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Startup Founders Pitch Toolbox 7569789924beeb0cb16be7cc05e6cd1287ce3efa50402111da2ff0ae0ad4c9db

5 Ways To Scare Off Outside Investors During Your Pitch

The man stopped talking, finally, summarized his pitch, and thanked us for listening. We sat in stunned silence. He’d treated us – a group of local investors – to a pitch punctuated with detailed stories of how previous partners, an investor, and an attorney had screwed him. He told us he’d finally beaten them back, and was now […]
Tim Berry
Tim Berry , Founder , Palo Alto Software
18 Oct 2011
Startups Manage Legal Compliance F87b24d861a4b42e2d64a34e3f3ba1dadfceb0fca4d3244500a54b8f114eabc9

Keep Term Sheets Simple for Quicker Cash to Spend

Remember a term sheet agreement is not a deal until the check clears. Entrepreneurs sometimes assume an initial agreement with an angel is a commitment, so they start spending before any money is received.  Due diligence and paperwork take time, and can change everything. It’s true that angel investors typically do not present entrepreneurs with overly complicated deal structures, […]
Martin Zwilling
Martin Zwilling , Founder and CEO , Startup Professionals
17 Oct 2011
How To Design Startup Website 8a88c1bde9ae3c12b3900bbdaa1094f07d6c4494527932cc910cd345d581e4f8

The Rhythm Method of Product Iteration

Of course, Steve Jobs left us a lot of incredible lessons.  Unfortunately, some of the really key ones, like “Be a genius”, can be tough to execute (I’ve been trying for years).  But one crucial one that you can implement might be called the “Rhythm Method”: imparting a well-known beat to your product and service upgrades. […]
Bob Rice
Bob Rice
14 Oct 2011
Startups Manage Legal Compliance F87b24d861a4b42e2d64a34e3f3ba1dadfceb0fca4d3244500a54b8f114eabc9

Knowledge Is Power: Convertible Note Financing Terms, Part III

Last week, we took the plunge and began dissecting an example term sheet for a convertible debt financing round piece by piece.  I’ll continue with more specific terms and wrap up next week with some thoughts about recent changes and trends for the future. Readers may find it helpful to download the sample term sheet from my […]
Antone Johnson
Antone Johnson , Founding Principal , Bottom Line Law Group
12 Oct 2011
Company As A Service Right Way To Build Startup 26a698f31848f3e82ab1d275e812c57c4591ce9d7c195f4b9fa7746e10bf9e0a (1)

2011 Valuation Survey of North American Angel Groups

During the summer of 2010, I developed a workshop, A New ACEF Valuation Workshop for Angels and Entrepreneurs.  To provide some reference points, I surveyed thirteen angels groups in North American to determine their recent experience in negotiating the pre-money valuation of pre-revenue companies.  See the 2010 data reported here:  Current Pre-money Valuations of Pre-revenue Companies.Because of the […]
Bill Payne
Bill Payne , Angel Investor , Frontier Angel Fund
12 Oct 2011
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