These are excellent points but all of then are endorsements by others. What does Sorensen try to find in entrepreneurs and their products? Is the third party endorsement is the most important factor?
History is crowded with "great" products that nobody really wanted - e.g. Segway. Most of the non-revenue metrics listed above are essentially ways to pick up customer signals. This is important, because we invest in product-oriented founders. They are building products that solve problems that really matter to their customers and the world.
A case where it is difficult to rely on "third-party endorsements" is when we invest in where the puck is going, versus where it is today. That is where we have to build particularly more thesis-driven conviction around the founder and their product.
One more thing to add: my post wasn't meant to be prescriptive or formulaic. It is meant to give suggestions to early-stage startup founders on how to show traction and progress beyond revenue growth, heading into a potentially challenging fundraising environment.
One of the best parts of our job is complexity and heterogeneity. Every founder, product and market that we invest in are unique. While data and metrics play an important role in our decision-making processes, it isn't formulaic.
Understood. Thank you very much for your explanation. Yes, I was probably asking you from an investor’s perspective, but your article is written as a guideline and advice for entrepreneurs.
I’m not an expert at all and I don’t mean to say anything intelligent, but I agree that products need to find customers who will improve the products at an early stage of the developments. I believe Sorenson Ventures’ team has been helping early companies to connect with the potential customers. This could be a powerful way to identify a new company at the same time you can accelerate the growth together.
These are excellent points but all of then are endorsements by others. What does Sorensen try to find in entrepreneurs and their products? Is the third party endorsement is the most important factor?
History is crowded with "great" products that nobody really wanted - e.g. Segway. Most of the non-revenue metrics listed above are essentially ways to pick up customer signals. This is important, because we invest in product-oriented founders. They are building products that solve problems that really matter to their customers and the world.
A case where it is difficult to rely on "third-party endorsements" is when we invest in where the puck is going, versus where it is today. That is where we have to build particularly more thesis-driven conviction around the founder and their product.
One more thing to add: my post wasn't meant to be prescriptive or formulaic. It is meant to give suggestions to early-stage startup founders on how to show traction and progress beyond revenue growth, heading into a potentially challenging fundraising environment.
One of the best parts of our job is complexity and heterogeneity. Every founder, product and market that we invest in are unique. While data and metrics play an important role in our decision-making processes, it isn't formulaic.
Thanks for your comments, Shinya!
Understood. Thank you very much for your explanation. Yes, I was probably asking you from an investor’s perspective, but your article is written as a guideline and advice for entrepreneurs.
I’m not an expert at all and I don’t mean to say anything intelligent, but I agree that products need to find customers who will improve the products at an early stage of the developments. I believe Sorenson Ventures’ team has been helping early companies to connect with the potential customers. This could be a powerful way to identify a new company at the same time you can accelerate the growth together.