Mistakes in Scaling the Startup

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

The seed stage grows the business from 0 to $1M.

The growth stage grows from $1M to $10M.

The scaling stage grows from $10M to $100M.

Here are the most common mistakes founders make at the scaling stage:

They stop working on sales to focus on other areas of the business.

The founder can never stop working on sales.

They fail to control the burn.

The burn rate must be managed throughout the life of the business.

They fail to keep up with the competition.

The competition will continually challenge the startup, and it must be managed.

They look to hire "rock star" players.

These rarely work out in the long run, as they often don't fit the culture.

Failing to keep up with the product.

As the company grows, the product continues to grow so it's important for the founder to keep up with it.

Overestimating sales capacity.

Founders often overestimate how much the team can manage.

Reaching for the upmarket.

Startups often try to move upmarket to gain a higher dollar sale per customer.

Doing this at the expense of the core business is detrimental.

Consider these mistakes in scaling the startup.

Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let's go startup something today.

_______________________________________________________

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Investors Look for Execution, Not Ideas

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Startup founders often believe their idea will carry the day with the investor.

They propose their idea to spark interest.

While that may be a good way to get attention, it will certainly not maintain it for long.

Investors look for execution, not ideas.

In raising funding, investors look for momentum and traction in the deal.

They will look for evidence of execution in sales, team, product, and fundraising.

These are the four core areas in which execution lives in a startup.

Consider your efforts in those areas in crafting an update to the prospective investor.

Showcase that story over a period of time, as execution occurs over time and not in a single moment.

Having an idea is interesting.

Understanding the customer problem and knowing the domain is helpful.

Having a key insight is useful.

Showing execution in a consistent manner is the winning ticket for gaining investor attention and interest.

Consider these points in pursuing funding from investors.

Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let's go startup something today.

_______________________________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Lessons From Napoleon for the Startup

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Napoleon never ran a startup, but his life provides many lessons for the startup founder.

Here are some lessons to take away from his life:

Underestimating risk -- Napoleon underestimated the harshness of the Russian winter and suffered great losses.

The startup should consider carefully the market to pursue before investing substantial resources.

Overconfidence -- Napoleon grew overconfident from his past successes.

The startup should consider each opportunity as a new way to succeed or fail.

Failure to adapt -- Napoleon refused to modify his traditional plan and suffered losses for it.

The startup should adapt to the market conditions and make changes to optimize the team for each stage.

Failing to take timing into account -- Napoleon refused to retreat from the Russian campaign and suffered for it.

The startup should ask if now is the right time to pursue a market.

Overextending -- Napoleon overextended himself in attacking Russia.

The startup founder should consider focusing resources on a few key priorities and not spread out over too many.

Consider the fate of Napoleon and his attack on Russia as a series of lessons for your startup.

Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let's go startup something today.

_______________________________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

Music courtesy of Bensound.