A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 21, 2017

Startups shouldn’t act smug about this. Even for startups, it takes years for a new product to become good enough to demand many millions of dollars in revenue.). Even if this costs more than 2 years of in-house assembly, it’s still worth it, due to accelerating revenue growth due to up-sales and market-differentiation.

Balance Sheet 242

Balance Sheet Vertical Acquisition Revenue 242

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 15, 2020

This is still one of the most important competitive differentiators that you can offer. Anyone can have ideas, passion, and faith about an important business opportunity. They insist on greater efficiency, try new business models, organizational improvements, and better cash management. Applied faith.

Technical Review 315

Technical Review Angel Investor Differentiation Business Model 315

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 25, 2016

Many startup businesses – tech or otherwise – fail. Trying outrageous new things or even trying mundane things but in new ways but with extreme quality & innovation is what fuels the tech startup industry. But today I want to give you advice on how to decrease your odds of failure in a startup.

Startup 150

Startup Seed Money DC Software Review 150

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 12, 2022

This is still one of the most important competitive differentiators that you can offer. Anyone can have ideas, passion, and faith about an important business opportunity. They insist on greater efficiency, try new business models, organizational improvements, and better cash management. Applied faith.

Technical Review 297

Technical Review Angel Investor Differentiation Business Model 297

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2013

Every early-stage startup should explore this new funding alternative. Venture capital dispensed quarterly to startups actually declined again in the first quarter of 2013 to $6.3 VCs are finding that they don’t need the “large” funds of $100M to $500M to support a portfolio, if they focus on early-stage startups.

Angel Investor 231

Angel Investor Entrepreneur Early Stage Silicon Valley 231

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 22, 2008

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, September 22, 2008 The three drivers of growth for your business model. Master of 500 Hats: Startup Metrics for Pirates (SeedCamp 2008, London) This presentation should be required reading for anyone creating a startup with an online service component. Choose one. One last thought.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco CPA SEM CTO Hire 167

The Startup Magazine

APRIL 22, 2024

When it comes to startups, the focus often gravitates toward acquiring new customers, expanding market reach, and chasing growth metrics. However, amidst the frenzy of attracting fresh clientele, many startups overlook a critical aspect of sustainable success – client retention.

Retention 148

Retention Reputation Startup Social Network 148

YoungUpstarts

JULY 17, 2013

You want the starting market you have chosen to be narrow enough to allow your product/service to be easily differentiated, but not so narrow that there isn’t enough market for the business to be viable. Build a business model that scales. As you build your business model, dig deep to find the “what ifs.”

Georgia 238

Georgia Atlanta Sales Cycle Business Model 238

View from Seed

DECEMBER 6, 2018

Another full-stack short-term rentals startup ? It seems as though in many categories, especially in consumer internet space, a handful of startups pursuing quite similar or even apparently identical ideas launch within months of each other. Another d2c gourmet pet food company ? Another affinity-based co-working space?

Seed Stage 120

Seed Stage Startup Cofounder Stealth 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 6, 2023

Choose a business model that will win in the market. You need a business model that provides a good return for you and your team, long-term growth, value to your customer, and differentiates you from competitors. Many startups I know fail by simply giving up too soon.

Technical Review 201

Technical Review Government Agile Differentiation 201

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 18, 2019

The other aspect of the people roadmap is org-level team building necessary to unlock or accompany certain stages of the business. The decision around sequencing is equally (if not more) important, especially in the first 12-18 months of the business as you search for PMF and test out your initial go-to-market (GTM) strategy.

Part-Time VPE 195

Part-Time VPE Seed Stage CTO Hire Forecast 195

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 16, 2011

During today's roundtable, we had four Microsoft BizSpark Startup India Challenge grant finalists present. Freshdesk First, Girish Mathrubootham from Chennai, India, pitched Freshdesk , a SaaS company that provides small and medium businesses with on-demand customer support software that offers multi-channel social support.

India 123

India Bootstrapping Non-Compete Entrepreneur 123

Up and Running

DECEMBER 6, 2012

Lean Planning is a set of tools for discovering a business model that works, building an action plan to test your assumptions, creating financial models and a plan for a viable business, and tracking your performance so you can adjust your plan on the fly, quickly and easily. Do startups have a manual?

Lean 147

Lean Silicon Valley Forecast Technical Review 147

The Startup Magazine

AUGUST 14, 2019

Your genius idea has a company name behind it, and you’re finally in the startup phase of your budding business. Hiring new talent is an inevitable and critical part of starting your own business, and it’s an exciting indication that your original idea has finally found its footing— now it just needs the manpower.

Hiring 128

Hiring Employee Social Media Technical Review 128

ReadWriteStart

MARCH 8, 2021

Every startup entrepreneur wants to see their company grow. But none of that can happen if you have an impediment to growth – an invisible (or perhaps visible) force keeping your startup from creating the momentum it needs to keep growing. . What is this business’s course of growth? Or is it? . The Competitive Edge.

Startup 127

Startup Retention Acquisition Agile 127

Gust

NOVEMBER 14, 2011

For no good reason, this process seems shrouded in mystery, when in fact it is nothing more than a final integrity check on all aspects of your business model, team, product, customers, and plan. Business and financial status. How well have you met previous financial and business milestones?

Technical Review 152

Technical Review Due Diligence Intellectual Property Private Equity 152

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 22, 2010

For no good reason, this process seems shrouded in mystery, when in fact it is nothing more than a final integrity check on all aspects of your business model, team, product, customers, and plan. Business and financial status. How well have you met previous financial and business milestones?

Technical Review 225

Technical Review Due Diligence Intellectual Property Private Equity 225

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2017

The “product” value is difficult to quantify, the costs are nebulous, and entrepreneurs have to clone themselves to scale the business. Many are reluctant to really “market” themselves, and have trouble differentiating their offerings to clients, except by price. They expect reviews and testimonials from other clients.

Differentiation 141

Differentiation SBA Social Media Dividend 141

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 1, 2011

Mike Yavonditte is the founder of the “super hot&# Hashable , a startup out of NYC that has been described as a “ Mint.com for Social Capital ” Mike sold his previous company, Quigo , to Aol for $340 Million. Of course, monetization of search became one of the best business models in the history of business.

Semantic 302

Semantic Acquisition Valuation Angel Investor 302

The Startup Magazine

SEPTEMBER 13, 2017

Also, before you invest a dime, the franchisor will give you a Franchise Disclosure Document, laying out in detail, pertinent information about the franchisors history, its business model, any litigation and much more. George contributes to the startup community with his business development advice and guidance.

Technical Review 139

Technical Review Differentiation Operations Restful 139

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 26, 2018

And a disapproval or delayed clearance can put a startup out of business. This by itself is a key differentiator for the Watch as a healthcare device. The other interesting observation: Unlike other medical device companies, Apple’s current Watch business model is not dependent on getting insurers to pay for the watch.

China 67

China Technical Review Software Review Algorithm 67

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 29, 2011

I expect that should seem intuitive to all entrepreneurs, but every investor I know has many stories about startup funding requests with major business model elements missing. I support her assertion that a business model consists of at least the first seven of the following ten basic elements: Value proposition.

Business Model 246

Business Model Distribution Viral Green 246

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 2, 2022

I expect that should seem intuitive to all entrepreneurs, but every investor I know has many stories about startup funding requests with major business model elements missing. The most common failures are solutions looking for a problem, lack of a defined market, or an inadequate revenue model. Target market.

Business Model 256

Business Model Distribution Viral Green 256

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 14, 2012

I expect that should seem intuitive to all entrepreneurs, but every investor I know has many stories about startup funding requests with major business model elements missing. I support her assertion that a business model consists of at least the first seven of the following ten basic elements: Value proposition.

Business Model 242

Business Model Distribution Viral Green 242

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 21, 2012

One of the toughest decisions for a startup is how to price their product or service. The implications of the decision you make are huge, defining your brand image, your funding requirements, and your long-term business viability. So what are some of the most common revenue models being used by startups today?

Business Model 282

Business Model Revenue Portfolio Differentiation 282

ReadWriteStart

OCTOBER 2, 2023

I’ll start by taking you to the world of Startup X, a passionate team of entrepreneurs who believed they had the next big thing in the world of software as a service (SaaS). It’s disheartening, but sadly, this is one experience that many startup founders face. Do you find yourself and your project in a similar position?

Design 105

Design Product Churn Rate Architecture 105

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 28, 2015

Too many entrepreneurs look for that one magic bullet -- an exciting new technology, perhaps, or their own determination to make the world a better place -- to override any shortcomings in their startup model. Yet, magic bullets are not sufficient to assure business success. A large and growing market opportunity.

Exit Strategy 120

Exit Strategy Technical Review Distribution Viral 120

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 19, 2013

Guest post by Lisa Regan, writer for The Lean Startup Conference. As we’ve mentioned before , this year’s Lean Startup Conference features a lot of speakers who have incredible expertise to share but are new to our event. However, what often happens is a startup builds a product people like but don''t love.

Mobile 167

Mobile Developer Technical Review Lean 167

Up and Running

MARCH 11, 2020

When starting a new business you should consider the potential industries your company may have the best opportunity to compete in. To help with this, we’ve compiled a list of the top 4 industries that show the most promise for startups in 2020. Why Transportation Industry Businesses are Trending. SAAS Business Startup Guide .

Technical Review 97

Technical Review Green Silicon Valley Non-Compete 97

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 28, 2018

This is still one of the most important competitive differentiators that you can offer. Anyone can have ideas, passion, and faith about an important business opportunity. They insist on greater efficiency, try new business models, organizational improvements, and better cash management. Applied faith.

Technical Review 134

Technical Review Angel Investor Differentiation Business Model 134

ConversionXL

JUNE 14, 2021

In this guide, you’ll learn how to differentiate your business and attract your ideal customers by creating a unique selling proposition. This leads to brands and startups playing a game of catch up on each other’s features. How do they differentiate from other competitors (including yourself) and handle objections?

Software Review 158

Software Review Audience Differentiation Framework 158

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

OCTOBER 24, 2011

It’s Episode 3 my little “ Loveline for startups. ” Introduced a few months ago as an Austin event, I’m now doing this live audio advice column to the web, taking phone calls from startups around the country. My co-hosts were Bob Walsh and Patrick Foley , hosts of the well-known Startup Success Podcast.

Cofounder 208

Cofounder Technical Review Software Review Differentiation 208

VC Cafe

APRIL 4, 2024

This creates a challenge, but also an opportunity for startups in the generative AI space. 70% of the startups in the current batch (170 out of 243) are AI companies. How can startups even compete against big tech, scale ups and other startups? Case in point: this week was Ycombinator’s W24 demo day.

Generative AI 78

Generative AI Artificial Inteligence Technical Review ChatGPT 78

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 31, 2014

One of the toughest decisions for a startup is how to price their product or service. The implications of the decision you make are huge, defining your brand image, your funding requirements, and your long-term business viability. So what are some of the most common revenue models being used by startups today?

Revenue 287

Revenue Startup Business Model Retention 287

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 24, 2020

Every existing business, as well as every startup, needs to reassess their product or service in the context of these five forces: Intensity of competitive rivalry. This is where most current business plan analyses focus today. A key is your differential advantage from alternatives. Way back in 1979, Michael E.

Differentiation 378

Differentiation Framework Equity Business Plan 378

View from Seed

AUGUST 17, 2021

You’ll never have the staying power to commit when things get tough or to get really good and build real differentiation if you just keep jumping to the next new thing. It’s conventional wisdom to say that it doesn’t, and that startups should keep their head down and execute.

IRR 205

IRR Dilution Founder Portfolio 205

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 20, 2017

by Amanda Setili, author of “ Fearless Growth: The New Rules to Stay Competitive, Foster Innovation, and Dominate Your Markets “ Growth has always been fundamental to business success, but it’s never been more critical than it is now. Problem is, the same forces that make growth imperative also make it incredibly daunting.

Technical Review 147

Technical Review Malaysia Agile Employee 147