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The Resource Center has all the info you'll need From content to user feedback, the resource center has the information you need for every level of the entrepreneurial process.
An entrepreneur preparing to secure funding from private investors called "angels" describes in this advice-packed article her systematic plan for approaching a milieu about which she knew very little. Tips include checking for resources online and crafting a presentation that gets across the company's unique offering while adhering to the formalities demanded by investors.
Caroline Mak and her boyfriend Antonio Ramos loved the taste of ginger, but didn't like the sugary-sweet taste of ginger ales and ginger beers on the market. They weren't spicy enough, nor were they adequately tangy.
With the market for early-stage capital beginning to bounce back, I'm once again fielding calls from entrepreneurs wanting to know how much of their company to give away to investors to raise the money they need to launch their businesses or take them to the next level.
Unfortunately, there's no easy answer to this question. An established business with sales, profits and cash flow may sell for five to 10 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. But it's a lot harder to put a price tag on an early-stage venture that consists of a business plan, a web site and the founder's hopes and dreams. As a result, negotiations between start-ups and prospective investors often turn into angry arm-wrestling matches that end with both sides walking away empty-handed.
On-the-job training helped a former retailer with a passion for metals learn enough to start her own company. Family support, mentoring and ambitious networking help her niche business deal with the giants of the aerospace industry. Now she's focusing on becoming a big enough player to provide opportunities for others.
Excellent suppliers keep their promises, providing supplies and services when you need them.
Everything a computer person needs to learn for her business, she can get from her mentors--when they become members of her advisory board. First they provide expertise in sales, marketing, management and money matters. Then, morphing into a board of directors, they keep her on budget, on time and focused on her exit strategy. But perhaps their best lesson is that learning should be passed along to others.
Implementing business operations must be done right at the outset of a company's launch. This article offers tips for selecting and implementing such systems, including payroll, accounting, document management, and data collection.
SAN JOSE, California — Born of too much brainstorming or not enough sleep, the names come flying out of nowhere — Crocodoc, Yext, Nowmov. They turn nouns into adverbs (Answerly) or aspire to become brand-new verbs in true “I-just-googled-her” fashion.
And in the process, they drop vowels like a clumsy waiter (Flickr), spell perfectly good words backward (Xobni) and insert punctuation points where they have no business being (Center’d). It’s the Great Internet Branding Gold Rush. And with tech startups in Silicon Valley and beyond falling over themselves to create cool names with an AdMob’s swagger and a Twitter’s zip, the word-play is getting wild. To make matters worse, as the supply of good available names dries up, the envelope is being pushed right over the cliff of clever into the canyon of overly cute.
The founder of a retailer of telephone headsets advises adapting new technology if, and only if, it improves customer service.
This entrepreneur expert asserts that without a well-developed hiring process, entrepreneurs tend to make mistakes that can set their companies back. To build a high-performance top team, the author illustrates his three-step plan to reduce risk and increase hiring successes.
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