Steve Blank

FEBRUARY 23, 2013

My friend Ron Ashkenas interviewed me for his blog on the Harvard Business Review. Ron is a managing partner of Schaffer Consulting , and is currently serving as an Executive-in-Residence at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. He is a co-author of The GE Work-Out and The Boundaryless Organization.

Business Model 334

Business Model Technical Review Business Plan Search 334

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 21, 2025

Advancements in technology can streamline processes and enhance customer experience, setting businesses apart from their competitors. Investing in technology can create a more efficient and user-friendly service, ultimately contributing to positive customer feedback.

Technical Review 144

Technical Review Government Operations Demand 144

Steve Blank

AUGUST 21, 2013

—— When I wrote Four Steps to the Epiphany and the Startup Owners Manual , I believed that Life Sciences startups didn’t need Customer Discovery. What we found is that during the class almost all of them pivoted - making substantive changes to one or more of their business model canvas components.

SBIR 321

SBIR Technical Review Lean Startup 321

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 7, 2013

I’m super excited to announce that GRP Partners led the investment in Ethan Anderson’s new company MyTime (link has LA-based merchants but will give you a good feel for the product). Let me not bury the lede. When Ethan was considering leaving Google we talked about it. The company was called Red Beacon. So there you have it.

Southern California 359

Southern California San Francisco CTO Hire SEM 359

Steve Blank

JANUARY 22, 2014

Dino Vendetti a VC at Bay Partners, moved up to Bend, Oregon on a mission to engineer Bend into a regional technology cluster. Success depends on finding startups that have identified acute customer pains in large markets where conditions are ripe for a new entrant. I visited Bend last year and caught up with his progress.

Early Stage 295

Early Stage Silicon Valley Oregon Technical Review 295

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

A version of this article first appeared in the Harvard Business Review. Since NewTV won’t be making the content, they will be licensing from and partnering with traditional entertainment producers. NewTV will depend on partners like telcos to distribute the content. ” Fire, Ready, Aim.

Lean 335

Lean Burn Rate Startup IPO 335

Steve Blank

JUNE 19, 2014

110 researchers and clinicians, and Principal Investigators got out of the lab and hospital, and talked to 2,355 customers, tested 947 hypotheses and invalidated 423 of them. clinical utility, customer, quality of data, reimbursement, what parts of the product are valuable, roles of CRO’s , and partners, etc.,)

Lean 277

Lean SBIR Intellectual Property Customer Development 277

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 25, 2023

No matter how well your business seems to have worked for you up to this point, you can be certain that it will need to be heavily transformed for tomorrow’s new world-wide economy and no industry sector boundaries. I will paraphrase their key strategy challenges here, with my own points added: You can be too focused on the short-term.

Partner 350

Partner Operations Metrics Leadership 350

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 30, 2020

I suggest looking for painful problems to solve, rather than “easier to use” or “nice to have” solutions, for customers with money. Customers line up to believe and buy from people who are viewed as leaders or experts relative to a specific solution. Get support from credible industry groups and partners.

Merger 386

Merger Software Review Acquisition Social Media 386

View from Seed

APRIL 14, 2020

But the risk to founders is that these investors may not be very committed partners and might quickly disengage if things go sideways. Business Models and Sectors. Also, companies that do find PMF and can attract capital will experience less competition for customers and employees.

Early Stage 374

Early Stage Software Review Technical Review Due Diligence 374

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 11, 2023

People respond to positives, such as new growth, versus problems implying costs and loss of customers. In every business, trust is the foundation of great teamwork, especially in dealing with constraints and challenges. This also applies to key customers as well as strategic partners.

Technical Review 277

Technical Review Partner Matching Channel 277

Steve Blank

JUNE 27, 2017

Initially, a startup has no business model and no market share to defend. If they select a business model that targets industry incumbents, they don’t have to worry about upsetting existing customers, partners or distribution channels. Its employees and investors don’t depend on an existing revenue stream.

Startup 306

Startup New York City Valuation Distribution 306

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 15, 2020

For success these days, the purpose better focus on people, and solve a real problem for customers. Building successful businesses still requires the ability to find and inspire the best people who “have what you haven't,” whether that be skills, knowledge, connections, or funding. Master-mind alliance. Imagination. Enthusiasm.

Technical Review 315

Technical Review Angel Investor Differentiation Business Model 315

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 10, 2023

Investor due diligence on a startup is not a mysterious black art, but is nothing more than a final integrity check on all aspects of your business model, team, product, customers, and plan. Know your partner well before you get married. Marty Zwilling

Technical Review 345

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Offshore 345

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 13, 2020

Message delivery must be customized for each investor. It takes more than one person to build a business, so the lone entrepreneur, without support from any visible team, advisors, partners, or potential customers, will not attract investors. A proven business model, ready to scale, is particularly attractive.

Intellectual Property 316

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Early Stage Venture Capital 316

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 12, 2022

For success these days, the purpose better focus on people, and solve a real problem for customers. Building successful businesses still requires the ability to find and inspire the best people who “have what you haven't,” whether that be skills, knowledge, connections, or funding. Master-mind alliance. Imagination. Enthusiasm.

Technical Review 297

Technical Review Angel Investor Differentiation Business Model 297

TechEmpower

JULY 31, 2023

What does the business do? How does it meet customers’ needs? One way to approach that last question is to use this simple model: Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) How will your business reach prospects? Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) How much money will your business generate from each converted customer?

Metrics 260

Metrics Startup Retention Acquisition 260

Steve Blank

APRIL 5, 2017

I was having coffee with the CEO of a new startup, listening to her puzzle through how to communicate to potential customers. I reminded her that all the Lean tools she learned in class–Customer Discovery, business model and value proposition canvases– contained her answer. Here’s how.

Marketing 318

Marketing Audience Technical Review PR 318

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2020

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Implement a modern real business model.

Management 322

Management Entrepreneur Forecast Stock Options 322

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 11, 2020

Investor due diligence on a startup is not a mysterious black art, but is nothing more than a final integrity check on all aspects of your business model, team, product, customers, and plan. Know your partner well before you get married. Marty Zwilling.

Technical Review 310

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Offshore 310

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Implement a modern real business model.

Forecast 304

Forecast Stock Options Technical Review Metrics 304

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2022

Message delivery must be customized for each investor. It takes more than one person to build a business, so the lone entrepreneur, without support from any visible team, advisors, partners, or potential customers, will not attract investors. A proven business model, ready to scale, is particularly attractive.

Intellectual Property 278

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Early Stage Venture Capital 278

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2018

According to most investors I know, traction is some clear evidence that the “dogs are eating the dog food” – usually meaning that you have at least one customer paying full price for your solution. Another term often mentioned is “momentum,” or growing visibility and advocacy within your customer set.

Advisory Board 199

Advisory Board Technical Review Metrics Business Model 199

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 21, 2020

In summary, entrepreneurs need to be especially perceptive and sensitive to business and personal relationships, since they normally work with small, closely-knit teams, on innovative and highly unstructured environments. In my experience, even the best technology and business model won’t succeed without successful relationships.

Business Model 339

Business Model Developer Entrepreneur Partner 339

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

NOVEMBER 5, 2014

It’s often said that you shouldn’t talk about price during customer development interviews. Your product is designed with natural tripwires to trigger other pricing ( Freemium model ), or not (business model left as an exercise to your future self). Even bootstrapped businesses can make this work (e.g.

Bootstrapping 294

Bootstrapping Technical Review B2C Sales Cycle 294

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 6, 2014

Message delivery must be customized for each investor. It takes more than one person to build a business, so the lone entrepreneur, without support from any visible team, advisors, partners, or potential customers, will not attract investors. A proven business model, ready to scale, is particularly attractive.

Angel Investor 268

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Early Stage 268

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 27, 2014

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers. Implement a modern real business model.

Startup 283

Startup Forecast Stock Options Technical Review 283

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 30, 2019

What every entrepreneur needs more than anything else, after they have built an innovative new product or service, is visibility, credibility, and trust by customers, potential employees, and future business partners. Being an author will attract top-notch talent to your business.

Technical Review 49

Technical Review Advertising Lead Generation Networking 49

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2023

Most business professionals I know have been conditioned to think of inflation as highly negative, driving up their costs, and reducing customer buying. I see it as an opportunity to find new ways to attract customers , make long-needed changes to improve productivity, and lower your own costs of doing business.

Technical Review 239

Technical Review Revenue Social Media Cost 239

Steve Blank

MARCH 31, 2014

The first will be commodity businesses that are valued for their ability to execute their current business model. The second class will be firms with a demonstrated ability to continually innovate and reinvent their business models. These innovations do not require change in a company’s existing business model.

Private Equity 330

Private Equity Metrics China Intellectual Property 330

Steve Blank

JUNE 8, 2021

Although the class was run completely online, and even though they were suffering from Zoom fatigue, the 10 teams of 42 students collectively interviewed 1,142 beneficiaries, stakeholders, requirements writers, program managers, industry partners, etc. How would customer interviews work via video? We Changed The Class Format.

Lean 417

Lean Security Asia SBIR 417

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 11, 2022

An effective tool I see used more and more, as a prelude to a more detailed business plan, is the Business Model Canvas , first introduced by Alexander Osterwalder back in 2008. In my experience as a new business advisor, a business is nothing until people are aligned and work in sync. Customer relationships.

Business Model 334

Business Model Intellectual Property Angel Investor Channel 334

Up and Running

OCTOBER 13, 2021

The world grows more impersonal by the day, and people crave being more than just another number in the customer queue. During the last few years, marketers have turned toward more personalized experiences to win customers over. Businesses must learn how to personalize the experience without asking for too much data up front.

Customer 118

Customer Marketing Artificial Inteligence Technical Review 118

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. Customer support is more than handling exceptions.

Business Model 273

Business Model Customer Angel Investor Bootstrapping 273

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2014

It has three parts: a business model canvas to frame hypotheses, customer development to get out of the building to test those hypotheses and agile engineering to build minimum viable products. Teaches you how to use Customer Development to test it. Integration with Customer Development and Lean Startup.

Business Model 335

Business Model Design Customer Development Lean 335

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 27, 2020

Entrepreneurs are currently looking at an environment that is unlike any other seen in the history of commerce, while leaders of businesses and startups have to think on-the-fly to learn what potential customers need most right now. Everyone is attempting to analyze the long-term effects of the current changes on human behavior.

Entrepreneur 246

Entrepreneur Technical Review Startup LLC 246

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2023

For example, a while back a passionate entrepreneur approached me with an innovative solution for reducing world hunger, but hadn’t focused on the fact that hungry people often don’t have any money, and governments are not easy customers. Solutions and inventions alone do not make a business.

Technical Review 201

Technical Review Government Agile Differentiation 201