Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 13, 2022

The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. Consider licensing your product or intellectual property, and “white labeling.”

Intellectual Property 341

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 341

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 19, 2024

Startups must tackle challenges from scarce resources to changing customer needs proactively. This helps prevent excess inventory and shortages, boosting operational effectiveness and customer happiness. Startups must perform thorough market research to identify their ideal customers and discover new market niches.

Technical Review 145

Technical Review Startup Differentiation Social Media 145

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2022

In fact, it’s all about the “focus” required to get early stage technology products across the deadly chasm from early adopters to mainstream customers. Missions and products that are too broad confuse your team, your customers, and potential investors. Product development chasm. Customer support chasm.

Technical Review 375

Technical Review Startup Dilution Early Stage 375

Steve Blank

JUNE 20, 2022

Anthony had long come to the same conclusion I had, that highly visible corporate incubators do a good job of shaping culture and getting great press, but most often their biggest products were demos that never get deployed to the field. Had a continuous customer discovery to create products that customers need and want.

CTO 368

CTO Technical Cofounder CTO Hire Incubator 368

TechEmpower

NOVEMBER 13, 2023

So instead, we fill it with a completely custom blurb, written just for him: Hello! Thanks to his custom blurb, instead of closing his browser and feeling inadequate for the rest of the day, Mark completes his bio and becomes a happy customer. Which means better conversions and happier customers.

Generative AI 295

Generative AI Artificial Inteligence Houston America 295

TechEmpower

JULY 24, 2023

At TechEmpower, we frequently talk to startup founders, CEOs, product leaders, and other innovators about their next big tech initiative. Even when they have talked to multiple developers or development firms, we’re often the first to ask basic questions like “Who are your customers?” Who are the customers?

Developer 520

Developer Technical Review CTO Hire Fractional CTO 520

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 14, 2022

I see more and more entrepreneurs who seem to have everything going for them – vision, motivation, passion, even a good business plan, product, and money, and yet they can’t close customers. Great businesses begin with a customer problem that has a big and monetizable pain point. Nail the solution. Nail the business model.

Angel Investor 359

Angel Investor Technical Review Incubator Business Model 359

Steve Blank

JANUARY 17, 2023

Three types of organizations – Incubators, Accelerators and Venture Studios – have emerged to reduce the risk of early-stage startup failure by helping teams find product/market fit and raise initial capital. He had a track record of taking small teams and growing them into successful product lines.

Technical Cofounder 368

Technical Cofounder Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator 368

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 25, 2021

According to an old Harvard Business Review article, many people in history, famous for their inventions, like Thomas Edison, were entrepreneurs who only later were remembered as inventors of the products they commercialized. In other words, inventions are necessary but not sufficient to create real value for investors and customers.

Technical Review 391

Technical Review Intellectual Property Early Stage Global 391

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 22, 2023

In other parts of the world, innovators often need to develop both the ultimate product or service, as well as the enabling infrastructure that underpins it. Silicon Valley’s conventional model is to integrate local experienced engineering, product development, and marketing people for the big push.

Global 345

Global Silicon Valley Marketing Indonesia 345

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 3, 2021

In reality, the best business process innovations usually come from regular employees on the front line of your business, just trying to do a better job and better serve customers. Many product innovations come from quality improvement focuses, like the Japanese Kaizen initiative. Innovation and creativity are two different things.

Technical Review 431

Technical Review Leadership Operations Networking 431

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 25, 2021

It takes a long time and lots of effort to overcome existing momentum, and both investors and customers want to see results on a small scale in their lifetime, before they line up to join the movement. Look for sizable customer populations unattractive to incumbents. Consider Apple’s move into music, telephones, and watches.

Non-Compete 394

Non-Compete Technical Review Forecast Social Media 394

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 19, 2023

Entrepreneurs need to be effective team leaders, since no one can transform an idea into a product and a business without some help. The only real alternative is to find a cofounder who can build and lead the team, while you focus on the product. If your team has trouble finding you, you won’t make productive connections.

Leadership 318

Leadership Technical Review Technical Cofounder Development Team Review 318

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 16, 2022

Yet I find, as a mentor and outside consultant, that many of you focus only on working conditions and compensation as the key factors determining team engagement , health, and productivity. by Donna Cutting, who is a globally-recognized guru on employee culture and optimizing customer service. Emotional stability. Environmental safety.

Technical Review 353

Technical Review Cofounder Employee Global 353

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2022

Investors, partners, team members, and customers implicitly value or devalue a startup based on the leader’s physical presence, emotional identity, social skills, intellectual agility, moral values, and past performance in the domain. I have paraphrased his key points here as follows: Leader personal impact. Focus on talent and people growth.

Technical Review 323

Technical Review Due Diligence Valuation Leadership 323

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 26, 2022

With social media and smart phone apps, real product information spreads at astounding speeds. Today’s customers are much more proactive in going online for the latest information, rather than simply reacting to the “push” messages that businesses traditionally use to drive commerce. Continually watch for new opportunities.

Agile 379

Agile Technical Review Leadership Social Media 379

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2022

You can have the best technology, but if customers don’t know you exist, or they don’t know how your technology solves a real problem for them, your startup will fail. How many customers will have any idea what this means to them? You need to clearly convey what makes your startup the only choice for your customers.

Marketing 353

Marketing Technical Review Social Media Technology 353

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 6, 2023

Others schedule exhaustive training sessions for everyone on the team, including showcase customers, to make sure that everyone paints a consistent picture. Due diligence always involves on-site visits, informal discussions with any or all members of the team, vendors, and good customers as well as bad. Status of the solution.

Technical Review 296

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Bankruptcy 296

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 15, 2022

By definition, most startups begin as a result of some innovation in product, process, or service. The problem is that innovations in most business areas are coming so fast these days that yours can be overrun while still being scaled up across geographies and other products. Product-line expansion. Geographic expansion.

Dilution 355

Dilution Startup Merger Flash 355

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 25, 2023

A common initiative I hear from business owners today is their effort to improve the customer experience. To achieve real growth, business leaders need to improve both employee as well as customer experiences. Flexible – listen to allow flex hours and customization. Personalized – job is relevant to personal needs.

Employee 282

Employee Matching Customer Leadership 282

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 30, 2020

You may think that patents and copyrights are not required, since your products are so innovative, but you will find that competitors are quick to copy your idea if you don’t protect it. With information overload due to the Internet, you need to find your customers, rather than assume they will find you.

Intellectual Property 432

Intellectual Property Entrepreneur Technical Review Angel Investor 432

Steve Blank

JUNE 8, 2021

– while simultaneously building a series of minimal viable products. Unlike traditional demo days or Shark Tanks which are, “Here’s how smart I am, and isn’t this a great product, please give me money,” a Lessons Learned presentation tells the story of a team’s 10-week journey and hard-won learning and discovery.

Lean 417

Lean Security Asia SBIR 417

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. Customers like leaders, not followers.

Forecast 304

Forecast Stock Options Technical Review Metrics 304

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

JULY 13, 2022

You may feel good when that first burst of customers arrives, but don’t assume that “ word of mouth ” and those early adopters will grow your business to match your dreams of success. In these days of global competition via multiple channels, you need continuous marketing to find more customers. They won’t find you.

Technical Review 355

Technical Review Social Media Channel Flash 355

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 11, 2023

In fact, that feeling of autonomy makes everyone more productive, more loyal, and feel valued. People respond to positives, such as new growth, versus problems implying costs and loss of customers. This also applies to key customers as well as strategic partners. Position challenges as future growth opportunities.

Technical Review 277

Technical Review Partner Matching Channel 277

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 12, 2023

Offer free solutions to bring in more customers. Don’t get caught in the myth that you shouldn’t worry about monetization until after you have a large customer base. Social causes are great, but your ability to sustain your value contribution is directly linked to your ability to find paying customers.

Intellectual Property 312

Intellectual Property Startup Angel Investor Viral 312

Steve Blank

APRIL 20, 2021

Shawn immediately said the name I had given the four steps was confusing – I had called it market development – he suggested that I call it Customer Development – and the name stuck. Many of them get hung up on understanding how to select the right minimal viable product. Your mission is your baby.

Product 436

Product Viral Channel San Francisco 436

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. Investors don’t need to know the implementation details of your patent or customer support plan. An obvious effort to keep talking after the time limit won’t save your day with investors.

Technical Review 369

Technical Review Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Matching 369

Steve Blank

JUNE 1, 2021

The conversation got interesting when I asked, “How are you going to describe the product to potential customers in the concrete industry?” Do you know what if any of the features you mentioned actually matter to a potential customer?” Your product is not someone’s problem. Ask customers how they solve the problem today.

Product 433

Product Advisory Board Green Customer 433

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 23, 2022

Then they are surprised to see productivity and creativity take a big dip. It’s what every customer looks for in every transaction. In today’s marketplace, junior staffers are often the most intimately connected to the market, technology, and the customer network. Employees will lose focus on their work.”

Startup 337

Startup Technical Review Employee Hiring 337

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 25, 2023

For example, only a few people today still think of Amazon as an online provider of books and related goods, now that they have exploded their business world-wide into every product arena, added web services (AWS), television and film production (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer), a bricks-and-mortar grocery chain (Whole Foods), and more.

Partner 350

Partner Operations Metrics Leadership 350

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 31, 2023

These haven’t changed much over the years, but still seem to be often overlooked by business professionals and leaders in their haste to keep up with peers, competitors, and customers in today’s volatile environment. Timely follow-up on customer and team member requests. Find what works for you.

Flash 303

Flash Angel Investor Technical Review Social Media 303

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

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 249

Technical Review Salary Metrics Matching 249

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 15, 2023

You will see that I believe innovation is only one of many factors that ultimately determine your position with customers and your own legacy: Ideas are everywhere – success is all about execution. Search for customer pain rather than high margins. New customers don’t see incremental improvements.

Artificial Inteligence 286

Artificial Inteligence Technology Leadership Business Model 286

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 24, 2024

Furniture stores encounter obstacles such as inventory management and ensuring top-notch customer service. Enhancing Customer Experience Creating a great customer experience goes beyond offering high-quality products in the world of retail. Efficiency and organization are vital in the fast-paced world of retail today.

Operations 167

Operations Software Forecast Software Improvement 167

Steve Blank

DECEMBER 11, 2023

Most of the machines were custom-built to crack a specific code, and increasingly used a new ERA invention – the magnetic drum memory to process and analyze the coded texts. ERAs systems were designed to solve problems defined by their Navy code-breaking customer. ERA’s headcount grew rapidly.

Minnesota 317

Minnesota Engineer Minneapolis Silicon Valley 317