but it’s impact is felt all over the country and all of the world. The Kauffman Eship Summit This was also the first time I attended a Kauffman Foundation event and it was a high production value, thoughtful and well executed event.

Kansas City 48

Kansas City Kansas Texas North Carolina 48

Tim Keane

MARCH 4, 2011

.  Some of those characteristics include, of course, product issues.  I looked at a medical product recently and asked the obvious questions about competition, distribution strategy, pricing, and so forth.  I sort of knew a couple of the probable answers but assumed the entrepreneur knew more.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Bootstrapping Angel Investor Startup 60

Tim Keane

FEBRUARY 3, 2010

  Our product/service will save (audience) a lot of money.    In fact, we estimate $X per year based on current spending for this product/service.    Using our experience in (market) as an analog, we estimate that customers will stay with our product for 3.5   It's low risk for them.

Marketing 116

Marketing Wisconsin Startup Angel Investor 116

Tim Keane

JUNE 8, 2009

There's a comment here from an earlier note that asks " at what point does an innovative idea or product become worthy of an investment?" I asked an entrepreneur this question the other day.    Other times, early success means keeping the equity "in the family" of entrepreneur and colleagues.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Bootstrapping Angel Investor Startup 60

Tim Keane

JUNE 21, 2011

So for the test phase we will hand assemble first production products at $1,500 each, effectively eliminating contribution margin. Sales growth month to month is based on having an inside sales person (initially the CEO/entrepreneur) making ten calls per day.  Why?  (A full time person we think can make 50).

Forecast 68

Forecast Business Plan Sales Wisconsin 68

Tim Keane

OCTOBER 3, 2012

Long term thinking -- for entrepreneurs » October 03, 2012. Andy's comment, that  " you want companies that are highly likely to succeed if they can really deliver what they say they will," is a comment about scientific and technical risk as a predominant factor, and perhaps production risk secondarily.

Technology 74

Technology Marketing Intellectual Property Montana 74

Tim Keane

JULY 6, 2007

Heres a great comment from Ryan that I just posted: "My fellow angel network managers say that they usually wont talk to inventors because the company anticipated is usually not ready for angel investment." The founding entrepreneur must be clear about their capabilities and their desired future role in the company.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Angel Investor Bootstrapping Startup 60

Tim Keane

MARCH 24, 2008

You (the entrepreneur and founder of this "company") hire a call center to take calls from customers who want an inexpensive medical diagnosis. Now, Im a believer in having partners to round out offerings and make sure that all of the customers critical needs are met in the product. . | Are You Ready to be Quantitative?

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Angel Investor Bootstrapping Startup 60

Tim Keane

OCTOBER 2, 2007

Investors love entrepreneurs who understand their business model, and can describe it accurately. And when they meet entrepreneurs that cant, it is often a sign that the management team needs strengthening - at a minimum. How much will the product sell for? (Is How much will the product cost to produce? Google Ads.

Business Model 60

Business Model Wisconsin Angel Investor Bootstrapping 60

Tim Keane

JUNE 13, 2006

A budget discussion with an entrepreneur. Growth involves, in many businesses, more customer service, product development, support, marketing and so forth – in addition to more R&D. Listed below are links to weblogs that reference A budget discussion with an entrepreneur : Comments. A budget discussion with an entrepreneur.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Entrepreneur Startup Angel Investor 60

Tim Keane

JULY 20, 2007

I was in Italy a couple of weeks ago at the request of the US State Department to discuss angel investing with IBAN, the Italian Business Angels Network. We tell entrepreneurs that who they take money from is much more important than the relative price they pay for it. » July 20, 2007. Thoughts for New Angels.

Italy 60

Italy Angel Investor Wisconsin Harvest 60

Tim Keane

APRIL 14, 2008

If that leads us to needing additional sales people, can we forecast the benchmark for productivity based on past results? If that leads us to needing additional sales people, can we forecast the benchmark for productivity based on past results? Wisconsin Angel Network Find Information about all of the networks in Wisconsin here!

Ireland 60

Ireland Wisconsin Forecast Sales Cycle 60

Tim Keane

MAY 2, 2006

Here’s a post from Jason Caplain , a VC in Ralieigh, NC with another take that adds more meaning to the discussion about the entrepreneur being the chief sales guy. Here’s a post from Jason Caplain , a VC in Ralieigh, NC with another take that adds more meaning to the discussion about the entrepreneur being the chief sales guy.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Angel Investor Bootstrapping Early Stage 60

Tim Keane

MAY 8, 2006

"My question is how you get over the capital hurdle when you have a product that straddles the fence between the need for Angel Investors and VC money and your friends and family cannot get you over the hump?" « How Do You Teach Entrepreneurship? Are You Learning Every Day? » May 08, 2006.

Angel Investor 60

Angel Investor Wisconsin Bootstrapping Startup 60

Tim Keane

SEPTEMBER 13, 2006

Rare is the entrepreneur who at the end, whether good or bad, hasnt said "I wish Id sold more. Jack Welch, certainly not an entrepreneur, was a salesman. We had a very large customer who once said at a conference when asked "whether our product was worth its price" that he never paid us "a net nickel.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Angel Investor Bootstrapping Distribution 60

Tim Keane

APRIL 12, 2006

Ten questions the entrepreneur should ask the (prospective) investor. If they’re making it as part of a group that the entrepreneur likes, fine. If they are “solo,” though, the entrepreneur will want to know a lot about their attitudes and expectations, especially when things go wrong. What is being replaced by this new product?)

Entrepreneur 60

Entrepreneur Valuation Sweat Equity Common Stock 60

Tim Keane

JULY 16, 2008

The Whitehorse Daily Star - good advice for entrepreneurs » July 16, 2008. How much you will spend to make your product and whether this is a big investment or a vended activity; b. Every entrepreneur is faced with the choice of making do with less or swinging for the fences. « Raising More Than You Need | Main. |

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Startup Angel Investor Business Model 60

Tim Keane

JUNE 22, 2006

The idea, therefore, is that TESTING for results is one of the fastest ways an entrepreneur can increase the valuation of her business. It seems that entrepreneurs often test by committing relatively large amounts to rollouts of products or services based on planning and on expectations based on experience – but not often on testing.

Valuation 60

Valuation Wisconsin Angel Investor Startup 60

Tim Keane

SEPTEMBER 18, 2006

After the idea/product/service is built, and the market mapped, the company begins to grow. Its amazing how fast this happens, especially in companies with short product development cycles in non-medical industries. Can they take our product to a new group of customers? Can they take our product to a new group of customers?

Harvest 60

Harvest LBO Investment Bankers Wisconsin 60

Steve Blank

DECEMBER 28, 2020

How would you show them minimal viable products if not in person? The summit opened with a panel of Investors sharing their insights of what the funding environment for entrepreneurs, non-profits and small businesses will look like as the economy recovers. They’re not restricted just to entrepreneurs. This Summit.

Lean 417

Lean Community San Jose Africa 417

Tim Keane

MAY 18, 2006

Compensation for Entrepreneurs » May 18, 2006. These are the items I hope will be covered because they present me with a comfort level that will lead to a partner-based relationship with you, the entrepreneur. A lot of “why this is a great product” in place of this kind of thinking makes me nervous. Know your audience.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Angel Investor Startup Bootstrapping 60

Tim Keane

OCTOBER 30, 2007

I think we thought that the good product guys could get away with it because the detail of good customer service was unimportant with strong IP. I think we thought that the good product guys could get away with it because the detail of good customer service was unimportant with strong IP. Of course, they were wrong. Google Ads.

Wisconsin 68

Wisconsin Architecture Startup IP 68

Tim Keane

APRIL 24, 2006

« Questions for Entrepreneurs | Main. | The product development cycle was excellent. However, the distribution channel we had planned to use lacked the sophistication ultimately required by the product design, and the manufacturers adoption cycle was insufficient. Technology doesn’t win; products win.

Wisconsin 60

Wisconsin Angel Investor Bootstrapping Venture Capital 60

online.wsj.com

JULY 11, 2012

Andreessen Horowitz is telling entrepreneurs it prefers situations where the founders have controlling stakes, reckoning that theyll be better able to resist outside distraction and focus on making great products. and Groupon Inc., —has naturally won support from entrepreneurs. Enlarge Image Close. Enlarge Image Close.

Silicon Valley 42

Silicon Valley Founder Software Review Technical Review 42

Tim Keane

MAY 27, 2010

  I’ve been fortunate enough to be teaching aspiring entrepreneurs at Marquette University ever since.   Today, we have an angel investor network, the Golden Angels, as well as an entrepreneurship center to spread the entrepreneurial word across campus. Most of these, to an entrepreneur, seems ordinary. Why the US?

Bootstrapping 60

Bootstrapping Startup America Employee 60

Mike Michalowicz

OCTOBER 19, 2015

which provides consulting and training services in Accounting and productivity based software. and now schoolofbookkeeping.com is one of the leaders in the small business accounting world in online training resources offering courses on a wide range of software products. Fundera – Single source online funding for entrepreneurs.

Video 60

Video SEC Bankruptcy Wisconsin 60

Mike Michalowicz

MARCH 8, 2013

Wisconsin is a dairy state with fabulous cheeses to choose from. Organic soy candles hold and “throw” their fragrances extremely well compared to the petroleum by-product kind. The only thing that kinda sucks about this place is that they don’t carry The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur or The Pumpkin Plan.

Las Vegas 138

Las Vegas Naming .Net Customer 138

Mike Michalowicz

NOVEMBER 30, 2016

Wisconsin is a dairy state with fabulous cheeses to choose from. The only thing that kinda sucks about this place is that they don’t carry The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur or The Pumpkin Plan. Sign your client up as a club member in Members Hotel Network. It is a win all around!!! What food is your state famous for?

Las Vegas 60

Las Vegas Naming .Net Customer 60

Mike Michalowicz

NOVEMBER 30, 2016

Wisconsin is a dairy state with fabulous cheeses to choose from. The only thing that kinda sucks about this place is that they don’t carry The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur or The Pumpkin Plan. Sign your client up as a club member in Members Hotel Network. It is a win all around!!! What food is your state famous for?

Las Vegas 60

Las Vegas Naming .Net Customer 60