Kris Jones (He/Him) on LinkedIn: Bite-sized Gems: Bootstrapping Your Startup To 10k+ Revenue Gets You More… (2024)

I usually have a wee scan through X every morning and there's so much BS and over intellectualisation around sales.I've worked in sales roles for much of my adult life (from the trenches to strategic level). Key takeaway? 😶 Don't push solutions until you've listened to the problems (especially true if you're at ideation stage). Stealth startups are bollocks unless you're building Hadron Collider II in your garage or you're lucky enough to have worked at VP+ level at one of the tech giants. You're not whetting appetites. Be open and ask what the problems are from people who will use & pay for a solution. Let them tell you what sucks.Even if you're not a natural sales person (and everyone HAS to be a salesperson in a startup), you'll have a lot more confidence when it comes to actually selling when you listen to the problems and your solution matches it.Put yourself in the buyers shoes. "They just listened to what makes my day suck and told me that what they have will take that feeling away and it's cheaper/better/easier than the way we do it now". What's to fear?If they don't want it, you've learned about some potentially new problems/solutions for the future because you've listened. They've got more respect for you and will entertain a future call because you've said, "I can't solve your problem right now, let me see if/when we can and I'll get back to you".Have confidence in starting with listening. It'll also feed your marketing strategies as that founder reliance wanes.#salestips

9

4 Comments

Just a thankful end to the week.Just sat down and caught up on some of the comments that had been left for our Inclusive Awards nomination. As much as an award would be nice, nothing beats the messages that were submitted in support of our nomination. That alone is enough.Thanks to the organisers for having a system that allows us to see that stuff, it's pretty awesome.Have a great weekend and keep doing what you do because you're all frickin awesome.Thanks to you awesome people from Diversity-X Black Valley Venturing Women Raise Ventures and all the other communities. I'm in awe of all of you.

24

3 Comments

Time to peek behind the curtain! Really useful if you're new to early stage investing, or just wondered what investors were looking at when they reviewed a deck tomorrow **27 June at 12pm BST**.We're doing a live deck review for Umazi. A due diligence platform that becomes a digital due dil passport for individuals and organisations wherever they need to prove their identity. Already has some early validation and they are raising now with preferential terms for early-stage investorsJoin us as Cindy van Niekerk gives us a brief elevator pitch of what she's doing before 3 Angels (and me) run through the deck as a stream of consciousness as a collab between Diversity-X, Raise Ventures and Magic Sauce Online.Three organisations committed to getting more underestimated founders funded!There'll also be time for some Q&A with the founder afterwards.Grab a coffee, a bite to eat and join this virtual session to get into what investors are looking for when they see a deck.Drop a DM with your email for an exclusive invite to this free event.#lunchandlearn #startupstories #angelinvestment

23

2 Comments

Wish I'd seen this before I'd built V1, would have saved a lot of time...actually got me believing I can no code Basil Fateen 😂Seriously, if you're new to being a founder, subscribe to the video's, they are pocket size drops of awesome.#nocode #startuphacks

8

1 Comment

I have a humble favour to ask of you LI connections.We've been nominated for an award for tech innovation with Inclusive Awards (closing date 15 July).I would appreciate any votes from people who've benefited from some of the Magic Sauce Online wisdom over the last few years as we gear up to v2 launch (I'll share some new shots soon, it's looking cool).I don't normally get this kind of recognition so it'd be lovely for the team to get something this year as it's been an, um, challenge so far! Thank you...link is in comments.Diversity-X Black Valley Venturing Women Raise Ventures The Migrant Accelerator

41

16 Comments

Hallooo neurodivergent friends! Would you please reach out to Ammar to share your experiences around conditions like dyslexia, ADHD, Autism, etc., please!Hope you don't mind Theo Smith and Prof. Amanda Kirby, sharing for reach to the communities you've built!

We've all had enough of toxic stories and labelling of immigrants. The bare facts are that they add more to the GDP of the UK.The human core of it though is that many go on to set up their own business, feeding other businesses and communities on top of that. They make their homes here and add a different dynamic and presence in the communities they're in.This is one of the many human stories that get lost as the people that add tremendous impact to our public and private sectors are vilified and othered in the press for political gain.Read her story, donate to her gofundme or talk to her about getting marketing help for your business (she's bloody good)...either way, help her and her family stay together where they've made their home.Chip a tenner in, she's only got about 1100 to go to hit her target.

7

4 Comments

Decks, decks, more decks..did I mention I've been doing deck reviews.If any sophisticated investors (capital at risk) would like to see the precis of the most successful and ready of those, drop me a DM.Overwhelmingly under-represented founders. Some finishing rounds, some starting. Tickets from 250-1m, from proof of concept revenue to 250k+ ARR (which still looks like a pirate shouting in the infantile part of my head). Agnostic...BioMed/SaaS/Marketplace...Spanning UK, US.#dealflow #startups

21

5 Comments