Before Building A Product, Build Your Product Roadmap
A few years ago, an image began making the rounds of the internet—a piece of notebook paper in landscape orientation, marked up heavily in blue ballpoint ink. The thirteen rows and ten columns laid out critical plot points and interconnections for a portion of one of the highest-selling books of all time—Harry Potter and the
Angela Flowers Built A Business To Change Kids’ Lives
Angela Flowers has spent her career counseling at-risk kids challenged with mental health and social issues. Her years working in Cleveland’s public schools showed her the power of providing intervention directly in the learning environment. That set the stage for her to develop a business model to bring specialized support to as many kids as
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
You’ve Launched Your product… Now Comes The Hard Part!
Congratulations! You’ve built and launched a product! Now it’s time for the heavy-lift… onboarding and adoption. Say hello to your new key function, Customer Success! A newer term that grew out of the concept of customer support, Customer Success focuses on proactive behaviors, specifically: Getting the user actively engaged Focusing on early usage Ongoing engagement
When It Comes to Startup Success, The Market Is King
Entrepreneurs and investors alike often haggle about which is the more important ingredient for startup success, the product or the team behind it. Is the idea the sun around which everything else orbits? Or, are there truly rock star personalities out there who can turn even mediocre ideas into strong startups? Almost everyone I’ve met
5 Things To Consider Before Starting A Business
Entrepreneurship has its perks. Owning your own business can put you in control of your life, your career and your financial future. But as any small business owner knows, entrepreneurship has its challenges too. It can be risky, stressful and even lonely, which is why JumpStart advisors are here to assist! JumpStart helps entrepreneurs start
3 Steps To Profitably Price Your Product Or Service
As an entrepreneur, how do you set appropriate prices for your product or service? This can be a difficult decision to make—choose a price that’s too low and you may weaken profits but assign a price that’s too high and you may deter consumers. While there is no one-size-fits-all answer for how to price your
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
Success Despite Setbacks In FY 2020
There is no doubt 2020 has been a year unlike any other. Disruption and uncertainty have impacted our lives and our economy in ways we couldn’t imagine last year. Despite these challenges, we know our community will persevere because Northern Ohio is strong. In response to the challenges posed by the COVID19 pandemic, Northern Ohio’s
Video: The Concept – Every Great Company Starts as an Idea
In this recorded webinar, our panel of experts discusses turning a big idea into a viable business, touching on a variety of topics to consider during the conceptualization phase of entrepreneurship including: Local resources available for you along your entrepreneurial journey How to create a business plan, including milestones to keep you on track and
From Adversity to Innovation
The disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is unlike anything we’ve seen in more than a century. We continue to live with the uncertainty of not knowing exactly how this will all play out. Despite this uncertainty, the markets, supplier problems and sales interruptions all businesses are facing right now are some of the same
Six Questions with Entrepreneur-in-Residence Ron Stubblefield
Earlier this month, Leaders from the Economic Community Development Institute (ECDI), the Hispanic Business Center, The Presidents’ Council, The Urban League of Greater Cleveland and JumpStart announced Ron Stubblefield as the group’s first shared Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR). A nationally recognized lawyer, scholar, economic development professional and entrepreneurial advisor, Stubblefield acts as a collaborative resource between all