The Startup Playbook: Founder-to-Founder Advice from Two Startup Veterans

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Get the real guidance you need to create and build your first startup company from founders who have been there many times before.

The first run printing of The Startup Playbook SOLD OUT! So, we revised, expanded, and improved this second edition, including a new foreword by Brad Feld, author of Venture Deals.

We still give our personal, how-to guide for building your startup from the ground up. You'll find a collection of the major lessons and shortcuts we've learned that will shift the odds in your favor. We're sharing our tips, secrets, and advice in a frank, founder-to-founder discussion with you.

We make no bones about our bias. We're on your side, the founder's side. While venture capitalists, investors, and accelerators/incubators can add great value in the startup ecosystem, this book isn't about their points of view. We'll tell you where our interests as founders diverge from those on the other side of the table―investors, bankers, advisors, board members, and others―and what to do when that happens.

The Startup Playbook is not a recipe, it's not a template, it's not a list of tasks to do. It's our insider's guide to starting a company and running it successfully in those critical early months. Between us, we've started over a dozen high-tech software companies and raised over $500 million in investment capital. We've acquired over thirty-five companies, had three of our startups go public, sold six of them, and we made billions of dollars for shareholders. We've also invested in over eighty startups, advised and mentored over two hundred companies and actively worked with venture capitalists (VCs), incubators, and accelerators to help launch many other new startups.

We've had plenty of failures, too. And we've probably learned more from those than from the successes. We share those lessons as well.

The Startup Playbook is full of our advice, guidance, do's, and don'ts from our years of experience as founders many times. We want to share our hard-earned knowledge with you to make success easier for you to achieve.

"This book is extraordinarily fresh and exciting. In an accessible, straight talk fashion, this book is a manual, and an inspiration. The Startup Playbook is smart and avoids the 'I am so smart' over-writing endemic to the genre. Read this as it is presented. You'll be doing yourself a tremendous favor."
Amazon Reviewer

Author(s): Rajat Bhargava, Will Herman
Series: Techstars
Edition: 2
Publisher: Wiley
Year: 2020

Language: English
Pages: 480
City: Hoboken, NJ
Tags: Equity; Management; Business; Marketing; Finance; Best Practices; Customer Relations Management; Product Management; Sales; Investment; Fundraising; Team Management; Startups; Human Resource Management

Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Contents
Foreword
Introduction
Starting a Company Is Easy. Starting a Sustainable, Growing Business Is Hard. Really Hard.
How This Book Is Organized
Our Assumptions
Who Should Read This Book?
Let's Get Started
PART I: I Want to Start a Company
Chapter 1: What Is a Startup?
The Definition of Startup
Startups Exist in Many Sectors
Chapter 2: Why Start a Company?
The Allure of Startups
Why Should You Start a Company?
Chapter 3: Am I Cut Out to Found a Startup?
The First Question You Should Ask
Roles of the Founding Team
Chapter 4: Qualities of a Founder
It's More Than Just a Job
Habits of a Founder
Sacrifices of a Founder
PART II: Getting Off the Ground
Chapter 5: How Do I Know If My Idea Is Good or Not?
An Idea Is Just an Idea
Coming Up with Your Initial Idea
Chapter 6: Vetting Your Vision
Refine, Refine, and Then Refine Some More
Who Are Your Customers?
What Is Your Value Proposition?
Chapter 7: Product‐Market Fit
The Gateway to Success: Product‐Market Fit
Chapter 8: If You Build It, They Will Come
Can You Build a Team?
Can You Build the Product?
Chapter 9: Your Market
How Will You Be Different?
How Will You Go‐to‐Market?
Chapter 10: Money—Getting It and Making It
How Will You Make Money?
Can You Get Funding?
Chapter 11: Getting Help
Finding Mentors
Chapter 12: Pulling the Founding Team Together
The Most Important Aspect of Your Startup Is the Founding Team
Building the Founding Team
Chapter 13: Equity Splits
Splitting the Pie
Chapter 14: Operating as a Founding Team
The Complexity of Founding Teams
Chapter 15: How Do I Form My Company?
Creating a Legal Entity
Organization
Where Do I Incorporate?
Getting a Lawyer
Choosing a Company Name
Founder's Stock
Intellectual Property Agreements
Chapter 16: Finance and Human Resources
Company Hygiene—The Early Required Systems
Insurance
PART III: Funding Your Startup
Chapter 17: Funding Basics
Raising Money Is a Process
Why Do You Even Need to Raise Money?
What It Means to Raise Money
Glossary of Terms
Chapter 18: Sources of Capital
Loads of Options
Chapter 19: Prerequisites for Funding
Getting Capital
Before You Raise Money
Nail Your Strategy and Business Model
Build the Financial Model
Decide How Much Money You Want to Raise
Choose Your Source of Capital
Chapter 20: Running Your Fundraising Process
Chances of Getting Funded
Who Do You Target?
Getting to Your Targets
Accelerators
Getting Investment Capital—Angels and VCs
Chapter 21: Your First Investor Meeting
The First One May Be the Most Important One
Chapter 22: What Happens after You're Finished with Fundraising?
You've Got Capital. Now What?
Failed Investment Process
Alternatives to Raising Money
PART IV: Running Your Company
Chapter 23: How Do I Build and Deliver a Great Product?
The Product Is Just Part of What You're Selling
Initial Product
Chapter 24: Making Your Customer Successful
Documentation, Instructions, and Guides
Interactive Support
Planning Your Future Offering
Chapter 25: How to Get Customers
Why Focus on a Go‐to‐Market Plan?
Pricing Strategy
Chapter 26: Your Marketing Approach
Letting Potential Customers Know You Exist
Chapter 27: Sales and Distribution Strategy
How to Sell
Chapter 28: You Don't Run Your Company, Your Culture Does
Moving Forward
Building Your Culture
It's All About the People
Chapter 29: Hiring and Managing Your Team
It's the Most Important Thing You Do for Your Company
Managing Your Team
Chapter 30: Scaling the Company
To Grow Fast, You Need to Scale
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
Notes
Index
EULA