Start strong with essential early-stage guidance from the VC perspectiveStartup Opportunities is the go-to guide for anyone with a great business idea. Whether it's your first business or your fifth, realistic assessment from the outset can save you a lot of time and money; why pour your heart and soul into a venture that is doomed to fail? Instead, position yourself to win from the very beginning. In this book, accomplished venture capitalists share their insight on startups and entrepreneurs: who will fail, who will succeed and why, and what you should do to give your business the very best shot at becoming a global success story. You'll learn how to evaluate your business with a critical eye, and how early customer development can be key in turning a good idea into a great opportunity. If you're serious about building a business that lasts, this book provides invaluable guidance that you really cannot miss.More than five million people will launch a business this year, and many of them will be great ideas--yet few will be around in five years, and even fewer in ten years. A great idea is not enough to build a successful business. You need to fortify your idea with the proper foundation, and a scaffolding of good planning and early action. This book shows you how.* Assess your business's viability using the 10x Rule* Learn when you can quit your day job--or not* Take the key steps to making your business succeed* Discover the opportunities worth selling everything forThis expert author team has witnessed more than 30,000 pitches over two decades, and have participated in over 500 startup launches. Startup Opportunities gives you the benefit of their experience to help you start strong and stay strong.

Foreword xiiiPreface xviiTrust Me, Your Idea Is Worthless 1by Tim FerrisChapter 1 What Is a Startup? 3How to Use This Book 5Who This Book Is For 5Notes 6Chapter 2 The Democratization of Startups 7The Cost to Launch Is Approaching Zero 7The World Is Flat 8The Path Is Known 9Access to Capital 10Chapter 3 Opportunities 13The Four Criteria for an Opportunity 13What Is Opportunity Evaluation? 14What Is the Cost of Poor Opportunity Evaluation? 16Execution Trumps Opportunity 19Risk, Uncertainty, and Ambiguity 21The Issue of Bias 23Notes 27Chapter 4 Approaches to Opportunity Evaluation 29Where Does Opportunity Evaluation Fit into the Overall Startup Process? 29Overview of Business Model Generation 31Overview of Customer Development and Lean Startup 33Overview of the Disciplined Entrepreneur 35A Modern Version of the Scientific Method 36Notes 40Chapter 5 People 43Team 43Working Full Time 47Been There, Done That 47Passion 48Coachability 50Ability to Attract Talent 53Business Acumen 53Domain Knowledge 55Operational Experience 55Mentors 56Board of Directors/Advisors 57Customers 58Social Capital 59Notes 60Chapter 6 Pain 63Compelling Unmet Need 65Size 65Durability and Timeliness 68Notes 71Chapter 7 Product 73The 10× Rule 73Rate of Adoption 75Rogers' (1976) Diffusion of Innovations Theory 75Intellectual Property 76Key Asset Access 77Proof of Concept--Selling Your Product in Advance of Making It 78Gross Margins 79Contents ixScalability 81Notes 81Chapter 8 Market 83Market Stage 84Product/Market Fit 87Disruptive Innovation 90Industry CAGR 90Distribution Strength 91Customer Acquisition Costs 93Viral Marketing 93Competition 94The Goliath Paradox 96Barriers to Entry 97Government Regulations 98Partnership Status 99Knowing Why You Need to Raise Money 99Notes 102Chapter 9 Plan 105Time to Launch 106Plan to Scale 107Reasonable Not Right 108Get Out of the Building 111Plan B 112Notes 115Chapter 10 Pitch 117Short Form (Under 10 Minutes) 118Long Form (30 Minutes) 118Business Plan--or Not 119Executive Summary 121Q&A 121Notes 124Chapter 11 Raising Money 125Building a Relationship with a Potential Investor 126Who Makes the Ask? 127Use of Proceeds 127Raise the Least Amount of Money to Get to the Next Level 128Ask for Money from the Right Kind of Investor 129Raise Money When It's Available 131You Aren't an Exception 132Why Anything Other Than a Yes Is a No 134Be Realistic about Your Valuation 136Even Angels Have Investment Committees 137Notes 141Chapter 12 Pitfalls 143Showstoppers and Red Herrings 143Excessive Valuation 144Taboo Businesses 145No Skin in the Game 146The No Asshole Rule 146The Key Person Dependency 147Drinking Your Own Kool-Aid 147Notes 150Chapter 13 Don't Quit Your Day Job If You Aren't 151Passionate about the Space 151Able to Execute the Solution 151Certain That the Problem Is a Need (as Opposed to a Want) 151Certain That the Problem Is Shared by a Large (and Growing) Market 151Able to Offer a Solution That Is 10× Better Than Anything Elsein the Market 152Ready to "Burn the Ships" 152Able to Access Potential Customers 152Able to Spend Six Months without Personal Income 152Able to Garner Enough People, Users, and Money to Create aMinimum Viable Product 152Prepared to Get into the Weeds and Do the Grunt Work 152Glossary 153Acknowledgments 159About the Authors 163Index 165Excerpt from Brad Feld'sVenture Deals, Third Edition 173