The Deadline

We take this stuff seriously.

8/1/2017   Joel Bennett

And I take for granted that compressed timelines bring out the best and the worst in people. Startup accelerators have a way of doing that because there is a lot at stake - and just like the real world, it is a serious matter.
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Not only is the New Ventures money at stake. But so is the publicity, prestige, valuable connections and of course potential subsequent rounds of investment - all there for the taking. 

Peter's view is right on target. We try to remind the teams at every turn that they are up against all the odds and failure is a real possibility.   Even though I have designed, built, marketed and sold new products 100 times - that is not what we are trying to do this summer. We are trying to start a company - not just launch a product. 

But because we have a very definite and limited period of time to do this, we designed the New Ventures Accelerator to resemble a miniaturized model of the business world.  We cover the basics very quickly. We review business modeling concepts, customer development, canvases and innovation paradigms all leading to the big challenge of defining and building an MVP.

​Then I step out of the way and watch.
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Team A - Week 1 and 2 : Early Business Model and Value Proposition Canvases

For a first time entrepreneur - navigating through a jungle of voices, ideas, mentors, and opinions is no easy task.  Every experienced startup entrepreneur knows that the definition of an MVP can take many twists and turns.

But if they have the vision, skills and passion they do make amazing progress. Witnessing a newly minted demo is thrilling. Just seeing a simple demo that works is a huge relief to everyone on the team and becomes an inspiration for the whole cohort. Then they start to really move fast.

Team A - Week 7 : MVP Demo First Draft

But there is no dress rehearsal. There might be a number of read throughs, but in the end it is a simple matter of demonstrating traction and establishing your own reputation as a brilliantly motivated startup entrepreneur.
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​What did you accomplish? Did you achieve your goals? Did you find and hire a CTO? Did you onboard (enter number here) customers? Did they pay you? Do you have a plan for on boarding at scale? What will be the use of funding in the next round? 

Proving there is a market opportunity for a new idea is a complex challenge. Doing so successfully requires leadership skills and every milestone achieved is a hard earned win.

So I maintain a somewhat 'disinterested interest' on what anyone thinks or says during the first few weeks. Because in just a very short time the only thing that will matter is what someone can PROVE. And that is where we all focus our attention.  And the proof is in the DEMO.

Please Join us for Demo Day

2017 Cohort Update

Arxchitect: Pharmacy Automation Managment

The core of customer development is simple: "There are no facts inside the building, so get the out of the building". Gaining insight into customers needs, making sure you are addressing their #1 problem and letting this inform and define the MVP feature set results in a fact based process for making decisions. That is exactly what Nate and Adam have been doing as they move toward the final steps in building a demo of their solution to a $700 Billion problem.

Based on real world use case KPIs, Arxchitect is an enterprise class product designed from the ground up by experienced healthcare leaders for healthcare IT, operations, and automation leaders.  Their insight into the healthcare environment addresses disconnected and uncoordinated software, hardware, and robotic automation systems in an effort to improve safety and efficiency. 

Their financial modeling is being stress tested in depth with multiple use case scenarios. Legal documents being prepared as they aggressively pursue developmental partnerships with leading healthcare organizations who are enthusiastically asking to be included in the earliest of opportunities being made available.

They are concurrently interviewing potential board members, meeting with investors, and identify industry and vendor partners.

Nate summarized last weeks progress: " Overall, lots of things to manage and keep on track and a larger number of contributors than I think is ideal but we’re feeling better and better about how this is coming together and are confident in our abilities to keep us and the team on track to execute.  The work is getting harder from the perspective of everything we have to accomplish but it’s also getting easier as we get more focused and can be more efficient with our time/energy".
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Team A - Week 7 : MVP Demo First Draft

WineAmp: Don't wait, drink now!

WineAmp creates beautifully-designed tools to help wineries sell their stories as well as their wine. Currently those tools take the form of branded native mobile apps focused on the direct to consumer (DTC) part of their business. With our proprietary integrated app platform, we are able to rapidly deploy and scale apps for wineries of all sizes that improve brand immersion experiences, lowers the barrier to entry for new wine club members, and increases retention--all with less winery resources. Customers have a better user experience from start to finish, from managing payment info and shipments to learning more about the wines they receive. ​

Team W - Week 6 : MVP Demo First Draft

Team W - Week 6 : MVP Demo First Draft

YANAY: Social Sentiment and Polling

Sometimes a pivot makes itself evident in a unused feature, but sometimes it comes in the form of an unexpected customer.

Curt Meinhold's customer discovery has resulted in both adding valuable product features and identify early adopters. Yanay has evolved from a passive survey tool, toward an engagement platform for hyper local insights, and now a broad ranging consumer sentiment platform for any small business or organization. 

And he has customers! He has closed four deals including a municipal police department and a university extension agency.  He has even shipped an Alpha version to a first customer in just Week 8 - a local municipal arts and events department here in the Triad.

​These early adopters want actionable insight into what their customers are saying about them on social media and a net promoter score based on direct survey feedback.

Team Y - Week 6 : MVP Demo First Draft

Team Y - Week 8 : MVP Beta and Customer Testing

Funeral Insider:  Lifting the veil of secrecy

Why is it that funeral services vary so much in price? Why is making funeral arrangements so confusing and stressful? Why are cremations on the rise and traditional burials becoming less common?

Funeral Solutions Founder, Dr. Jay Renquarth has found a lot of answers to these questions. You might be surprised if he told you what he has learned about the $20 Billion spent each year on funeral services in this country.
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He has been diligently traveling across the state and listening to the many people who work closely with those families that are soon to be be departed. As Americans perceived value of “traditional” funerals diminish, the cost of funerals have increased nearly 1,328% in just four decades.  In 1960 the average cost of a funeral was $706 when only 3.56% of bodies were cremated.  Today the average traditional funeral costs between $8,000 and $10,000, and about 42% of people are cremated. 

Many communities have turned a blind eye to what goes on inside funeral homes, as many people prefer not to know the ins and out of the business.  In addition, grieving customers in need of funeral goods and services may not be in a healthy state of mind to make financial decisions.

The most expensive cost of a funeral is the casket, which on average has a mark-up of 289% from wholesale to retail, but sometimes is much higher.

Funeral Insider has discovered a broad ranging opportunity. I can not disclose the secret sauce, you will have to come to demo day to hear it for your self.

Team D - Week 7 : MVP Demo First Draft

Team D - Week 8 : MVP Demo First Draft