Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

As an advisor to new hardware entrepreneurs, I often hear the myth that a business plan is no longer required to find an investor, if your idea is good enough. What you don’t realize is these famous investors only deal with entrepreneurs who sold their last company for a $100M dollars or more.

Business Plan 423

Business Plan Product Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch 423

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 17, 2013

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. angels entrepreneur funding gaps process startup' Lack of clear objectives/goals. Use them and win. Marty Zwilling.

Software Review 265

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Startup 265

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2021

The biggest challenge for every entrepreneur and every startup today is to get noticed and remembered in today’s information overload. The number of entrepreneurs worldwide is huge, starting an estimated 50 million new businesses per year, or 137,000 per day. These attributes include the following: Specific moment-in-time indication.

Elevator Pitch 313

Elevator Pitch Technical Review Boston Sales 313

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 21, 2023

Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. I outlined what investors expect to see in an old article “ Adding Slides Does Not Enhance Your Investor Pitch. First, get their attention with your elevator pitch.

Technical Review 369

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Matching 369

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2013

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. On the top line, angel investors look to invest in entrepreneurs that have an almost unwavering passion and sense of urgency. entrepreneurs intestors startups characteristics business'

Technical Review 273

Technical Review Intellectual Property Angel Investor Elevator Pitch 273

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2011

A while back I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Lack of clear objectives/goals. You don’t need surprises or disappointments either. Being unprepared for the next steps.

Software Review 246

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Early Stage 246

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2010

Yesterday I received a discouraging note from an entrepreneur with a patent and a medical software application who couldn’t find a dime of investment, and was grousing that seed funding just wasn’t available anymore. Tags: entrepreneurs funding startups business. Lack of clear objectives/goals. Being unprepared for the next steps.

Software Review 239

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Startup 239

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 20, 2016

Thus the top priority of every entrepreneur who wants funding should be to build and highlight their “dream team” of co-founders, executives and advisers, to attract the biggest and best investors. Solo entrepreneurs rarely find an investor. Investors talk to each other and they love warm introductions to up-and-coming entrepreneurs.

Sweat Equity 152

Sweat Equity Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Startup 152

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 1, 2020

I have often been asked about Startup Funding by entrepreneurs. Here is Startup Funding, a Comprehensive Guide for Entrepreneurs. 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. Pre-Requisites of Funding.

Startup 150

Startup Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Seed Stage 150

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 29, 2020

Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. I outlined what investors expect to see in an old article “ Adding Slides Does Not Enhance Your Investor Pitch. First, get their attention with your elevator pitch.

Technical Review 295

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Startup 295

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 30, 2013

Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. I outlined what investors expect to see in another article “ Adding Slides Does Not Enhance Your Investor Pitch. First, get their attention with your elevator pitch.

Angel Investor 256

Angel Investor Technical Review Elevator Pitch Matching 256

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2013

Sure, there will always some seed funding (10% of overall deal flow), but you can bet that this money goes to entrepreneurs who have been there before and won. So what can entrepreneurs do to get to the head of the venture capital investment queue and position their startup for a winning IPO?

Venture Capital 252

Venture Capital IPO Elevator Pitch Initial Public Offering 252

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 2, 2012

After struggling to create your business plan for months, every entrepreneur likes to think that their document is inspirational and will reach someone who is smart enough to see the brilliance of the idea, intuitive enough to recognize their business acumen, and enthusiastic enough to offer the money required to make it happen.

Elevator Pitch 244

Elevator Pitch Technical Review Business Plan .Net 244

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

After struggling to create your business plan for months, every entrepreneur likes to think that their document is inspirational and will reach someone who is smart enough to see the brilliance of the idea, intuitive enough to recognize their business acumen, and enthusiastic enough to offer the money required to make it happen.

Business Plan 242

Business Plan Elevator Pitch Technical Review .Net 242

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2011

A conundrum for many frustrated entrepreneurs is that they need money from investors to design and build a prototype product, yet most angel investors expect to see at least a prototype before they invest. Remember to aim the content of both of these at investors, not customers. Close at least one initial customer.

Intellectual Property 249

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Technical Review Elevator Pitch 249

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2018

The biggest challenge for every entrepreneur and every startup today is to get noticed and remembered in today’s information overload. The number of entrepreneurs worldwide is huge, starting an estimated 50 million new businesses per year, or 137,000 per day. These attributes include the following: Specific moment-in-time indication.

Elevator Pitch 211

Elevator Pitch Technical Review Boston Sales 211

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

Thus, I’m more impressed with entrepreneurs who ask me to review their implementation plan, rather than listen again to their idea. In my experience, the key steps I look for always include the following: Testing the idea against customers who have money to spend. Prepare your marketing story for customers and investors.

Intellectual Property 235

Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch Harvest Technical Review 235

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 22, 2012

Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. I outlined what investors expect to see in another article “ Limit an Investor Pitch to 10 Pages and 10 Minutes.” First, get their attention with your elevator pitch.

Technical Review 243

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Matching 243

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 23, 2010

A conundrum for many frustrated entrepreneurs is that they need money from investors to design and build a prototype product, yet most angel investors expect to see at least a prototype before they invest. Remember to aim the content of both of these at investors, not customers. Close at least one initial customer.

Angel Investor 224

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Technical Review Elevator Pitch 224

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 29, 2011

Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. First, get their attention with your elevator pitch. Investors don’t need to know the implementation details of your patent or customer support plan.

Technical Review 237

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Matching 237

Steve Blank

MARCH 8, 2011

It was designed to bring together many of the new approaches to building a successful startup – customer development, agile development, business model generation and pivots. Startups, are not about executing a plan where the product, customers, channel are known. Get Out of the Building and test the Business Model.

Lean 308

Lean Business Model Customer Development Guinea 308

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 18, 2020

We started the meeting going around the table and were each given two minutes to share what we did – our elevator pitch, a way to present our work in such a concise way that it could be shared within the span of an elevator ride. Reason #3: We make our elevator pitch about ourselves. It was a fiasco.

Elevator Pitch 289

Elevator Pitch New York Security Audience 289

Gust

JULY 23, 2014

So even if my own mother asked me to meet with you, and you were pitching me a biotech opportunity for a $10 million investment at a $90 million valuation, I might take the meeting, but it wouldn’t be particularly useful for either of us. In this case, it’s not a lack of interest, just a lack of time and efficiency.

Angel Investor 153

Angel Investor Elevator Pitch Pre-Money Valuation Technical Review 153

YoungUpstarts

APRIL 17, 2018

As a new entrepreneur or business owner, the most important thing you will do is hire talent. Think of it as an elevator pitch for recruiting. impactful work (we point to specific features that are being used by 100s of customers) and 3. by Felix Winstone, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Talkative. Hiring = Sales.

Cofounder 164

Cofounder Elevator Pitch Hiring Dividend 164

Up and Running

OCTOBER 22, 2014

The problem you are solving: How are you helping your customers? Make sure your product or service is addressing your customer’s needs. Your customer: Who is your ideal customer? A great exercise is to create a buyer persona, but you can just jot down some notes at this stage about who your customer is.

Business Plan 130

Business Plan Elevator Pitch Forecast Partner 130

YoungUpstarts

DECEMBER 12, 2017

As a burgeoning entrepreneur, though, this can put your company at a serious disadvantage. Kristy Campbell, COO of Rev1 Ventures, describes your first website as a “step beyond your elevator pitch.” It may seem counterintuitive, but excessively novel or innovative web design is often a sign of an inexperienced entrepreneur.

Web 113

Web Design Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur 113

Hearpreneur

NOVEMBER 27, 2019

Ultimately, we went with On Site because we wanted to give a clear indication of what made us different – kind of a micro elevator pitch in our name. When opening up my men’s clothing shop, I wanted to replicate the feeling of home and for my customers to walk out feeling better than when they walked in.

Naming 157

Naming Entrepreneur CPA Software Review 157

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 29, 2017

You’re in discussions with strategic partners and potential beta customers. Think of your first B2B web site as one step beyond your elevator pitch. It’s the first place a potential customer will go to check you out. What value will customers receive from doing business with your company? Plan to iterate.

Elevator Pitch 100

Elevator Pitch Web Portfolio B2B 100

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2021

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. For aspiring entrepreneurs, or if your last startup failed, it’s all about standing out above the crowd of others like you, and demonstrating your readiness.

Elevator Pitch 390

Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur Due Diligence Angel Investor 390

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2015

I see too many executive summaries that are simply heavy-duty customer pitches, or lightweight visions of the future. " Investors want to buy into an entrepreneur with a startup that can provide evidence of an ability to double customer productivity, at half the cost, with patented technology.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Technical Review 120

Up and Running

NOVEMBER 13, 2012

Whether you are trying to raise money for your business or just want to perfect your business strategy, a solid elevator pitch is an essential tool for achieving your goals. An elevator pitch can be delivered either verbally, ideally in 60 seconds or less, or as a one-page overview of your business. Simple as that.

Elevator Pitch 166

Elevator Pitch Forecast Oregon SBA 166

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 19, 2015

Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. I outlined what investors expect to see in an old article “ Adding Slides Does Not Enhance Your Investor Pitch. First, get their attention with your elevator pitch.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Matching 120

Gust

SEPTEMBER 27, 2014

To begin with, it is important to understand some basic facts about the world of entrepreneurial finance: There are many more entrepreneurs than there are investors, with the result that only one company out of every 400 that seeks venture funding actually receives it.

Angel Groups 159

Angel Groups Elevator Pitch Software Review Deal Flow 159

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 26, 2010

A fter years of talking with many of you in the Israeli startup industry, investors and entrepreneurs alike, I was invited to present some tips for entrepreneurs at the Launch48 conference in London this weekend. If you can’t explain your idea in 2 sentences, your customers probably won’t either.

Elevator Pitch 102

Elevator Pitch Incubator Technical Review Startup 102

Up and Running

APRIL 11, 2012

He defines the elevator pitch, video pitch, executive summary, PowerPoint presentation, and business plan as different forms. Talk about solving customer problems. Which customers will buy how much of your product. And I like Bill’s specific advice here as well. Do a bottom’s up analysis.

Business Plan 85

Business Plan Elevator Pitch Technical Review Due Diligence 85

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 16, 2016

Remember you are pitching to investors, not customers. Some entrepreneurs seem to think that their product pitch is also their investor pitch. I outlined what investors expect to see in an old article “ Adding Slides Does Not Enhance Your Investor Pitch. First, get their attention with your elevator pitch.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Startup Angel Investor 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 18, 2021

You can’t win as an entrepreneur working alone. You need to have business relationships with team members, investors, customers, and a myriad of other support people. See my article from way back “ Entrepreneurs Learn Best From Business Networking ” on how and where to get started. Work on your elevator pitch.

Elevator Pitch 351

Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur Social Network Networking 351