A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

NOVEMBER 5, 2014

” How many times have you heard someone agree that “it would be great if someone did X,” but when show them someone did do X, but it costs $39.99, they don’t buy? Consider the consequences of these monthly pricing possibilities: $0/mo means your goal is to maximize growth (trust and usage) instead of revenue.

Bootstrapping 294

Bootstrapping Technical Review B2C Sales Cycle 294

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2012

For example, with any outside investment, you give up some ownership and control, and with bootstrapping your growth curve will likely be longer and more organic. Following is my prioritized larger list of sources, with some “rules of thumb” which may save you a lot of time and energy: Bootstrapping. Friends and family.

Technical Review 257

Technical Review Bootstrapping Venture Capital Incubator 257

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 25, 2020

Of course, if you are able to bootstrap your startup, and don’t anticipate the need for outside investors, you can technically ignore the first two points. If you can convince investors that your startup will generate a solid revenue stream, and the market won’t go away any time soon, they may see an opportunity for an ever larger return.

Exit Strategy 376

Exit Strategy Startup Private Equity Equity 376

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

OCTOBER 11, 2010

WhenBusy is a bootstrapped startup that lets people schedule meetings with you in currently-available time-slots without you having to share your calendar [disclosure: I'm an advisor]. Yeah yeah, nowadays marketing is about "relationships" and "authority" and other things which cost time but not money. Infection built-in, not bolt-on.

Software Review 261

Software Review Technical Review Viral Software Developers 261

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 16, 2011

For example, with any outside investment, you give up some ownership and control, and with bootstrapping your growth curve will likely be longer and more organic. Following is my prioritized larger list of sources, with some “rules of thumb” which may save you a lot of time and energy: Bootstrapping. Friends and family.

Technical Review 233

Technical Review Bootstrapping Startup Venture Capital 233

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 17, 2021

I recently found the classic sales training book “ Bootstrap Selling The Sandler Way ,” by Bill Morrison, who has 20 years in sales leadership roles, and I was amazed at how many of his sales lessons are great lessons for new entrepreneurs as well. With the best solutions, the customer gets value which exceeds your revenue.

Sales 348

Sales Startup Bootstrapping Technical Review 348

SoCal CTO

MARCH 1, 2010

Startup Killer: the Cost of Customer Acquisition | For Entrepreneurs , February 2, 2010 Looks at the critical equation around customer acquisition cost vs. customer lifetime value similar to what I discussed in Startup Metrics but in more depth. Jason looks at the issues around "sunk cost." Great stuff.

Acquisition 150

Acquisition Cofounder Technical Cofounder Cost 150

ReadWriteStart

DECEMBER 15, 2022

Client work serves as an additional source of revenue to form new startups. This outside work provides a valuable source of revenue able to be used to fund operations. It also helps bootstrap new startup businesses. Over time, this revenue reduces the dependency on outside venture capital sources.

Incubator 188

Incubator Startup Software Developers Software Development 188

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Solicit funds from friends and family.

Intellectual Property 134

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 134

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. High User Acquisition Costs: The landscape for acquiring new users has become increasingly complex and expensive.

Technical Review 78

Technical Review B2C Generative AI IPO 78

Gust

APRIL 27, 2014

Unless you are bootstrapping everything, you need to have a clear plan on what networking and documents are required to get to friends and family, Angel investors, and institutional investors. Billing and revenue collection. Here is another often overlooked area of process that kills many startups, both in cost and time.

Startup 187

Startup Institutional Investors Angel Investor Bootstrapping 187

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 12, 2014

Of course, if you are able to bootstrap your startup, and don’t anticipate the need for outside investors, you can technically ignore the first two points. If you can convince investors that your startup will generate a solid revenue stream, and the market won’t go away any time soon, they may see an opportunity for an ever larger return.

Exit Strategy 289

Exit Strategy Entrepreneur IPO Startup 289

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. Nevertheless, it’s an option that doesn’t cost you equity. Solicit funds from friends and family.

Entrepreneur 120

Entrepreneur Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 120

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 25, 2023

Of course, if you are able to bootstrap your startup, and don’t anticipate the need for outside investors, you can technically ignore the first two points. If you can convince investors that your startup will generate a solid revenue stream, and the market won’t go away any time soon, they may see an opportunity for an ever larger return.

Exit Strategy 264

Exit Strategy Private Equity Equity Technical Review 264

The Entrepreneurial Mind

AUGUST 3, 2010

Such facilities can take a lot of cash to launch due to the cost of facility rent and equipment costs, and the aspiring entrepreneur had no ready source of cash. The point is that some modest tweaks to the business model may bring costs way down and still meet the need of the market. It was profitable within nine months.

Bootstrapping 75

Bootstrapping Business Model Software Review Programming 75

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 16, 2011

For the uninitiated, Zoho introduced a CRM system that was one-tenth the price of Salesforce.com and penetrated the lower end of the market using an Indian cost structure. 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.

India 123

India Bootstrapping Non-Compete Entrepreneur 123

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 24, 2017

Subscription business brings recurring revenue. This allows you to enjoy a constant source of incoming revenue, as long as you’re keeping the subscribers satisfied (that is of course essential). Through customer acquisition, you’ll work to grow the revenue and then, use that revenue to cover operational costs.

Churn Rate 149

Churn Rate eCommerce Business Model Bootstrapping 149

Gust

JUNE 17, 2012

For example, with any outside investment, you give up some ownership and control, and with bootstrapping your growth curve will likely be longer and more organic. Following is my prioritized larger list of sources, with some “rules of thumb” which may save you a lot of time and energy: Bootstrapping. Friends and family.

Technical Review 164

Technical Review Bootstrapping Venture Capital Incubator 164

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 1, 2010

For example, with any outside investment, you give up some ownership and control, and with bootstrapping you growth curve will likely be longer and more organic. Following is my prioritized larger list of sources, with some “rules of thumb” which may save you a lot of time and energy: Bootstrapping. Friends and family.

Technical Review 149

Technical Review Bootstrapping Startup Venture Capital 149

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

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. It is going to cost a lot of money just to get the initial batch of products to test the market and would definitely require external funding. Bootstrapping.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 31, 2018

Here are some tips for bootstrapping your business. Another important way to save money during the early years is to avoid payroll costs by employing virtual assistants. Write down every penny you have to invest and calculate both your expenses and expected revenue for the next six months. Work in a Spare Room. Develop a Budget.

Software Review 187

Software Review Cloud Social Media Bootstrapping 187

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 2, 2019

Not only does the outsourcing business model improve performance and reduce a company’s overall costs – a significant appeal to bootstrapped startups – but it also gives you access to a worldwide talent pool that would otherwise be beyond your range. Inefficiencies can often cost businesses between 20-30% of their annual revenue.

Technical Review 147

Technical Review Due Diligence Technical Support Bootstrapping 147

Gust

JUNE 19, 2012

For example, with any outside investment, you give up some ownership and control, and with bootstrapping your growth curve will likely be longer and more organic. The Cost Equation for a Startup is Better Than Ever. Most plans are pretty good about estimating direct costs but bad about underlying expenses. June 17th, 2012.

Startup 180

Startup Forecast Angel Investor Software 180

ReadWriteStart

OCTOBER 7, 2010

Sub-$2 million pre-money, it is better to bootstrap. He seems to be worried about server costs and such and is trying to do high dollar value deals without reference customers. As long as the deals cover his infrastructure costs, he should not be worried. If you have to raise money, try to do so as convertible notes.

Valuation 119

Valuation Silicon Valley Pre-Money Valuation Bootstrapping 119

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 3, 2014

When someone asks me for the best way to fund a startup, I always say bootstrap it, meaning fund it yourself and grow organically. Bootstrapping avoids all the cost, pain, and distractions of finding angels or VCs, and allows you to keep control and all your hard-earned equity for yourself. Do it yourself. Marty Zwilling.

Bootstrapping 278

Bootstrapping Startup Merger Salary 278

YoungUpstarts

JULY 6, 2017

This strategy, known as bootstrapping, is ideally suited to businesses which don’t need a large influx of capital early on in order to finance growth and which are already generating revenues. Bootstrapping has a number of advantages compared to other fundraising strategies. Understand the Tax Code.

Syndicate 127

Syndicate Syndication Software Review Angel Investor 127

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JULY 24, 2012

It’s quite simple, which is when you had systems where you had limitations on distribution or transportation of products, it enabled you to operate with a certain cost structure. That cost structure for traditional industry, for historic reason, remains high. I bootstrapped it on my own. Trying to learn this environment.

Silicon Valley 204

Silicon Valley Software Review Internet Technical Review 204

ReadWriteStart

MAY 30, 2022

The cost of the money you receive may be more than you’re willing to give. In this article, you’ll learn how bootstrapping makes you a better business – a leaner, smarter, more agile company that can roll with the punches. Stacking costs early in your entrepreneurial career makes you vulnerable to failure.

Bootstrapping 147

Bootstrapping Startup Equity Silicon Valley 147

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

APRIL 29, 2013

One of the root questions you have at the start, which is supposed to be data-driven (but you don’t have data) is: What’s the maximum I should bid for CPC (cost-per-click) campaigns like Google AdWords? ” Easy for them to say, but what about a bootstrapped, profit-driven business?

Bootstrapping 285

Bootstrapping Affiliate Cofounder Channel 285

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 24, 2015

By bootstrapping, bartering, reducing overheads (rental and manpower), and leveraging technology (especially the web), one can start one’s own business almost on a dime without being beholden to creditors or venture capitalists. This spanned the following areas: #1 Generate Higher Revenue. Growth & Sustenance Strategies.

Technical Review 100

Technical Review Software Review South Carolina Startup 100

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

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JANUARY 11, 2010

In the last interview Peldi Guilizzoni (Balsamiq Studios) gave detailed advice about how he earned almost a million dollars in revenue in his first year of operation. But it costs a lot in time and effort — another scarce resource. They're rarely actionable or insightful. This interview is uncommonly different.

Entrepreneur 225

Entrepreneur Social Media Software Web 225

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 18, 2020

It’s more possible to bootstrap today than a few years ago, as the cost of entry continues to go down. The key to successful bootstrapping is to master the do-it-yourself approach, defer compensation or barter services whenever possible and become a frugal minimalist in all things requiring a cash outlay.

Hockey Stick 423

Hockey Stick Bootstrapping Sweat Equity Intellectual Property 423

ReadWriteStart

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

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. But when I found out that Rajeev is a computer engineer, I suggested to him to build a cost-effective SEO services firm, which would be more interesting.

Cloud 117

Cloud Fractional CTO Entrepreneur Bandwidth 117

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 27, 2014

This was a company that had successfully bootstrapped itself to real revenues, employees and cashflow and I thought it deserved the structure of a going concern, not a flier. Perhaps they need to rethink that "back the founder at all costs" mentality. At first, I thought I was making a mistake. Perhaps we all should.

Term Sheet 156

Term Sheet Founder Cofounder Software Review 156

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

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. For background, see Revenue-Based Investing: A New Option for Founders who Care About Control. Our wheelhouse is bootstrapped (or lightly capitalized) SMB SaaS. Bigfoot Capital.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60