Kendall's "Internet startup checklist":

1. Idea:

  1. Would YOU write a check for your idea?
  2. Don't spill your candy in the lobby.
  3. Is your idea refining or revolutionizing?

2. Funding:

  1. Are your financials realistic if nothing goes right?
  2. Could you see your investors with a 10X, 20X return in 3 years?
  3. Do you have back-up plans b,c,d before quitting your day job?
  4. Do you have a great answer for the most cynical of investors?

3. team:

  1. Can you build your idea or will it take a team of pros?
  2. Is a specific person on your team essential or can he/she be replaced?
  3. Dont give up the farm to recruit talent.
  4. Hire brave & passionate smart people.

4. Product:

  1. Does your product SOLVE a problem?
  2. Beware of feature creep! Customers & prospects add features, not developers.
  3. Stay focused on money earning features, not cool ones.

5. Marketing:

  1. Is it costly (time/resources) to get branded in your target market?
  2. Make a goal of closing a core group of customers the first year. (traction)
  3. Adjust marketing resources to get traction (don't need much).
  4. Be sure to test your "seo / ad-words / ad-sense" properly before banking on them
  5. Nothing is better than "boots on the street." Start knocking on doors.

6. Customer:

  1. How many "loss leaders" do you have?
  2. Does your idea help your customer or is it just a "nice to have"?
  3. Make each customer feel like they are the only customer you have.
  4. Can your customers be up-sold? Do they have peers they could refer?


April 16, 2009 fire averted?

Remember those days in September when Hank Paulson was visibly freaked about the fire his “homies” on Wall Street did to the economy?  Here is a video of Hank via 60 minutes that was captured in the heat of it.  Very powerful interview. Anywho, With the fire analogy that Bernanke always makes “…lets say your neighbor’s house is burning…” this picture seemed appropriate :)
Photo: [FLICKR]

bailout

It is so easy to:

  • be a cynic and point out yeah yeah, they are wrong, etc.
  • tear them down and point out bad ideas etc.
  • be an arm chair quarterback/economist with 2 semesters of economics :)

I compare these guys Hank, Ben, Geitner etc. to firemen who are only using the tool, TAX, they have that can stop the bad decisions that Wall Street made.   I am sure that my taxes and my kids taxes are going to be higher but I am grateful that they were there as recovery seems close.  So, if you are feeling rich, buy one of these.

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