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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

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

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

Two Great Moments in Pitches

You decide, after reading, which of these was a really good moment and which was really bad. Moment one: the annoying interruption It struck me at the time as an annoying interruption, ill timed, and off point. It was just a few minutes into the pitch. She, the CEO of a fledgling pharmaceutical company with […]
Tim Berry
Tim Berry , Founder , Palo Alto Software
11 Oct 2011

Great Startups Can Hook an Investor in 60 Seconds

An “elevator pitch” is a concise, well-practiced description of your startup and your plan, delivered with conviction and enthusiasm, that your mother should be able to understand in the time it would take to ride up an elevator. Everybody knows about these, but few people seem to deliver a good one. A good elevator pitch is […]
Martin Zwilling
Martin Zwilling
11 Oct 2011