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Introduction - Start Here
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Section 1: Planning Your Business
In the first section, Planning Your Business, you will learn how to find your customers, how to create a value proposition (a product that customers want) and how to build a business model around it. You will also learn how to use your startup to test your business model quickly and cheaply, and how to make necessary changes.
- 1.0 Introduction – An idea is not a business
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Exercise 1: Think problems, not solutions
- 1.1 Meet your customer
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Exercise 2: Problem brainstorming
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Exercise 3: Find your first customers
- Case study: Enervalis
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Exercise 4: Online research
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Exercise 5: Pick your problem
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Exercise 6: Is your problem validated?
- 1.2 From idea to solution
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Exercise 7: Mind maps
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Exercise 8: Creating a customer profile
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Exercise 9: Ranking customer problems
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Exercise 10: Creating a value map
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Exercise 11: Ranking value propositions
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Exercise 12: Finding fit
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1.3 What’s a business model
- DELIVERABLE: no. 1 – Letter of intent (LOI) or softer letter of support
- 1.4 Types of business models
- 1.5 Make your own business model
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Exercise 13: Make your own business model
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Case study: Tecnoturbines
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DELIVERABLE: no 2 – Business Model Canvas
- 1.6 Test your business model
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Exercise 14: Creating a hypothesis
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Exercise 15: Creating experiments
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Exercise 16: Create your MVP
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Exercise 17: Pivot or proceed?
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Case study: EOLOS
- 1.7 From startup to business
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DELIVERABLE: no. 3 – Competitive landscape
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Section 2: FUNDING Your Business
In the second section, Funding Your Business, you’ll learn how to test your startup like an investor. You’ll also better understand how venture capital works.
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2.0 Introduction
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2.1 Opportunity assessment
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Exercise 18: How an investor sees your startup
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2.2 Road test your startup
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Exercise 19: Road test your startup
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DELIVERABLES: no. 4 – Go-to-market strategy
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2.3 Exploring funding options
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Case study: Skeleton Technologies
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2.4 Setting up your business
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DELIVERABLES: no. 5 – Roadmap
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Section 3: PRESENTING Your Business
In the third section, Presenting Your Business, you’ll learn how to present your startup to investors and customers.
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3.0 Introduction
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3.1 Telling stories
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3.2 How to pitch to investors
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Exercise 20: The elevator pitch
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Case study: Hygen
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3.3 The pitch deck
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DELIVERABLES: no. 6 – Pitchdeck
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3.4 Putting it all together
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Resources
Finally, the Resources section at the end contains a glossary and reading list to help you on your journey from an idea to a profitable business.
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Glossary
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Further reading
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Primer Demo Day
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Presentations from Demo Day
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1.4 Types of business models
1.4 Types of business models
Now that you know what a blank Business Model Canvas looks like, it’s time to see some sample ones before you fill out your own. The first example canvas is a general one for SaaS (software as a service) companies, while the remaining business models are for companies you’ve probably heard of, including startups as well as established businesses.
We present 4 different business models here, but many more exist, and even more have yet to be created.
Don’t be afraid to experiment with your business model. Just because one business model works for a similar company does not mean it will work for yours. You may end up creating one that will work even better. |