Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2012

Terms like “every customer needs this” and “next generation platform” are far too soft, and should be avoided. This is not the place for a detailed product specification, but an explanation of how and why it works, including a customer-centric quantification of the benefits. Marketing, sales, and partners. Executive team.

Business Plan 283

Business Plan Sweat Equity Exit Strategy Intellectual Property 283

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 14, 2014

Old co-workers or new friends with complementary skills usually make the best partners. If you take investor money, expect a push for hockey-stick growth and a liquidity event, like going public (IPO) or sale (M&A), to get the payback. You can’t have it all, just like your startup can’t be all things to all customers.

Hockey Stick 268

Hockey Stick Cofounder Entrepreneur Liquidity Event 268

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2016

Investors want to hear about customers with money who have a painful problem that you can solve now. Investors are looking for a concise description of your product or service without technical jargon or fuzzy marketing terms with value quantified in customer terms. What are your specific marketing and sales plans?

Sweat Equity 120

Sweat Equity Advisory Board Liquidity Event Startup 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 13, 2011

Terms like “every customer needs this” and “next generation platform” are far too soft, and should be avoided. This is not the place for a detailed product specification, but an explanation of how and why it works, including a customer-centric quantification of the benefits. Marketing, sales, and partners. Executive team.

Business Plan 290

Business Plan Sweat Equity Exit Strategy Intellectual Property 290

Steve Blank

JULY 15, 2010

VC’s invested their limited partners’ “risk capital” in a portfolio of startups in exchange for illiquid stock. Number of Venture Backed Liquidity Events 1991-2000. Number of Venture Backed Liquidity Events 2000-2010. If you’re starting a software company, your exit is most likely a sale to a larger company.

Venture Capital 307

Venture Capital IPO Liquidity Event Entrepreneur 307

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 19, 2017

Old co-workers or new friends with complementary skills usually make the best partners. If you take investor money, expect a push for hockey-stick growth and a liquidity event, like going public (IPO) or sale (M&A), to get the payback. You can’t have it all, just like your startup can’t be all things to all customers.

Hockey Stick 144

Hockey Stick Cofounder Entrepreneur Liquidity Event 144

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 19, 2013

Old co-workers or new friends with complementary skills usually make the best partners. If you take investor money, expect a push for hockey-stick growth and a liquidity event, like going public (IPO) or sale (M&A), to get the payback. You can’t have it all, just like your startup can’t be all things to all customers.

Founder 245

Founder Hockey Stick Cofounder Liquidity Event 245

Gust

AUGUST 5, 2012

Terms like “every customer needs this” and “next generation platform” are far too soft, and should be avoided. This is not the place for a detailed product specification, but an explanation of how and why it works, including a customer-centric quantification of the benefits. Marketing, sales, and partners. Executive team.

Business Plan 182

Business Plan Sweat Equity Exit Strategy Intellectual Property 182

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2010

Terms like “every customer needs this” and “next generation platform” are far too soft, and should be avoided. This is not the place for a detailed product specification, but an explanation of how and why it works, including a customer-centric quantification of the benefits. Marketing, sales, and partners. Executive team.

Business Plan 186

Business Plan Exit Strategy Sweat Equity Intellectual Property 186

Berkonomics

JUNE 8, 2017

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder can self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). Strategic partner” investors: If you can find a strategic partner willing to invest in your enterprise, consider it a blessing.

Private Equity 106

Private Equity Valuation Cap Table Accredited Investor 106

Hearpreneur

OCTOBER 29, 2017

I loved what I did (sales) but I didn’t love doing it for somebody else. By screening hundreds of SMB acquisition opportunities as managing partner at my private equity firm, I saw first-hand that the vast majority of small business owners run their firms without the benefit of good financial or operating metrics.

Entrepreneur 90

Entrepreneur Social Media Liquidity Event Private Equity 90

Berkonomics

JANUARY 20, 2010

Some businesses require very little capital and the founder is able to self-finance the enterprise and retain 100% of its ownership and control from ignition through liquidity event (startup through sale). For you who fit that description, nice work. There is a lot to say about retaining control.

Private Equity 69

Private Equity Valuation Cap Table Accredited Investor 69

Steve Blank

JUNE 11, 2013

. • Repeatable: Startups may get orders that come from board members’ customer relationships or heroic, single-shot efforts of the CEO. These are great, but they are not repeatable by a sales organization. Does our product or service solve a customer problem (product-market fit)? How do we attract, keep and grow customers?

Venture Capital 335

Venture Capital IRR Liquidity Event Business Model 335

Steve Blank

JUNE 11, 2013

. • Repeatable: Startups may get orders that come from board members’ customer relationships or heroic, single-shot efforts of the CEO. These are great, but they are not repeatable by a sales organization. Does our product or service solve a customer problem (product-market fit)? How do we attract, keep and grow customers?

Venture Capital 227

Venture Capital IRR Liquidity Event Business Model 227

Seeing Both Sides

SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

We selected this benchmark because it reflects the phase in which companies have proven product viability, achieved initial product/market fit, and are now expanding sales and growing more complex operations. In the old model of Israeli startups, many Israeli executive teams would hire a vice president of sales in the U.S.

Cofounder 20

Cofounder Technical Review United States 20

www.quora.com

JANUARY 16, 2011

" => I have not bothered to put up a landing page, survey to test customer demand, or done any customer development whatsoever. If you are a creative guy with a good head for business looking for an engineering partner, send me a summary of your idea and business plan, and I'll do the implementation!"

Developer 42

Developer Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder 42

www.vccafe.com

MARCH 11, 2013

Steve Blank on Lean Customer Development. Customer service. Event platforms. Google Custom Search Engine. Customer Relationship Management. great web customer acquisition tutorials. customer retention, churn reduction, lifetime value. free/cheap web customer relationship mgmt software.

Software Review 53

Software Review Technical Review Startup 53