May 2012
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Last week I had the opportunity to attend PwC’s Vision to Reality conference. It was one of the best one-day conferences that I have attended in many years featuring a keynote presentation by Eric Reis, author of The Lean Startup . What was even more insightful was the morning panel ...
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Last week I had the opportunity to attend PwC’s Vision to Reality conference. It was one of the best one-day conferences that I have attended in many years featuring a keynote presentation by Eric Reis, author of The Lean Startup. What was even more insightful was the morning panel discussion featuring VC’s Howard Gwin of OMERS Ventures, Daniel Klass of Klass Capital and Mark Usher of Wellington Financial. The audience was treated to seeing to excellent start-up CEO’s James Prudhomme of Recoset and Allen Lau of Wattpad. During the session, each CEO presented their pitch, and then had Q&A with the panel while the audience watched. Following this, the CEO left the room and the VC’s debriefed with the audience, covering their thoughts and discussing the fundability of the company.
Here are insights from that morning that every start-up CEO needs to take to heart as they develop and pursue their funding strategy.
Unless you are a multi-time, serial, successful entrepreneur that VC’s just want to “throw some coin at”, you have an uphill battle. There is one-tenth of the capital available today as compared to ten years ago yet with the cost of starting a company dropping, many, many more companies competing for this capital.
One of the recommendations from the VC panel was to start early, before you need to raise money. Raising capital is about building relationships. In your first meeting, present a series of milestones that you plan to achieve. Have a follow-up meeting in six months to show how you have progressed against these milestones, discuss what you have learned about your market and what your next milestones are. Then, Rinse and Repeat. Over time, you and your company will build interest and credibility.
Consider the VC relationship like a CEO and your Board. Boards don’t like surprises. Neither do VC’s. Update them when something positive happens or when you pivot. Keep them periodically informed to keep them interested. Remember, your objective is to show positive momentum and traction.
Another way to build interest is to build your team. If you are not a multi-time founder, then surround yourself with people who are. Their credibility will rub off on you. They aren’t easy people to attract because you are going to have to prove to them that your start-up has potential; your momentum and proof-points are building; and you and your team are coachable. VC’s know this is what it takes to attract these people as advisors so the fact you have them separates your company from most.
Solve a massive problem with a disruptive solution. VC’s love large outcomes. If you can’t show this potential and back it up with results that are following a hockey stick trajectory, then you are likely not VC-fundable.
Tell your story like a business person. If you are a tech entrepreneur, get a domain expert who can contextualize the business aspect so it is easy to understand. Technical complexity doesn’t impress as much as being able to tell the story in a straight-forward, simple manner that makes sense to any business person. It is a bad sign if the VC needs to call in their tech experts to figure out if your company is the real deal. So tell a non technical story about a big problem, with a disruptive solution, showing massive traction and proof points, delivered by a team with strong domain knowledge.
And if you get a chance to watch an experienced, multi-time successful founder pitch their business, pay attention. You will be impressed.
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There’s no doubt about it – clear skies, sunny days, and blooming flowers all point to one thing: summer is coming, and soon! While we all love those lazy hazy crazy days of summer , it’s important for businesses big and small not to get lazy as the days grow ...
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There’s no doubt about it – clear skies, sunny days, and blooming flowers all point to one thing: summer is coming, and soon! While we all love those lazy hazy crazy days of summer, it’s important for businesses big and small not to get lazy as the days grow longer and hotter.
I often hear excuses about how during the summer, it’s okay to do less in the marketing and communications department. The people you need to do business with, both internally and externally, all have different vacation dates booked off and it feels like there are less people to do business with. True, it might take a little longer in the summer to get approvals or move forward on projects, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to give up!
If anything, summer is an ideal time of year to reach out and develop your personal and professional networks as well as key partners and your client base. With everyone else busy running off to the cottage, the beach, or the baseball field you’ll find a lot less competition in getting the attention of the people you’re targeting. You’ll have more opportunities for engagement with the benefit of relaxed schedules, and you’ll be able to demonstrate your commitment by developing relationships when everyone else is off having fun in the sun (and on that note, who wouldn’t love a casual business lunch on a summery patio?).
If you’re a company that does a lot of public outreach, summer is not the time to roll over and let people forget about you! While it may not be feasible to run the same campaigns and events that you do the rest of the year, make sure you don’t simply disappear! Hold smaller events in the middle of the week to keep your audience engaged, or throw one big, memorable, festive event to keep your name top of mind and build positive memories.
You might want to consider newsletters, contests, or special promotions to keep your communications fresh and intriguing throughout the summer. Anything you can do to think outside the box and use innovative approaches to connect will only strengthen your brand when September hits and your competition is back in town.
It’s easier to retain loyalty (and build upon it) by putting in a little more thought throughout the summer than heading into fall trying to recapture focus on your company.
All that being said – it’s summer! Make sure you recharge yourself, your staff, and your brand. But don’t ignore your business relationships - just have fun in maintaining and growing them!
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April 30th has come and gone; as good Canadians we know that for individuals, it’s the deadline to submit personal income tax returns. If you are an entrepreneur or small business owner you may experience the added joy of collecting all your business related paperwork and trying to make sense ...
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April 30th has come and gone; as good Canadians we know that for individuals, it’s the deadline to submit personal income tax returns. If you are an entrepreneur or small business owner you may experience the added joy of collecting all your business related paperwork and trying to make sense of it all.
You might have a great business idea, you may have recently launched a start up or maybe you are an expert developer. Maybe you are a marketing guru or a wizard at web design. But, and this is a big one, all of these skills do not necessarily go hand in hand with being an expert at small business administration.
For some entrepreneurs preparing to send your paperwork to the accountant can be a daunting task, especially if you haven’t kept up to date with accurate expense & revenue tracking, data entry and the organization of it all. If you are minimizing costs by being a DIY bookkeeper, this can be exponentially frustrating. Let’s face it, we live in a digital world and many tech savvy people don’t want to deal with the massive amounts of paper that relate to running a business, but it is a necessary evil. Believe me; the last thing that your bookkeeper or accounting firm wants to see is a cookie tin or plastic bag full of mismatched receipts and unopened mail.
Here are a few tips I have used to make the bookkeeping process cost effective and cause fewer headaches for people that would rather spend their time on something else:
1. Be organized – this means all year long, not just at year end. Create a process or system for recording and filing that works best for you, and use it! Track revenue and expenses from day 1 of your company. This is really important because in the early stages many entrepreneurs co-mingle personal and business expenses. Keep a spreadsheet or if it is easier to keep an accordion file and file receipts by month or maybe you want to track expenses by vendor/supplier - just do it! Your bank statement is your friend. Keep all the bank statements together and reconcile monthly. There are even really cool tools available to convert all your documents to digital copies (visit www.neat.com) and QuickBooks (go to www.quickbooks.ca) is a very affordable option for start-up businesses. Keep all records organized and save everything for 7 years.
2. Plan time to keep up on the unpleasant stuff – build it into your calendar to spend 30+ minutes a week documenting and filing your paperwork. It beats saving it all up until year end and spending an entire weekend trying to remember who you took to Rolly Rockets for a business lunch last December, scrounging around looking for lost receipts or trying to figure out if all your payables came in. Use this time to open all your mail, especially if it is from the government. Designate a place too! Don’t let your business pile up on your dining room table. You may want to buy a plastic tote and store all business paperwork in your ‘office in a box’ which allows you to open it up once a week and stay focused on the task at hand until it’s completed.
3. Know your limits - you are your company’s best asset. Attach a dollar value to your time and determine if it is worth the cost for you to be wading through the minutia of detailed calculations, HST remittances & bill payments. As a business owner, you do need to know everything that goes on, but you may be better off paying someone else to come in once a month to work on the ‘boring stuff’ and then provide you with a detailed summary – while you spend time growing the business.
In short, stay on top of the little things so that you can focus on your passion!
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It's been a week since the whirlwind of our second Startup Weekend Hamilton, and I've gotta say, I'm still on a startup high! There's nothing like getting a hundred passionate, driven, and creative people together in one room to focus for 54 hours - the energy was absolutely inspiring! I've ...
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It's been a week since the whirlwind of our second Startup Weekend Hamilton, and I've gotta say, I'm still on a startup high! There's nothing like getting a hundred passionate, driven, and creative people together in one room to focus for 54 hours - the energy was absolutely inspiring!
I've spoken to a number of our SWH2 participants since the event, and their exciting response to the event - whether they were first timers or had attended previous Startup Weekend events - has been wonderful to hear:
"Thank you so much ... It was a great event and I really appreciate the opportunity that startup weekend Hamilton gave me as a young entrepreneur." -Niles
"The mentors we very approachable and open... I learned a lot and made good friends. Look forward to the next one." - William
"Thank you for an amazing experience." -Jonathan
"I had a blast at Startup Weekend Hamilton. I'm incredibly proud to be part of StartupsN team. We will continue working on our MVP to make it into a product." - Andrei
As an organizer, I didn't have the same experience as the participants who really dug in and worked to launch their companies in the span of a weekend. But I had the privilege of being able to observe all of the amazing work being done, the connections being made, and the camaraderie that developed.
By the end of the weeked I was certainly exhausted, but also refreshed and invigorated - ready to plan Startup Weekend Hamilton 3!
Stay tuned...
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Factory Floor is iF’s new co-creation centre! This collaborative space is based on a clubhouse model where iF clients can reserve “hot desks” daily, weekly, or just occasionally. Start-up entrepreneurs and business professionals alike are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity to work, share, and innovate together! Factory ...
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Factory Floor is iF’s new co-creation centre! This collaborative space is based on a clubhouse model where iF clients can reserve “hot desks” daily, weekly, or just occasionally. Start-up entrepreneurs and business professionals alike are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity to work, share, and innovate together!
Factory Floor is now open daily with optional 24/7 access for full-time users. It operates out of McMaster’s Don Pether Business Incubation Centre in collaboration with the Xerox Centre on the third floor at McMaster Innovation Park. Factory Floor offers free coffee, copying and collaborating with 16 unique seats and meeting room availability.
Even better news is that the month of May is free! Innovation Factory is offering a 30day free trial to all those who reserve space early. Users who aren’t sure if an open, fluid environment is for them can experience the collaboration and convenience of MIP with no commitment. We’re sure you’ll be back!
Drop by any Wednesday afternoon in May to chat with our clubhouse coordinator and check out the space! See what Innovation Factory and McMaster innovation Park might have to offer you and your growing business. We’re serving treats and bevys between 1pm and 4pm May 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 in suite 305.
Contact Leah MacCharles at leah.maccharles@innovationfactory.ca for more details!
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