Previously on our Taking the Scary Out of Startup series, we discussed reviewed five tips to fundraising, because funding is hard! 

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Roadmap

Sometimes I think that if we plotted out the path that we have taken so far, it would be scary to see how many times we went in circles or backwards. But that is just part of the startup process. When you’re developing a roadmap, it is important that your roadmap is different from a critical path. Your roadmap must always be set with the end in mind. In other words, the same overall planning principles apply but it’s important to check out the following topics, as they should also impact that roadmap.Continue reading “Taking the Scary Out of Startup: Why Startups Succeed, Part 18”

For some reason, the past twelve months have presented me with an unusual amount of opportunity to take risks. Some of them I have taken, while others I have dismissed. The decision whether or not to take these risks was a rather boring process—with level-headed consideration about what risks would actually benefit me, and what risks would offer only a moment of adrenaline with little reward.

Some risks that I took on were minor: taking on a new project that fell outside of my skillset; offering up my work for peer reviews; wearing fire-engine-red lipstick for the first time in lieu of my standard nude gloss. One risk, however, was not just new, but HUGE. A risk where every part about it was foreign, undiscovered, uncomfortable, and unnerving.

Continue reading “How Risk in Business Can Be A Good Thing”

While seeking funding from investors or being acquired, the first step most third parties conduct is due diligence. Diligence is basically an in-depth review of a business’ official and legal documents. In case of startups composed predominantly of intellectual property, diligence is conducted to assure that the intellectual property actually belongs to them, preventing future infringement suits or licensing deals. Keeping your documents in order is a very important part of running a successful business.

Continue reading “IP Vault Best Practices: Manage and Store your Data”

Shane Olafson and Kyle Siegal of Lewis Roca Rothgerber presented their Patent Do’s and Don’ts for Startups webinar at our Lunch and Learn event recently. Note: While this is a general recap, we recommend you read the slides for a better understanding.

Continue reading “Webinar Recap: Patent Do’s and Don’ts for Startups”

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge took America by storm a month ago and has since gained momentum internationally as well. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a debilitating illness that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. The progressive degeneration eventually leads to death and there is still no cure.

Who’d have thought that a trademark controversy would have ensued over this charitable awareness campaign?

Continue reading “Ice Bucket Challenge Trademark Controversy”

Last week’s Traklight on Forbes series introduced 5 CEOs who talked about innovation and commercialization. Check back every Thursday for more content. Thanks for reading!

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Hear from an investor’s perspective how entrepreneurs should position their company to increase the valuation of their company and be more appealing to gain more investment opportunities. Mary Juetten interviews Francine Hardaway––startup marketer and mentor, and partner in Stealthmode Partners to help secure funding for early-stage tech companies––and gets insight on topics ranging from intellectual property (IP) strategies, to ownership issues concerning a company’s IP.Continue reading “Forbes Update: Words Of Wisdom From Entrepreneurship Coach”

In this segment, Mary describes the difference between rewards-based and equity crowdfunding. Though equity crowdfunding is not yet legal, the JOBS Act of 2012 will have more to say about the rules once those are released. Many states in the US already have their own specific rules for crowdfunding in general. As always, Traklight encourages startups to practice safe crowdfunding and protect their intellectual property before broadcasting it on a crowdfunding platform. Check out the video below for the clip, beginning at 16:00.

Previously on our Taking the Scary Out of Startup series, we mentioned why having a roadmap for your business is key.

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Have Healthy Skepticism

We all need a balance of personalities on a team and more about that in next week’s twentieth and final blog in our Taking the Scary Out of Startup series.

Healthy skepticism is not saying no to everything and everyone. You should be comfortable with saying no, particularly when there are ideas that would take you way off the roadmap and burn into your runway. But negativity does not belong at a startup; Continue reading “Taking the Scary Out of Startup: Why Startups Succeed, Part 19”

We all like to keep up on the latest movies, whether they are action, drama, comedy, or the binary work of Nicolas Cage. And chances are, you’ve come across someone who may get these movies in a less-than-legal fashion, whether it be pirated DVDs or torrent file sharing. Undoubtedly, these people and many others like them would think that their actions are an innocuous, victimless crime against a large, faceless corporation that already makes enormous sums of money. But these movies are still the intellectual properties of their respective studios, and movie piracy is a matter these studios take very seriously, as one British man found out.

Continue reading “Yes, Movie Piracy Is a Form of Intellectual Property Theft”

This is a guest blog by Danny Swift, LicenseSure LLC Intern, with guidance from Patricia A. Harris, Esq., Founder and CEO of LicenseSure LLC. LicenseSure provides business formation and licensing compliance services for design professionals throughout the US. A/E businesses must conform with both business and licensing rules in every state in which they have a project, and requirements are often opaque and frequently differ from state to state. Failure to comply with these rules results in fines and penalties for unlicensed practice, not to mention project stoppages, disrupted client relationships and bad publicity. LicenseSure assists its clients in all 50 states with establishing and maintaining compliance throughout the course of their projects.

Continue reading “What Architects and Engineers Need to Know about Intellectual Property”