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. The cost of any new product these days must include education and rollout marketing, perhaps equal or greater than the development costs. Incent these early.

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Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 23, 2013

Every sales organization with more than a handful of reps or that is across multiple offices or time zones would benefit from having a sales methodology. But the number one reason sales stall when customers see the value in what you do is because they often don’t have a reason to buy NOW. The USP solves the, “Why Buy Me?”

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Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 2, 2010

This is part of a series on sales & marketing. I previously covered how early phase sales teams should be “evangelical&# and consultative in nature. The first post on scaling sales dealt with “aiming&# your sales teams – making sure they were focused on the right opportunities.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2023

Indeed, while the rules and technologies for lead generation have changed, Forrester and other experts still see it as the most effective way for businesses with limited budgets to maximize their return on marketing investment (ROI). One of these experts, David T. Cold calling. Trade shows.

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socalTECH

JULY 26, 2017

Los Angeles-based Global Eagle Entertainment , a developer of in-flight entertainment products and provider of broadband Internet services, has called off a $416M majority investment deal from Chinese company HNA Group , after the U.S. refused to approve the transaction. READ MORE>>.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 17, 2017

Santa Monica-based Tray , a developer of Android-based, point-of-sale (POS) terminal software, has raised a round of funding, according to lead investor Bonfire Ventures. Financial details of the investment were not disclosed. Kellis was most recently on the Product team at Google. READ MORE>>.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Jordan was previously Founder and CEO of investment banking firm Tribeca Capital Partners. Jordan previously had served as CEO at HB Brand Partners, a full-service retail frozen food product development company, and was also CEO at Yoi Corp., a cloud-based employee engagement and predictive analytics online platform.

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Berkonomics

OCTOBER 5, 2023

Since this number is budgeted and pre-authorized, managers tend to focus upon other things such as sales, marketing and product development issues. There is an art to efficient management of a process, whether that is the process of bringing a product to market from R&D to production or developing a new product’s launch program.

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Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2021

You can listen to the entire conversation above or via this link , but I also wanted to highlight one topic we discussed that I feel strongly about, which is how I think enterprise sales and venture fundraising are basically the same muscle. OK, so you’ve found your target LPs who invest in funds at your stage. Let me explain.

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socalTECH

APRIL 24, 2020

Carey tells us a bit about what OC4 is doing, how it invests and works with companies, and also gives startups some advice about how to approach moving forward in light of the pandemic. Carey Ransom: The way I think about it, is it is really the culmination of almost two decades of software and technology company building and investing.

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socalTECH

MAY 28, 2013

To bring that ability to name your own price on products, Los Angeles-based Greentoe (www.greentoe.com) recently launched, allowing consumers to name their own price to retailers of everything from electronics to baby products. Joe Marrapodi: GreenToe is a name your own price marketplace for products. What is Greentoe?

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Berkonomics

AUGUST 3, 2023

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder can self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). Bootstrapping: This term describes your ability to start a business with little investment and grow it using internally generated funds.

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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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socalTECH

JULY 8, 2014

RetailNext , which develops software used by retailers to apply Big Data to the information being generated at physical stores, said Qualcomm led a strategic investment in the company, via both Qualcomm Incorporate and Qualcomm Ventures. Tyco and American Express also made strategic investments in RetailNext. READ MORE>>.

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socalTECH

MAY 25, 2017

San Diego-based Inseego , which develops telematics and fleet management products, gave an update to its sale of Novatel Wireless to Chinese company Jade Ocean Global Limited , a subsidiary of T.C.L. Industries Holdings (H.K.) Limited this morning, with more news of delays in getting the deal approved.

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TechCrunch LA

AUGUST 12, 2022

Positive Food’s vertical integration technology is mainly done in-house, including production and a cold-chain logistics network. The company also has a proprietary “Monte Carlo Simulation” to plug in point-of-sale data to manage its inventory levels at stores and reduce food waste. The voracious fight for your salad bowl.

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InfoChachkie

JULY 7, 2016

The entrepreneur cannot wait to show me their product via a demo. You’re the first one I’ve met who didn’t want to see our product.” I then explain that I evaluate the veracity of a product by seeking guidance from current, past and prospective users, rather than relying on a product demonstration. Don’t Demo Me Bro.

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Berkonomics

DECEMBER 20, 2018

So here goes: How would I find companies willing to license my intellectual property or to invest in a royalty stream from licenses? Investment banker? These are your candidates, because they are companies already absorbing much or all the marketing expense necessary to make sales of your invention. Would I hire a broker?

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Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 29, 2014

This week I wrote about obsessive and competitive founders and how this forms the basis of what I look for when I invest. I had been thinking a lot about this recently because I’m often asked the question of “what I look for in an entrepreneur when I want to invest?” I had invested in myself for years.

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Berkonomics

MARCH 25, 2012

For those of us who’ve invested in early stage companies, especially technology startups, we have confronted a universal problem. There are many ways to project the value of a company for purposes of pricing an investment, but all rely upon the revenue and profit projections of the entrepreneur as a starting point.

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Berkonomics

DECEMBER 20, 2018

So here goes: How would I find companies willing to license my intellectual property or to invest in a royalty stream from licenses? Investment banker? These are your candidates, because they are companies already absorbing much or all the marketing expense necessary to make sales of your invention. Would I hire a broker?

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IP Product Equity Tool 120

socalTECH

AUGUST 17, 2012

Long Beach-based Obagi Medical Products , a developer of aesthetic medicine products, said Thursday that it has named Mark T. Taylor joins the firm from Roth Capital Partners, where he had served in institutional sales, investment banking, and equity research.

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TechCrunch LA

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Riot Ventures , the Los Angeles-based, early-stage and deep technology investment firm is going out to market to raise a $75 million second fund to finance the development of startups in LA and beyond, according to fundraising documents viewed by TechCrunch. Marcus has a long background in angel investing and company creation.

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TechCrunch LA

JULY 29, 2020

” The new financing from Humana will go to support Heal’s geographic expansion, product development, and sales and marketing, Desai said. Already, the company has expanded into new treatment areas, including teletherapy for mental health.

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TechCrunch LA

APRIL 30, 2019

Part of the financing seeks to reassure Faraday’s suppliers after the financial turmoil the company has seen since late last year, and to “obtain their commitments” to ensure that the FF91 enters mass production. Faraday said on Monday it has a “growing fleet” of pre-production vehicles to test features for its FF91.

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Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 20, 2014

I have been saying privately for years now that I believe online video will evolve into fragmented distribution (my next online video post) and vertical production. They have production facilities in Mexico where they have been creating lower-cost video for traditional TV for many years and they pivoted this facility to producing for YouTube.

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socalTECH

DECEMBER 22, 2021

Los Angeles-based private equity investor Diversis Capital Management said this week that it has backed field sales software developer SalesRabbit. Financial details of the investment were not announced, however, Diversis said it provided a "significant growth investment" to SalesRabbit. The company is based in Utah.

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TechCrunch LA

SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

Existing investors DST Global, 01 Advisors, Dragoneer Investment Group, Franklin Templeton and Mubadala Investment Company too doubled down on their investments in SpotOn, joining new backers Wellington Management and Coatue Management. We are deeply invested in growing the business together. Image Credits: SpotOn.

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Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 12, 2013

But as sweet as that success has been (we invested pre-revenue in a small team) today my even more important news was the further expansion of our partner ranks. It was a software platform for allowing advertisers to purchase brand integration (product placements) as a standardized unit through a marketplace. I stayed close.

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socalTECH

MARCH 19, 2014

Sales tax compliance is not a typical sexy startup area. So, it was a surprise when a number of smart, insider angels -- including Roy Rubin (founder of Magento, which he sold to eBay), and Dan Rose (VP of Partnerships at Facebook)--put their money behind TaxJar (www.taxjar.com), a San Diego startup developing sales tax compliance software.

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socalTECH

MARCH 28, 2019

We spoke with Meredith Finn a new Partner at March Capital--who headed up that the Rise of the Female Entrepreneur sessions this year--to hear more about her perspectives on investments, what the Rise of the Female Entrepeneur was all about, March's interests in artificial intelligence and more. What's your role at March Capital?

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SoCal CTO

MAY 19, 2010

Bob is heavily focused on ROI (and team/product). Can you raise $750K - $1M with no future investments planned? I’m a regular reader/listener of the Frank Peters Show that talks about Angel Investing. What’s funny about this is that the reason people put in these optimistic projections is to fit the investment criteria.

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socalTECH

MARCH 25, 2019

Los Angeles-based Faraday Future and Chinese gaming products maker The9 Limited annoucned this morning that the two companies will enter into a new, joint venture, which will produce electric cars for sale in China. READ MORE>>.

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InfoChachkie

DECEMBER 28, 2015

One of the reasons I know way more about online sales taxes than I ever thought I would is due to Rincon Venture Partners’ investment in TaxJar , one of the leaders in this emerging space. Almost every online seller will have a sales tax deadline this upcoming January. Your Sales Tax Compliance Checkup.

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socalTECH

JANUARY 23, 2012

Aliso Viejo-based QLogic , the manufacturer of networking adapters, switches, and ASICS, said this morning that it is in a definitive agreement to sell its InfiniBand product lines and assets to Intel Corporation , in a deal worth $125M in cash.

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Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 18, 2016

When entrepreneurs introduce new products to the market, their passion and conviction often leads them to assume that every potential customer will see the immediate need and value, and will quickly adopt the solution. Yet most of the startups I see these days are providing a solution that is easier to use, more fun, or more productive.

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2016

Either of these qualms can ultimately sidetrack your startup as not worthy of investment, so it pays to do your homework on what you say and how to communicate effectively. Investors are looking for a concise description of your product or service without technical jargon or fuzzy marketing terms with value quantified in customer terms.

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