Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 11, 2022

We had nascent revenues, ridiculous cost structures and unrealistic valuations. Almost no financings, many VCs and tech startups cratered for the second time in less than a decade following the dot com bursting. Until we weren’t. 2001–2007: THE BUILDING YEARS The dot com bubble had burst. Nobody cared about our valuations any more.

Valuation 466

Valuation San Francisco Ratchet Liquidation Preference 466

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 9, 2013

I was sitting with the financing guy who was trying to upsell me everything from pre-paying service to prepaying dent repair coverage, etc. I was chatting with the finance guy and he was cycling through all the things he wanted to bait-and-switch me to and he asked if I wanted a lease in stead of a purchase. But I digress.

Software Review 398

Software Review Technical Review China Mexico 398

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 4, 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. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. Commit to a major customer.

Intellectual Property 261

Intellectual Property Technical Review Incubator Bootstrapping 261

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

Should SaaS companies trade at a 24x Enterprise Value (EV) to Next Twelve Month (NTM) Revenue multiple as they did in November 2021? This happens slowly because while public markets trade daily and prices then adjust instantly, private markets don’t get reset until follow-on financing rounds happen which can take 6–24 months.

Technical Review 416

Technical Review Pre-Money Valuation San Francisco Valuation 416

The Startup Magazine

JANUARY 19, 2025

Image source Startups often face unpredictable revenue streams and mounting operational costs, making cash flow management particularly challenging. Setting aside a percentage of monthly revenue creates a financial buffer that can cover urgent expenses when needed. However, even small contributions over time can add up.

Management 108

Management Startup Forecast Finance 108

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 11, 2021

In my 15+ years as a startup founder, investor, and advisor — and now in my role as CEO of a bookkeeping and accounting startup — I’ve come across countless businesses whose accounts aren’t accurate or GAAP-compliant because they’re making the same four mistakes: Relying on spreadsheets to track their revenue and expenses.

Small Business 208

Small Business Startup Cofounder Vertical 208

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 21, 2017

Revenue multiples, profit multiples, premium over the previous financing — these are metrics used by sellers to help determine a minimum acceptable price. Even for startups, it takes years for a new product to become good enough to demand many millions of dollars in revenue.). Yet mobile advertising revenues were paltry.

Balance Sheet 242

Balance Sheet Vertical Acquisition Revenue 242

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 20, 2017

Today I’m excited to announce we’ve recently raised $30 million in growth finance led by 8VC , with Kimmy Scotti joining our board. So how did a company that provides storage grow so fast (we’ll exit 2017 with 10’s of millions in recurring revenue), why is it so defensible and is it really a tech startup? years of software development.

Technical Review 268

Technical Review Los Angeles Software Review Artificial Inteligence 268

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 30, 2019

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. It always reduces risk to plan your business first. Commit to a major customer.

Intellectual Property 219

Intellectual Property Technical Review Startup Incubator 219

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 23, 2014

The “big boom” in startup financing started around March 2009?—?more Public-company tech investors creates competition in late-stage financings and these investors can afford to be less price sensitive if they choose. Unprecedented revenue growth + companies staying private longer =. more than 5 years ago?—?and

Technical Review 398

Technical Review Venture Capital Valuation Pre-Money Valuation 398

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

— Unremarked and unheralded, the balance of power between startup CEOs and their investors has radically changed: IPOs/M&A without a profit (or at times revenue) have become the norm. Typically, this caliber of bankers wouldn’t talk to you unless your company had five profitable quarters of increasing revenue.

Founder 281

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 281

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 14, 2017

This financial leader could well have come through the finance org at another startup or at a larger company but they often also can come from strategy consulting (Bain, BCG or McKinsey) or through investment banking (Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, etc.).

Operations 286

Operations New York City Technical Review Startup 286

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 19, 2014

By September 26th we had submitted a term sheet which was signed on October 4th and financing was closed in less than 30 days. Again, I think the company would slug me if released revenue data, but … wow. Massive success after just one week of launching that has continued into the third week (this week) with their first property.

Technical Review 373

Technical Review North America Los Angeles Cofounder 373

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 21, 2020

Some analysts argue that revenue drives growth, while others say user growth drives revenue. Google reached $1B in revenue within five years of incorporation, and now has a market capitalization of over $1 trillion. Long-term stability requires revenue growth and profit. Both have worked. Traditionally, it was simple.

Revenue 434

Revenue Valuation Viral Retention 434

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 8, 2024

Equipment Financing: Leveraging Assets for Growth Equipment financing allows businesses to purchase or lease equipment needed for expansion without tying up capital or resorting to large upfront payments. They offer flexibility for short-term expenses or help in unexpected opportunities. Debt can help cash flow at the same time.

Finance 128

Finance Technical Review Metrics .Net 128

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 28, 2018

Until recently it was headquartered 2 blocks from our offices in Santa Monica so we literally saw it emerge under our feet and we proudly invested in the last 3 rounds of financing. I think it’s quite possible that Bird could be the fastest growing company to reach a billion dollars in run rate revenue. having raised $300 million?—?less

San Francisco 256

San Francisco Valuation Los Angeles Technical Review 256

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2018

There are many things a VC is looking for in reviewing your business plan but beyond things the like the quality of revenue, margins, OPEX and CAPEX there’s a really simple rule I call, “Cash In, Cash Out, Milestones Achieved.” Most VCs lead one round of financing in your company and are looking for other VCs to lead subsequent rounds.

Burn Rate 247

Burn Rate Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Dilution 247

VC Cafe

FEBRUARY 27, 2024

especially if the startup already has a product and revenue? While the answers are somewhat semantic, the pre-seed funding round is making a comeback in 2024 startup financing. A founder asked me what makes a $2M round “pre-seed”? Pre-seed tends to be about developing an MVP and generating early traction.

Valuation 186

Valuation Software Review Generative AI Technical Review 186

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 18, 2019

The company started the year with no revenue and at it’s peak had a run rate well in excessive of $100 million / year. We’re at a new watermark because there are now global assets deployed and as the sun peeks out so to do the riders and the revenue. They were new, they were strange, they were ridden mostly by young people?—?they

South America 250

South America Global New York City Software Review 250

VC Cafe

MARCH 1, 2024

Personal Finance Cross-account visibility and management – Today’s AI products can analyze and move money between accounts – as agents improve, they will make trades across accounts. Digital Wallets – Digital wallets could grow select vertical software platforms’ revenues to $27-$50bn in 2030.

Artificial Inteligence 176

Artificial Inteligence Technical Review Software Review Generative AI 176

YoungUpstarts

JUNE 16, 2020

Reasons for a business valuation run a gamut from selling the business due to retirement or health reasons to financing expansion efforts to adding shareholders to a buyout situation. Capitalization Factor – This can be defined as a multiplier used for converting projected future earnings and revenue into present day value.

Valuation 162

Valuation CPA Software Review .Net 162

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 29, 2022

According to IBIS World, the revenues generated by the hotels and motels industry in 2022 have reached $258.1 To help you out, we’ve compiled a list of five effective hospitality industry financial management practices that will help you manage your finances like a pro. Leveraging Revenue Management Solutions.

Management 145

Management Software Review Revenue Cost 145

YoungUpstarts

NOVEMBER 2, 2020

One client said it helped them because they hadn’t made long-term commitments to advertising buys, and it was easy to cut back spending when their revenues declined. The non-marketing parts of the business (sales, finance, and the CEO) don’t care about more marketing “stuff”; they want more leads, more sales, and more profits.

Agile 264

Agile Marketing Campaign Sales 264

View from Seed

SEPTEMBER 18, 2019

The point here is not to do a granular forecast of revenue or number of users/customers, but to put a stake in the ground so investors understand what you believe is achievable with X amount of resources given Y timeframe. Alternatively, you want to show credibly how that you can get to profitability and be in control of your own destiny.

Part-Time VPE 195

Part-Time VPE Seed Stage CTO Hire Forecast 195

Steve Blank

APRIL 23, 2018

The entrepreneur who founded and grew the largest startup in the world to $10 billion in revenue and got fired is someone you have probably never heard of. Sloan kept the corporate staff small and focused on policymaking, corporate finance, and planning. A version of this article appeared in the Harvard Business Review.

Michigan 301

Michigan Cofounder Stock Forecast 301

Steve Blank

APRIL 1, 2020

Your revenue plans are no longer valid. What’s your monthly cash burn at your new low revenue level? The CEO should dial through as many of the largest existing customers to get a firsthand understanding of the magnitude of any revenue shortfall. The ripple effects won’t be obvious at first. External Assessment.

South Korea 334

South Korea Salary Business Model China 334

Feld Thoughts

JUNE 11, 2021

We didn’t have any financing except for Brad’s credit card and the $10 with which we had purchased our common stock. Much of our revenue for the month had come from one highly productive though erratic undergraduate developer, Mike, who was working on a billable client project.

Common Stock 213

Common Stock Boston Europe Software Development 213

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

OCTOBER 4, 2017

There’s also an armed globally-dispersed Sales and Support teams, so we’re selling to our 70,000 existing customers as well as thousands of new customers per month, which means we’ll end up adding more new revenue in one month than a small company will take in over a whole year. The tradeoff, however, is predictability.

Government 223

Government Startup Cofounder Technical Support 223

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 29, 2020

In short, email automation comes with a plethora of benefits for your business, customers, and your revenue. Accelerates revenue. This added revenue is the result of upselling and cross-selling. Personalized recommendation is a kind of cross-selling which has the ability to accelerate your revenues considerably.

Email 166

Email Campaign Revenue HTML 166

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 18, 2024

The decentralized finance landscape is constantly shifting, with new projects, innovations, and risks emerging regularly. Price-to-Sales (P/S) Ratio The price-to-sales (P/S) ratio measures the market cap relative to a protocol’s revenue, similar to traditional finance metrics.

Metrics 129

Metrics Valuation API Distribution 129

Up and Running

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

Creating a financial plan enables companies to predict expenditures and create an effective plan for incoming revenue. Recording your expected revenues and expenses monthly does not count as effective budgeting. When trying to be responsible with your finances, the last thing you want is a missed due date.

Technical Review 132

Technical Review Software Review Forecast Cloud 132

The Startup Magazine

MARCH 6, 2024

The Significance: Financial Surveilling: The biggest and most obvious advantage of strategic operations management is the alignment of finances with the company’s goals and objectives. Revenue generation can be increased and sped up using efficient strategic moves and policies.

Operations 139

Operations Management Software Review Technical Review 139

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 12, 2018

A critical component to building a successful business is being able to capture ongoing revenue from consumers who feel they are getting incredible value and continue to feel good about paying. Having recurring revenue allows you to keep the original purchase price down, which in turn increases sales. it was a personal mission.

Security 247

Security Los Angeles Silicon Valley Video 247

The Startup Magazine

NOVEMBER 22, 2022

She realised the revenue operations market was booming, especially within the tech industry, and therefore wanted to explore what is largely an untapped market within the UK and Europe. RevOps, or “Revenue Operations”, is a B2B function that uses automation to help teams make the right decisions to grow their business. These goals are.

Congo 140

Congo Technical Review Africa Netherlands 140

Up and Running

JULY 28, 2022

Small Business Administration , an organization is considered to be a small business if their: Firm revenue ranges from $1 million to $40 million Number of employees is between 100 and 1,500. A business bank account is a bank account used by a business owner to separate personal finances from business finances.

Small Business 167

Small Business Intellectual Property Cofounder Software Review 167

Feld Thoughts

JUNE 9, 2021

” So for the deal, investors on both sides converted to common, we split the combined company 55/45, Matt became CEO, and Greg led a new Series A financing into the combined company. .” I answered, “Deal.” Twenty years later, we sold the business, a $100 million, profitable company, to Validity. Matt was still CEO.

Fractional CTO 195

Fractional CTO Cofounder Startup Lead Investor 195

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 13, 2024

This program offers in-depth knowledge across all aspects of business management, including finance and strategic planning. 3 Plan Your Finances and Raise Money It’s a no-brainer that you’ll need money to turn your vision into reality, so start planning for finances. MBA programs are a tad bit expensive.

United States 103

United States Bootstrapping Social Media Angel Investor 103