Steve Blank

APRIL 16, 2013

To fill this gap I wrote The Four Steps to the Epiphany , a book about the Customer Development process and how it changes the way startups are built. Eric Ries, who took my first Customer Development class at Berkeley, had the insight that Customer Development should be paired with Agile Development.

Technical Review 223

Technical Review Lean Venture Capital Customer Development 223

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

It was only after returning to Stanford and taking the Lean Launchpad class that I became convinced that a radically different, customer-centric approach was the solution. I returned to the Air Force Academy as an instructor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, intent on spreading the gospel of Customer Development and Lean.

Lean 271

Lean Technical Review Acquisition Software Review 271

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 8, 2010

We learned this weekend that it was named after his East Hampton home. We’re here for Greycroft’s CEO Summit – a gathering of the CEO’s of their portfolio companies with guest speakers covering topics including how to build your team, PR, customer development, etc. I’m going to save that for a future blog post.

PR 279

PR Technical Review Portfolio Customer Development 279

Steve Blank

MAY 29, 2011

Your name has come up a lot in that regard. Filed under: Customer Development , Teaching , Venture Capital. Let me know if this interests you and if you have any time to speak.&#. It was signed Max Marmer. I set up a meeting and at Cafe Borrone some kid who looked 18-years old came up to me and introduced himself as Max.

Technical Cofounder 335

Technical Cofounder Early Stage Startup Silicon Valley 335

YoungUpstarts

SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

In today’s hypercompetitive, customer-driven business world, you need to look at new ways to make your business stand out. By exploring customer service initiatives, new sales channels, and private label financing, to name a few, you can attract and keep new customers. Improve the Customer Experience.

Customer 168

Customer PPC Software Review Finance 168

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 14, 2009

Filed under: Customer Development , Venture Capital | Tagged: Entrepreneurs « Customer Development Manifesto: Market Type (part 4) Customer Development Manifesto: The Path of Warriors and Winners (part 5) » 16 Responses Jon Ziskind , on September 14, 2009 at 9:19 am Said: Steve – Great post and really great advice.

Silicon Valley 237

Silicon Valley IPO Technical Review Venture Capital 237

Startup Lessons Learned

NOVEMBER 7, 2008

So, if youre interested in helping avoid mistakes like that, here are the steps: Get a domain name. It doesnt have to be the worlds catchiest name, just pick something reasonably descriptive. If youre concerned about sullying your eventual brand name, dont use your "really good" name, pick a code name.

Demand 167

Demand San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment 167

Steve Blank

APRIL 14, 2013

Note to Chinese Communist party – the best name for your propaganda department should probably not be the “Propaganda Department.”). Filed under: China , Customer Development , Technology , Venture Capital. China Customer Development Technology Venture Capital' It’s an amazing cat and mouse system.

China 328

China Silicon Valley Non-Compete Intellectual Property 328

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 15, 2010

Finally, I HATE the name. Golden rule of branding for me: 1) name your company or product your URL and 2) don’t paint yourself into a corner. &# Tweet&# = corner. My bet: within 18 months they will change the name and go multi-stream. Sounds like somebody didn’t do their homework on this name. uh, hello!

Venture Capital 271

Venture Capital Affiliate Valuation San Francisco 271

Steve Blank

JUNE 25, 2009

These companies would take our computers and put their name on them and resell them to their customers. Business customers were starting to ask for “office automation solutions” – word processing, spreadsheets, graphing software on a desktop. Hiring a VP of Sales in customer discovery typically sets a startup back.

Technology 145

Technology Silicon Valley Fractional VPE Part-Time VPE 145

Startup Lessons Learned

DECEMBER 1, 2014

When you look through the list , you’ll see big names that we’re very pleased we landed, epic companies we really want to hear from, and people we’re particularly excited to present because they have incredible stories to share--and you won’t hear them anyplace else.

Lean 165

Lean Fractional CTO Part-Time VPE Fractional VPE 165

Steve Blank

MARCH 19, 2009

A large number of these customers had mailed back their registration cards (this was pre-Internet) with their names, phone numbers, job titles, etc. So I asked the fatal question, “Has anyone ever looked at the customer registration cards? Has anyone ever spoken to a customer?” Silence.

Silicon Valley 213

Silicon Valley RSS Software Review Technical Review 213

Startup Lessons Learned

AUGUST 3, 2009

First, a definition: the minimum viable product is that version of a new product which allows a team to collect the maximum amount of validated learning about customers with the least effort. MVP, despite the name, is not about creating minimal products. Some caveats right off the bat. August 3, 2009 8:08 PM William Mitchell said.

San Francisco 168

San Francisco Product Lean Continuous Deployment 168

Steve Blank

APRIL 9, 2009

competitive analyses, channel and customer collateral (white papers, data sheets, product reviews), customer surveys, and market requirements documents. We will accomplish this through demand-creation activities (advertising, PR, tradeshows, seminars, web sites, etc.), on April 10, 2009 at 6:58 am Said: Amazing blog.

Silicon Valley 271

Silicon Valley Technical Review RSS PR 271

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 15, 2008

I had the opportunity to pioneer this approach to funnel analysis at IMVU, where it became a core part of our customer development process. To promote this metrics discipline, we would present the full funnel to our board (and advisers) at the end of every development cycle. Return the name of the hypothesis chosen or assigned.

San Francisco 166

San Francisco Lean Technical Review Continuous Deployment 166

Steve Blank

JULY 7, 2015

Eric was the very first practitioner of my Customer Development methodology which became the core of the the Lean methodology. He was named entrepreneur-in-residence at Harvard Business School in 2010 and is currently an IDEO Fellow. He later co-founded and served as CTO of IMVU and then authored The Lean Startup.

Lean 120

Lean Silicon Valley Technical Cofounder Channel 120

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

This post describes a solution – the Customer Development Model. In future posts I’ll describe how Eric Ries and the Lean Startup concept provide the equivalent model for product development activities inside the building and neatly integrates customer and agile development.

Customer Development 255

Customer Development Developer Customer Silicon Valley 255

Steve Blank

JULY 20, 2009

Zilog Zilog was my first Silicon Valley company where you could utter the customer’s name in public. This post, which is divided in two parts, is the story of the first time it happened to me. You created it and own it.

Silicon Valley 206

Silicon Valley Chad RSS San Francisco 206

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 17, 2021

A software developer can struggle to establish a good name and reputation initially. It can be challenging to compete with bigger and better-known names too. They will typically do an online search, visit your website, and try to form an accurate opinion on your personality and practices as developers.

Software Developers 180

Software Developers Software Development Reputation Software Review 180

Steve Blank

MAY 11, 2009

You may know it by its final name. Filed under: Customer Development , Marketing , SuperMac , Technology | Tagged: Steve Blank , SuperMac « Love/Hate Business Plan Competitions Gravity Will be Turned Off » 17 Responses EricS , on May 11, 2009 at 11:05 am Said: I loved my Spigot.

Video 190

Video Silicon Valley RSS California 190

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 29, 2019

You label each leaf with the names of the market spaces and the names of the companies that are representative players in these adjacent markets. You use this chart to articulate your first hypotheses of what customers segments you’re targeting.

Bandwidth 302

Bandwidth Database Venture Capital Demand 302

Up and Running

MARCH 21, 2018

You’ll think about your business, name, logo and colors; but maybe more importantly, you’ll think through who your target audience is and how you want them to feel about your product or service. He has been praised by the likes of former President Barack Obama, who named him a top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 30. WordPress DIY.

Entrepreneur 107

Entrepreneur Technical Review Hosting SEO 107

Startup Lessons Learned

MAY 9, 2012

TLDR: Brant Cooper and Patrick Vlaskovits , authors of The Entrepreneur's Guide to Customer Development are back with a new book called The Lean Entrepreneur. It took the idea of Customer Development and made it accessible to a whole new audience. Illustrations by FAKEGRIMLOCK. You can pre-order it starting today.

Entrepreneur 167

Entrepreneur Lean Southern California San Diego 167

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 11, 2011

He wanted to build direct customer relationships to get product feedback but only 2% of customers would ever return their registration cards. So when he saw the browser it instantly dawned on him that this would be the greatest customer development tool ever. Shopping.com. The Wedding Channel. Commission Junction.

Product 350

Product Tuvalu Dilution Incubator 350

Startup Lessons Learned

DECEMBER 16, 2009

As Im pontificating about agile, I see the name Kent Beck in my peripheral vision. Eric Names matter. By pulling in a web of associations, names help people quickly assess ideas. There is a dark side to naming. The naming question has been raised about the "lean" in Lean Startups. Eric Names matter.

Lean 140

Lean San Francisco Continuous Deployment Startup 140

Steve Blank

APRIL 6, 2009

If you are a practitioner of Customer Development, ESL was doing it before most us were born. The “Good” Student » 14 Responses Shane Rogers , on April 6, 2009 at 1:37 pm Said: The names of ‘secret’ customers is funny. If you think the Cold War turned out the right side up (i.e.

Silicon Valley 201

Silicon Valley Stealth RSS California 201

Steve Blank

APRIL 14, 2013

Note to Chinese Communist party – the best name for your propaganda department should probably not be the “Propaganda Department.”). Filed under: China , Customer Development , Technology , Venture Capital. China Customer Development Technology Venture Capital' It’s an amazing cat and mouse system.

China 220

China Silicon Valley Non-Compete Intellectual Property 220

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 5, 2009

I worked at Multiflow, a name you’d recognize, ending up running the OS group. He was my role model at Convergent, mentor at Ardent and partner at E.piphany. Future posts will have some Ben stories. steve Chris Ryland , on October 5, 2009 at 12:08 pm Said: Anyway, looking forward to this series.

North Carolina 133

North Carolina Silicon Valley Fractional VPE Part-Time VPE 133

crowdSPRING Blog

JUNE 6, 2014

[Customer] Retention is King (good insights on measurement) – crowdspring.co/1haiyJt. Need a great name & URL for your new business? 5 Quick Tips for Buyers in Naming Projects – crowdspring.co/ThAKX4. Need a great name & URL for your new business? Customer Development 101) – crowdspring.co/1pNIOcD.

Social Media 94

Social Media Small Business Design Software Review 94

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 9, 2013

“Getting personal” doesn’t mean that you need to become your customers’ best friend — simply that you need to get engaged in their experience and show them that they matter, that you understand their needs. Yes, it’s true that customers aren’t always convenient. Risk keeping the lines of communication open.

Customer 170

Customer Technical Review Florida Cofounder 170

ConversionXL

JANUARY 24, 2014

In my interview with Hunter, we discuss: The key responsibilities of a business development professional. How to get big name testimonials and clients. The importance of the customer feedback cycle & the role it plays for AWeber. It’s Not A Conversion Problem, It’s A Customer Development Problem.

Developer 104

Developer Cofounder API New Jersey 104

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 10, 2012

Often companies think their Rock Star customers are the biggest spenders, or the most loyal customers, or perhaps the marquee names or brands. So who are your potential high-value Rock Star customers? In my book, “ The Hidden Wealth of Customers “, I provide a model for helping you find and cultivate them.

Customer 154

Customer Fractional CTO Canada Technical Review 154

ReadWriteStart

JANUARY 29, 2012

Over Saturday and Sunday teams focus on customer development, validating their ideas and building a minimal viable product. Several teams even changed the name of their ventures before the weekend was over, and mission statements were flying fast and furious. Discuss.

St. Louis 135

St. Louis Kansas City Norway Kansas 135

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 13, 2008

We would pretty much bid on any phrase that was "[name of competitive product] chat" and variations like that. And then we would use that simple analytics system I mentioned to monitor the conversion rates of customers from each campaign. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup?

SEM 164

SEM San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment 164

Steve Blank

APRIL 27, 2009

And 30 years later I was teaching in a building named after him and never knew a thing about him. Spooky Music Reading about Terman was like finding the missing link in my career. Here was the guy who invented the field I had spent the first five years of my adult life working on. Play spooky music here.

Silicon Valley 210

Silicon Valley Technical Review Europe Germany 210

Startup Lessons Learned

APRIL 14, 2009

This is the magic of sales: by learning about each customer in-depth, they can convince each of them that this product would solve serious problems. Now, in some situations, this over-selling would lead to a secondary problem, namely, that customers would realize they had been duped and refuse to re-subscribe.

Customer 167

Customer San Francisco Lean Hockey Stick 167

Startup Lessons Learned

OCTOBER 4, 2008

In 2007, BusinessWeek named Ries one of the Best Young Entrepreneurs of Tech and in 2009 he was honored with a TechFellow award in the category of Engineering Leadership. The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Customer Development ► June (3) What is a startup? No departments The Five Whys for Startups (for Harvard Business R.

San Francisco 155

San Francisco Technical Cofounder Fractional CTO CTO 155