Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 28, 2010

If your startup is great enough to get a term sheet from angel investors or a venture capitalist, the next step for the investor is to complete the dreaded due diligence process. Some startups do nothing to prepare for the due diligence process, assuming the people and business plan documents will speak for themselves.

Technical Review 91

Technical Review Startup Satisfaction Summary 91

TechCrunch LA

APRIL 9, 2020

general manager ( Stefano Benatti ) — filled more orders in the first two months of 2020 than all its sales for 2019, according to Cevolini. The venture is also one of the few e-motorcycle companies drawing engineering tips from competition. Technology from the track is transferring to production models, according to Cevolini.

Technical Review 277

Technical Review Competition Demand Sales 277

socalTECH

MAY 21, 2013

One of the largest concentrations of technical talent in Los Angeles is in Glendale, at YP -- staffed with a surprising number of Los Angeles startup vets. Our whole product and technology team is about 500 people. Talk about the technology behind your operations here? What''s your background and how did you end up at YP?

Technical Review 223

Technical Review Glendale Advertising Google 223

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2018

controlling your psychology ) you no doubt have heard me say that raising capital is a sales & marketing process. Building models to evaluate the deal and/or reviewing customer files, company financials, business plans, etc. This is Sales 101.

Venture Capital 314

Venture Capital Technical Review Invest Slides 314

socalTECH

MAY 21, 2013

One of the largest concentrations of technical talent in Los Angeles is in Glendale, at YP (www.yp.com) -- staffed with a surprising number of Los Angeles startup vets. Our whole product and technology team is about 500 people. Talk about the technology behind your operations here? Louis and Atlanta.

Technical Review 211

Technical Review Glendale Advertising Google 211

Tech.Co

SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

From apps to hardware, to KickStarter successes and international startups, we’re inching closer to finding out who will take home the title of Startup of the Year competition at our annual Celebrate Conference in October. Among the dozens of participants that applied for the online competitions, only a few progressed into the semifinals.

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Competition Mobile Startup Technical Review 111

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2021

New entrepreneurs, especially technical ones, are excited by early adopters, and tend to focus on their feedback, which will always suggest more product features and options. Your focus for momentum could be sales, profitability, or number of customers, but trying to keep all possible parameters growing is simply not practical.

Technical Review 160

Technical Review Technical Advisors Startup Mentor 160

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

Most technology startups seem to be funded by product people or business people. Specifically what is often not in the DNA of founders are sales skills. The result is a lack of knowledge of the process and of sales people themselves. We focused together on improving our sales methodology, our training and our comp plans.

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Sales Pricing Startup Customer 316

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 31, 2010

This is part of my ongoing Sales & Marketing Series. In the first part of this post I talked about how sales in a startup is often evangelical , requires as consultative sale and needs constant adjustments based on customer feedback. We had 4 or 5 sales reps that had been around since the early days.

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Sales Newsletter Technical Review Activity 286

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 26, 2023

Every one of you business owners I know periodically introduces new products and services to sustain growth, fight off competitors, or take advantage of new technologies. New offerings which build your brand will increase acceptance and sales of all solutions, not just the new one. Target audience may be limited or new due to price.

Product 141

Product Services Technical Review Artificial Inteligence 141

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 9, 2023

Most technical entrepreneurs focus hard on building an innovative product, but forget that an elegant solution doesn’t automatically translate into a successful business. Defining the right business model requires the same diligence as designing the right product, but the approach and skills required are different.

Technical Review 88

Technical Review Pricing Software Review Customer 88

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 17, 2013

As the end of the year approaches, it’s a good time for every startup to assess the metrics, technology, and platforms they’re using to manage the business. Sales is simply defined as income from customer purchases of goods and services, minus the cost associated with things like returned or undeliverable merchandise.

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Metrics Technical Review Sales Customer 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2021

Most technical entrepreneurs focus hard on building an innovative product, but forget that an elegant solution doesn’t automatically translate into a successful business. Defining the right business model requires the same diligence as designing the right product, but the approach and skills required are different.

Product 159

Product Technical Review Pricing Software Review 159

socalTECH

DECEMBER 20, 2017

It means competition is more fierce because formidable new competitors can arrive overnight. from sales to marketing, product, to ops and finance?—?centers Why has product management be so slow to adapt? Read more… ?? Now everything our company does?—?from centers on the core user needs we’re addressing.” Read more… ??

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Metrics Ideas Product 100

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

Eventually you need a VP of Product to handle your product roadmap, a CTO for engineering leadership and VPs of sales, marketing & biz dev. The “span of control” for a growing tech startup is probably 6-9 people. You help them prioritize their objectives and review the results. You set direction. Engineering?

Entrepreneur 385

Entrepreneur CTO Hire Startup Sales 385

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 5, 2014

You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. Marketing is everything these days. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 103

Technical Review Tips Marketing Entrepreneur 103

socalTECH

OCTOBER 11, 2010

Last week, the University of Southern California 's Viterbi School of Engineering announced that it had established a new, business plan competition, the Maseeh Entrepreneurship Prize Competition ([link] specifically aimed at students in the engineering school. Why a business plan competition, and why in engineering school?

Competition 154

Competition Southern California Mentor USC 154

Tech.Co

MARCH 8, 2018

Fortunately, for those headed to SXSW, Startup Night SXSW 2018 , presented by the Kauffman Foundation and TechCo, will be filled with investors from a multitude of industries who are looking to discover and fund startups building the latest solutions and tech innovations. Blackwell, iTech Program Executive & OCT Innovation Liaison, NASA.

Technical Review 70

Technical Review Startup Software Review Entrepreneur 70

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 23, 2021

I find that many managers are expected to hire new team members primarily on the basis of technical qualifications and years of experience, rather communication ability, attitude, or previous customer reviews Remember that everyone will interact with customers, due to billing or delivery issues.

Custom 147

Custom Customer Technical Review Metrics 147

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2022

You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. Marketing is everything these days. Marty Zwilling.

Marketing 141

Marketing Startup Social Media Technical Review 141

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 5, 2020

Constant search for ways to increase sales and profitability. More sales are the only way to reach real business success. Entrepreneurs relish change and new technology, which lead to new sales. Maintain a meaningful competitive advantage. Think like your ideal customer seeking value.

Entrepreneur 117

Entrepreneur Sales Customer Custom 117

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

AUGUST 13, 2022

On the other hand, if you are into solar technologies, there is probably an advantage to being in Arizona or a similar location. Maxwell Wessel, in a classic article in the Harvard Business Review on this subject, points out the exception successes of Zappos in Las Vegas, Sendgrid’s massive growth in Colorado, and RightNow’s $1.5

Technical Review 123

Technical Review Oracle Software Review Ideas 123

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 18, 2022

“Attached is a copy of my full business plan for your review.” The first page of the business plan better be an executive summary which gives the investor a taste of the financials, as well as opportunity, competition, and key executives. “I I don’t have a business plan, but the technology is disruptive.”

Technical Review 109

Technical Review Startup Statistics Social Media 109

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 1, 2010

You’ll get sales information from your VP of Sales, marketing information from your VP Marketing, tech information from your CTO and so on. An obvious example would be in sales. You’re also learning directly about the skills of your sales staff by observing them in action.

Startup 308

Startup CTO Coach Technical Review CTO Hire 308

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2021

The impact of a memorable story was highlighted for me recently as I reviewed the classic book, “ Sell With A Story ,” by Paul Smith, who is an expert trainer on increasing business results through storytelling. It can be your competitive advantage over peers and existing players, and it is fun to do. Place where it happened.

Startup 125

Startup Technical Review Entrepreneur Customer 125

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 4, 2013

Put simply – you need enough users in a segment who care about what you’re doing to dictate investing further in the product or in sales & marketing resources. And finally there is the most modern spin on these concepts by two individuals who have built tech startups and have done an excellent job at describing the process.

Startup 401

Startup Customer Custom Technical Review 401

Xconomy

OCTOBER 10, 2016

By popular acclaim, San Diego-based Echo Laboratories founder Eugene Cho claimed top honors, and a $15,000 check, for his two-minute presentation last week in the 10th annual “Quick Pitch” competition, hosted by San Diego’s Tech Coast Angels. He told the audience Revolve sales had generated $1.8 million in nine months.

Tech Coast Angels 40

Tech Coast Angels Technical Review San Diego Software Review 40

Tech.Co

MAY 26, 2020

Amazon used its popular affiliate program to spur additional growth, getting reviewers and publishing sites – including us here at Tech.co – to link to Amazon in exchange for a small payout whenever a reader bought something by following that link. Best for: Authors, book reviewers, booktubers. The impact? commission).

Technical Review 128

Technical Review Buzzfeed News Networking 128

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 21, 2020

“Attached is a copy of my full business plan for your review.” The first page of the business plan better be an executive summary which gives the investor a taste of the financials, as well as opportunity, competition, and key executives. “I I don’t have a business plan, but the technology is disruptive.”

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Statistics Startup Social Media 124

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2019

You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. Marketing is everything these days. Marty Zwilling.

Marketing 97

Marketing Entrepreneur Startup Technical Review 97

InfoChachkie

SEPTEMBER 4, 2012

Too Techie - Tone down emphasis on the technology underlying your venture; an interested investor will perform tech diligence at the appropriate time. Distribution and Sales. Competition. No VC Fit - Match your venture with appropriate funding source. Patents and Trademarks. Management Team.

Venture Capital 211

Venture Capital Summary Technical Review Template 211

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 7, 2015

Most technical entrepreneurs focus hard on building an innovative product, but forget that an elegant solution doesn’t automatically translate into a successful business. Defining the right business model requires the same diligence as designing the right product, but the approach and skills required are different.

Technical Review 108

Technical Review Pricing Startup Software Review 108

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

The most obvious way to explain this is with sales people. If you hire 6 sales reps in January at $120,000 / year salary then you’ve taken on an extra $60,000 per month in costs yet these sales people might not close new business for 4-6 months. “COGS” represents the amount that each sale costs you.

Startup 418

Startup Venture Capital Sales Technical Review 418

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 14, 2015

Gerber memorialized this concept many years ago in his classic book E-Myth , which postulates that most startups are initiated by entrepreneurs with technical skills, rather than business skills, resulting in a high failure rate. In fact, both customers and investors often avoid the perceived high risk of innovative technology pitches.

Technical Review 60

Technical Review Startup Social Media Competition 60

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2011

It is often the fortuitous mixture of new technologies, customer awareness and then acceptance of the technology and then the slow adoption into our daily lives that leads to markets exploding. We technology leaders also make this mistake. I had my sales teams telling me we needed certain features to be competitive.

Development Team Review 374

Development Team Review Technical Review Startup Resource 374

Tech Zulu Event

JUNE 11, 2012

Tech Reporters: These individuals will write and edit informative and practical articles on a range of topics including Startups/Entrepreneurs, Gadgets, Mobile Tech, Tech in Entertainment, Gaming, Apps & Software, productivity, and cover breaking tech news. Take a look below and give us a shout. Contributors.

Technical Review 71

Technical Review Software Review Writing News 71