This site uses cookies to improve your experience. To help us insure we adhere to various privacy regulations, please select your country/region of residence. If you do not select a country, we will assume you are from the United States. Select your Cookie Settings or view our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Used for the proper function of the website
Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Strictly Necessary: Used for the proper function of the website
Performance/Analytics: Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
'I probably get around a dozen e-mails a week asking me how to get into venture capital. On top of that, anytime I talk to anyone who wants to get involved in startups but isn''t sure what they want to do, inevitably, I hear, "And then I was thinking maybe I should look into venture capital, too.". I usually direct people to this post --still hanging atop the search rankings for " How to be a VC analyst" years later.
'I work with a lot of startups. I start to notice when bad behavior creeps into the system as a whole. I have seen much of that behavior over the past 2 years get worse. Nobody seems to want to make money any more. I remember just a decade ago in 2003 when we all laughed at how dumb people in the 90′s were talking about the race to “capture as many eyeballs as possible” before your competition.
'Substitute the word “money” for “water” and we have an explanation for most all of the reasons why successful products move from concept through early adopters through mass market. Money flows to the cheapest effective solution to a problem. Fighting this fact will just extend the misery of accepting a product or marketing failure in the marketplace.
Earlier this week, I met an experienced head of sales. During our meeting, the candidate shared a simple way of thinking about a startup’s sales process that resonated with me. A startup’s sales evolution contains three phases: beta, reference customer, ROI calculator. Beta : A founder of the startup develops relationships with a handful of customers who will work in tandem with the company to design, tune and improve the product.
AI adoption is reshaping sales and marketing. But is it delivering real results? We surveyed 1,000+ GTM professionals to find out. The data is clear: AI users report 47% higher productivity and an average of 12 hours saved per week. But leaders say mainstream AI tools still fall short on accuracy and business impact. Download the full report today to see how AI is being used — and where go-to-market professionals think there are gaps and opportunities.
'“If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.” — Freewill, Rush. If you happen to be a sports fan (I am), one of the coolest features to emerge in our lifetime is the ability to program your DVR remotely. The game is about to start, and you forgot to record it. No problem — you can simply talk to your DVR remotely. It’s like magic.
'One of my favorite events last year was attending Startup Grind where I got to interview Clayton Christensen, author of The Innovator’s Dilemma. Not just because meeting Clayton was influential in shaping my thinking about markets but also because Derek Andersen (who founded Startup Grind) is such an awesome host and runs a very informative events.
'One of my favorite events last year was attending Startup Grind where I got to interview Clayton Christensen, author of The Innovator’s Dilemma. Not just because meeting Clayton was influential in shaping my thinking about markets but also because Derek Andersen (who founded Startup Grind) is such an awesome host and runs a very informative events.
'This is final part of a series that describes a sales methodology for technology companies or frankly many other types of companies, too. We developed this at our first company and called it PUCCKA – the overall methodology is described here. Pain. Unique Selling Proposition. Compelling Event. Champion. Key Players such as enemies, sages and blockers.
'The other day, I was out at MCU Park in Coney Island, where the Brooklyn Cyclones play. I was chatting with the GM of the team up on the party deck. We turned away from the game to face Brooklyn, and look down at the streetscape below. There were a lot of empty lots and buildings in need of renovation. For as much as Coney Island had been "cleaned up" in recent years, it''s been slow to thrive and become more than just a beach destination during the summer.
'At accelerators like Techstars, the "Office Hours" is a standard part of the program. A mentor comes in and a whole slate of companies are scheduled to meet with them for around 20 minutes or so. It''s more than an elevator pitch, but not enough time for a full pitch. So what are you supposed to get accomplished in that time? First of all, get it out of your head that Office Hours is time to pitch.
'Last year I wrote a blog post on entrepreneurs with a chip on their shoulders. I think it’s an important read. A chip on one’s shoulder as in, “F**k the system, it’s broken and I want to fix it” is exactly the energy I look for in entrepreneurs. My internal compass says that “country-club” entrepreneurs struggle to make as big of an impact because it’s really hard to totally change a system that you’re part of and have a vested interest in.
Large enterprises face unique challenges in optimizing their Business Intelligence (BI) output due to the sheer scale and complexity of their operations. Unlike smaller organizations, where basic BI features and simple dashboards might suffice, enterprises must manage vast amounts of data from diverse sources. What are the top modern BI use cases for enterprise businesses to help you get a leg up on the competition?
'I am going to be wrong over the course of my career--many times. I understand and accept that because I know that if I do not take risk, I will not make a return. On top of that, I am building a portfolio--and I plan to be a long term investor in the asset class. If you are trying to prove to yourself that any one particular deal will be successful, either a) you''ll never get there or b) you''re convincing yourself that you know more than you really do.
'I first met Chris Quinn in person three years ago. She came to a Startup Weekend and gave a speech about how New York wasn''t doing such a great job supporting tech entrepreneurship. It was frustrating, because we had come such a long way, and having a public figure deride our progress and tell the world we''re not doing a good job wasn''t going to help the situation.
'Congratulations New York Metro area. Not that VC dollars are the be all and end all, but it''s one important measure of the health of a startup community, and NYC''s latest quarterly numbers from the PWC Moneytree report are continuing a positive trend--not only relative to the Valley, but in the aggregate. We''re up 11.5% year over year this quarter, while Silicon Valley is down a whopping 21.8%.
'In baseball, wins are built on a lot of small moves over the course of a game--a hit that just misses the foul pole, being safe by an inch to break up a double play, or bunting. The other day, a friend that wasn''t familar with the game asked me why anyone would bunt and give yourself up. Doesn''t it cost you an out? Any fan knows the answer: Bunting moves the runners over.
Gearing up for 2025 annual planning? Our latest eBook from the Operators Guild is your ultimate guide. Discover real-world solutions and best practices shared by top CFOs, drawn directly from discussions within OG’s vibrant online community. Learn from senior executives at high-growth tech startups as they outline financial planning strategies, align CEO and board goals, and coordinate budgets across departments.
'Pitching to a VC can be like trying to have a conversation with a three year old. We''re constantly distracted, off on tangents, difficult to keep focused. We also get bored really easily. That''s why you need to start off every pitch--be it in an elevator or in a meeting--with a hook. A hook captures the audience''s attention and gets them leaning in.
'I have long advised startup companies that if you don’t control your messaging somebody else will and your potential customers will form impressions of you shaped by somebody else or by nobody at all. It’s why it’s important to establish a brand, know what your key messages are and communicate them often and simply. I have published many of these PR Tips before.
'This is part of a series that describes a sales methodology for technology companies or frankly many other types of companies, too. We developed this at our first company and called it PUCCKA – the overall methodology is described here. Pain. Unique Selling Proposition. Champion. Compelling Event. This post talks about the “K” or Key Players involved in a buying decision.
'When polled 88% of marketing professionals said they couldn’t accurately measure the effectiveness of their marketing campaigns and the majority said lack of ROI measurement is their single greatest frustration with social media (Forbes). If you look at the left side of the graphic you’ll see the easy, traditional measurement of followers, RTs, FAVs & replies.
Mighty Financial specializes in supporting the financial aspirations of small businesses and entrepreneurs. With our comprehensive bookkeeping and precise accounting expertise with decades of experience across diverse financial roles, our team offers tailor-made services ranging from essential bookkeeping to strategic fractional CFO support, catered specifically to the unique challenges of technology companies, startups, and SMEs.
'Sometimes, you sit and stare at your computer--overwhelmed by the sheer amount of stuff you need to do. How are you ever going to get it done? Well, you know what? You won''t. As soon as you get this stuff done more stuff will follow. In fact, the more you do, the more people will give to you to do--or that you''ll notice can get done. So what do you do?
How should a successful marketing initiative for a startup operate? It’s possible to jump right into performance marketing immediately after launch, optimizing conversion funnels and squeezing every cent out of ad spend. But I think there’s an important step that precedes performance marketing: community development. . Yesterday, I met with an entrepreneur who was researching how best to build a marketing team for her business.
From time to time, entrepreneurs ask one investor for referrals to other investors. After all, investors network frequently, work together and have long term relationships with each other so a referral should go a long way. But not all introductions are equal. The most successful investor-to-investor referrals are those where the referring investor is investing in the business and is seeking to fill out the round with complementary capital.
In 2005, I started as a customer support rep in the AdSense team at Google. Over the next few months, I was trained in the art of handling hundreds of emails per day. My training focused on using a customer service tool called Trakken that Google had acquired and heavily modified to enable AdWords and AdSense teams to manage the torrent of inbound support emails from customers.
Lack of digitalization decreases business competitiveness. To thrive, embracing modern solutions becomes essential. The approach to digitalization often aligns with a company's business model. This shift not only boosts productivity but also automates processes and improves security. The tech market offers a wealth of technologies tailored for management, planning, and forecasting, replacing outdated pen-and-paper methods.
Atul Gawande, the American surgeon known for his book “ Better ”, wrote an article in this week’s New Yorker called “ Slow Ideas: Some innovations spread fast. How do you speed the ones that don’t? ” He describes the challenges faced by healthcare institutions all over the world: despite the advances in research, the most difficult part of improving care isn’t availing doctors and nurses to these breakthroughs, but changing their behavior.
This week, I visited a startup whose office had a very unusual feature: a usability lab. There I was in a soundproofed room with a table in the center flanked by two chairs, one for a user and one product manager or UX researcher. On the table, a constellation of web cams record a user’s facial expressions and interactions with a mobile phone or laptop while a microphone captures the user’s voice.
With more than 80% of venture capital investments occurring in enterprise and with the public markets disproportionately rewarding SaaS companies with huge enterprise value-to-revenue multiples ( median is 7.6 ), it’s no surprise that interest Software-as-a-Service is booming. After meeting quite a few SaaS companies, I’ve compiled a list of my ideal characteristics for a SaaS business below.
It is easy to write off content marketing as a waste of time. Effectiveness is difficult to measure; it is time consuming and the payback period on the investment is uncertain. But unlike most forms of paid marketing, content marketing has a cumulative and compounding return. Each of the posts of a blog continues to attract traffic from SEO and social channels long after it has been published.
CAPTARGET presents a masterclass in M&A deal sourcing. Learn to cast a wide net, embracing seller self-identification. Consistency is the linchpin: keep the origination process steady for a reliable flow of opportunities. Diversify your tactics, employing various tools and vendors. Tech matters! Understand DNS settings, domain authority, and brand presence for optimal outreach.
We organize all of the trending information in your field so you don't have to. Join 24,000+ users and stay up to date on the latest articles your peers are reading.
You know about us, now we want to get to know you!
Let's personalize your content
Let's get even more personalized
We recognize your account from another site in our network, please click 'Send Email' below to continue with verifying your account and setting a password.
419 
Let's personalize your content