Startup Freak | Founder @PhoRent @Karangoo.com, @Predictofy.com • @DriveThem. Worked @YourMechanic @Richrelevance, @give2gether • Studied at @UOP MBA Go Forth and Be Awesome! *Jump to 33:36 on video*
I can lead you to the best software application and ways to grow your business fast. Especially if you are a SaaS B2B business.
I am a seasoned Silicon Valley startup guru that has raised in excess of $2M in VC and Angel funding. Have two successful startups under my belt and want to help the everyday joe understand the industry by answering those tough questions about business plans, funding, etc. Helping people to validate vs. waste time.
These are really good questions. I am currently knee deep in the "On-Demand Economy" so I know the in's and out's as well as being the ex-director of operations and sales for YourMechanic.com (on-demand mechanics). I think someone answered your question here on Clarity and they said, you really need a consultant. That is what I do, so ping me if you have an interest in an engagement.
I am a passionate startup ex-founder and entrepreneur. I would need to vet the idea before giving you an answer. There are two items I need to better understand. 1) Is this a software and services company or 2) a Software-as-a-Service company. If it is #2, I can tell you that recurring revenue and the relationship to pricing is an extremely critical piece to your success. Also, there might be an option of a fremium pricing option. Just not sure what you are asking exactly.
The short answer is NO. The loan, depending on the structure (was it equity or straight & debt) will not make investors jump. You basically raised a seed round for a lack of better terms. In fact if it is not equity, the VC's will be even happier. What they will do is look into the run rate and burn rate to measure how that $300k effects the bottom line and growth rate.
What exactly are you looking to accomplish? What type of business segment are you in? do you have any capital? Do you have experience in said field? What makes you want to start "this" type of business. Let me know~
Obviously the answer to this depends on a couple of items, but an Angel round depending if it is a priced or non-priced round, the valuation is usually dependent on traction, market size, team (history of success), unique IP with a high barrier to entry and growth rate.
It all depends on what the investment was in. If the company you invested in is doing very well, you always want to convert that investment into equity if you feel the company is going places. If you feel that it is going bad and you have an option to be a) bought out at your original investment or even at a small loss, I would do it. b) If you are offered a ROI then definitely take it and run (if the company you feel is not going to make it)
I have seen many a cannabis delivery service become a reality but there has to be a distinct differentiator to your product. For instance, a) are you going to partner with postmates for delivery? b) are you going to have a validator on your site for the cannabis cards and their legitimacy? I have a ton of experience in on-demand and sharing economy and would be happy to talk it through with you. Not to mention some killer contacts in the Silicon Valley ;)
I would call me and work with me possibly offline and I can reach out to my network. You DO NOT want to spam VC's. I am good friends with the ex-head of the innovations lab at HP and we always have an interest in amazing hardware.
That is a great question and one that many, many people ponder about. "if I build it will they come?" I have built over 10 MVP's and did some basic testing to see if I could validate the service. My suggestion would be to put together just enough of an MVP or test site to get your point or value prop across. Then I would set a budget for ads or facebook or some targeted demographic marketing and test the feedback and the conversions. You can actually fake it till you make it. You do not have to always deliver on what you are building. I can speak more to this in a phone call if you want... - JJ
I would say the most time consuming part of running business for me is probably making sure everyone is on task and doing their job to the best of their capabilities. If you have a sales team like I have, "babysitting" come to mind. Also, if you are in a tech startup, raising money would most likely be the biggest time suck.
As a startup freak myself, I am always looking for new ways to make the company better and communications between the teams easier. I like Slack as a communications tool as well as Asana. HipChat is pretty slick for instant messaging and integration with inbound customer service live chatting forums. As far as CRM I happen to like Close.io which offers calling directly from the CRM but also tracking of all emails in & out. Easy User Interface and they are slowly getting the tools needed to compete with the big boys.
Josh did not tell me what I "wanted" to hear, but was direct, to the point and helpful. What was scheduled for 15 minutes went on for twice the time because we were covering good ground.
It was great speaking to someone with Startup experience. Thank you.
The call with Josh was fantastic. It was time and money well spent. His questions and answers were very focused which helped me get the most out of my time on our call. His knowledge of the industry was impressive. I will definitely work with Josh again.
