Edward Cruz of Go For Vertical: The Importance of Asking Questions and Planning
Edward Cruz is the founder of Go For Vertical, Arizona’s new catalyst for founders and startups. Edward is a successful enterprise software consultant based in San Francisco and Austin, with a long career helping both startups and Fortune 500 corporations deliver critical software solutions. Edward is a native Tucsonan who is happy to bring his skills and experiences back to Arizona to help the next generation of entrepreneurs and businesses develop their technology and go to market.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
- [1:06] Stephanie introduces her guest, Edward Cruz
- [1:59] Speed round with Edward
- [4:30] Edward shares his first ask
- [6:07] Founders: the importance of getting out of their comfort zone
- [6:54] Edward shares people whom he thinks are really good at asking
- [8:23] The characteristics of a good ask according to Edward
- [9:47] The value of research before doing your ask and sharing your story
- [12:56] Why questions are important in planning and conversation
- [15:26] Why you should rehearse conversations before the actual meeting
- [18:05] Sharing your excitement vs sharing your worries
- [19:09] Resources and tools that can help founders get better at asking
- [20:54] Challenges for non-technical founders
- [23:30] Why setting up guidelines and following up on tasks is important
- [26:43] What is Go For Vertical and what they can do for founders and startups
- [28:35] Answer the question: Is there a market for your product?
- [30:19] Edward's ask for Stephanie’s audience
In this episode…
Are you a startup company preparing for a pitch? If so, do you think you have everything in your folder to prepare you for what happens during and after you make your initial ask? These are just some of the things founders often find themselves in when they’re about to meet someone who can potentially become an investor or a part of their company.
Edward Cruz, Founder of Go For Vertical, a company that helps ambitious early-stage entrepreneurs turn their ideas into market-driven, venture-funded companies with rapid growth and traction, says that your initial ask shouldn’t just be about what you want to get out of the conversation. It should also involve what you are excited about in seeing your ideas come to fruition.
Tune in to this episode of What’s Your Ask as Stephanie and Edward talk about the importance of planning and mapping out your goals and visions for the project you have in mind. They also talk about the importance of staying involved even after you’ve outsourced some of the tasks and why questions are vital to getting your point across to the person you’re talking to.
Resources Mentioned in this episode
Sponsor for this episode...
Finance-Ability is a boutique consultancy firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find funding through the right channels. Founded by financial decisions guru and all-around business transactions expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help anyone determine the value of their business by taking a closer look at all the details that make up the whole.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out if you know just how much value is in your company. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand and appreciate business processes and financial decision-making factors that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.