YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 21, 2012

The title of the book by Jonathan Moules, “ The Rebel Entrepreneur: Rewriting the Business Rulebook “, initially seemed like a form of tautology. Isn’t every entrepreneur a rebel by nature? Moules believes that getting a bank loan to start a business is not ideal. Bootstrap, bootstrap, bootstrap.

Technical Review 184

Technical Review Entrepreneur Bootstrapping Acquisition 184

The Entrepreneurial Mind

AUGUST 3, 2010

If you have a very capital intensive or labor intensive business model you will need a large base of funding to get off the ground. But for most start-ups, you may be able to adjust your business model enough to cut the funding you need, while still making a successful launch. It was profitable within nine months.

Bootstrapping 75

Bootstrapping Business Model Software Review Programming 75

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 30, 2019

According to my experience and a this Motley Fool article, the challenge is very real, with around half of all new businesses no longer existing after five years. My first advice for new entrepreneurs is to pick a domain that doesn’t have the sky-high up-front development costs, like online web sites and smart phone apps.

Intellectual Property 219

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 219

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 220

Technical Review Advisory Board Software Review Business Model 220

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 11, 2022

For a nonprofit, bootstrapping is self-funding from donations and fund-raising. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor. Some nonprofit entrepreneurs think they can skip the whole plan, rather than just the sections on valuation, equity offered, and exit strategy.

Angel Investor 327

Angel Investor Equity Technical Review Exit Strategy 327

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

I have often been asked about Startup Funding by entrepreneurs. Here is Startup Funding, a Comprehensive Guide for Entrepreneurs. In very few specific cases, depending on the nature of the business, the business model might demand a considerable gestation period or extensive research and development. Seed stage.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 16, 2011

They charge $9, $29 and $59 per agent per month and I am eager to see bootstrapped, scrappy Freshdesk morph their pricing structure to aggressively compete with them. The company already has paying customers and a validated business model. Zendesk is heavily financed by Benchmark and Charles River and has 10,000 customers.

India 123

India Bootstrapping Non-Compete Entrepreneur 123

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2015

The problem is that professional investors (angels and venture capital) want a proven business model before they invest, ready to scale, rather than the more risky research and development efforts. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. It’s what separates the true entrepreneurs from the wannabes.

Entrepreneur 120

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 1, 2017

The problem is that professional investors (angels and venture capitalists) want a proven business model before they invest, ready to scale, rather than the more risky research and development efforts. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. It’s what separates the true entrepreneurs from the wannabes.

Product Development 177

Product Development Cost Developer Product 177

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

There is also need for researchers at various institutes to collaborate around this data and models, all problems that point towards a cloud-based solution. An entrepreneur should pick this one up ASAP. How do you account for the charge backs to the business units or functional areas?

Cloud 117

Cloud Fractional CTO Entrepreneur Bandwidth 117

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

Chasing funding versus chasing customers and a repeatable and scalable business model, is one reason startups fail. Entrepreneurs put together their funding presentation by extracting the key ideas from their business plan, putting them on PowerPoint/Keynote and pitching the company – until they get funded or exhausted.

Customer Development 270

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 270

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2011

For a non-profit, bootstrapping is self-funding from donations and fund-raising. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor. What options do they have available to them, since they can’t sell a share of the company (no equity investment)? That’s a higher calling.

Angel Investor 238

Angel Investor Technical Review Exit Strategy Equity 238

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 24, 2017

Subscription business models have been around for a pretty long time, but thanks to modern technology, this model has evolved from milk or newspapers delivery to a versatile eCommerce experience. As a starting entrepreneur, you might wonder: why on earth would I want to start a subscription (box) business?

Churn Rate 149

Churn Rate eCommerce Business Model Bootstrapping 149

Gust

APRIL 27, 2014

Think about the implications of each to your own business, and the potential impact of getting them done incorrectly, or forgetting to do them entirely: Manage your financials and physical assets. Use a simple accounting tool like QuickBooks, get away from co-mingled funds, and you have the first business process you need.

Startup 187

Startup Institutional Investors Angel Investor Bootstrapping 187

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

For a nonprofit, bootstrapping is self-funding from donations and fund-raising. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor. Some nonprofit entrepreneurs think they can skip the whole plan, rather than just the sections on valuation, equity offered, and exit strategy.

Equity 235

Equity Angel Investor Technical Review Exit Strategy 235

The Next Web

JULY 20, 2013

They speak about how they love to help entrepreneurs build successful companies, yet when I ask them to give me feedback on my business plan or idea, they usually don’t even bother writing me back. Yes, it is true that some entrepreneurs either don’t receive a response or get a pre-made template. VCs are arrogant.

Silicon Valley 124

Silicon Valley Mongolia Technical Cofounder Entrepreneur 124

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 15, 2012

For a non-profit, bootstrapping is self-funding from donations and fund-raising. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor. What options do they have available to them, since they can’t sell a share of the company (no equity investment)? That’s a higher calling.

Angel Investor 218

Angel Investor Technical Review Exit Strategy Equity 218

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 13, 2013

For a non-profit, bootstrapping is self-funding from donations and fund-raising. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor. What options do they have available to them, since they can’t sell a share of the company (no equity investment)? That’s a higher calling.

Equity 207

Equity Angel Investor Technical Review Exit Strategy 207

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. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. It’s what separates the true entrepreneurs from the wannabes.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

YoungUpstarts

MAY 28, 2014

Fundraising is arguably the most important issue for any entrepreneur. Unless you’re a serial entrepreneur who has started and sold companies in the past. In other words, you have done wonders while “bootstrapping.” by Asif Khan, CEO of Caremerge. Show Capital Efficiency. Kickstarter.

Security 200

Security Incubator Technical Review Bootstrapping 200

Hearpreneur

JANUARY 25, 2023

This could be a home-based business, franchise option or whatever option looks attractive to you. One thing is certain, your business can succeed if you can put in the right energy and bring in the right people to kick-start it. In order to make this idea for a small business a reality, consistency, and tenacity are crucial.

Software Review 119

Software Review Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Entrepreneur 119

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 15, 2014

Based on the Startup Environment Index from the Kauffman Foundation and LegalZoom a while back, personal money, or bootstrapping, continues to be the primary startup funding source. Eighty percent of new entrepreneurs use this approach, with only six percent using investor funding. Entrepreneurs need to start small and pivot quickly.

Bootstrapping 276

Bootstrapping Entrepreneur Startup Burn Rate 276

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 22, 2013

Bootstrapping can be fun, you get to iterate quickly, turn on dimes, invent new features on the fly. I think we erred in letting our traffic and operational concerns outstrip our business model, where simply maintaining what we had was preventing us from advancing our product.”. You have to be ready to learn everything you can.

Cofounder 164

Cofounder Founder Startup Bootstrapping 164

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

OCTOBER 31, 2011

Today it would be near-impossible to bootstrap Smart Bear on those keywords. No, but you have other unfair advantages — you have insight into some market, you have an unlikely team that can both build and sell, you have a rolodex, you have a business model others can’t duplicate, or something else. Tweet. -->.

Customer 279

Customer Software Review SEM Technical Review 279

The Next Web

DECEMBER 30, 2012

If you’re a startup, you are by definition competing with the smartest people in the world – either large companies with more resources than yours or fellow entrepreneurs who are hoping to disrupt large companies. How to Bootstrap Your Startup : Everything you need to start your business – how to take an idea on paper and bring it to life.

Artificial Inteligence 156

Artificial Inteligence Founder Private Equity Ruby 156

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 23, 2010

At today's roundtable, we had three niche e-commerce entrepreneurs and two e-commerce infrastructure entrepreneurs. I will describe their businesses briefly, below. Her upcoming campaign of reaching out to 100,000 moms will be one of the first concerted efforts to actually test her business model. GrillGrate.

India 114

India Silicon Valley Incubator Bootstrapping 114

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 2, 2019

In fact, remote work is on the rise – especially in the form of virtual assistants – and it’s one of the primary reasons why more small businesses are opting to outsource work. To stay competitive in the 2020 business market and beyond, the question is no longer if you should outsource, rather what you should outsource.

Technical Review 147

Technical Review Due Diligence Technical Support Bootstrapping 147

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MAY 10, 2010

In fact, 3 of the 10 selected companies from the past two years has followed this business model. Marketplace companies are notoriously difficult to start, so I'm constantly amazed that so many entrepreneurs chose this route. If there's a business plan less likely to succeed than a restaurant , this has to be it.

Business Model 310

Business Model Finder SEO Bootstrapping 310

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 8, 2010

He blogs to 10,000 web entrepreneurs at Software by Rob and co-hosts the podcast Startups for the Rest of Us. They are: Fred Wilson: Lead Investors, Dipshit Companies, and Funding Every Entrepreneur. Often board members give entrepreneurs two bits of advice regarding scale: Get a mentor. twenty in your wallet?

Startup 191

Startup CTO Hire Cofounder Venture Capital 191

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 6, 2010

For a non-profit, bootstrapping is self-funding from donations and fund-raising. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor. A non-profit is still a business, so the best angel is a great entrepreneur at the helm for fund-raising, as well as operations.

Angel Investor 143

Angel Investor Technical Review Exit Strategy Equity 143

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 21, 2023

How do you convince investors that your business model will really work, before you have a revenue stream that exceeds your expenses? Even if you are bootstrapping your business, and you are the only investor, you should be asking yourself the same question. Everyone must be part of the sales process. Marty Zwilling

Business Model 273

Business Model Customer Angel Investor Bootstrapping 273

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 10, 2010

During this week's roundtable we discussed an area that deserves a serious look from entrepreneurs: Rural BPO. Today, I invited entrepreneurs to come up with ideas, apply the 1M/1M methodology to it, and come discuss with me at these roundtables. I started doing my free Online Strategy Roundtables for entrepreneurs in the fall of 2008.

Cloud 115

Cloud Silicon Valley Incubator Bootstrapping 115

ReadWriteStart

NOVEMBER 19, 2010

Well, I have coached early stage entrepreneurs for a couple of years now - diligently, patiently - and have learned a few things. We're trying to bring the lessons we have learned in Silicon Valley to a million entrepreneurs. As you may know, 99% of the entrepreneurs who seek financing, get rejected. Well, I was once an amateur.

Silicon Valley 114

Silicon Valley Startup Technical Review Early Stage 114

ReadWriteStart

DECEMBER 2, 2010

While there may be initial grants that launch businesses and get them off the ground, philosophically, we believe that a model of self-sustaining development is the key to a stable global economic system. The business idea was not very well fleshed out, and needs a lot of work still. Photo by kipcurry. Discuss.

India 116

India Green Silicon Valley Massachusetts 116

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 20, 2017

For a nonprofit, bootstrapping is self-funding from donations and fund-raising. You still start the process with a business plan, but then you look for a philanthropist rather than an investor. Some nonprofit entrepreneurs think they can skip the whole plan, rather than just the sections on valuation, equity offered, and exit strategy.

Angel Investor 132

Angel Investor Equity Technical Review Exit Strategy 132

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 4, 2021

An entrepreneur lifestyle that continues to gain in popularity these days is being a “social entrepreneur.” Whether the objective is to generate profits or social capital, the common element for all entrepreneurs is the recognition that there is a problem which needs solving, or there is an opportunity to improve the status quo.

Entrepreneur 345

Entrepreneur Angel Investor Government Bootstrapping 345

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2015

That’s why I recommend that they find a co-founder who loves business challenges, including marketing and finance. Outside investors are most interested in scaling a proven business model, not research and development. Most founders bootstrap product development. Fabulous solutions require great technology.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Intellectual Property Cofounder Bootstrapping 120