CHAPTER 11
CREATE LEVERAGE
Leverage is influence, and influence is leverage.
—Chris Voss1
Why is it that some startups are acquired at seemingly astronomic valuations, while others with similar products in the same industry are not? This question haunted me in May of 2009.
At that time, I was reviewing an acquisition offer for my first startup, Jaxtr. A year prior, our Series B venture round valuation was at $50 million. But when we needed to sell just a few months later, that valuation came crumbling down. The only acquisition offer we were able to muster was an offer for less than $1 million, the value attributed by the buyer to our customers, brand, and intellectual property.
Our nosebleed-inducing drop in value was made worse by the fact ...
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