Raising Venture Capital
Powerpoint slides of presentation to the Florida Business Boost Conference. Download PDF Deck
The No Fail Tactic for Winning Over Investors (or Hiring Managers)
In the great scheme of raising money for a startup, trying to get your dream job, or win a lucrative sales contract from a hiring manager, it all comes down to one or two compelling advantages you can offer that the other candidates fail to offer. What might that be? Value, experience, references, work ethic, passion, determination….no. It’s none of […]
Don’t Start a Business, Buy a Business
Why would you start a business when you could buy one, or at least many of the core components you will need, at a lower cost than starting from scratch? You wouldn’t, but most entrepreneurs still do. If at all possible, you shouldn’t start a business from scratch…you should buy one. This is also true of growing a business. It […]
Startup Pitch – Judging the 6-Minute
Last week I attended Graduation Day (aka “Demo Day”) for a local startup accelerator. Thirty aspiring entrepreneurs had started the 16-week program. Only eight made it to graduation. Each had six minutes to present their venture to the audience and, hopefully, score a follow up meeting with an investor. Six minutes is not a lot of time to condense 16-weeks […]
Should You Start & Build a Company with the Exit in Mind?
Most newbie entrepreneurs would probably answer, “Yes, of course, it’s always best to start and build a company with the exit in mind. Every entrepreneur knows that!” Not so fast. The correct answer is, “it depends” or “probably not.” What say you? There are two schools of thought on this subject. The first school, advocated by angel investors and VC’s, […]
Five Star Startup Economics
This is the sixth in a series of articles on what it means to be a Five Star Startup. In my first article, I explained the five dimensions that most startups are evaluated on. In my second article, I described the first dimension, what it means to have a Five Star PRODUCT. In my third article, I described the second […]
