TechEmpower

JULY 31, 2023

How does it meet customers’ needs? One way to approach that last question is to use this simple model: Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) How will your business reach prospects? Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) How much money will your business generate from each converted customer? What does the business do?

Metrics 260

Metrics Startup Retention Acquisition 260

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2022

In his classic book, “ The Leadership Capital Index ,” Dave Ulrich, a best-selling author, business consultant, and business school professor, provides some real insights and metrics on what makes up the elements of goodwill in the minds of top valuation experts. I have paraphrased his key points here as follows: Leader personal impact.

Technical Review 323

Technical Review Due Diligence Valuation Leadership 323

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

OCTOBER 7, 2013

This is the fifth article in a series on novel ideas for SaaS metrics, which started with The unprofitable SaaS business model trap , COC: a new metric for cancellations , The mistake of 1/c in LTV , and SSEBITDA: Steady-state profit metric. Metrics summarize tons of processes, causes, and effects into a single number.

Metrics 244

Metrics Technical Review Revenue Cost 244

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 15, 2020

In his classic book, “ The Leadership Capital Index ,” Dave Ulrich, a best-selling author, business consultant, and business school professor, provides some real insights and metrics on what makes up the elements of goodwill in the minds of top valuation experts. I have paraphrased his key points here as follows: Leader personal impact.

Valuation 311

Valuation Technical Review Due Diligence Leadership 311

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2021

Most of the entrepreneurs I meet as an investor and advisor have no shortage of right-brain thinking, showing vision and creativity, but often don’t realize that their potential is being limited by a balancing focus on results, metrics, and customer specifics. Listen to customer feedback and tune your vision.

Technical Review 332

Technical Review Metrics Leadership Technology 332

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2021

If you are the hot-shot technical innovator that invented your solution, make sure you have an equally adept business and marketing expert to complement your skills. “If Bill Gates was the technical genius, but Steve Ballmer, from Procter & Gamble, ran the business side of the equation.

Technical Review 329

Technical Review Merger Software Review Acquisition 329

TechEmpower

JULY 24, 2023

At TechEmpower, we frequently talk to startup founders, CEOs, product leaders, and other innovators about their next big tech initiative. After all, that’s what tech innovation is all about. Who are the customers? What are your key Startup Metrics ? Do you have a custom algorithm or other technology?

Developer 520

Developer Technical Review Fractional CTO CTO Hire 520

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 20, 2012

A closer analysis often indicates the cause to be a lack of diligence in handling common business finances. Don’t forget to add all pesky “overhead” costs, with fixed elements, like rent, insurance, and administration, and variable elements, like delivery, customer support, and commissions. This difference will kill your profit margin.

Technical Review 273

Technical Review Startup Finance Cost 273

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 24, 2022

As a business consultant and angel investor, I often ask for your own assessment of marketing ROI , or customer acquisition cost (CAC). Leaders and investors need to know if you have and are tapping into your key sources of relevant data, including web analytics, sales management data, and customer relationship management (CRM) software.

Acquisition 250

Acquisition Cost Customer Sales Cycle 250

Steve Blank

AUGUST 21, 2013

—— When I wrote Four Steps to the Epiphany and the Startup Owners Manual , I believed that Life Sciences startups didn’t need Customer Discovery. In the real world a big pivot in life sciences far down the road of development is a very bad sign due to huge sunk costs. used to serve those customers.

SBIR 321

SBIR Technical Review Lean Startup 321

Steve Blank

JANUARY 17, 2023

This post previously appeared in the Harvard Business Review. But these look for founders who have a technical or business model insight and a team. Accelerators provide these teams with technical and business expertise and connect them to a network of other founders and advisors. Carlos stirred his coffee.

Technical Cofounder 368

Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 368

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2017

Not so long ago, every business assumed that the keys to success were the highest quality product, the best value for the buck, and the best customer service. Now all we hear about is providing the best “customer experience.” You have to hear your customer’s dreams, goals, passions, and aspirations.

Customer 213

Customer Product Technical Review Marketing 213

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 28, 2013

A closer analysis often indicates the cause to be a lack of diligence in handling common business finances. Don’t forget to add all pesky “overhead” costs, with fixed elements, like rent, insurance, and administration, and variable elements, like delivery, customer support, and commissions. This difference will kill your profit margin.

Technical Review 251

Technical Review Entrepreneur Salary Finance 251

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 4, 2013

Compelling in the sense that you solve a real problem a target group of potential customers has with a product that is significantly better than the alternatives on that market. The idea of “going deep” with customers has always shaped how I think. I found myself in violent agreement with Fred’s blog post(s).

Technical Review 401

Technical Review Startup Business Model Non-Compete 401

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 29, 2023

In the modern business landscape, understanding the customer’s journey through various touchpoints of your business is crucial for enhancing their experience and, consequently, your success. Metrics play a significant role in customer journey analysis, providing quantifiable data that can be analyzed to glean valuable insights.

Metrics 158

Metrics Customer Harvest Acquisition 158

Steve Blank

JANUARY 22, 2014

Dino Vendetti a VC at Bay Partners, moved up to Bend, Oregon on a mission to engineer Bend into a regional technology cluster. Today with every city, state and country trying to build out a technology cluster, following Dino’s progress can provide others with a roadmap of what’s worked and what has not. Tech investing is risky.

Early Stage 295

Early Stage Silicon Valley Oregon Technical Review 295

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 21, 2013

Most leaders agree that poor customer service is a business killer today, in terms of lost customers, reduced profits, and low morale. Yet the average perception of customer experience continues to decline. You have to start with hiring only people who are willing and able to make serious customer service happen.

Customer 230

Customer Technical Review Startup Salary 230

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 22, 2023

Even here, Elon Musk faced this issue with Tesla, needing a support ecosystem as well as new technology. With a singular focus on building unicorns, very rapid growth has been a key metric. The distributed model draws on a diverse pool, helps manage costs, and captures regional insights and focus necessary to win local customers.

Global 345

Global Silicon Valley Marketing Indonesia 345

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2020

In the short term you need customers to find you at any price, and in the longer term you need revenue, profit, and return loyalty. In my experience, even in startups, longer-term strategy often gets pushed off the agenda due to current challenges. Hone your process for due diligence and integrating these new elements.

Technical Review 312

Technical Review Due Diligence Merger Social Media 312

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 13, 2022

On the other hand, if you are into solar technologies, there is probably an advantage to being in Arizona or a similar location. Maxwell Wessel, in a classic article in the Harvard Business Review on this subject, points out the exception successes of Zappos in Las Vegas, Sendgrid’s massive growth in Colorado, and RightNow’s $1.5

Las Vegas 309

Las Vegas Silicon Valley Arizona Montana 309

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2022

As a potential investor, I always think of the high rate of failure of disruptive technologies, due to the longer learning curve of customers, infrastructure change consistently required, and higher marketing costs. Before you act, shut up and listen to employees, customers, and futurists.

Technical Review 252

Technical Review Silicon Valley Software Review Metrics 252

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 23, 2012

I have been close to the tech & startup sectors for more than 20 years and I can’t think of a period in which I felt more optimistic about the innovation and value creation I see in front of us. Try charging customers for your product when you have 12 competitors giving the product away free finances by $20 million of VC.

Venture Capital 347

Venture Capital Technical Review LP Mobile 347

The Startup Magazine

FEBRUARY 7, 2025

It’s not just about moving goods but also about optimizing routes and providing exceptional customer service. Thus, brokers should regularly review resources provided by authoritative bodies like the FMCSA to ensure they meet all necessary legal standards.

Developer 130

Developer Technical Review Software Review Reputation 130

Steve Blank

AUGUST 3, 2012

Long before there was the Lean Startup, Business Model Canvas or Customer Development there was a guy in Santa Barbara California who had already figured it out. I want to tell you a story about how a team pivoted and succeeded by synchronizing product and customer development. The customer asked, “Where’s off-line setup?”

San Jose 261

San Jose Technical Review Customer Development Software Review 261

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 14, 2017

Nearly every successful tech startup I’ve observed over the past 20 years has gone through a similar growth pattern: Innovate, systematize then scale operations. There is nothing more pure than building a product, putting it out in the world and seeing paying customers using your product and in some cases loving it.

Operations 286

Operations New York City Technical Review Startup 286

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

A version of this article is in the Harvard Business Review. Technology cycles have become a treadmill, and for startups to survive they need to be on a continuous innovation cycle. 20th Century Tech Liquidity = Initial Public Offering. Technology Cycles Measured in Years. This seems to be occurring more and more.

Founder 281

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 281

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

Exec Summary: Most companies (98+%) in the world (even tech startups) should be very profit focused. If you had huge customer growth but just didn’t focus on revenue that’s a different story. If you spent the 3 years perfecting some hugely differentiated technology IP that may also be different.

Startup 418

Startup Revenue Technical Review Flash 418

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2020

Even here, Elon Musk faced this issue with Tesla, needing a support ecosystem as well as new technology. With a singular focus on building unicorns, very rapid growth has been a key metric. The distributed model draws on a diverse pool, helps manage costs, and captures regional insights and focus necessary to win local customers.

Silicon Valley 312

Silicon Valley Indonesia Venture Capital Global 312

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 8, 2021

Most leaders agree that poor customer service is a business killer today, in terms of lost customers, reduced profits, and low morale. Yet the average perception of customer experience has not improved. You have to start with hiring only people who are willing and able to make serious customer service happen.

Technical Review 385

Technical Review Salary Metrics Matching 385

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 5, 2019

Too many business owners still think of “ customer support ” as an after-sale process to rectify customer problems with completed transactions. With the advent of instant communication and social media, customer service starts at the first hint of interest by you, and never ends for repeat customers.

Customer 211

Customer Social Media Metrics Technical Review 211

ReadWriteStart

OCTOBER 20, 2023

With so many startups facing a tough journey right from their inception, the pressing question becomes: How does one successfully navigate the tech industry? The key lies in having a groundbreaking idea and understanding the broader tech landscape and the forces shaping it.

Technical Review 137

Technical Review Startup Silicon Valley Agile 137

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2020

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers.

Management 322

Management Entrepreneur Forecast Stock Options 322

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 16, 2013

It is what is commonly referred to as “vanity metrics” as in, “Look at how many more followers I got us! Customers have long included some of the biggest names in social commerce and online gaming plus startups like TopSpin, Local Response, Maker Studios, StockTwits and the like. The other major pilot customer was.

Technical Review 307

Technical Review Marketing SEM Campaign 307

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 7, 2013

On the other hand, if you are into solar technologies, there is probably an advantage to being in Phoenix or a similar location. Maxwell Wessel, in a recent article in the Harvard Business Review on this subject, points out the exception successes of Zappos in Las Vegas, Sendgrid’s massive growth in Colorado, and RightNow’s $1.5

Silicon Valley 256

Silicon Valley Las Vegas Phoenix Montana 256

View from Seed

MARCH 29, 2016

But even well-prepared startups that have laid out strategies for scaling can find themselves scrambling in the face of a fast-growing customer base. Founders need to make sure the quality of the startup’s offerings remains high and provide adequate sales and service support for prospective customers and new users.

Metrics 120

Metrics Founder CTO Hire Technical Review 120

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 3, 2016

Sets goals and milestones, with metrics to track progress. They define metrics for each goal, and diligently track themselves against these metrics. Focus all initiatives around value to your customers. A business must be all about listening to customers, delivering value, and customer satisfaction.

Entrepreneur 266

Entrepreneur Technical Review Metrics Restful 266

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

As a long-time mentor to entrepreneurs, here is my collection of smart risks that investors and I look for in new startups: Focus on a tough customer problem rather than a fun technology. Investors hate technology solutions looking for a problem, due to the high risk of no customers.

Forecast 304

Forecast Stock Options Technical Review Metrics 304