JANUARY 9, 2014

By trying to appeal to everyone and adding features left, right and centre, you will actually dilute your message and could end up with a complex, bloated product. Building something nobody wants The right product is simple, compelling, and aligned with the business model. Quote from John Wilshire, Artefact Cards 4.

Early Stage 102

Early Stage Startup Cofounder Design 102

View from Seed

APRIL 30, 2015

Business model? NVV: Is there any dilution? GM: There are warrants attached to these loans, but it’s a pretty nominal dilution and pretty low cost of capital for an entrepreneur, which is usually part of the appeal. The fact that the process can be much smoother and quicker can actually be a benefit. Traction and revenue?

Term Sheet 120

Term Sheet Equity Startup Seed Stage 120

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Of course, that doesn’t dilute the owner’s equity, but it may well limit you to organic growth, versus international rollouts and acquisition options. Business model to maintain lifestyle is the primary driver. Non-equity funding has to come from personal sources, or government grants, or bank loans.

Entrepreneur 371

Entrepreneur Equity Dilution LLC 371

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 23, 2021

Yet every change can cause brand dilution or competition you don’t need. Most of us can still remember when Ford expanded into Brazil with the Pinto model, not realizing the translation had a negative sexual connotation, which severely hurt Ford’s brand in many countries for all models.

Leadership 426

Leadership Management Brazil Differentiation 426

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2021

Investors are looking for technology, process, or business model breakthroughs, to move costs to a new level. The focus is diluted, it’s hard to keep up with individual product changes, and you will always be on the defensive. This approach is not convincing. Startup team with experience and connections is this domain.

Intellectual Property 417

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Dilution Differentiation 417

The Next Web

AUGUST 19, 2013

His passions are business process automation, surfing, and his new baby girl Maya. ?. Sales are the bloodstream for most businesses, and tech startups are no exception. It’s always better to be earn money, not just raise it, as money you earn doesn’t dilute your ownership and reassures your investors. Step 3: Test your channels.

Belarus 137

Belarus Viral Channel Startup 137

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 31, 2020

In fact, they may fear team leadership as a burden, or a potential dilution of their ownership. Believe it or not, the business world changes even faster than technology, so you need to see changes coming in your industry, and even drive them. Certainly interfacing to the outside world may not be an inventor forte.

Founder 312

Founder Intellectual Property Dilution Startup 312

K9 Ventures

JUNE 12, 2012

Founders typically get their equity in a company once — at the time of founding and then get diluted with each subsequent round of financing. Then the same company gets encouraged to spend that money to accelerate and to grow quickly, which in turn means it runs out of that money more quickly, and then needs to raise even more money.

Venture Capital 117

Venture Capital Silicon Valley Founder Seed Stage 117

David Teten

JANUARY 21, 2021

Jonathan Bragdon , CEO, describes Capacity as “a team of founders-turned-funders making non-dilutive, founder-aligned investments of $50-$300k in post-startup, post-revenue businesses planning to 2X revenues in 12-24 months. Capacity Capital , based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, was launched in 2020 with a primary focus on the Southeast.

Equity 78

Equity Revenue Cofounder Colorado 78

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 17, 2022

This can cause early investor dilution, lower ultimate returns or leave the startup stranded. It’s the right way to get money without giving up too much equity or control of your business. Yet, in my view, every early-stage entrepreneur should be exploring this new funding alternative before approaching VCs. Marty Zwilling.

Angel Investor 342

Angel Investor Silicon Valley Venture Capital Portfolio 342

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 4, 2020

If your financial model projects a negative cash flow in this period of $400,000, you should buffer this amount by 25 percent, and ask for $500,000. Be prepared to explain your business model. Most professional investors will expect preferred stock, a board seat, rights to later rounds and perhaps anti-dilution protection.

Startup 337

Startup Preferred Stock Exit Strategy Equity 337

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 19, 2020

This can cause early investor dilution, lower ultimate returns or leave the startup stranded. It’s the right way to get money without giving up too much equity or control of your business. Yet, in my view, every early-stage entrepreneur should be exploring this new funding alternative before approaching VCs. Marty Zwilling.

Angel Investor 314

Angel Investor Silicon Valley Venture Capital Startup 314

K9 Ventures

JUNE 12, 2012

Founders typically get their equity in a company once — at the time of founding and then get diluted with each subsequent round of financing. Then the same company gets encouraged to spend that money to accelerate and to grow quickly, which in turn means it runs out of that money more quickly, and then needs to raise even more money.

Venture Capital 105

Venture Capital Silicon Valley Founder Seed Stage 105

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2020

Founder insistence on non-dilute clauses, arms-length relationships, and quick closure without due diligence will short-circuit active interest. Undefined business model or very low gross margins. Naïve expectations on funding terms and process. Dysfunctional or non-functional team members.

Due Diligence 308

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Preferred Stock Startup 308

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 7, 2022

If your financial model projects a negative cash flow in this period of $400,000, you should buffer this amount by 25 percent, and ask for $500,000. Be prepared to explain your business model. Most professional investors will expect preferred stock, a board seat, rights to later rounds and perhaps anti-dilution protection.

Preferred Stock 304

Preferred Stock Exit Strategy Equity Angel Investor 304

ReadWriteStart

JANUARY 27, 2011

I have discussed at length why revenue sharing channel deals may serve as perfectly fine alternatives to raising equity (or even complements) because of their non-dilutive nature. Persistent is breaking out of the mold of labor arbitrage, and looking at new and exciting business models.

Dilution 114

Dilution Revenue Finance Entrepreneur 114

Tim Keane

JANUARY 12, 2010

3]   However, if they are built bottom up, they demonstrate and make explicit a range of business model assumptions the entrepreneur is using to think about his business and its revenue model. .   And if they are built from the top down, they’re pretty much useless. [3]

Term Sheet 68

Term Sheet Valuation Dividend Liquidation Preference 68

Life Beyond Code

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

He has veered away from angel financing, and has decided to bootstrap with customer money, and preserve equity ownership, foregoing any immediate dilution related to financing. Dan Stewart, President at Happy Grasshopper, has successfully generated a nice revenue stream, and is negotiating large enterprise deals.

Programming 116

Programming Silicon Valley Bootstrapping Technical Review 116

VC Cafe

MARCH 12, 2025

It is crucial to recognise that while these ventures capitalise on the current AI trend, their core innovation may reside in market application and business model rather than fundamental AI breakthroughs. You can alternative between SAFE and equity rounds, but the dilution impact of several consecutive SAFE notes can be too great.

Artificial Inteligence 97

Artificial Inteligence Seed Stage Israel Valuation 97

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 11, 2022

Founder insistence on non-dilute clauses, arms-length relationships, and quick closure without due diligence will short-circuit active interest. Undefined business model or very low gross margins. Naïve expectations on funding terms and process. Dysfunctional or non-functional team members.

Due Diligence 271

Due Diligence Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Preferred Stock 271

betashop.com

OCTOBER 8, 2012

But, you can iterate and iterate on features, but you cannot iterate your way to a business model. I’ve seen too many businesses get stuck or fail because of their endless pursuit for the magic new feature that is going to help them gain traction. Don’t skimp on fundraising because of dilution fears.?. This is tricky.

Technical Review 108

Technical Review Technology Software Review Valuation 108

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 26, 2010

It doesn’t mean that you should change your business model because one person suggested it, but listed to the feedback and if you see similar patterns over and over again, make changes. Patents are nice but… in a consumer Internet business, it’s most likely that you aren’t re-inventing the wheel.

Elevator Pitch 102

Elevator Pitch Incubator Technical Review Startup 102

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 27, 2014

This can cause early investor dilution, lower ultimate returns or leave the startup stranded. It’s the right way to get money without giving up too much equity or control of your business. Yet, in my view, every early-stage entrepreneur should be exploring this new funding alternative before approaching VCs.

Angel Investor 260

Angel Investor Silicon Valley Startup Portfolio 260

David Teten

AUGUST 19, 2019

I’ve been a traditional equity VC for 8 years, and I’m now researching new business models in venture capital. Benefits: Non-dilutive, flexible credit offerings that fit SMB or enterprise SaaS. This structure offers some of the benefits of traditional equity VC, without some of the negatives of equity VC. over next 12 months.

Revenue 60

Revenue Technical Review Software Review Equity 60

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

That said, Jonathan Bragdon, General Partner, Capacity Capital , points out that Flexible VC terms “twin” well with equity: providing less dilution while still providing investor assistance. . Typical business stage. An already proven business model and its already valuable assets. Typical business model.

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

View from Seed

OCTOBER 28, 2019

The milestones and the funding rounds to accomplish everything before that are much more specific and idiosyncratic to the specific startup based on the business model, sector, team composition, etc. We at NextView Ventures believe that the seed stage is a spectrum. A continuum.

Seed Stage 247

Seed Stage Finance Dilution Early Stage 247

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 14, 2014

Investors are looking for technology, process, or business model breakthroughs, to move costs to a new level. The focus is diluted, it’s hard to keep up with individual product changes, and you will always be on the defensive. This approach is not convincing. Startup team with experience and connections is this domain.

Intellectual Property 234

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Dilution Differentiation 234

Gust

AUGUST 30, 2012

Team, Business Model, Traction, Customer Acquisition, Scalability, Defensibiity, Capital Efficiency, Churn, Time to Breakeven, Exit Strategy. Integrity, Passion, Startup Experience, Domain Expertise, Functional Skills, Leadership, Commitment, Vision, Pragmatism, Flexibility, Personality. Characteristics of the Venture.

Founder Vesting 144

Founder Vesting Option Pool Vesting Exit Strategy 144

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 26, 2019

Of course, that doesn’t dilute the owner’s equity, but it may well limit you to organic growth, versus international rollouts and acquisition options. Business model to maintain lifestyle is the primary driver. Non-equity funding has to come from personal sources, or government grants, or bank loans.

Startup 194

Startup Equity Dilution LLC 194

Version One Ventures

SEPTEMBER 12, 2017

And most importantly, most companies cannot and should not do an ICO as their business model is not decentralized and hence their token has no utility value, Yet, with all that said, I still believe that this wave of decentralized platforms will be the biggest disruptor to hit the VC industry over the next decade. Here’s why: 1.

Venture Capital 164

Venture Capital LP Dilution Limited Partner 164

Austin Startup

FEBRUARY 13, 2019

Not necessarily the entire business, but at some point, something will fail and you’ll either learn from it and grow or it will be the beginning of the end. Either way, if you know you’re going to fail, it’s much better to do so with your own money on the line than money that also costs you in dilution, perpetuity or more.

Strategic Investors 49

Strategic Investors Austin Angel Investor Bootstrapping 49

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 12, 2010

So to me they are really just diluting the power of their brands but because many of them have never been entrepreneurs they probably don’t even realize it. I know Jason Calacanis did because he and I have spoken several times on This Week in Startups & This Week in VC about how these programs are disrespectful.

Programming 294

Programming Entrepreneur Private Equity Equity 294

Duct Tape Marketing

APRIL 7, 2022

Marcel Petitpas (04:22): Yeah, it, it's a really tough question because so much of this comes down to the nuance of the business model, but the way that I encourage people to think about this is number one, focus on four key areas of the business. The software sucks, whatever cool. Anyway, they get to do it.

Cofounder 94

Cofounder Hosting Networking Software Review 94

The Startup Magazine

JULY 1, 2022

How To Create A Business Model And Identify Your Target Market. Creating a business model is an essential step in starting a business. Once you understand the different types of companies and their structures, you need to identify your target market and choose a business model that fits your startup.

Technology 148

Technology Venture Capital Startup Finance 148

View from Seed

APRIL 24, 2019

Along those lines, there was a set of personal concierge models which launched a few years back like Magic , Operator , and 26 other alternatives (including my own personal favorite Delegate , as I’m a happy customer). Like with email, there is risk that the channel becomes diluted and somewhat tarnished as more companies focus on it.

SMS 207

SMS San Francisco Channel Dilution 207

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 19, 2019

Remember that the new investor will want to hit their ownership target as well, which may put the founder in an awkward place of having to either take much more dilution than they want or fully honor all the pro-rata rights of their early investors. For a VC fund, ownership strategy is probably one of the main drivers of our business model.

Dilution 136

Dilution Early Stage Business Model Founder 136

The Equity Kicker

NOVEMBER 17, 2014

All that said, within reason more runway is better and if you can get extra cash at an acceptable dilution it’s usually worth doing. Important caveat: if you do raise a large seed round don’t ramp the burn too much before you’ve found a repeatable business model.

Venture Capital 135

Venture Capital Dilution Portfolio Business Model 135