Guest Commentary: Four keys to selling beyond early adopters

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The life and early path of a disruptive entrepreneur can be lonely indeed.  By definition, you’re building something that nobody has seen before, that nobody has used before, and that few may have thought was necessary. The market need you’ve identified may be foreign to most people you speak with.  The value you’re creating doesn’t… Read More…

Summer reading list: 10 picks for early stage tech startups

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Guest Commentary: There’s nothing wrong with that trashy novel you’ve tucked away for the vacation, long weekend, or mere sunny afternoon in the backyard. But you can also use the long summer days ahead to catch up on some important reading that will help your business. Below are ten summer reading recommendations for startups –… Read More…

Seven marketing mistakes most startups make

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Guest commentary: Marketing for a startup is different than anything you may have done before. It’s different from the big-company and/or traditional marketing many executives may be used to, and a whole new challenge for entrepreneurs who don’t have a background in marketing to begin with. The way startups need to market themselves is as… Read More…

Is the new tech bubble just R&D 2.0?

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Guest Commentary: We’re very clearly in a new tech bubble now.  Valuations, funding rounds, recruitment incentives are already remarkably similar to what we saw 10 to 12 years ago. But the first bubble, the days of Pets.com, HomeStore, Kozmo.com and shooting gerbils out of cannons on Super Bowl Sunday, that was different.  The primary objective… Read More…

Why the founder is the first and most important salesperson of every startup

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Guest Commentary: The best businesses in the world do two things.  They ship, and they sell. You inherently have nothing to sell until you build and ship, of course, but that doesn’t mean you should build before you sell. TA McCann from Seattle startup Gist told a panel of start-ups last year that the first… Read More…