What started out as an unknown editorial adventure back in March 2011 (launching the Red Rocket blog), has resulted in my writing 101 Startup Lessons--An Entrepreneur's Handbook for executives of aspiring startups. This is my small contribution back to the startup ecosystem which has treated me so well over the years. Keep this list handy, as your future business needs arise. And, thanks for forwarding this list to your entrepreneurial friends that you think may also benefit from such lessons.
Below are the original 101 Startup Lessons, plus following lessons I have written since then, sorted by major business topic:
STRATEGY
Lesson #1: Drivers of Success for Startups. Do I Have a Good Idea?
Lesson #7: Key Components for Writing a Business Plan
Lesson #11: Considering Incubators or Accelerators for Your Startup
Lesson #12: How to Structure Your Board of Directors or Advisory Board
Lesson #17: Pitfalls to Avoid When Joining Someone Else's Startup
Lesson #19: How to Identify Your Competition
Lesson #37: The Plusses and Minuses of Franchising
Lesson #38: Things to Consider When Buying a Business
Lesson #43: Examples of Barriers to Entry For Your Business
Lesson #45: Find a Business Mentor or Business Coach
Lesson #63: Determining Exit Options for Your Startup
Lesson #64: How to Find Buyers for Your Business
Lesson #65: How to Structure the Sale of Your Business
Lesson #81: Considerations for Global Expansion
Lesson #96: Vertical vs. Horizontal Growth Options
Lesson #100: The Definitive Checklist for Startup Success
Lesson #110: When to Drive Growth vs. Profits
Lesson #112: Startup Ideation
Lesson #118: Market Research for Startups
Lesson #121: Designing an Omni-Channel Business
Lesson #128: Try to Kill Your Startup Before You Start
GENERAL BUSINESS
Lesson #3: The Importance of Timing & Luck for Your Startup
Lesson #8: Startups Require Flexibility to Optimize Business Model
Lesson #28: Expect the Unexpected -- Always Have a Cushion
Lesson #29: No Matter How Bad it Gets, Persistence Wins
Lesson #31: The Power of a Pivot -- Thinking Out of the Box
Lesson #39: The Art of Negotiation
Lesson #40: Focus! Focus! Focus! Build One Business at a Time.
Lesson #47: The Importance of Networking
Lesson #50: Do What You Love!! Passion Drives Success.
Lesson #71: Launch Fast! Fail Fast!
Lesson #85: Tap Into Your Local Startup Ecosystem
Lesson #86: Perception Often Outshines Reality
Lesson #87: The Art of Decision Making
Lesson #90: Proper Business Etiquette for Startups
Lesson #92: Building Your Personal Brand
Lesson #104: Manage Expectations & Exceed Them
Lesson #114: "Driven to Win" vs. "Fear of Failure"
Lesson #122: Setting Key Milestones for Your Startup
Lesson #135: Why Big Companies Struggle with Innovation
SALES & MARKETING
Lesson #6: Structuring Strategic Partnerships for Your Startup
Lesson #20: Setting Product & Pricing Strategy for Your Startup
Lesson #21: Setting a Sales & Marketing Plan for Your Startup
Lesson #22: How to Calculate ROI on Your Marketing Spend
Lesson #23: How to Design Effective Advertising Copy & Creatives
Lesson #24: How to Choose a Name for Your Startup
Lesson #25: How to Structure Your Sales Team & Procedures
Lesson #26: Designing Sales Incentives to Motivate Your Sales Team
Lesson #44: The Importance of Blogging
Lesson #48: Trade Show Strategies for Startups
Lesson #52: Viral Marketing Via Social Media
Lesson #53: Search Engine Marketing Strategies
Lesson #54: Incorporate Video Into Your Marketing Efforts
Lesson #68: Mobile Apps & Location-Based Services
Lesson #69: The Marketing Power of Free Publicity
Lesson #72: The 10 Basics of Website Design
Lesson #74: Brand Building for Your Startup
Lesson #77: The Basics of Email Marketing
Lesson #79: Determining Customer Lifetime Value
Lesson #88: The Basics of Online Display Ads
Lesson #95: The Basics of Telemarketing
Lesson #98: Securing a Government Contract
Lesson #99: The Basics of Direct Mail Marketing
Lesson #107: Social Media Analytics & ROI
Lesson #120: Budget for Proof-of-Concept Marketing from Day One
Lesson #127: How to Screen Salesperson Candidates
Lesson #129: "Productize" Your Business for Maximum Efficiency
Lesson #130: Driving Sales Requires Driving Key Metrics
Lesson #131: How to Design a Logo & Tagline
Lesson #137: The Basic Drivers of E-commerce Growth
Lesson #141: How to Pitch Business Development Partners
Lesson #142: The Power of Content Marketing--A Red Rocket Case Study
Lesson #143: Upselling, Cross-Selling and Freemium Techniques
Lesson #144: Remove All Friction From Your Sales Process
Lessons in Marketing: Super Bowl 2012
Lessons in Marketing: Grammy Awards 2013
Chicago's Top Marketing Agencies for Startups
FINANCE
Lesson #4: How to Raise Capital for Your Startup
Lesson #5: Finding Angel Investors for Your Startup
Lesson #10: How Best to Approach VC's or Angel Investors
Lesson #27: How VC's Define a Backable Management Team
Lesson #32: How to Value Your Startup Business
Lesson #49: How to Get a Loan, or Not!!
Lesson #61: Set Up Proper Accounting Controls
Lesson #66: Preparing for a Due Diligence Process
Lesson #67: Managing Accounts Payable & Accounts Receivable
Lesson #78: How to Build a Budget
Lesson #97: Securing a Small Business Grant
Lesson #102: Protect Your Equity & Control Post Financings
Lesson #103: The Evolving Venture Capital Market
Lesson #105: Run a Sensitivity Analysis on Your Projections
Lesson #108: How to Determine Your Revenue Model
Lesson #109: Financing With Equity vs. Debt vs. Convertibles
Lesson #111: Crowdfunding Startups
Lesson #113: State Tax Credits & Programs for Startups
Lesson #115: When to Trade Equity for Services
Lesson #116: Seed Investment Terms & Trends
Lesson #119: How to Screen Venture Capitalists
Lesson #123: Crowdfunding Details Starting to Emerge
Lesson #124: Vesting of Founder's Stock
Lesson #125: How to Bootstrap Your Startup
Lesson #126: What Startups Need to Secure a Bank Loan
Lesson #132: Design a Recurring Revenue Model
Lesson #133: How to Avoid Paying Taxes on Startup Investments
Lesson #136: Save Taxes with "Profits Interests" vs. "Stock Options"
Lesson #138: Why VC's Bias Technology Startups
Lesson #139: How to Calculate Equity Split Between Founders in Startups
Lesson #140: How to Build a Bridge to a 10x Return for VC's
VIDEO: George Deeb Teaches Financial Modeling
VIDEO: George Deeb Teaches How to Pitch VC's
HUMAN RESOURCES
Lesson #2: Building The Right Team for Your Startup
Lesson #9: Spreading Equity to Key Employees & Partners
Lesson #13: Creating the Right Culture for Your Startup
Lesson #14: The Role of a Startup CEO
Lesson #15: Hands-On vs. Hands-Off Management of Startups
Lesson #16: The Plusses & Minuses of Virtual Employees
Lesson #18: The Right Work-Life Balance for a Startup
Lesson #30: When to Hire Employees vs. Contractors vs. Crowdsources
Lesson #34: How Best to Recruit Employees For Your Startup
Lesson #35: How to Read Resumes & Screen Employee Candidates
Lesson #42: Is Working With Family Members a Good Idea?
Lesson #51: No Public Displays of Rejection
Lesson #55: Creating a Healthy Office Environment
Lesson #58: How to Determine Employee Compensation
Lesson #59: Determining Employee Benefits for Your Startup
Lesson #60: Importance of Employee Handbooks
Lesson #75: How to Implement Layoffs
Lesson #76: How to Implement an Employee Change
Lesson #83: Startup Roles & Responsibilities
Lesson #93: Make Your Employees Feel Appreciated
Lesson #106: Succession Planning
Lesson #127: How to Screen Salesperson Candidates
OPERATIONS & ADMINISTRATION
Lesson #33: The Importance of Customer Service
Lesson #41: Security Considerations for Your Startup
Lesson #56: Frequent Legal Questions of Startups
Lesson #62: Insurance Protection for Startups
Lesson #70: Protect Your Intellectual Property
Lesson #73: Consumer Usability Testing
Lesson #80: Pitfalls to Avoid When "Reeling in the Whale"
Lesson #82: Project Management & Prioritization
Lesson #129: "Productize" Your Business for Maximum Efficiency
Lesson #134: Where to Best Locate Your Startup
TECHNOLOGY
Lesson #36: Picking the Best Technology for Your Web Startup
Lesson #117: Legal Considerations When Using Open Source Software
Chicago's Top Web & Mobile Design and Development Agencies
CASE STUDIES
Lesson #84: Lady Gaga--An Entrepreneurial Case Study
Lesson #89: Startup Lessons from Scrabble
Lesson #91: My Entrepreneurial Heroes
Lesson #94: Netflix--A User Experience Meltdown
Lessons in Leadership: Michigan Football
Lessons in Leadership: Mount Everest
Lessons in Leadership: The Race for the South Pole
Lessons in Leadership: Tim Tebow
Lessons in Leadership: Joe Paterno
Lessons in Entrepreneurship: StyleSeek Case Study
Lessons in Entrepreneurship: Emerson Spartz
Lessons in Entrepreneurship: My Son's Kindergarten Class
Lessons in Entrepreneurship: Pebble's $10MM Raise Via Kickstarter
Lessons in Entrepreneurship: Moneyball (Big Data in Baseball)
Lessons in Entrepreneurship: Skylanders (Upselling on Steroids)
OTHER
Lesson #46: 23 Motivational Quotes for Entrepreneurs
Lesson #57: Required Reading for Startup Entrepreneurs
Lesson #101: The Plusses & Minuses of Entrepreneurship
Howard Tullman's Acceptance Speech at Chicago Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame
Lessons From the Lost Decade: Alternative Investing
Nostradeebus: Predictions for the Next Decade
Key Digital Investment Themes in 2012
Chicago's Best Lawyers for Startups
Best Startups of 2012
Digital Trends for 2013
Great Stories of Survival--Motivational Reading for Startup Entrepreneurs
For future posts, please follow me at: www.twitter.com/georgedeeb
A place for entrepreneurs to learn and engage on various topics and lessons with George Deeb, Managing Partner at Red Rocket Ventures, founder and former CEO/CMO of iExplore and author of 101 Startup Lessons-An Entrepreneurs Handbook. The blog is a startup entrepreneur's "playbook", with actionable "how-to" lessons on a wide range of startup and digital related topics, including business, strategy, sales, marketing, technology, operations, human resources, finance, fund raising and more.
2 comments:
Gone through a few lessons so far, can't wait to tear thru more.
As a founder, just now on the product launch threshold, I can validate what I already learned and am grateful for engaging, eminently practical guidance about how to think more wisely, what to do next, and how to manage my expectations.
Thank you, Mr. Deeb!
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