Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

Struggling entrepreneurs are often so happy to get a funding offer that they neglect the recommended reverse due diligence on the investors. Reverse due diligence on the investor is a comparable process whereby the entrepreneur seeks to validate the track record, operating style, and motivation of every potential partner.

Technical Review 257

Technical Review Due Diligence Term Sheet Offshore 257

Both Sides of the Table

MARCH 30, 2011

The part of the movement that resonates the most with me (in my words) is that entrepreneurs should keep their capital expenditures really low while they’re experimenting with their product and determining whether there is a large market for what they do. This benefits you, the entrepreneur. It takes options off of the table.

Development Team Review 374

Development Team Review Technical Review Bulgaria Lean 374

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 23, 2020

Entrepreneurs who experience success with their first startup are often amazed to realize that the risks and fears of doing it right the second time go up, rather than down. Encores are tough, especially in the high-risk world of startups, yet every entrepreneur I know can’t wait to start over and do it again.

Technical Review 324

Technical Review Entrepreneur Due Diligence Business Model 324

The Startup Magazine

APRIL 12, 2021

There are several profitable tech startup ideas for entrepreneurs in 2021. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, an increasing number of companies have been relying on technology to conduct business in remote settings. This has caused a rising demand for tech companies’ services around the world. Startup Ideas.

Technical Review 145

Technical Review Software Review Application Development Entrepreneur 145

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 12, 2021

Technology environment savvy. Of course, many are still fighting it as well, due to privacy concerns. In my view, the increasing consumer demand for personal marketing and personal assistants will soon overcome paranoia, and reasonable boundaries will emerge. There are already many examples of startups edging into this space.

Web 380

Web Search Semantic Software Review 380

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 22, 2014

My plea to entrepreneurs is to recognize these concerns as an opportunity, to make people’s life better, rather than stoke the fires. Market your solution and user benefits, not the mysterious technology behind it. business entrepreneur identify theft opportunity privacy startup' Why is everyone so paranoid these days?

Security 251

Security Technical Review Entrepreneur Social Network 251

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 21, 2025

As governments and communities aim to reduce environmental impact, there is a rising demand for eco-friendly transport solutions. The Shift to Sustainable Transport Transportation is changing quickly due to growing concerns about the environment. The initial purchase price of electric and hybrid cars tends to be higher.

Technical Review 144

Technical Review Government Operations Demand 144

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 7, 2016

Despite a valiant effort, we only briefly succeeded in putting IBM in the personal computer business, but our efforts changed my view of entrepreneurs forever. For IBM, the Personal Computer was a paradigm shift from their big business legacy, built with new technologies for totally new markets, and battleships turn very slowly.

Technical Review 214

Technical Review Entrepreneur Silicon Valley Burn Rate 214

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 28, 2021

Almost every entrepreneur and new business owner I mentor is certain that his/her idea has a very high probability of success, and all find it hard to believe that ninety percent of startups ultimately fail. 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

Hearpreneur

NOVEMBER 2, 2022

Technology disruption is happening at a rapid pace all around us. We asked our entrepreneurs what changes do they expect due to technology shortly, and this is what they have to say. #1- I also expect to see more technology to assist with personalized experiences at trade shows, both in person and virtually, shortly.

Technical Review 126

Technical Review Software Review Artificial Inteligence Technology 126

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 7, 2013

Many aspiring entrepreneurs are looking to the Internet as an opportunity to get rich quick, instead of a place where you can start a business you love, for very little capital and minimal technical expertise. With a stable base of subscribers, this can mean a continuing revenue stream from newsletters, support, or advice on demand.

Internet 263

Internet Entrepreneur Technical Review Software Review 263

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 14, 2022

My recommendation to entrepreneurs is to recognize these concerns as an opportunity to make people’s life better, rather than worry and dodge the risk. Market your solution and user benefits, not the mysterious technology behind it. Use video and audio, rather than jargon, abbreviations, and computer lingo on your site.

Technical Review 342

Technical Review Customer Social Network Software Review 342

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 30, 2014

With plenty of resources available for entrepreneurs about how to craft an effective pitch deck for raising seed-stage capital from VCs, often what’s left out are some of the tactical components of an initial meeting. Backup paper copies if the on-screen presentation fails are a bit low-tech but work almost as well. VCs understand.

Technical Review 308

Technical Review Entrepreneur Due Diligence Seed Stage 308

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 29, 2020

Personal protective equipment (PPE) are now being routinely used to ensure health and safety, virtual shopping is at an all-time high due to qurantine and lockdown, and physical interactions have been limited to mobile and online platforms. And, even with the new normal, PPE products will remain in demand. These are some of those: 1.

Demand 173

Demand Product Artificial Inteligence Software Review 173

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 23, 2013

There is so much written these days about how to attract investors that most entrepreneurs “assume” they need funding, and don’t even consider a plan for “bootstrapping,” or self-financing their startup. In fact, most of the rich entrepreneurs you know actively turned away early equity proposals. Need to spread the risk.

Bootstrapping 252

Bootstrapping Sweat Equity Entrepreneur Technical Review 252

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 5, 2011

I’m an entrepreneur at heart so I’m always inspired when I hear stories about innovation. Seattle should be the envy of any non Silicon Valley tech community in the country. It really wouldn’t take much to turn a great technology ecosystem into a truly electric one. This article originally ran on TechCrunch.

Seattle 317

Seattle Silicon Valley Technical Review Los Angeles 317

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 12, 2014

The last thing a new entrepreneur wants to think about for a new startup is how it will end. If the entrepreneur plans to grow the company into a family business, or keep it private, they will either never be interested in buying out investors, or will certainly not be motivated to provide the 10x return that investors are looking for.

Exit Strategy 289

Exit Strategy Entrepreneur IPO Startup 289

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 18, 2014

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. Neither breakthrough technology nor maximum features will assure that “if we build it, they will come.” Nail the solution. Marty Zwilling.

Entrepreneur 283

Entrepreneur Startup Angel Investor Technical Review 283

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 22, 2023

From my consulting with entrepreneurs in Europe and other countries, I’m convinced that we all could benefit from adapting to meet their environments. Even here, Elon Musk faced this issue with Tesla, needing a support ecosystem as well as new technology. Even consumers here in the US are demanding a more responsible approach.

Global 345

Global Silicon Valley Marketing Indonesia 345

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Many entrepreneurs I have mentored make big mistakes in this area, by hiring low-cost friends and family, with minimal skills or training, and expecting them to have the same work ethic , passion, and business knowledge as the founder. Direct customer-facing non-technical roles should be the last ones outsourced. with experience.

Technical Review 308

Technical Review Due Diligence Startup Employee 308

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2014

The bad news is that patent trolls (non-producing companies that make their money from licensing patents) can squeeze the lifeblood out of unsuspecting entrepreneurs, as exemplified by the recent mess around Lodsys suing small Apple IOS developers. They know that these entrepreneurs don’t have the skill or resources to defend themselves.

Software Review 250

Software Review Software Technical Review Intellectual Property 250

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 12, 2021

As a startup mentor and investor, I am approached regularly by aspiring entrepreneurs who assert that business plans take too much time, are inaccurate, and rarely add value. These platforms, and every investor who uses them to find entrepreneurs, expects to find a good business plan posted. You need money, and plan to do crowdfunding.

Business Plan 316

Business Plan Technical Review Angel Investor Due Diligence 316

ReadWriteStart

JULY 7, 2021

Various business models in an on-demand courier delivery app. For example, manufacturing companies use On-demand courier delivery apps for kickstarting their production activities in their factories and plants. Why is an Uber for courier app a viable business idea for entrepreneurs?

Technical Review 163

Technical Review Artificial Inteligence Demand Social Media 163

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 24, 2013

On the other hand, everyone wants to be an entrepreneur. This next frontier lies in building your own enterprises as an entrepreneur, rather than waiting for innovation and opportunity from large corporations. Existing technologies have been “commoditized” globally. New emerging manufacturing technologies (e.g.,

Entrepreneur 263

Entrepreneur Offshore Merger Technical Review 263

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2013

Due to the struggling economy as well, traditional individual Angel investors haven’t been able to fill the gap. Technology costs are plummeting, meaning you can do more with less. Twenty years ago, it cost $5 million to really launch a high-tech startup, when the same thing can be done today for $500 thousand. Marty Zwilling.

Angel Investor 231

Angel Investor Entrepreneur Early Stage Silicon Valley 231

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 22, 2021

Many aspiring entrepreneurs are looking to the Internet as an opportunity to get rich quick, instead of a place where you can start a business you love, for very little capital and minimal technical expertise. With a stable base of subscribers, this can mean a continuing revenue stream from newsletters, support, or advice on demand.

Technical Review 312

Technical Review Software Review Internet Revenue 312

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 6, 2025

It’s only been a bit over a month since the start of 2025 past year has witnessed seismic shifts in technology, from breakthroughs in generative AI to emerging solutions in climate tech and healthcare. This is an extension of the previous list with new sources and startup requests. You can find the 2024 RFS list here.

Software Review 78

Software Review Technical Review Startup Software Engineering 78

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 7, 2020

Although his focus is naturally on bigger companies, I contend that his recommended strategies apply equally well to entrepreneurs and startups: Demand a mindset of deep thinking for the long term. In my experience, even in startups, longer-term strategy often gets pushed off the agenda due to current challenges.

Technical Review 312

Technical Review Due Diligence Merger Social Media 312

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 18, 2020

As a long-time business executive and adviser to entrepreneurs, I see a definitive shift away from customer trust in traditional business messages, and the executives who deliver them. I believe that the sooner every entrepreneur and brand builder adapts to this emerging trend, the sooner they will find success.

Customer 433

Customer B2C Technical Review Social Media 433

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

As is often said if you don’t get at least a few fellow VCs (and entrepreneurs) scratching their heads you may not be funding ideas with enough upside. Periodically we do portfolio reviews to evaluate whether we have enough diversified risk across the fund. We look at stage, geography and of course sector. 6SensorLabs.

Technical Review 362

Technical Review America United States Partner 362

YoungUpstarts

MAY 8, 2014

by Tom Panaggio, author of “ The Risk Advantage: Embracing the Entrepreneur’s Unexpected Edge “ The entrepreneurial life is rife with potential pitfalls. That’s why most entrepreneurs (understandably) want to keep some cash in reserve for a rainy day. Or a key vendor declares bankruptcy. Holding resources in reserve.

Technical Review 254

Technical Review Entrepreneur Florida Cofounder 254

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 27, 2011

” I mention journalists here because they perpetuate the myth that focusing on profits is ALWAYS the right answer and then I hear many entrepreneurs (and certainly many “normals”) repeating the same mantra. Exec Summary: Most companies (98+%) in the world (even tech startups) should be very profit focused.

Startup 418

Startup Revenue Technical Review Flash 418

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 1, 2020

From my consulting with entrepreneurs in Europe and other countries, I’m convinced that we all could benefit from adapting to meet their environments. Even here, Elon Musk faced this issue with Tesla, needing a support ecosystem as well as new technology. Even consumers here in the US are demanding a more responsible approach.

Silicon Valley 312

Silicon Valley Indonesia Venture Capital Global 312

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2021

In my experience as an angel investor for new startups, I’m always surprised by how many entrepreneurs are looking for funding without outside advisors. For example, I once was approached by an entrepreneur, passionate that his new algae strain would cure world hunger and make him rich. Bandwidth is a constraint we all feel.

Advisory Board 356

Advisory Board Bandwidth Cofounder Technical Review 356

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 7, 2014

As a startup mentor and investor, I am approached regularly by aspiring entrepreneurs who assert that business plans are a waste of time. They cite sources like the BusinessWeek story, “ Real Entrepreneurs Don’t Write Business Plans ” and this Forbes article. On the other hand, your mother probably won’t read one.

Business Plan 274

Business Plan Technical Review Angel Investor Due Diligence 274

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 2, 2022

If you are like most entrepreneurs I know, there just aren’t enough hours in a day to get all your own work done, as well as run the many one-hour meetings each team member seems to demand for decisions and mentoring. But it only works if you observe the following principles: Never hide from your team.

Elevator Pitch 386

Elevator Pitch Technical Review Dividend Leadership 386

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 4, 2019

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. Yet I see many technology entrepreneurs that focus on the basics of marketing too little and too late. Marketing is everything these days.

Marketing 244

Marketing Entrepreneur Technical Review Social Media 244