The Making of WISE Guides - Expert Insights, Real-World Applications, and Decades of Experience

The Making of WISE Guides - Expert Insights, Real-World Applications, and Decades of Experience

Building a successful startup is a multifaceted challenge that requires more than just a great idea—it demands a strategic approach backed by expertise and experience. At the heart of our WISE Guides is a commitment to providing actionable, AI-customized advice tailored to the unique needs of every startup. But how exactly are these guides created? Let’s take a behind-the-scenes look at the process.

A Triad of Expertise: Creating WISE Guides

The creation of WISE Guides is a meticulous process, blending insights from various sources to ensure comprehensive and practical advice for startup founders. Here's how we do it:

1. Conversations with Experts

To ensure that our guides are grounded in the latest and most effective strategies, we engage in deep conversations with experts across various fields. These experts bring specialized knowledge that enriches our guides, covering essential topics such as:

• Persuasion in Sales: Understanding how to influence potential customers and close deals.

• Emotional and Rational Decision-Making: Learning why people buy on emotion and rationalize with logic.

• Sales Funnel Importance: Grasping the critical stages of converting leads into loyal customers.

By integrating expert insights, we ensure that our guides offer not just theoretical knowledge but practical tactics that can be implemented immediately.

2. Customized Problem-Solving with Startup Founders

Another key method of creating our guides is through direct collaboration with startup founders. This hands-on approach allows us to address specific problems that founders are facing today, such as:

• Increasing Conversion Rates: Tailoring strategies to boost the percentage of visitors who become paying customers.

• Scaling Sales: Developing methods to expand sales operations and manage growth efficiently.

These customized guides are highly relevant and immediately applicable, providing founders with precise solutions to their most pressing challenges.

3. Drawing from Extensive Experience

The backbone of WISE Guides is the extensive experience of our author. With over 30 years in the startup ecosystem, including 22 years as a founder, CEO, CTO, and contributor, and 8 years dedicated to advising over 100 startups, our author brings a wealth of knowledge to the table. Additionally, teaching college-level entrepreneurship courses has provided a structured framework for understanding and imparting the intricacies of building a startup.

The Guiding Principles of WISE Guides

The creation of WISE Guides is driven by a few core principles:

• Actionable Advice: Each guide is designed to provide clear, step-by-step instructions that founders can immediately implement.

• Customization: We recognize that every startup is unique, so our guides are tailored to meet the specific needs and challenges of each founder.

• Practical Insights: By leveraging expert knowledge and real-world applications, our guides go beyond theory to offer practical solutions.

Conclusion

The WISE Guides are more than just instructional manuals—they are comprehensive resources forged from expert insights, real-world problem-solving, and decades of experience. By combining these elements, we ensure that every guide is not only informative but transformative, helping startup founders navigate their journey with confidence and precision.

If you’re ready to take your startup to the next level, explore our WISE Guides today. Whether you’re facing challenges in sales, marketing, or overall growth, our guides are here to provide the customized, actionable advice you need to succeed.

Special Support for North Carolina Founders

Thanks to the support from NC IDEA, WISE Guides are available for free to founders in North Carolina. Founders or organizations outside NC should contact us to learn how to access these valuable resources.

Ready to transform your startup idea into a success story? Contact us today to learn more about our guides and how they can be customized to your unique needs.

Thank You

Thanks to NC IDEA for supporting the WISE Guides project. Thanks also to Merrill Mason, John Austin, Jan Davis, Dina Rousset, Dave Neal, Jay Bigelow, Josh Guter, Lewis Sheats, Gabe Gonzalez and the numerous founders, students, accelerator managers and others who helped me do the Customer Discovery that led to these Guides.