You have an idea. You’ve done some of your early research and got some good feedback. Now it’s time to turn feedback into real traction—but how?
If you’re at this stage, you’ve done some good work to validate the market problem and get some early indications on what a solution needs to do, and you feel reasonably confident you might even be able to build that solution at some point.
Now is the time to take that strong feedback and turn it into a commitment. This is when you need to start thinking and acting like the head of sales at your company. You’re building out an early pipeline of opportunities with the goal of finding the right first customers to engage.
Here are three essential steps to building that pipeline and taking action to drive real impact on your business:
- Identify the Ideal Decision Makers to Engage. This is deeper than saying you’re targeting an industry or a particular company. You need to identify the individuals who will make the decision and the technical experts who will vet your concept. You need to identify titles, name names, and figure out how to connect with them to set up discovery meetings or calls.
- Get the Most Out of Your Initial Discovery Meetings. After you have made contact, you only get one shot; make it a strong one. You must prepare thoughtfully and assess what you currently know and what you need to learn in the meeting to see if this is a viable opportunity. DO NOT SHOW A DEMO or get technical. You should be asking the questions. It should be 90% you listening and 10% talking. Do your research, prepare your questions, and listen. Think about framing your questions from the highest level themes, then gradually getting into more details based on the conversation. A good first question is simply, “What business challenges keep you up at night”? If you’re not in the top 2-3 things on their mind, you may not have a chance to break through. Ultimately, your goal is to determine whether the problem you want to solve is important to this individual and their business. Is the proposed solution feasible, and is there excitement to work with you?
- Ask Obligating Questions to Get Real Commitments. Let’s assume you’ve gotten affirming answers to the questions above. What’s next? The worst outcome is leaving with this positive feedback and a “come back when you have a product.” This is not a yes or a confirmed customer. This is a temporary dead end. Push through the positive feedback and ask obligation questions. “Oh, this is important to you? We need capital to build this product. Can we sign you up today?” You will quickly discover how important this is and how much they trust you to deliver.
The following are some ways that show a customer is committed:
- Cash: Is the potential customer so excited they’re ready, willing, and able to pay you today so you can build this solution?
- Resources: If the potential customer isn’t ready to pay, will they offer anything else of value? Think about staff resources to continue providing input on the product needs, access to data to help you validate that the product can work, access to distribution channels, supply chain, or any number of other resources that can help you at this stage.
- Letters of Intent: A strong LOI that clearly confirms the problem, the proposed solution, and a potential contract can go a long way when talking with investors and talent.
Customer validation is the only way you can truly validate your concept. Customer validation and traction will excite your team, potential investors, new hires, etc. Don’t assume customers will come to you—no matter how great you think your product will be. Go out there, talk to your market, ask obligating questions, and find out where you really are.
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A Letter from our President & Board Chair
At the Entrepreneurs’ Center, everything we do is driven by one goal: delivering real impact to the clients and communities we serve. Over the years, we’ve celebrated major milestones—but none more meaningful than the one we’re proud to share today.
Between 2017 and 2024, EC-supported businesses surpassed $1 billion in cumulative economic impact, measured through revenue generated, investment capital attracted, and grant funding secured.
That kind of impact doesn’t happen by accident. It’s the result of relentless work to make the Dayton Region one of the very best places to build a business—through bold programming, expanded access to capital, and a community that’s more connected than ever.
For high-growth, high-tech startups, we continue to lead the region’s Ohio Third Frontier Entrepreneurial Services Provider program. Today, we support more than 100 tech companies whose innovations are fueling job creation, attracting capital, and reshaping Dayton’s economic future. In 2025, our successes were recognized with a program extension through mid-2027.
At the same time, we remain equally committed to the small businesses that sustain and energize our communities. Through the Miami Valley Small Business Development Center, we served more than 500 Main Street entrepreneurs in 2024, offering education, one-on-one advising, and support to access the funding they need to grow. We also deepened our role as a convener, hosting Dayton Startup Week and welcoming over 400 attendees and 80 speakers to share, learn, and connect.
2024 was also a breakout year for the Arcade Innovation Hub, our flagship innovation space. Now home to more than 160 member companies, The Hub Powered by PNC Bank has become the region’s most dynamic gathering place for entrepreneurs, educators, and creatives. This partnership between the University of Dayton’s Crotty Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership and the Entrepreneurs’ Center is a powerful example of what’s possible when institutions work together to spark innovation.
From our earliest days as a startup incubator to today’s billion-dollar milestone, we’ve remained grounded in one mission: to build progress and prosperity through entrepreneurship. The future we envisioned is now happening—and we’re just getting started.
We’re deeply grateful to our public and private partners, our community collaborators, and especially the hundreds of small business owners and startup founders who trust us to walk alongside them. This impact is yours, too.
We believe the next billion is already on its way.
Scott Koorndyk, President
Dr. David Kirschman, Board Chair
Water technology innovators often face additional challenges, including high initial capital costs, long adoption timelines, complex regulatory environments, and limited access to commercialization support tailored to the sector.
The SBIR/STTR Accelerator addresses these barriers and aims to support startup fundraising efforts by helping participants:
- Understand and navigate the federal funding landscape
- Develop compelling value propositions and commercialization strategies
- Identify market opportunities and competitive advantages
- Strengthen business planning and investor readiness
- Build actionable plans for pursuing SBIR/STTR funding
A Letter from our President & Board Chair
As we reflect on another year of bold ideas, resilient founders, and transformative growth, it’s our pleasure to present the 2025 Annual Impact Report for Entrepreneurs’ Center—the Region’s venture development leader.
In 2025, our team remained focused on our mission: to accelerate the growth of entrepreneurial businesses across the Dayton region at every stage—from a good idea to a scaling business to a business attracting capital. Through targeted programming, expert mentorship, access to capital, and deep partnerships across the ecosystem, we continued to build a thriving environment where entrepreneurs can turn visionary ideas into economic engines for our community.
In 2024, we reported that our impact exceeded $1B since 2017. That momentum is not just continuing—it’s accelerating. In 2025 alone, EC-supported businesses generated more than $266M in economic impact, signaling a pace of growth that is compounding year-over-year.
These outcomes are more than numbers—they represent real stories of innovation, perseverance, and community reinvestment right here in Dayton. From high-growth technology startups to main-street businesses and neighborhood innovators, the entrepreneurs we serve are strengthening our regional economy and positioning Dayton as a hub for opportunity and progress.
None of this would be possible without the unwavering support of our Board of Directors, our funders, investors, corporate partners, academic collaborators, and dedicated team. Your belief in the power of entrepreneurship fuels our impact across the Miami Valley and beyond.
We invite you to explore the full 2025 Annual Impact Report to see the depth of our programs, the success stories of the founders we are privileged to work with, and the forward momentum we’re building together.
Thank you for your continued partnership as we continue to power progress and prosperity in the Dayton Region.
Scott Koorndyk, President
Dr. David Kirschman, Board Chair
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