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

JULY 1, 2017

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. Set expectations accordingly.

Product Development 177

Product Development Cost Developer Product 177

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JULY 19, 2010

I'm a great example of someone who wasn't an authority on anything , but built that authority over time to the point where now my company (Smart Bear) is untouchable as the leader in both revenue and ideas in the area of peer code review. But how does authority convert to revenue?

Software Review 325

Software Review Technical Review Development Team Review Bolivia 325

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? Conclusion.

Churn Rate 149

Churn Rate eCommerce Business Model Bootstrapping 149

Gust

APRIL 27, 2014

Write down the key elements of your business plan very early, and keep it current as things evolve. This will include the first version of many critical processes that can be split out later, including market opportunity, requirements, product definition, business model, sales process, and organization. Funding process.

Startup 187

Startup Institutional Investors Angel Investor Bootstrapping 187

VC Cafe

MARCH 16, 2025

Perhaps the most powerful content creation of all, which is growing in popularity is coding, catapulting companies like Lovable which hit $17M in annualised recurring revenue in February 2025, up from $7M at the end of 2024. These costs represent an ongoing tax on revenue, requiring careful consideration in business model design.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review B2C Generative AI IPO 78

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 12, 2018

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. Solicit funds from friends and family.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

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

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 5, 2009

Chasing funding versus chasing customers and a repeatable and scalable business model, is one reason startups fail. Is there a profitable business model? The Traditional VC Pitch Entrepreneurs who pursue the traditional product development model don’t have customer data to answer these questions. Can it scale?”

Customer Development 270

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 270

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 8, 2015

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. Solicit funds from friends and family.

Entrepreneur 120

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 120

YoungUpstarts

MAY 28, 2014

In other words, you have done wonders while “bootstrapping.” ” Getting some revenue from at least 3 clients (proving that there’s value to what you’re doing) would be fantastic, but other types of traction and validation would help too. Show Capital Efficiency. Kickstarter.

Security 200

Security Incubator Technical Review Bootstrapping 200

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

Funding might be a need in some cases — but it’s not an absolute necessity. ? The business should be self-sustainable. The primary source of your funds should be your paying customers, i.e., your business should generate enough revenues and profits to fund the growth and expansion. Bootstrapping.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 22, 2013

Bootstrapping can be fun, you get to iterate quickly, turn on dimes, invent new features on the fly. Dribbble is what I like to call a “boot up,” or “organic startup” – a company that lives and breathes on revenue. […] For us, getting cash flowing in sooner than later was critical to give us resources to respond to the site’s rapid growth.

Cofounder 164

Cofounder Founder Startup Bootstrapping 164

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. Inefficiencies can often cost businesses between 20-30% of their annual revenue. is the single biggest outsourcing country globally.

Technical Review 147

Technical Review Due Diligence Technical Support Bootstrapping 147

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 23, 2010

First up was Brad Barrett presenting GrillGrate , a grill accessory with which Brad has built a year-to-date revenue of $400,000. 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. She wants to sell these products on her site.

India 114

India Silicon Valley Incubator Bootstrapping 114

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

Today, the telecom industry charges customers based on fixed price business models for data services. I pointed Zubair to a couple of case studies of bootstrapping using services to get more of his core product built; in parallel, I will help him pursue institutional funding. Cion has 18 customers and is considering funding.

Cloud 117

Cloud Fractional CTO Entrepreneur Bandwidth 117

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 10, 2010

They already have several customers including some telcos, and are at about $350,000 in revenues. And EVEN if you ARE an experienced entrepreneur, all but just a few VCs still want to see customer validation, business model validation and traction, before they will invest. Because customer financing equals revenue, not equity.

Cloud 115

Cloud Silicon Valley Incubator Bootstrapping 115

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. Plan for a real revenue model.

Business Model 273

Business Model Customer Angel Investor Bootstrapping 273

David Teten

JANUARY 21, 2021

This essay is part of a series on alternative VC: I: Revenue-Based Investing: a new option for founders who care about control. II: Who are the major Revenue-Based Investing VCs? III: Why are Revenue-Based VCs investing in so many women and underrepresented founders? IV: Should your new VC fund use Revenue-Based Investing?

Equity 78

Equity Revenue Cofounder Colorado 78

ReadWriteStart

DECEMBER 2, 2010

Well, 1M/1M is focused on helping businesses generate $1M in annual revenue, whatever be the nature of the business. We see a lot of businesses that can be characterized as social enterprises, ranging from education to rural development businesses. Also, the business model for the business is unclear.

India 116

India Green Silicon Valley Massachusetts 116

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

So you’re interested in raising capital from a Revenue-Based Investor VC. A new wave of Revenue-Based Investors (“RBI”) are emerging. I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. Our wheelhouse is bootstrapped (or lightly capitalized) SMB SaaS.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

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. At least wait until later, when you ready to scale, and have some “leverage” based on a proven business model, some real customers, and real revenue.

Bootstrapping 276

Bootstrapping Entrepreneur Startup Burn Rate 276

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 22, 2021

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. Plan for a real revenue model.

Business Model 414

Business Model Angel Investor Bootstrapping Revenue 414

Tim Keane

MARCH 9, 2011

Can you bootstrap your way to positive cash flow?   If the answer is relatively soon, then bootstrapping is a very serious consideration.    Even if it isn’t soon, early bootstrapping can reduce risk and increase chances for success, resulting in more aligned interests for entrepreneurs and investors.

Finance 83

Finance Bootstrapping Startup Equity 83

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 11, 2014

Edwin: Oh sorry, so the business model. Edwin: The business model is that the organizer has to pay. And standing out to a company that got $10 million dollars in funding even before they started Asana is going to be very hard if you bootstrap it with your savings. Jason: That’s called bootstrapping, right.

Technical Cofounder 220

Technical Cofounder Cofounder Software Review Management 220

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 15, 2024

One of the most popular techniques for financing a business when you are starting out is bootstrapping. Business bootstrapping is the strategy where you start and grow a business using your own money or revenue from a business that you already have. You can start small.

Bootstrapping 158

Bootstrapping Bankruptcy Lean Finance 158

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 19, 2015

Outside investors are most interested in scaling a proven business model, not research and development. Thus it’s a waste of time for most entrepreneurs to be looking for investors until they have a product and some customer revenue. Most founders bootstrap product development. Fabulous solutions require great technology.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Intellectual Property Cofounder Bootstrapping 120

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

A new wave of Revenue-Based Investors are emerging who are using creative investing structures with some of the upside of traditional VC, but some of the downside protection of debt. I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. So what is Revenue Based Investing?

Revenue 60

Revenue Term Sheet Founder Technical Review 60

Steve Blank

MAY 26, 2009

All teams raised their hands and screamed: we hundreds of angels and dozens of VCs, all of them say they will only fund deals with prototypes, beta customers, first revenue and executive teams all in place, and they say it will be 2 years from now because their coffers are out of cash and LPs in default. Bootstrap for years!

Vertical 159

Vertical Silicon Valley Intellectual Property RSS 159

Up and Running

MAY 15, 2018

Innovative products and business models are the foundations of a promising startup. Creating a scalable business model. Whether you are hoping to expand a small business with a loan or going for a round of venture capital, you will need a scalable business model. Determining how much money to ask for.

SBA 84

SBA Angel Investor Technical Review Startup 84

Tim Keane

OCTOBER 19, 2006

Of course, everyone understands that somewhere in the equation theres revenue, whether directly or indirectly. Of course, everyone understands that somewhere in the equation theres revenue, whether directly or indirectly. Bootstrapping. John Mullins: Getting to Plan B: Breaking Through to a Better Business Model.

Software Review 60

Software Review Wisconsin Technical Review Angel Investor 60

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 22, 2020

For example, if you have a proven product, real revenue, a big potential market, and are ready to scale up the business, every investor will be interested. At this point, most Angel investors and a few early-stage VCs will be happy to talk, assuming you have the business model validated, and a large opportunity.

Angel Investor 370

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 370

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017

Rule 1: Bootstrap until you have a viable product. Background: Justin Klemm’s analytics and website uptime startup, Ghost Inspector , wants to revolutionize the way businesses manage their ecommerce funnels. That is to say, they’d want to be able to control costs and revenues at a high level.

Private Equity 94

Private Equity Pre-Money Valuation Equity Startup 94

Gust

DECEMBER 7, 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. At least wait until later, when you ready to scale, and have some “leverage” based on a proven business model, some real customers, and real revenue.

Bootstrapping 191

Bootstrapping Entrepreneur Startup Burn Rate 191

Up and Running

MAY 15, 2019

Friends and family are the most common backers, and many startups bootstrap. Some cities, such as Portland, Oregon also have what Patrick calls “beer angels”—private angel investors who understand the beer business and invest in select breweries and cideries. There’s no one model—or one business plan—for breweries.

Oregon 24

Oregon Jordan Software Review Distribution 24

Spencer Fry

MAY 2, 2014

As a bootstrapped company, we cannot afford to have so much time between releases. Why Bootstrapping is Good and Bad. Why Bootstrapping is Good and Bad. Bootstrapping Uncover has been both good and bad. Where bootstrapping has helped us is that it has given us time to design, build and experiment. Never again.

Bootstrapping 57

Bootstrapping Revenue Product Development Forecast 57

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 17, 2023

For example, if you have a proven product, real revenue, a big potential market, and are ready to scale up the business, every investor will be interested. At this point, most Angel investors and a few early-stage VCs will be happy to talk, assuming you have the business model validated, and a large opportunity.

Angel Investor 313

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Investment Bankers Private Equity 313