Both Sides of the Table

MAY 7, 2011

As an example, Joel says that there is a chief revenue officer who is solely responsible for bringing in revenue to StackExchange. He is responsible for bringing in revenue from advertising and their careers offering. The original business model for StackOverflow was to help employers find good programmers.

Software Review 285

Software Review Software St. Louis API 285

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 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

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 14, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, April 14, 2009 Validated learning about customers Would you rather have $30,000 or $1 million in revenues for your startup? All things being equal, of course, you’d rather have more revenue rather than less. And yet revenue alone is not a sufficient goal. More on that in a moment.

Customer 167

Customer San Francisco Lean Hockey Stick 167

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

Life Beyond Code

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

One Million by One Million is a global initiative that aims to nurture a million entrepreneurs reach a million dollars each in annual revenue and beyond by 2020, thereby creating a trillion dollars in global GDP and ten million jobs. 1M/1M Program has a bold mission. This is where numerous ventures fail.

Programming 116

Programming Silicon Valley Bootstrapping Technical Review 116

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 14, 2016

Once the most heavily funded startup in New York City, according to then-CEO Jason Goldberg, Fab blew through $200 million of its $336 million in VC cash without settling on a business model. It was able to reinvest that cash into the business, creating immediate and dramatic revenue growth. Go it alone.

Venture Capital 100

Venture Capital Securities and Exchange Commission New York City Cofounder 100

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

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

Startup Lessons Learned

JUNE 5, 2009

And so the spreadsheet is built with conservative assumptions, including a final revenue target. No matter how low we make the revenue projections for this new product, it’s extremely unlikely that they are achievable. That’s because the model is based on assumptions about customers that are totally unproven.

San Francisco 102

San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment Startup 102

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

Up and Running

JULY 10, 2017

Different sources define freemium as a business model or a pricing strategy. Solving the equation of value and revenue for your SaaS product is not easy. If you are a bootstrapped DIY solopreneur, you should estimate your chances and think twice before choosing your VC-funded, 200-employees-strong competitor’s pricing strategy.

Startup 110

Startup Non-Compete Viral Software Review 110

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 30, 2019

That means coming up with revenue and expense assumptions that balance your natural optimism and determine how much cash the business will really need. Then take your revenue projections and cut them in half. Are you going to bootstrap, or borrow from personal assets? Don’t formalize the business until you get revenue.

Early Stage 317

Early Stage Bootstrapping Revenue Framework 317

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 4, 2020

Angel investors will perk up if you have a prototype or a few real customers, while venture capitalists will likely choose to wait until you have achieved several million in revenue or customer count. Be prepared to explain your business model. How much do you really need for the next 12 to 18 months?

Startup 337

Startup Preferred Stock Exit Strategy Equity 337

Steve Blank

NOVEMBER 7, 2013

What CEOs, management teams and shareholders care about is growth —revenue growth, greater user adoption, increased market share, bigger margins, etc. For most big, established companies like us, our business models were developed years—even decades ago. in developing these new models. And why wouldn’t it be?

Lean 331

Lean Nepal Cofounder Customer Development 331

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 20, 2015

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 120

Business Model Angel Investor Startup Bootstrapping 120

Sophia Perl of Wisdom

NOVEMBER 9, 2010

Some of the finalists were generating revenues already and/or have very promising strategic partnerships lined up. Raise more money than you need because your business model may change. The business model for residential solar panel company: contract with customer, local rebates, and tax benefits.

CTO Hire 49

CTO Hire Cofounder Fractional CTO San Francisco 49

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JANUARY 13, 2015

Often your best estimate of any metric or market behavior or business model component is at best accurate within a power of ten, for example “expected conversion rate between 0.5% and 5%” or “cost to acquire a customer between $50 and $500″ or “average monthly revenue per customer between $20 and $200.”

Business Model 120

Business Model Affiliate Startup Bootstrapping 120