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Summer Camp Survey Results
Steve Morris

paper-stack



Thank you everyone who responded to the Summer Camp survey.  The goal was to get input to help us select the topics for the 2013 Summer Camp.  We'll present the selected topics at workshops at OTBC - and stream them live online.  Want to stay informed of Summer Camp details?  Get on our list.


We had 42 people respond, and the 16  most popular requests were:


 



  1. Customer Development - if you build it, will they buy it?


  2. How to Size and Segment a Market


  3. How to Build a Realistic Funding Plan


  4. How to make sure your Company Owns its Intellectual Property


  5. The Top 20 Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make (and how to avoid them)


  6. How to Develop a Go to... Read more
Sonivate Named Willamette Angel Conference Finalist
Steve Morris

Congratulations to the Sonivate Medical team for being named a finalist for the Willamette Angel Conferece.  


Vote for Summer Camp Workshop Topics
Steve Morris

What topics would you like to see OTBC cover in Summer Camp in July and August?  We have a long list of possible topics - and you can help us pick the workshops we provide by voting.


Voting just takes a minute at: VOTE NOW


9 Tips for Convincing Cofounders to Make the Jump
Steve Morris

Whether you're looking for a programmer or a CEO,  if you want to find - and motivate - the right person to join your startup as a cofounder, you'll need to put together a very compelling story.  After all, joining a startup is risky - like jumping into a very big void.  It's especially risky if you're asking someone to work for stock compensation for a few months.   Here are 9 tips for developing a strong story:


1. Validate your idea by talking to customers


You start with an idea - but lots of people have ideas to pitch.  The idea becomes much more compelling  (and you learn a lot) when you spend time with target customers validating that customers agree that ... Read more

Congratulations to Sonivate, and all the Angel Oregon Finalists
Steve Morris

Congratulations to OTBC resident venture Sonivate on reaching the finals in Angel Oregon.  Having already one the Bend Venture Conference, Sonivate is on a roll.  Their finger-tip mounted ultrasound probe creates new application prossibilities for ultrasound.  


Contratulations to the other Angel Oregon launch stage finalists too: Brandlive, Indie Vinos, Language Twin, Selfpubd, and SpinRiot.


6 views on Finding Cofounders
Steve Morris

Starting a company?  Thinking about cofounders?  To get off to a great start, I suggest you sign-up for the OTBC "Founders Seeking Cofounders" event on April 19.  


Meanwhile, here are some ideas from my favorite cofounder blog posts (posts that are tagged "cofounder" in the OTBC blog tag-cloud):



  1. Should you go it alone?  Maybe not, as explained in "Going Alone: Thoughts on the Single-Person Startup "

     


  2. Thinking about going virtual with people in different... Read more
6 ways to think like an angel investor
Steve Morris


Early stage entrepreneurs often have a lot of questions about angel investors - what they look for, how to convince them to invest, how long the process takes, and, in general, just what makes investors "tick".  I'd like to suggest that it's not that hard to figure out.  You can understand quite a lot about how investors think - by simply putting yourself in their shoes.  


After all, angel investors aren't from another planet.  They're just people with a reasonably high net worth who decide to allocate part of their investment portfolio (probably a small part) to startups.  


So let's pretend that you're a high net worth individual.  Here are some things you'll probably be thinking about:


1. The money you have to invest is your own, hard earned money


OK - so... Read more

Please don't ask me if I like your idea!
Steve Morris

Last night at the Cofounders Lab event, the first entrepreneur I chatted with described his "idea" and asked me what I thought of it.


My response: I haven't studied your market or talked with your target customers - so why ask me what I think of your idea?  I'd rather hear from you what customer feedback you've gotten that confirms that the unmet need you think you've found is a real and compelling need - and the feedback that you've gotten from customers that confirms that your "idea" for a solution does indeed solve the problem.


That's the advice I try to give to all early stage entrepreneurs.  You won't learn much asking coaches, mentors, investors, and other entrepreneurs about your idea.  Talk to your customer instead.  And don't start by talking about your "idea".  You have an idea, which... Read more

Required Reading on Convertible Debt with a Cap
Steve Morris

If you are seeking funding in the form of convertible debt, you'll likely be negotiating about a cap - and you'll want to understand exactly what that means.   I strongly suggest you read these posts:


Convertible Debt - Valuation Caps, Ask the VC


Why Convertible Notes Are Sometimes Terrible For Startups, Mark Suster


Version 2.0 and why Series Seed Documents are better than capped convertible notes, Ted Wang, SeriesSeed.com


Quick summary: convertible debt with no cap is a great deal for the entrepreneur.  They can be a reasonable deal for the investor... Read more

New Incubator offers $37 to startups
Steve Morris




As reported in Mashable Maciej Ceglowski, CEO/founder of Pinboard, announced an incubator last week that promises to give $37 to each company it accepts.  And it's not meant to be a joke.
As Ceglowski explains on the website for the new fund, "This will cover the cost of six months of hosting at prgmr.com and a productivity-enhancing hot beverage." If you add up the total funding Ceglowski plans to give out to the six winning startups, it ends up being $222, or... Read more

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