Strategy is a Hypothesis
I think the best approach to crafting strategy is the view that strategy is a hypothesis and metrics are the data for testing the hypothesis.
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Startups
Highlighting Matt Maroon’s “Why Not To Do A Startup”
Some key takeaways from a blog post by Matt Maroon on “Why Not To Do A Startup”
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SKMurphy’s Startup Resource Center at SDWest 2008
If you missed us at SDWest last week, here are pointers to firms and organizations we had in the Startup Resource Center. Brighter Naming name your company, product, or service Fortis General Counsel is a law firm comfortable with bootstrappers Action Patents Pete Tormey registered patent agent (see interview) Boitano Sargent, and Lilly accounting firm
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Jotspot Emerges From The Bowels of Google
Jotspot Emerges From The Bowels of Google Rob Hof notes–hat tip to Ross Mayfield–tonight in “Jotspot Returns as Google Sites: Wiki Style Collaboration” (emphasis added): Ever since Google bought the wiki-based online application startup Jotspot in late 2006, people have been wondering if it had disappeared forever inside the bowels of the search giant. Tonight,
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Advanced Topics Session Added To The March 8 Great Demo! Workshop
In response to requests from prior workshop attendees we’ve added an afternoon session to the March 8 Great Demo! workshop that will address advanced topics. You are welcome to attend if you have attended an earlier Great Demo! workshop, or you can register for both the morning and afternoon sessions on March 8. Lunch is
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Founder Story: Mike Lanza’s Lessons Learned from Two Startups
Last week I had lunch with Mike Lanza, a serial entrepreneur, who I met at the SDForum Startup SIG in September ’07. He gave a thought provoking presentation on his entrepreneurial career, bootstrapping a company, and working with VC’s, which I blogged about here: Mike Lanza: Starting Companies Without Venture Capital. I thought a more
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SKMurphy goes to SDWest 2008
Join us at SDWest 2008 March 3-7, the conference offers with both business and technology tracks and has an interesting mix of sessions for software entrepreneurs. In addition to the technology oriented sessions you would expect, the conference has added a “Business of Software” track that should prove valuable to folks in–or planning to be
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Forming an Advisory Board
Some tips on forming an advisory board that assume you are currently bootstrapping and will be soliciting advice and feedback from a variety of sources: friends, former co-workers, other entrepreneurs, customers, and partners.
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Where Can I Find Speaking Engagements?
If your New Year’s Resolution is to speak more, here are suggestions for how to find speaking engagements.
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Fostering Technology Adoption: Early Customers & Early Revenue
Software companies typically have to convince prospects to adopt new technologies based on their shared history, their service track record, and their ability to accurately predict and deliver real results that overcome the cost and friction of adopting new tools and methodologies. There are a number of lessons we draw on to help startups fostering
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Seeing The Elephant: The Entrepreneur’s Challenge of Integrating Advice
To “see the elephant” entrepreneurs must work toward a holistic perspective by integrating advice and conflicting views from a variety of sources.
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On-line Tools for Startups
I am an small business owner. We are virtual team and use many on-line tools. These are ones that we actually pay for and use everyday: Calendar: WebEx, Central Desktop Contacts: WebEx, Central Desktop Design: Lucky Oliver for photos Logo Design: Logo Company, Logoworks Managing Money: Quickbooks Wiki, On-line Docs & Spreadsheets: Central Desktop Project
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Planning in a Bootstrapped Startup: a Model from Will Kamishlian
Some tips for planning in a bootstrapped startup. Planning is a means not an end, but without planning, everything encountered is completely new.
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Success for a Bootstrapper
Success for a bootstrapper is a startup with positive cash flow; this enables ongoing market exploration and additional investments in innovation.
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Looking for Innovation at a Trade Show
Three tips for attending a trade show and scoping out breakthrough innovations: Start on the perimeter and work you way in to the main floor. All the innovation is in the startups booths on the outside. Before the show spend some time checking out exhibitors’ websites. Especially if you are not familiar with the company
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3 Tips for Entrepreneurs Planning a Startup
How do you plan when you are in a small software startup? Big company methods are not a good fit. Here are three tips for planning a startup.
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I Have an Idea for a Software Product, How Do I Get Started?
Q: I have an idea for a software product, how do I get started? Our answer is a series of twenty questions that will help you develop and refine your software product idea. See below for the first seven. We also cover these in our workshop Idea to Revenue, that gives you the time and
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Getting Feedback on your Work
Getting feedback after engaging with a client or even after an introductory meeting with a prospect is important. A couple of survey tools that we use are iContact and Survey Monkey. They are easy to use and low cost. Survey Monkey has some nice templates. The survey tools are useful when you want to ask
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Free Small Business eNewsletter From IRS
e-News for Small Businesses is a free electronic mail service designed to provide tax information for small business owners and self-employed individuals. Subscribers receive information about important upcoming tax dates for SB/SE customers, what’s new for small businesses on the IRS Web site, reminders and tips to assist small businesses and self-employed taxpayers with tax
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Dharmesh Shah’s Pithy Thoughts For Startup Co-Founders
I really liked “Pithy Thoughts For Startup Founders” by Dharmesh Shah. This post uses six as a point of departure for exploring the challenges of getting a startup off the ground.
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