

Sean Murphy answers your questions about starting or running your high-tech startup.
Have trouble with form – check it out at ASK SEAN
Startup Advice Column
For years, Sean has been advising startups about customer development, lean methods, starting and scaling business. Below is some of the most popular postings.
- Q: Should I Pre-Sell My Product?Bootstrappers can be tempted to pre-sell their product, accepting payment …
- Time to Market S01E11 – Mastering Product DemosSean Murphy and Etienne Garbugli offer tips for entrepreneurs to …
- How Founders Should Should Manage Startup RunwayUsing 14 Ways B2B Entrepreneurs Can Extend Their Startup Runway …
How Founders Should Should Manage Startup Runway Read More »
- What is Social Capital?In his book “Working Capital Vol 1: It Takes More …
- Q: Can you recommend an accountant for business taxes?Need an accountant for business taxes? Here are accountants recommended …
Q: Can you recommend an accountant for business taxes? Read More »
- Q: How Does a First Time Founder Learn Sales?You learn sales by doing sales: as a founder you …
- Q: How Can I Manage the Stress of a Startup?Tips to cut the stress of a startup: plan for …
- Q: I need an attorney who works with startups who don’t have a ton of cashIf you need an attorney because you want to initiate …
Q: I need an attorney who works with startups who don’t have a ton of cash Read More »
- Q: What Makes a Product Attract Early Adopters?The following is an edited version of a recent online …
- Q: Free Advice and Doing Business With FriendsDoing business with friends presents a number of challenges for …
- Q: Help! I Can Only Find Laggards in My Target Customer SegmentEntrepreneurs are often quick to characterize prospects who don’t see …
Q: Help! I Can Only Find Laggards in My Target Customer Segment Read More »
- Q: Kissing FrogsFinding the right customers is not just a matter of …
- Q: How Do I Plan for Pivots or Even Shutting Down My Startup?It’s useful to explore several paths in parallel and have …
Q: How Do I Plan for Pivots or Even Shutting Down My Startup? Read More »
- Q: We Have Grown From One Project To Many Projects, How To Manage?Three keys to making the transition from a one project …
Q: We Have Grown From One Project To Many Projects, How To Manage? Read More »
- Q: Help I Feel Stuck in Low GearIt’s not uncommon for an entrepreneur to feel stuck in …
- Q: How to Explore an MVP For Knowledge Worker ProductivityApplications that improve knowledge worker productivity have to satisfy “prepared …
Q: How to Explore an MVP For Knowledge Worker Productivity Read More »
- Q: Google Thinks Our Name Is a Typo and Suggests a CompetitorWhen someone on your team says, “Google Thinks Our Name …
Q: Google Thinks Our Name Is a Typo and Suggests a Competitor Read More »
- Q: Is a Focus on Inefficiencies a Good Way to Find an Underserved Market?A focus on inefficiencies is a good method to find …
Q: Is a Focus on Inefficiencies a Good Way to Find an Underserved Market? Read More »
- Q: Should I Be an Entrepreneur?How do you answer someone who asks “Should I be …
- Q: How Do I Make Sure I Understand The Customer’s Problem and Present a Vision of a Solution?Customer development–discovery driven sales–requires that you first understand the customer’s …
- Q: Forming a Scientific Advisory BoardQ: I am in the process of forming a scientific …
- Q: Best Practices For Finding Early AdoptersThere are a lot of misconceptions about finding early adopters …
- Q: When to Incorporate and Options for IP protectionSome quick answers to common questions about how to protect …
Q: When to Incorporate and Options for IP protection Read More »
- Q: Helping Customers On HoldIt’s important to understand who your customer is and what …
- Q: What Lessons Should I Draw From A Painful Cofounder Experience?Painful cofounder experiences are more common than happy ones, and …
Q: What Lessons Should I Draw From A Painful Cofounder Experience? Read More »
- Q: Making Effective Use Of Your Advisory BoardTo make effective use of your advisory board you have …
- Q: A Google Search Finds Dozens of Competitors, What Now?A common mistake technical entrepreneurs can make is to focus …
Q: A Google Search Finds Dozens of Competitors, What Now? Read More »
- Q: How Can I Maximize ROI and Minimize Risk?You can only capture a share of the value that …
- Q: How Do We Get A Business Prospect To Talk To Us?Each interaction with a business prospect or a customer has …
Q: How Do We Get A Business Prospect To Talk To Us? Read More »
- Q: How To Critique a Competitor?A recent question from an office hours session on how …
- Q: How Can I Calculate The Exit Value Of My Idea?It’s masturbation to calculate the exit value of idea that has …
Q: How Can I Calculate The Exit Value Of My Idea? Read More »
- Q: Can I Be My First Customer?It’s OK to solve your own problem first, to be …
- Q: Should I Tap My 401K To Bootstrap?Q: Should I tap my 401K to bootstrap my startup? A: …
- Q: How To Evaluate Acquiring a Small Software FirmWe recently helped a client frame the exploration of an …
Q: How To Evaluate Acquiring a Small Software Firm Read More »
- Q: How To Find Help Selling Professional ServicesQ: My software consultancy has reached the point of needing …
Q: How To Find Help Selling Professional Services Read More »
- Q: Is Veterinary Marketing A Viable Approach To Market Exploration?Entrepreneurs who limit themselves to what they could learn if …
Q: Is Veterinary Marketing A Viable Approach To Market Exploration? Read More »
- Q: How Do I Interest People In My Product?Q: We have a product for bloggers but I am …
- Q: Is It Waste To Build A B2B MVP That Inspires Trust?Build A B2B MVP That Inspires Trust Q: I am …
Q: Is It Waste To Build A B2B MVP That Inspires Trust? Read More »
- Q: What Are Critical Tasks In A Startup?Q: What is the target allocation for each of these …
- Q: How Do I Calculate Business Model Parameters For A Novel Product?While truly new markets have no history, their business model …
Q: How Do I Calculate Business Model Parameters For A Novel Product? Read More »
- Q: Side Payment Requested In NegotiationQ: We have been in customer discovery for a few …
- Q: How to Apply Lean Innovation Methods To Regulated Industries?Q: My research focused on the assessment of atherosclerosis in …
Q: How to Apply Lean Innovation Methods To Regulated Industries? Read More »
- Q: Is the Prisoners Dilemma A Good Model for Doing Business?The prisoners dilemma thought experiment that posits a single isolated …
Q: Is the Prisoners Dilemma A Good Model for Doing Business? Read More »
- Q: We Already Have a Prototype, Can We Still Do Customer Development?Product-market fit is not a ratchet: competitive response, new entrants, …
Q: We Already Have a Prototype, Can We Still Do Customer Development? Read More »
- Q: Pricing Professional ServicesQ: I am starting a service business that will help …
- Q: How To Speed Up Early Trials, Adoption, and SalesQ: I run a SaaS B2B startup that boosts employee engagement …
Q: How To Speed Up Early Trials, Adoption, and Sales Read More »
- Q: How Much Effort Should I Invest in Automated Testing For An MVP?Q: I have worked on large enterprise software systems but …
Q: How Much Effort Should I Invest in Automated Testing For An MVP? Read More »
- Q: How Much Attention Should I Pay To Potential Competition?Instead of looking left and right for potential competition, I …
Q: How Much Attention Should I Pay To Potential Competition? Read More »
- Q: Can We Launch First and Ask Customer Discovery Questions Later?Don’t do a big launch before you have completed customer …
Q: Can We Launch First and Ask Customer Discovery Questions Later? Read More »
- Q: Should I Persevere With My Product Or Get A Job?One question entrepreneurs ask themselves is whether to persevere or …
Q: Should I Persevere With My Product Or Get A Job? Read More »
- Q: Resources For A Lean Approach to Sales, In Particular New Product IntroductionQ: We have started selling and are looking for resources …
Q: Resources For A Lean Approach to Sales, In Particular New Product Introduction Read More »
- Q: How To Pull The Trigger On A Pricing ModelIt can be difficult to put a price on a …
- Q: Customer Exit Interview QuestionsQ: We have a SaaS offering that has been on …
- Q: How To Estimate Prospect Counts and Market SizesHere are some back of the envelope models to estimate …
Q: How To Estimate Prospect Counts and Market Sizes Read More »
- Q: How Do You Iterate An MVP So That It’s “Good Enough For Government Work”Q: I am part of a hardware/embedded device startup working …
Q: How Do You Iterate An MVP So That It’s “Good Enough For Government Work” Read More »
- Mission Often Matters More Than Monetization In An Early MarketQ: I am a newly minted entrepreneur who has been …
Mission Often Matters More Than Monetization In An Early Market Read More »
- Q: Should I Get A Normal Job Or Work At A Startup?Entrepreneurship gets a lot of hype but it’s not for …
Q: Should I Get A Normal Job Or Work At A Startup? Read More »
- Q: Can a Custom Solution Be The Basis For A Product?Q: I was contracted to develop a custom software application that …
Q: Can a Custom Solution Be The Basis For A Product? Read More »
- Q: Is Building The Wrong Product A Waste Of Time?Building the “wrong product” is not a waste of time …
Q: Is Building The Wrong Product A Waste Of Time? Read More »
See what startup founders say about Sean Murphy.
More information on SKMurphy mastermind (peer advisory groups) and bootcamps. Contact us if interested in checking one out.