front 1 Accelerator | back 1 a short-term program that provides small businesses with guidance, coaching, and resources to help them grow |
front 2 Acqui-hiring | back 2 when a larger, more successful company buys out a smaller, failing company to gain its talented workforce, not its product or services |
front 3 Angel investor / Business angel | back 3 an individual who gives money to a startup company in its initial stage in exchange for a stake in the business |
front 4 Bootstrapping | back 4 when entrepreneurs fund their startup(s) with their own personal savings and use money from friends and family |
front 5 Bridge loan / Swing loan | back 5 a short-term loan (i.e., two weeks to three years) provided by investors to help entrepreneurs make ends meet until more money is secured or until the next round of funding |
front 6 Burn rate / Run rate | back 6 the amount of money an entrepreneur spends over a set period compared to the startup’s available capital |
front 7 Churn rate | back 7 the number of customers that stop doing business with a company over a set period compared to the organization’s total clientele |
front 8 Cliff | back 8 the time (e.g., a year) required before employees are able to fully claim their stake or shares in the company they work for |
front 9 Cottage business/industry | back 9 a startup that functions best on a small scale and has little potential for large growth |
front 10 Disruptive technology | back 10 programs, tools, or products that significantly alter the way the public does something, transforming the marketplace in turn |
front 11 Exit strategy | back 11 the plan startup founders have to eventually transfer ownership of their company so that they can make money and pay back their investors |
front 12 Freemium | back 12 a popular startup business model in which customers are provided with a free restricted version of the company’s products or services, yet clients are charged for advanced features |
front 13 Growth hacking | back 13 a marketing strategy that employs low-cost, non-traditional methods to grow a business quickly |
front 14 Hockey stick | back 14 the shape of a curve on a line chart that shows stagnancy then a dramatic upward turn, indicating exponential growth in sales or customers for a startup |
front 15 Incubator | back 15 a long-term program that mentors and offers resources to startups–specifically in the initial stage of their journey–to help them grow, often in exchange for an equity stake in the business |
front 16 IPO (initial public offering) / “Go public” | back 16 the event in which a startup offers shares of its private business to the public for purchase, changing it to a public company |
front 17 Iteration | back 17 the repetitive process of trying out a product or service, identifying its flaws, improving it accordingly, and testing it again–all with the goal of achieving a better result each time |
front 18 Launch | back 18 to start a business by officially putting its products or services on the market |
front 19 Lean startup | back 19 an approach aimed at building, testing, and improving a business concept (e.g., product, service) cheaply and quickly |
front 20 Merger | back 20 the combination and blending of two separate enterprises to form a new single business |
front 21 MVP (minimum viable product) | back 21 the most basic and inexpensive version of a startup’s new product, highlighting its principal features, which is released to consumers for testing |
front 22 Pitch deck | back 22 a short, informative, engaging presentation used to share the fundamental aspects of a business with investors to convince them that it is a company worth investing in |
front 23 Pivot | back 23 when a startup makes a quick, dramatic shift in its business approach, product, service, or target market |
front 24 Pre-money valuation | back 24 an estimate of what a startup is worth before receiving any funding from outside investments |
front 25 Post-money valuation | back 25 an estimate of what a startup is worth after receiving one round of funding from outside investments in addition to the pre-money valuation |
front 26 ROI (return on investment) | back 26 a performance measure of how profitable an investment is compared to its cost |
front 27 Runway | back 27 the estimated length of time a startup can continue operating before using up all its funding |
front 28 Scalable | back 28 being able to grow substantially and consistently due to high market demand and the capacity to expand into additional markets |
front 29 Seed funding / Seed round / Seed stage | back 29 the very first period of raising capital for a new startup–whether through cash or equity–from family, friends, investors, venture capitalists, banks, etc. |
front 30 Sweat equity | back 30 shares of a new startup given to employees in exchange for the work they do, specifically when there isn’t enough funding to pay workers with cash |
front 31 Term sheet / Letter of intent | back 31 a (typically non-binding) document outlining the basic terms and conditions of a potential investment |
front 32 Unicorn | back 32 a private startup that is valued at over $1 billion |
front 33 Venture capital | back 33 financing provided to new startups with large growth potential by investors in exchange for equity or shares in the company |
front 34 Value proposition / Value prop | back 34 the unique features of your business, products, or services that attract investors and customers to your company |