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. 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. How does the funding for the seed stage work?

Seed Stage 131

Seed Stage Technical Review Early Stage Due Diligence 131

Feld Thoughts

OCTOBER 20, 2020

The agenda ( full agenda here ) includes the following discussions: DEIS in Corporate Governance & Board DEIS in Human Resources & Talent Acquisition DEIS in Procurement DEIS in Edge Technology Product Development & Corporate Innovation DEIS in Go To Market DEIS in Venture Capital & Investment DEIS in Impact.

Equity 123

Equity Cofounder Venture Capital .Net 123

Hippoland

AUGUST 17, 2016

A reader named Turner Dean recently asked me whether it’s better to raise seed money on convertible notes or straight-up equity. In contrast, if you do an equity round, you as the founder will often have to pay $20k-$50k in legal bills. Flexibility With an equity round, there’s a specific amount of money you are raising.

Equity 48

Equity Convertible Security Silicon Valley Technical Review 48

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Solicit funds from friends and family. Use crowd funding to build reserves.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 10, 2020

sales to product development), the problems will continue to exist. Zain Jaffer is a serial entrepreneur and the Founder and CEO of Zain Ventures , an investment firm that invests globally in start-ups, real estate, stocks, fixed income, hedge funds, and private equity.

Customer 347

Customer Development Team Review Advisory Board Private Equity 347

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 13, 2015

These days, almost every new product is not deemed scalable until it has been certified as meeting a multitude of quality and agency standards, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and Underwriters Lab (UL). Expanding the product line. Specialized VCs start to jump in at this stage.

Product Development 120

Product Development Developer Product Angel Investor 120

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 30, 2019

New product development is an essential part of the entrepreneurial landscape. For companies of all sizes, from big corporations to small businesses, new product development is crucial. New products help companies continue to grow, thrive and generate revenue. Why would a company want to introduce a new product?

Product Development 113

Product Development Developer Product Demand 113

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 5, 2014

Deferred payments start with stretching the payables period but, more importantly, include giving employee equity in lieu of a higher salaries and negotiating vendor deferred payments out of future revenues. That should equate to an adequate valuation for a $2 million follow-on Series-A round, without giving away all the equity.

Burn Rate 262

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Entrepreneur Salary 262

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2023

These days, almost every new product is not deemed scalable until it has been certified as meeting a multitude of quality and agency standards, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and Underwriters Lab (UL). Expanding the product line. Specialized VCs start to jump in at this stage.

Angel Investor 256

Angel Investor Early Stage Incubator Government 256

ConversionXL

JANUARY 18, 2022

Brand marketing is concerned with objectives such as: Brand tracking , identity, and recognition; Improving brand awareness ; Building brand equity ; Understanding and influencing consumer perceptions about the brand. Post-launch, product marketers focus on improving sales enablement and work to drive demand and adoption of the product.

Marketing 110

Marketing Product Audience Equity 110

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

Deferred payments start with stretching the payables period but, more importantly, include giving employee equity in lieu of a higher salaries and negotiating vendor deferred payments out of future revenues. That should equate to an adequate valuation for a $2 million follow-on Series-A round, without giving away all the equity.

Burn Rate 120

Burn Rate Hockey Stick Startup Salary 120

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

This structure offers some of the benefits of traditional equity VC, without some of the negatives of equity VC. I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. We have a special program if you are pre-seed and need product development.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2016

This term refers to an initial venture-capital investment, often wrongly sought to seed early product development. In fact, most often, it is limited to seeding a startup business rollout or scale-up after development is completed from friends and family. Sweat equity. Equity crowdfunding. Seed-round investment.

Software Review 120

Software Review Sweat Equity Accredited Investor Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2021

These days, almost every new product is not deemed scalable until it has been certified as meeting a multitude of quality and agency standards, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and Underwriters Lab (UL). Expanding the product line. Specialized VCs start to jump in at this stage.

Early Stage 412

Early Stage Angel Investor Incubator Government 412

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 6, 2013

But not anal if one founder who shares equity graciously with early employees who are treated as “co-founders” My idea startup team is heaving on tech personnel but also has strong product management. Without strong PMs you build crappy products that nobody needs or that real people can’t use.

Cofounder 388

Cofounder Early Stage Startup Silicon Valley 388

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2013

A grant is not an equity investment, so the entrepreneur doesn’t have to give up a stake in the company either. Typically they can be used to fund product development and commercialization that would otherwise require outside investors.

Government 230

Government Equity Cost SBIR 230

Feld Thoughts

NOVEMBER 18, 2013

Here’s the punchline: if you run your company as if you have closed a VC equity financing round even though you actually closed a convertible debt round, you’ll be in much better shape when it comes time to raise your Series A financing. So why would you treat your debt investors (somewhat) like equity investors?

Burn Rate 152

Burn Rate Equity Software Review Early Stage 152

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

Of course, that means a mindset willing to give up much more equity, and taking on a whole new level of risk. Switch your focus from product development to sales. Then there is the pressure to go public ( IPO ), and open your investment to thousands, maybe millions, of small investors.

Merger 379

Merger Due Diligence SEC IPO 379

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 24, 2012

Nearly four in five CEOs complained that CMOs can’t explain how brand equity can be linked to recognized financial measures such as firm equity. The result was an eightfold improvement in revenues from innovations developed with the help of such customers vs. innovations developed by 3M’s ordinary, internally developed process.

Marketing 234

Marketing Software Review Technical Review Social Network 234

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 30, 2022

They need a large infusion from venture capitalists, private equity, bank loans, or mezzanine financing. In addition to fresh products, you need people smarter than you for real help, with the right combination of skills, experience, and passion to foster and manage new growth. Switch your attention from product development to sales.

Mezzanine 368

Mezzanine Private Equity Bandwidth Metrics 368

View from Seed

MARCH 24, 2021

” Below are our favorite pieces from the past few years, divided in to a few key categories: fundraising, company building, product development, industry trends, and the life of a VC. So, we decided to aggregate NextView’s “greatest hits.” ” (Rob Go). ” (Dave Beisel).

Seed Stage 177

Seed Stage Hiring IPO Analytics 177

David Teten

OCTOBER 1, 2015

On the other side of the equation, there are a growing number of design, development, and digital media shops who are hungry to expand, or swap focus, to building a company that’s more than just a service shop. Can a shop work for just equity? A blend of cash and equity? So, can an entrepreneur pair up with a dev shop?

Software Developers 60

Software Developers Software Development Software Developer 60

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2015

In fact, an entrepreneur friend of mine, who made millions on her marketing expertise, asserted recently that most inventors fail in business because they refuse to believe that any business expertise or experience is worth more than 5 percent in partner equity. Most founders bootstrap product development.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Intellectual Property Cofounder Bootstrapping 120

Up and Running

MAY 15, 2014

At the end of the month, we’d evaluate the partnership and discuss equity. At our one-month meeting, my equity offer reflected this feeling, which in turn, led my potential partner to pursue other opportunities. We had complementary skill sets, aligned on the company vision, and were equally committed to the company’s success.

Partner 113

Partner Cofounder Equity Metrics 113

Steve Blank

MARCH 16, 2016

But startups require money upfront for product development and later to scale. Risk capital takes equity (stock ownership) in your company instead of debt (loans) in exchange for cash. 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 Venture Capital 120

Business Plan Blog

AUGUST 20, 2013

This is generally achieved in one of the following ways: CTO Level Co-Founder (Equity). CTO Level Board Member or dedicated Adviser (Free or Equity). Web Development Firm hired to do “Conceptualization Phase” – This usually includes thorough wire-framing (Paid per project). Product Development Team.

CTO Hire 55

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Architecture Cofounder 55

Growthink Blog

MAY 10, 2012

When seeking equity investments, the source of capital is, for the most part, tied to the stage of capital being raised. You see, equity capital is raised in stages or rounds. Mezzanine Financing Most companies that raise equity capital and are eventually acquired or go public receive multiple rounds of financing first.

Equity 88

Equity Mezzanine Later Stage Venture Capital 88

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 27, 2013

But the thing I am most proud of about Rob is that he has taken a company with a uniquely talented founder & CTO – Nick Halstead – and managed to build a very tight working relationship with Nick where we drive world-class product development without having the usual founder / CEO conflicts. Always seek input.

Advisory Board 365

Advisory Board CTO Hire Fractional CTO Los Angeles 365

This is going to be BIG.

JULY 25, 2022

Typically, investors don’t take a board seat until you raise your first equity round—which means that it could be *years* before you have a real board meeting: A year of nights/weekends work researching, prototyping, and fundraising. You raise your pre-seed round and if you're lucky and good, you can get to an equity round in 12-18 months.

Equity 118

Equity Metrics Widget Bandwidth 118

Feld Thoughts

OCTOBER 28, 2011

He procrastinated for a few weeks because he was deep in product development, but surfaced a few days ago when he realized they had an investor meeting coming up and really should have at least a basic financial model ready in case the investor asked about it.

Revenue 127

Revenue Balance Sheet Forecast Software Review 127

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 1, 2019

They need a large infusion from venture capitalists, private equity, bank loans, or mezzanine financing. In addition to fresh products, you need people smarter than you for real help, with the right combination of skills, experience, and passion to foster and manage new growth. Switch your attention from product development to sales.

Mezzanine 244

Mezzanine Private Equity Startup Bandwidth 244

Up and Running

FEBRUARY 6, 2017

After all, sweat equity can make up for a trim marketing budget, but it would be hard to make up for cuts in product development and customer service without sacrificing customer experience. Current and new customers care a lot more about product or service quality, and the value of your item.

Sweat Equity 60

Sweat Equity Equity Sales PR 60

David Teten

MAY 1, 2013

First, any branding and SEO equity you built up under the old name are jeopardized. Another option is to give equity; Aaron Patzer knew that Mint.com was a valuable domain name, but couldn’t afford it initially. So he gave the owner some equity in his startup, which was worth a few million dollars when Mint exited.

Naming 114

Naming Semantic Venture Capital Startup 114

blog.aparttimecto.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Flexibility - You won’t need to commit to something, either cash, equity or involving other people, upfront. Cons: Money - Unless you have cash to pay, the pool of developers willing to work for equity is small. Access - Good developers are tough to find. Cons: Cost - Most development shops work on a cash basis.

CTO Hire 40

CTO Hire Fractional CTO Equity Vesting 40

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 12, 2019

Focus on Product Development First. We prioritized validation from our customers by listening carefully to what our customers wanted and focusing on early-stage product development. During the ten years we spent as a self-funded company, we worked tirelessly on product development.

Early Stage 85

Early Stage Venture Capital Bootstrapping Pre-Money Valuation 85

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 12, 2013

See how many you have personally experienced already, or are currently mentioned in your business plan: Crowd-sourcing equity. Sites like KickStarter have for years offered rewards and pre-sales for crowd investments, but real equity won’t be legalized until sometime this year for people other than accredited investors.

Entrepreneur 274

Entrepreneur Accredited Investor Silicon Valley Angel Investor 274

The Startup Magazine

JULY 2, 2019

Marketers refer to this concept as brand equity. It’s the idea that a brand’s name and perception have unique value separate from the value of the products and services it offers. Many aspects help build brand equity, such as brand image, brand loyalty, and brand associations, to name only a few. Think back to brand equity.

Audience 82

Audience Equity Business Model Advertising 82