Startup Lessons Learned

DECEMBER 23, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Wednesday, December 23, 2009 Why vanity metrics are dangerous In a previous post, I defined two kinds of metrics: vanity metrics and actionable metrics. In this post, Id like to talk about the perils of vanity metrics. My personal favorite vanity metrics is "hits."

Metrics 167

Metrics San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment 167

VC Cafe

JANUARY 14, 2022

There are two main forms of exits for startups: trade sale/M&A or IPO. SPACs had their moment in the sun in 2021, with a record number of companies choosing to go public using the SPACs in favour of traditional IPOs. Israeli tech companies using billboards in busy roads to attract tech talent. SPACs have backfired.

Israel 159

Israel Technical Review Lock-up Period South Korea 159

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. In the 20th century tech companies and their investors made money through an Initial Public Offering (IPO).

Founder 278

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 278

VC Adventure

AUGUST 31, 2017

If you read my blog regularly you know I love (LOVE) metrics. They took the 92 public SaaS companies and analyzed their key operating metrics. The valuation metrics show this clearly. At IPO only 7 of 39 companies that have gone publics since 2013 had positive EBITDA. The methodology here was great. on average.

IPO 113

IPO Vertical Balance Sheet Valuation 113

VC Cafe

SEPTEMBER 5, 2024

It’s about going beyond traditional metrics and processes, adopting unconventional approaches, and doing things that might seem unscalable to most. With exits and IPOs being slow in 2024, many funds have slimmed down their fund targets and taken longer to raise. For LPs, it seems, there is perceived safety in numbers: mega funds.

Management 104

Management Technical Review Venture Capital Generative AI 104

Cracking the Code

MARCH 28, 2022

The cloud IPO market has also been very active with 32 IPOs vs. 17 in 2020. It’s worth noting though that while the number of IPOs increased, the companies were smaller and raised less capital than those last year. 60% of the cloud IPOs had a market cap of $5B+ vs. only 28% this year. in Sept 2020. In 2020, c.

Global 62

Global Israel Europe Software Review 62

YoungUpstarts

FEBRUARY 22, 2017

Corporate transactions including mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and initial public offerings (IPO) bring necessary capital and resources to a growing company. Do IPOs also necessitate an additional policy? In 2014, IPO activity grew substantially until it reached its current rate – the highest in the last six years.

IPO 147

IPO Prospectus Merger Initial Public Offering 147

View from Seed

DECEMBER 4, 2019

At the time, I spent most of my time describing the metrics themselves and how VCs and their LPs evaluate performance based on these measurements. If you aren’t familiar with these metrics, I recommend reading the original post to get a sense of the numbers that I’ll be reviewing here. So, is this good or bad?

LP 256

LP IRR Distribution Portfolio 256

Steve Blank

JANUARY 22, 2014

They failed due to: the dearth of deals in the region that have IPO potential and. We believe that regional funds need to walk a delicate balance…but it doesn’t take huge IPOs to return multiples of capital on a small fund. Late stage large regionally based funds that invest in late stage or mezzanine deals.

Early Stage 295

Early Stage Silicon Valley Oregon Technical Review 295

View from Seed

MARCH 24, 2021

In this comprehensive template and guide we break down each of the nine core sections in the deck: intro , team , what do you do , is it working , why does it matter (market) , can you be the best in the world (product, growth, financial metrics) , where are you going , what do you want (the ask) , and appendix. ” (Melody Koh).

Seed Stage 177

Seed Stage Hiring IPO Analytics 177

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 17, 2022

Pick a single metric that is the focus for all growth. Today’s world is full of metrics leading to business growth, including customer logins, revenue per customer, retention, and average solution price. A focus on looking good as an acquisition or IPO candidate has undermined many startups. Less is more.

Startup 361

Startup Social Media India Acquisition 361

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 21, 2021

Then there is the pressure to go public ( IPO ), and open your investment to thousands, maybe millions, of small investors. Explosive growth to an enterprise normally requires a scalable sales model, a well-documented process with incentives, training, and metrics for tracking and management.

Merger 379

Merger Due Diligence SEC IPO 379

SoCal CTO

JULY 23, 2012

What metrics are going to be the key startup metrics and how do we get those metrics without too much cost? It's also the sad fact that there's often a desire to bring someone in who has a bigger reputation and likely experience with larger startups that have gone through M&A or IPO.

CTO Hire 231

CTO Hire Technical Review Developer Software Review 231

Startup Lessons Learned

JULY 15, 2010

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Thursday, July 15, 2010 Some IPO speculation Inspired by Steve Blank’s post today about the “lost decade&# of IPO’s , I’d like to make some predictions. The fact that IPO’s are disappearing makes intuitive sense to me. Let me be clear: Steve is the historian.

IPO 166

IPO San Francisco Lean Silicon Valley 166

YoungUpstarts

JANUARY 10, 2018

You’ll find exceptions to this rule, like Snapchat, which was operating at a loss at its IPO, when it experienced high initial trading prices due to its huge popularity and untapped monetization capabilities. Another important metric is churn. This the first and foremost way to begin evaluating the sellability of your company.

Valuation 145

Valuation Technical Review Exit Strategy Metrics 145

Startup Lessons Learned

MARCH 24, 2009

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Tuesday, March 24, 2009 The metrics and levers of engagement, presentation on Engagement Loops for Facebook Developer Garage SF Ill be presenting a talk at the Facebook Developer Garage SF Wednesday evening. Unfortunately, its easy to lose track of positioning effects when optimizing for a single metric.

Metrics 88

Metrics San Francisco Lean Viral 88

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 3, 2021

To keep you on a positive track with potential investors, I recommend the following logic principles, to balance your passion in presenting your vision of a new business: Make sure your plan includes some business metrics. Equity investors realize that they won’t see any real return until an exit occurs, such as a sale, merger, or IPO.

Exit Strategy 406

Exit Strategy Merger Angel Investor IPO 406

Steve Blank

SEPTEMBER 14, 2009

On top of all this it was considered very bad form not to have at least four additional consecutive quarters of profits after an IPO.) The IPO Bubble – August 1995 – March 2000 In August 1995 Netscape went public, and the world of start ups turned upside down. Tech acquisitions went crazy at the same time the IPO market did.

Silicon Valley 236

Silicon Valley IPO Technical Review Venture Capital 236

crowdSPRING Blog

MAY 25, 2011

Interesting perspective on LinkedIn’s IPO – arguing that the IPO price was reasonable – [link]. And here’s another side – suggesting that LinkedIn shareholders might have been scammed in the IPO – [link]. Optimizing Emotional Engagement In Web Design Through Metrics – [link].

Social Media 86

Social Media Small Business Design Media 86

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2011

Early-stage investors in technology startups are only looking for growth-oriented companies that can achieve an “exit&# someday – either via selling your company to a larger company or via an IPO. Another firm we saw tried to raise $15 million at a $60 million pre-money with similar metrics. Here’s the problem.

Pre-Money Valuation 336

Pre-Money Valuation Valuation Silicon Valley Stock 336

Haystack

DECEMBER 29, 2018

More and more angels will be minted as the 2019 IPO class emerges. Also during this time, the underlying metrics in that business can change positively, potentially trapping companies to accept the initially-agreed upon valuation. Traditional seed funds have gotten bigger, many armed with opportunity funds on top.

Technical Review 165

Technical Review Venture Capital Russia China 165

NZ Entrepreneur

SEPTEMBER 29, 2021

Generating liquidity usually entails either selling the venture or an IPO. Agenda items will focus on key metrics illustrating value creation, particularly in software as a service companies. Your big decisions will be when and how to : raise capital. pivot the business. scale – this may include the need to go offshore. change the CEO.

Technical Review 94

Technical Review Software Review New Zealand Due Diligence 94

The Equity Kicker

JUNE 17, 2015

Firstly this table comparing 1999 and 2014 on key bubble-related metrics. But second there has been a big shift from IPOs to late stage private rounds. As you can see this time round the funding is both smaller in scale and more conservative, and we are operating in a much, much bigger market.

IPO 60

IPO Early Stage Valuation Metrics 60

Ben's Blog

OCTOBER 29, 2020

Since then, the debate over IPOs has continued, with a particular focus on allegedly underpriced offerings that jump shortly after opening — the dreaded “pop.” ” As some criticism has it, this supposedly deprives companies of millions of dollars that should have been theirs if not for underpricing the IPO.

IPO 36

IPO Securities and Exchange Commission Demand SEC 36

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 15, 2019

Pick a single metric that is the focus for all growth. Today’s world is full of metrics leading to business growth, including customer logins, revenue per customer, retention, and average solution price. A focus on looking good as an acquisition or IPO candidate has undermined many startups. Less is more.

Social Media 218

Social Media India Acquisition China 218

YoungUpstarts

MAY 5, 2017

The company’s ascension, chronicled in “ Becoming Facebook “ , is a business adventure of unprecedented growth, game-changing acquisitions, recovery from a chaotic IPO and a continuing defense against foes large and small. Decide On, and Obsess About, Your North Star Metric. Above all, that climb was no accident.

Silicon Valley 150

Silicon Valley IPO Metrics Global 150

Startup Lessons Learned

SEPTEMBER 22, 2008

Master of 500 Hats: Startup Metrics for Pirates (SeedCamp 2008, London) This presentation should be required reading for anyone creating a startup with an online service component. He also has a discussion of how your choice of business model determines which of these metric areas you want to focus on. Choose one.

San Francisco 167

San Francisco CPA SEM CTO Hire 167

Mucker Lab

OCTOBER 12, 2016

Why should a public market downturn determine an investment in a startup that has seven to 10 years to go before it can even think about an IPO? But many of today’s billion dollar venture firms invest in four-person startups as well as pre-IPO startups with thousands of employees.

Harvest 60

Harvest Vertical IPO Early Stage 60

Gust

JANUARY 31, 2013

Before the commercial Internet, the primary tools of disclosure included: Prospectus and related registration statement (“S-1″) for an IPO. Public companies have dealt with financial disclosure in ways that evolved over time with markets and technologies. Proxy statement in connection with the annual meeting of stockholders.

SEC 158

SEC Prospectus United States Technical Review 158

David Teten

JANUARY 19, 2021

This structure allows for alignment on the front end, and real-time flexibility for performance metrics,” says Samira Salman , a family office investor and advisor. . Flexible VCs have created structures based on other company performance metrics than revenues, such as profits or founder salaries. Flexible VC 102: Variations.

Cofounder 78

Cofounder Technical Review Equity Dividend 78

Startup Lessons Learned

FEBRUARY 8, 2010

Lessons Learned by Eric Ries Monday, February 8, 2010 Beware of Vanity Metrics (for Harvard Business Review) The next article in my series on entrepreneurship for Harvard Business Review is live today. Once again, we revisit the topic of Actionable metrics and their nemesis: Vanity metrics. Remember "metrics are people, too."

Metrics 121

Metrics San Francisco Lean Continuous Deployment 121

crowdSPRING Blog

JANUARY 18, 2013

Thanks To Facebook, Strongest Year For IPOs Since 2000 With $21.5 The 6 Marketing Metrics Your CEO Actually Cares About [Cheat Sheet] | Hubspot Blog - [link]. The 6 Marketing Metrics Your CEO Actually Cares About [Cheat Sheet] | Hubspot Blog - [link]. Why You Should Give Yourself Permission to Screw Up - [link].

Social Media 94

Social Media Small Business Design Media 94

Austin Startup

SEPTEMBER 29, 2018

And even if somehow you avoid it until your IPO, remember that an IPO is a fundraising event itself. But it was the dot-com craze and all of the metrics (eyeballs, pageviews, etc.) And there were other offers along the path to IPO that we also turned down. that counted back then were squish at best.

Bootstrapping 52

Bootstrapping IPO Business Model Software Review 52

BeyondVC

APRIL 4, 2018

Look at the Dropbox IPO which priced above its initial value and came out white hot at the end of one of the worst weeks in stock market performance. There will also still be some amazing companies that raise their Series C, D and beyond funding rounds with scaling metrics.

Cloud 60

Cloud Agile Architecture Azure 60

View from Seed

MARCH 3, 2015

Ellie Mirman was the first marketer hired by the CMO of HubSpot, the Boston-based marketing software startup that IPOed in 2014. NextView Ventures: Thinking back to before anyone knew HubSpot or the company was headed towards an IPO, where did you even start to market the company?

Marketing 120

Marketing Sales Cycle Startup CTO Hire 120

Feld Thoughts

JULY 9, 2019

This was before the IPO Summer of 2019 when all conventional valuation metrics have entered the land of “suspension of disbelief” which is short-term good and long-term well-we-will-see-…-eventually. One of our conversational threads was about how to value companies.

Revenue 179

Revenue Valuation .Net IPO 179

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

JULY 23, 2013

Marketo filed for IPO with impressive 80% year-over-year growth in 2012, with almost $60m in revenue. Another way to think about these solutions is that a SaaS business cannot have static fundamental metrics. Leaving the metrics alone, and trying to “grow until profitable” doesn’t work. for every $1.00

Business Model 335

Business Model .Net Revenue IPO 335