Berkonomics

JULY 6, 2017

Know your market and competition, or don’t spend a dime on anything else. In 1994, (I know a long time ago), I invested over a million dollars into a company whose entrepreneurs had a vision that I bought into for many reasons, not the least of which was that I had industry experience and understood the need.

Competition 266

Competition Research Summary Pricing 266

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2020

Most of the time, I’m all about providing encouragement and inspiration to entrepreneurs. They need it and they deserve it, because entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of our economy. The question of defensibility is one of the toughest for an entrepreneur to answer. It’s not going to get better – it already is.

Entrepreneur 174

Entrepreneur Sample Guide Ideas 174

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 25, 2021

In my role as mentor to business professionals, I often get the question about your potential of going out on your own as an entrepreneur, versus your current role of working for a boss at an established company. If you enjoy wearing many different hats and are constantly learning new skills, you will get more satisfaction as an entrepreneur.

Entrepreneur 158

Entrepreneur Satisfaction Ideas Social Media 158

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2020

In my role as a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I find that most have the technical challenges well understood, but many are a bit short on some basic street smarts , or basic business realities. Intellectual property is required for a competitive edge. Even the best college degree is not a substitute. Neither is good.

Entrepreneur 173

Entrepreneur Patents Startup Technical Review 173

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 23, 2020

A continuing question I hear from young entrepreneurs is whether a university degree is important to startup success, or just a distraction in achieving their purpose in the world. Both provide entrepreneurial “head start” programs for aspiring entrepreneurs, free legal guidance, and access to experienced staff members.

Entrepreneur 157

Entrepreneur Mentor Class Resource 157

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 19, 2022

Every entrepreneur believes that their product or service is memorable, and that every customer will quickly see the advantage over competitors. Differentiation is still a key requirement for a successful startup rollout, and but it must be sustainable to keep ahead of new competition. Marty Zwilling.

Competition 123

Competition Customer Custom Examples 123

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 30, 2021

Therefore, the least you can do is take advantage of some of the self-assessment tools and guides around, like the classic book “ The Entrepreneur Equation ,” by Carol Roth, which highlights personal characteristics and skills required. Examine the marketplace and your competition. An MBA or other academic credentials just don’t do it.

Entrepreneur 169

Entrepreneur Startup Statistics Guide 169

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 9, 2020

Many entrepreneurs still believe they need a traditional multi-level organization to handle growth and scaling, so they start hiring career managers to populate it. Of course, as you work with contract players, explore the potential for a long-term relationship, and wait until your organization matures to pursue career positions.

Competition 168

Competition Startup Demand Training 168

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 25, 2013

Competitive sportswoman. She was everything I was looking for in an entrepreneur to back. Kara on one side of the table showing me market sizes, competitive dynamics, product roadmaps, pricing plans for physical products with COGS and gross margins. So, Mark, enough entrepreneur love. I first met Kara 5 years ago.

Startup 398

Startup Design Downey Activity 398

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

Young entrepreneurs and startups, in particular, often remain naively unfocused, despite their passion, of what it takes to provide the high-quality service expected. It’s a tough job, and inexperienced entrepreneurs just don’t know where to start, and how to do it. Yet the average perception of customer experience has not improved.

Competition 99

Competition Services Startup Training 99

Both Sides of the Table

AUGUST 10, 2013

It’s only 12 minutes long and if you’re a first-time entrepreneur (or second time, frankly) I encourage you to watch it if for nothing else than to get a sense that your struggles are universal. This naive optimism is why I believe younger entrepreneurs are more likely to produce insanely big outcomes.

Startup 412

Startup Press Course Entrepreneur 412

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 13, 2021

In my role as mentor to many of you aspiring entrepreneurs, I often find you convinced that all you need to start is a unique innovation or idea , and now you are ready to jump in with both feet and enjoy the ride. Remember that being an entrepreneur is all about starting and running a business, after the initial invention.

Satisfaction 135

Satisfaction Entrepreneur Startup Mentor 135

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

You can’t survive as an entrepreneur without resilience, because you are going to fail at least once, maybe multiple times. If you need more evidence that great entrepreneurs survived through resilience, just look into the backgrounds of more recent entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Elon Musk. Then they get it done.

Entrepreneur 138

Entrepreneur Guide Activity Design 138

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

Most aspiring entrepreneurs look to their alma mater, or any university, as a source of classes that can help them, but neglect to think outside the box or take advantage of all the other resources to be found there. Access to entrepreneurs-in-residence, business mentors. Access to intellectual property and current research.

Entrepreneur 110

Entrepreneur Class Startup Resource 110

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 4, 2022

As a startup advisor and investor, I’ve met many aspiring entrepreneurs, and I often get asked the question, “I have a great idea for a startup – do you agree that it real potential?” If you are dreaming of an opportunity to get rich quick, the entrepreneur route is not for you. You enjoy building relationships as well as products.

Entrepreneur 121

Entrepreneur Startup Ideas Sample 121

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 1, 2016

As an entrepreneur I never really knew what to make of VC return data. In short, the VC industry is very sharp-elbowed amongst some very competitive people who are used to winning and most deals don’t have enough space to share investment rounds so people were naturally pretty quick to judge A16Z. Do they win competitive deals?

Venture Capital 264

Venture Capital Invest Funding Competition 264

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2021

It seems like everyone wants to be an entrepreneur and get rich these days. Find out if something very similar is already selling, and who your competition would be if you proceed. You don’t need the intelligence of a genius to cash in on your dream, and you don’t have to be born with special genes to be an entrepreneur.

Ideas 136

Ideas Entrepreneur Mentor Resource 136

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2021

In their passion and excitement about a new product or service, entrepreneurs tend to continually narrow the scope of potential competitors, and often claim to have no direct competitors. Competition for your new hydrogen fuel auto engine is not limited to other hydrogen auto engine offerings, or even other autos.

Competition 166

Competition Funding Startup Patents 166

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 15, 2023

As an advisor to entrepreneurs and active angel investor, I often get questions about the realism of the Shark Tank TV series, compared to professional investor negotiations. Yet the process is eerily realistic, and every entrepreneur can glean some important lessons. Personalize your presentation, if possible, for every investor.

Entrepreneur 111

Entrepreneur Sample Ideas Customer 111

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 19, 2022

As a startup advisor, I see many aspiring entrepreneurs whose primary motivation seems to be to work part time, or get rich quick, or avoid anyone else telling them what to do. Yet, for those with more realistic expectations and the right motivation, the entrepreneur lifestyle can be the dream life you envisioned. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 110

Entrepreneur Organization Customer Custom 110

TechCrunch LA

MAY 29, 2019

The company raised $46 million last year—its first year operating—with the vision that owning the infrastructure for competitions and expanding it to encompass other social elements of gaming can make it the largest gaming company in the world. Eric P: You have a fascinating background as a serial entrepreneur while you were a teenager.

Startup 204

Startup Coach Competition Los Angeles 204

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 12, 2014

The starting point of product IS marketing, which is what a lot of young entrepreneurs that never studied business don’t realize. I just figured they went a bit too far and were the latest hard-charging company trying to be supremely competitive and made a bad decision on where the line was.

Marketing 379

Marketing Startup SEM SEO 379

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 11, 2022

After many years of working with angel investors seriously trying to find new ventures worthy of their hard-earned money, I find their frustration often exceeds that of entrepreneurs sincerely looking for financial help. For seed stage funding, entrepreneurs should be looking to friends and family, crowd funding, and relevant institutions.

Entrepreneur 108

Entrepreneur Invest Funding Patents 108

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 26, 2020

leadership, mentorship, competitiveness, communications, relationship-building?—?and Kara will now be really involved with what goes on to successfully create and run a firm but while still handling her core duties of funding great entrepreneurs. She had all of the skills and traits we sought?—?leadership, And all the platform stuff.

Venture Capital 361

Venture Capital Startup Invest CitySearch 361

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

Ability to source information easily to help build a thesis around companies / industries / competition. Great networking skills, which are critical when you want to be about to reference entrepreneurs & concepts and bounce your ideas off of other people in the industry. ” My experience tells me the same.

Help 365

Help Invest Venture Capital Technical Review 365

Berkonomics

JULY 20, 2023

Many entrepreneurs are impatient by nature, not the best of detailed planners. Yet, with the assistance of those in support such as the CFO, everyone in management must be aligned in a single direction, with the budget reviewed and updated annually as accomplishments, the marketplace, and even the competitive landscape change.

Resource 291

Resource Email Competition Entrepreneur 291

TechCrunch LA

SEPTEMBER 21, 2018

High-profile entrepreneurs and investors, Peter Thiel, for example , have left. “It’s hard to make a difference in San Francisco as a single entrepreneur,” said J.D. “It’s not as a hard to make a difference as a successful entrepreneur in Columbus, Ohio.” ” J.D. Here's why.

Venture Capital 279

Venture Capital Startup Capital Entrepreneur 279

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 16, 2023

The rate of new entrepreneurs increased between 2013 and 2021, from 280 to 360 out of 100,000 of the adult population. Of course, that’s both the good news and the bad news for aspiring entrepreneurs, since it means more competition, and the business landscape is changing faster than ever. Marty Zwilling

Entrepreneur 104

Entrepreneur Startup Social Media News 104

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 3, 2013

We talked about how business school historically hasn’t positioned entrepreneurs well for success. I wrote about that before in a post about “ whether MBAs are necessary for entrepreneurs. His class reading lists could be a primer for any entrepreneur, not just MBAs.

Venture Capital 403

Venture Capital Education Offshore Outsource Development 403

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 29, 2013

It should help some entrepreneurs to better access early-stage capital and should allow some angel investors better access to deal flow. In Jason’s mind half of the VC industry will now disappear as entrepreneurs flock to him and to Dave Morin for their money. Helpful to Entrepreneurs – The most obvious.

Venture Capital 356

Venture Capital Invest Course Technical Review 356

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 10, 2023

Most of the time, I’m all about providing encouragement and inspiration to entrepreneurs. They need it and they deserve it, because entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of our economy. The question of defensibility is one of the toughest for an entrepreneur to answer. It’s not going to get better – it already is.

Entrepreneur 99

Entrepreneur Startup Sample Guide 99

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 9, 2020

Most entrepreneurs relish being their own boss, but find the transition to “ownership thinking” to be more difficult than anticipated. Incidentally, if you never thought of yourself as being an A-Player employee, you probably will struggle even more in the competitive entrepreneur world.

Entrepreneur 159

Entrepreneur Customer Custom Competition 159

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 14, 2023

Willingness to take a risk is the hallmark of a serious entrepreneur. She provides many examples of success stories from entrepreneurs to Olympians. Entrepreneurs, like Olympians, tend to put a competitive spin on anything they find a passion for, and once they are snagged, they have to win. Make sure you are focused.

Entrepreneur 100

Entrepreneur Writing Competition Examples 100

Berkonomics

AUGUST 31, 2023

Know your market and competition, or don’t spend a dime on anything else. In this case, the competition was not from a company but from a new technology. When I listen to a pitch from an enthusiastic entrepreneur or read the summary of a business plan, one of the first questions I ask is about the strength of the competition.

Competition 156

Competition Research Summary Pricing 156

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 27, 2022

Entrepreneurs are usually highly creative and innovative, but many innovative people are not entrepreneurs. The core message is that real innovation and competitive advantage are more people-based than product or process-based. The “how” is always revealed in time.

Competition 153

Competition Mentor Ideas Organization 153

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 23, 2021

Most entrepreneur that fail are quick to offer a litany of constraints that caused their demise – not enough money, time, customers, or support from the right players. The result, called resourcefulness, allows entrepreneurs to create opportunities in the face of scarcity. Every entrepreneur needs to avoid locked-in ways of thinking.

Startup 164

Startup Resource Entrepreneur Competition 164

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 15, 2014

I then got my MBA at University of Chicago so I secretly pull for local entrepreneurs as long as they don’t make me visit in the Winter any more. People often say, “Great entrepreneurs will build a community and the capital will follow.” No – I’m not worried about the competition.

Company 369

Company Companies Startup Snapchat 369