The Startup Velocity Question: Accelerator Portfolios

There are over 7000 Incubators and 3000 Accelerators around the world by now. On average, they take 25-30 companies per cohort, give each $15k-$150k in pre-seed funding, and off the bat, drive them to seek exponential growth funded by Venture Capital.

The Startup Velocity Question: The Churn Issue

The market is full of companies facing velocity issues due to high churn.

Somehow or the other, they may have managed to sell subscriptions to enterprises, SMBs or individuals.

The Startup Velocity Question: Selling Pieces of a Company

I once worked on a company that was #4 in its market. 

The market itself was actually two different markets, one smaller, and one very large.

The Startup Velocity Question: Inability to Explain the REAL Value Proposition

Another scenario I am encountering in my discussions is that of the inability to explain what the company does.

In the best case, the company is able to close deals.

The Startup Velocity Question: Joining Forces Through M&A

Let’s look further at the issue of solid companies that have achieved $10M, $20M, $50M in revenue, close to breakeven, but not necessarily growing at an exponential pace. 

One commonly used strategy is to combine two companies in a related space to achieve growth and rationalize expenses.

The Startup Velocity Question: Linear vs. Exponential Growth

Since this series was published, I have had many conversations with friends in the industry who have added to the issues on the table.

In particular, one that caught my attention is the issue of solid companies that have achieved $10M, $20M, $50M in revenue, close to breakeven, but not necessarily growing at an exponential pace. In some instances, market shifts have caused revenues to flatten or even decline.

The Startup Velocity Question: The Human Element

I am acutely aware of how painful it is to have raised venture capital and then not hitting rocket speed.

The pressure is enormous, of the kind that first time founders have no prior experience of.

The media hype makes you believe that fundraising is the end game.

No, fundraising is only the beginning.

The Startup Velocity Question: Diagnostic

How do you diagnose what is hindering velocity in your startup?