Securing Your First Pilot: Where The Rubber Meets The Road
You have arrived at that fateful moment when you need customers (prospects actually) to try your product. You have been developing, started marketing and selling, and now you need to get someone to commit to putting your product into active use in a real-world setting. The question is: How do you get someone to do
Engagement Is A Trip, Plan Wisely
As you move from the Development stage of product build into the Launch stage of the Entrepreneur Roadmap, you are going to find yourself making the sharp turn from inwardly-focused activities to rapid dives into marketing and demand generation. You’ll know you’re making this turn on your path when you find yourself caught up in
Wireframes or Prototypes… Worth the Investment?
Imagine explaining all of Facebook’s features to someone who has never used it. How would they remember how it all worked? Even if they could remember, what if their interpretation was different than what you said? The functionality of web and mobile applications, much simpler than Facebook, gets lost in translation often. There are plenty
Who, or What, is the MVP?
As an entrepreneur in our digital age, MVP is an acronym you will hear often. And, unless they’re specifically talking about you, MVP probably doesn’t stand for most valuable player. In fact, they more than likely mean minimum viable product. And by minimum viable product, they mean the product/project version you can release with the
From Try To Buy: Converting A Pilot To A Paying Customer
The goal of a pilot is to build up enough proof in your prospect’s mind that they can decide to purchase your product (or not). Contrary to what you might think—a valid and valuable outcome for an entrepreneur is to have the prospect choose not to buy what you are offering or you to choose
How To Build The Perfect Pitch Deck
Having an impressive pitch is a key component in raising capital. A great pitch can get an investor excited about your business and opens the door to the investors wanting to learn more and take you through a due diligence process. There are thousands of templates online that provide guidance on what slides to incorporate
Video: The Money – Finding The Funding To Grow And Scale Your Business
In this recorded webinar, JumpStart’s Adam Salon hosts a discussion on the different types of funding available to entrepreneurs starting a business. From grants to loans to venture capital, our panel of experts discusses what financial considerations you need to think about right from the start. This webinar is part three of “Launch! presented by
Landing Your First Customer In 4 Easy Steps
If you are following JumpStart’s Entrepreneur Roadmap methodology, you probably have a checklist where you are running down the items completed. MVP? Done. Website? Built. Pricing model? Check. Contracts? Ready to go. Customers? Not a prospect in sight. It feels that way sometimes—you spend so much time working on a product and all the things
Pilot Management Brings In The Test Data You’ve Been Seeking
Congratulations! You made it this far. You have interviewed hundreds of customers (not your family, relatives or friends) and know what they want/need/will pay for. You are sure (okay, you think you are sure) that you have a product-solution fit. You may have even found product-market fit. You and your team have invested time and
4 Keys To A Killer Sales & Marketing Funnel
If you’ve spent any amount of time digging into blogs or think pieces on the startup journey, you’ve no doubt run into the phrase ”sales funnel.” It’s a key part of building a company and may also be one of the most misunderstood aspects of building and launching a company. That’s not because it’s hard,
Video: The Market – Where Big Ideas Become Viable Businesses
Businesses start with an idea, but they grow only when customers are willing to pay for their products and services. In this recorded webinar, our panel of experts discusses entering the market, including topics such as: How to identify and refine your target market How to validate your business concept How to figure out the
Understanding and Analyzing Financial and Operational Metrics
As a business begins to grow at a higher and higher growth rate, ie. changing growth rates quarterly or monthly, management must pay close attention to the financial statements and key metrics used to measure business performance and manage cash. These metrics are called key performance indicators (KPIs). These statements, metrics and trends help determine