If You Build It, They May Not Come. Budget Ahead for Startup Marketing.

I am not sure how many of you remember the 1989 film, Field of Dreams, starring Kevin Costner, who plays a farmer who builds a baseball field in the middle of an Iowa cornfield, after hearing a voice tell him “if you build it, he will come”.  And, sure enough, despite people thinking he was crazy, people did end up coming, to watch a bunch of baseball legends of years gone by, reunited for a modern-day baseball game.

I often feel that startup entrepreneurs are building their own Field of Dreams, when launching their startups.  But, unlike the Hollywood script, often times the sad reality is:  “if you build it, they may not come”, especially without any foresight to building a sales and marketing plan and budget to help get initial users engaged with your product.

Read the rest of this post in Forbes, which I guest authored this week.

For future posts, please follow me at: www.twitter.com/georgedeeb.

Why Startups Run Out of Money Too Fast--And How Excubators Solve The Problem

Over the last five years, Red Rocket Ventures has consulted or mentored more than 500 startups -- nearly all of them suffering from the same problem. They are typically so focused on building their product, they don't raise enough capital to cover essential sales and marketing activities that will allow them to better attract additional venture capital down the road. As a result, many startups run out of money soon after launch, stalling out before they reasonably had a fighting chance.

Read the rest of this post on Entrepreneur.com, which I guest authored this week.

For future posts, please follow me at:  www.twitter.com/georgedeeb.

[NEWS] Red Rocket's "101 Startup Lessons"--Now a Downloadable eBook

Red Rocket started writing its "101 Startup Lessons--An Entrepreneur's Handbook" back in March 2011.  Over two years later, it has evolved into a comprehensive, one-stop read for entrepreneurs who want actionable learnings about a wide range of startup and digital-related topics. The book is a startup executive's strategic "playbook", with "how-to" lessons about business in general, sales, marketing, technology, operations, human resources, finance, fund raising and more, including many case studies therein. We have demystified and synthesized the information an entrepreneur needs to strategize, fund, develop, launch and market their businesses.

Thanks to all of you 100,000+ readers who have already benefitted from these lessons via our blog, which we will continue to update with new lessons in years to come.

To download the full eBook into your eBook readers, visit your favorite eBookstore website:

Amazon (Kindle) - $0.99
Barnes & Noble (Nook)- $0.99
Blog Into Book - Free
Google Play - Free
iTunes - Free

Thanks for sharing this editorial adventure with us.  We appreciate your readership, and your sharing these lessons with your entrepreneurial colleagues in need.

For future lessons, be sure to check back weekly on the Red Rocket Blog, or follow us at:  www.twitter.com/RedRocketVC. 

3.5BN People Online by 2017--Think Globally ASAP

Earlier this year, Cisco forecasted how large the world’s Internet-using population would be by the year 2017.  The data was quite staggering.  The global online user population is forecasted to grow from 2.3 billion people in 2012 (32% of the world’s 7.2 billion population) to 3.5 billion people by 2017 (48% of the world’s 7.6 billion population). The Asia-Pacific region is forecasted to continue to be the largest overall market, and the Middle East-Africa region is forecasted to continue to be the fastest growing market.

Read the rest of this post on Forbes, which I guest authored this week.

For future posts, please follow me at:  www.twitter.com/georgedeeb.

[NEWS] Join Red Rocket at the 4th Annual Entrepreneurial Bash--Save 30%

Red Rocket is a sponsor of the 4th Annual Entrepreneurial Bash, presented by the Association for Corporate Growth.  The Entrepreneurship Bash is a collaborative event between leading early stage organizations in the Chicago region and Middle Market leaders bridging the leap to the next stage for these companies with access to capital and expertise for high growth companies. It will be a great evening with a bit of discussion and a lot of networking.

Robert Jordan, author of "How They Did It", moderates an all-star panel including Rishi Shah (CEO of Context Media), Ken Hunt (CEO of Vasco), Patrick Spain (Founder of Hoovers & HighBeam) and Mahendra Vora (Founder of Intelliseek & Secure IT).

The event will be held from 4:30-7:30pm on Wednesday, November 6, 2013 at the Galleria Marchetti at 825 W. Erie St. in Chicago, IL.

You can register at this link.  Be sure to enter Red Rocket's promotional code of RRV_VIP to save 30% on your admission--normally $50, now $35 for Red Rocket Blog readers.

The Top 4 Reasons VC's Bias Technology Startups

I have had hundreds of startups reach out to me at Red Rocket looking for fund raising assistance.  Most with hungry, passionate entrepreneurs trying to build a great company in their space.  But, it is typically the technology startups that get through the filter of what I think is “fundable” by professional venture capitalists, based on my conversations with those investors.  This leaves many of the startups in other categories (e.g., CPG, retail, restaurants, real estate, manufacturing) struggling to secure startup capital.  Below are the primary reasons most VC’s bias technology investments.

Read the rest of this post on Forbes, which I guest authored this week.

For future posts, please follow me at:  www.twitter.com/georgedeeb.