Startup Funding is a Low Probability Game

Startup funding is a low probability game. LESS than 1% GET funding. Over 99% get rejected. How do you play this game and win? Learn from great Unicorn founders like Fred Luddy (ServiceNow), Christian Chabot (Tableau), and Greg Gianforte (RightNow). Entrepreneurs typically go to VCs like beggars. Is there a better way? You bet there

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Best of Bootstrapping: Pre-Seed Fundraising is a Low Probability Game

For our Seed Capital series of podcasts, I’ve interviewed hundreds of investors, especially micro-VCs and angels who play an important role in the early-stage game. The toughest round of funding an entrepreneur will seek to raise is Pre-seed. How do you increase your odds? Pre-seed has the lowest probability of success. Over 99% of the

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Best of Bootstrapping: Ownership Matters

For those of you rushing to raise venture capital with a deck of slides or a minimum viable product, let me offer you a challenge: How can you get to a $20 million pre-money valuation in Series A, raise $5 million, and keep control of 80% of the equity? That’s what Christian Chabot, founder of

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Rules for Bootstrappers (Part 5)

By Greg Gianforte, Guest Author With so much of the world becoming standardized and interchangeable, there is little to differentiate your business from a legion of other companies. Except, that is, the special effort of backup support you provide to all your customers.

Rules for Bootstrappers (Part 4)

By Greg Gianforte, Guest Author The bootstrapper will inevitably come up against a stream of seemingly insurmountable problems. This is when the Unconventional Mindset comes into play. Your motto on all these occasions must be, “There is always another way.” In the Herculean task you are undertaking—starting a business from scratch—conventional wisdom does not apply.

Rules for Bootstrappers (Part 3)

By Greg Gianforte, Guest Author This week’s post addresses marketing, an often misunderstood aspect of starting and running a business. Marketing is not a euphemism for sales. Marketing’s primary role is to engage in activities that make sales more efficient and shorten the sales cycle.

Rules for Bootstrappers (Part 2)

By Greg Gianforte, Guest Author People have different reactions to those who are careful with their money. As a bootstrapper you can expect a mixture of admiration, denigration, and even open contempt for those you encounter in business if you push, and push again, for price reductions, cost savings, and expense elimination.

Rules For Bootstrappers (Part 1)

By Greg Gianforte, Guest Author [SM: On the heels of my Weapon Of Mass Reconstruction column, I’d like to welcome Greg Gianforte, CEO of RightNow, whose interview you have read recently, to share his perspective on bootstrapping.]