Learning resource
Startup glossary
40 common startup and venture terms with clear, accurate definitions in English and Persian. Each one links to related terms, the matching part of the ecosystem directory and recent news.
Basics
- StartupاستارتاپA startup is a young company built to find a repeatable, scalable business model.
- Minimum viable productکمینه محصول پذیرفتنیA minimum viable product is the simplest version of a product that still delivers value to a group of real customers and lets the team test an important assumption.
- Product–market fitتناسب محصول و بازارProduct–market fit is the point where a startup's product solves a real need for a defined group of customers so well that they keep using it, pay for it and recommend it to others on their own.
- Pivotتغییر مسیرA pivot is a change to a fundamental part of a startup's strategy, such as its target customer, the problem it solves, the product or the revenue model, based on what the team has learned from the market.
Stages and sources of funding
- BootstrappingخودتأمینیBootstrapping means building and growing a company with the founders' own money and revenue from customers, without raising money from outside investors.
- Pre-seedمرحله پیشبذریPre-seed is the first outside money a startup raises, often before it has a finished product or meaningful revenue.
- Seed roundدور بذریA seed round is a startup's first formal fundraising round.
- Series Aدور سری ASeries A is usually the first large venture capital round after the seed round.
- Venture capitalسرمایهگذاری خطرپذیرVenture capital is financing that specialist funds provide to young companies with high growth potential in exchange for an ownership stake.
- Angel investorسرمایهگذار فرشتهAn angel investor is an individual who invests personal money in early-stage startups.
- Corporate venture capitalسرمایهگذاری خطرپذیر شرکتیCorporate venture capital is when a large company invests in startups directly or through its own investment arm, instead of or alongside independent funds.
- Crowdfundingتأمین مالی جمعیCrowdfunding means raising money from a large number of people, usually through an online platform.
Deals and equity
- ValuationارزشگذاریValuation is an estimate of a company's total worth at the moment of investment.
- Pre-money and post-money valuationارزش پیش و پس از سرمایهگذاریPre-money valuation is what the company is worth before the new money comes in; post-money valuation is that figure plus the new money.
- Dilutionرقیقشدن سهامDilution is the drop in existing shareholders' percentage ownership when a company issues new shares, for example in a funding round or for an employee option pool.
- Cap tableجدول سهامداریA cap table is the exact record of who owns the company: who holds how many shares or options, at what price and from which round.
- Term sheetبرگه شرایط سرمایهگذاریA term sheet is a short document that sets out the main terms of an investment before the full legal agreements are drafted: amount, valuation, type of shares, voting rights, board composition and the investor's special rights.
- SAFEقرارداد SAFEA SAFE, short for simple agreement for future equity, is an instrument Y Combinator introduced in 2013.
- Convertible noteاوراق بدهی قابل تبدیلA convertible note is a short-term loan to a startup that converts into shares at the next funding round instead of being repaid in cash.
- Vestingواگذاری تدریجی سهامVesting means founders' or employees' shares become theirs gradually over time.
- Employee stock option planطرح سهام کارکنانAn employee stock option plan is a slice of the company's equity set aside to grant employees options to buy shares.
- Due diligenceبررسی دقیق پیش از سرمایهگذاریDue diligence is the stage where an investor or buyer verifies the company's claims before closing a deal: legal and corporate status, intellectual property, financial statements, contracts, customer data and the team.
Metrics and growth
- Burn rateنرخ مصرف نقدینگیBurn rate is how much more a startup spends each month than it earns.
- Runwayمدت دوام نقدینگیRunway is the number of months a company can keep going on the cash it has, if revenue and costs stay the same.
- MRR and ARRدرآمد تکرارشونده ماهانه و سالانهMonthly recurring revenue is what a company earns each month from subscriptions and recurring contracts; annual recurring revenue is usually that figure times twelve.
- CAC and LTVهزینه جذب مشتری و ارزش طول عمر مشتریCustomer acquisition cost is total sales and marketing spend divided by the number of new customers in a period.
- Churn rateنرخ ریزشChurn rate is the percentage of customers or revenue lost in a period, for example subscribers who do not renew.
- Growth hackingهک رشدGrowth hacking is an approach to growth built on fast, cheap experiments across the whole customer journey: acquisition, activation, retention, referral and revenue.
- Software as a serviceنرمافزار بهعنوان خدمتSoftware as a service is a model in which software runs on the vendor's servers and customers pay a subscription to use it over the internet instead of buying it once.
- B2B and B2Cمدل B2B و B2CIn a B2B model a company sells to other businesses; in B2C it sells directly to consumers.
The ecosystem
- UnicornتکشاخA unicorn is a privately held startup valued at more than one billion dollars in a funding round.
- ExitخروجAn exit is the event in which founders and investors turn their stake into cash or tradable shares.
- Initial public offeringعرضه اولیه سهامAn initial public offering is the first time a private company sells its shares to the public on a stock exchange.
- Acquisitionتملک و خرید شرکتAn acquisition is when one company buys most or all of another company's shares and takes control of it.
- AcceleratorشتابدهندهAn accelerator is a short, cohort-based programme, usually three to six months, that gives a group of early-stage startups training, mentoring, connections and typically a small investment in exchange for equity.
- Incubatorمرکز رشدAn incubator is an organisation that gives new teams and companies workspace, advice, administrative services and access to a network so they can turn an idea into a business.
- Science and technology parkپارک علم و فناوریA science and technology park brings technology companies, incubators and researchers together in one place to make collaboration between universities and industry easier.
- Knowledge-based companyشرکت دانشبنیانIn Iran, a knowledge-based company is one whose products or services rest on technology and know-how and that has been assessed and certified by the Vice Presidency for Science, Technology and Knowledge-based Economy.
- Co-founderهمبنیانگذارA co-founder is one of the people who started the company together and usually holds a significant stake in it.
- Pitch deckارائه جذب سرمایهA pitch deck is a short set of slides founders prepare to present their startup to investors.