Business
Insight is a Resource: Why Sean Brown Likes Investing in Experts

Early-stage investing can be, for lack of a better word, tricky. As founder and CEO of investment firm GO VC and a serial business-starter himself, Sean Brown has been on both sides of the boardroom table during pitch meetings. And he’s built a 15-year investment career by seeing through the tricks and buzzy pitches. We connected with Sean Brown to find out what startup owners raising capital should know about the process from an investor’s perspective.
1. What are the main criteria for you to consider when investing in an early-stage company?
Investors need to balance a long-term vision of an idea or business’s potential with the short-term needs and risks that could prevent success. Sean Brown has found that two criteria have led to the most effective investments for GO VC. “First, my team and I need to be able to connect with the founders. If we don’t feel a certain level of synergy early on, it probably isn’t going to work later either,” Brown said. “And although every startup pitches some kind of solution, we prefer projects that create value by helping people, because those ideas tend to resonate more.”
2. What’s the biggest mistake you made and the most important lesson you learned since you started investing?
Obviously, no investor hits a home run on every startup. But sometimes ventures that don’t pan out are more valuable in the long run because of the lessons they teach. This, Brown says, was an important lesson in itself. “In some of my early investments, the companies I worked with bit off more than they could chew, and I didn’t recognize that early enough,” Brown said. “One of the keys for GO VC has been supporting and staying involved with our startup partners, because applied expertise is a critical resource just like capital.”
3. What types of startups do you prefer to invest in?
Sean Brown and GO VC’s early investments were in the tech startup space, funding marketing, software, and other online-based companies. But that was due in part to Brown’s own experience in those fields, and the firm’s scope expanded organically as new opportunities appeared in other markets. “We prefer small, agile companies, and founders that are devoted and passionate about their projects,” Brown said. “I wouldn’t describe GO VC as a tech investor, especially now — we’ve evolved, and we’re working with businesses in a lot of different verticals.”
4. In your view, what value can startup accelerators add, and why?
Accelerators and business incubators can provide capital and development support for startups that are struggling to grow on their own. But the greatest benefit of those organizations is usually more personal, Brown said. “Accelerators are valuable, and for more than just funding,” Brown said. “We have our own incubation program at GO VC, and the most effective results from that have come from connecting people and building relationships. Other accelerators would probably say the same.”
5. What should startups think about before contacting a VC? What kind of questions impress you?
Entrepreneurs and new business owners who decide to raise capital may initially find themselves in unfamiliar territory. Common knowledge suggests presenting a transparent financial picture and realistic projections for growth. Brown recommends these steps too, but also points out that proving your industry expertise is an underrated aspect of getting an investor’s attention. “It’s always more satisfying to talk to people who know what they’re talking about, right? And not just in pitch meetings,” Brown said. “If someone can explain why a product or idea will succeed and not just how it works, it’s much more impressive, and the potential for growth is exponentially higher.
Business
Scaling Success: Why Smart Habits Beat Growth Hacks in Modern eCommerce

There’s a romanticized image of the eCommerce founder: a daring risk-taker chasing the next big idea, fueled by late-night caffeine and last-minute inspiration. But the reality behind scaled, sustainable brands tells a different story. Success in digital commerce doesn’t come from chaos or clever hacks. It comes from habits. Repetitive, structured, often unglamorous habits.
Change, a digital platform created by eCommerce strategist Ryan, builds its entire philosophy around this truth. Through education, mentorship, and infrastructure, Change helps founders shift from scrambling for quick wins to building strong systems that grow with them. The company doesn’t just offer software. It provides the foundation for digital trade, particularly for those in the B2B space.
The Habits That Build Momentum
At the heart of Change’s philosophy are five core habits Ryan considers non-negotiable. These aren’t buzzwords; they’re the foundation of sustainable growth.
First, obsess over data. Successful founders replace guesswork with metrics. They don’t rely on gut feelings. They measure performance and iterate.
Second, know your customer deeply. Not just what they buy, but why they buy. The most resilient brands build emotional loyalty, not just transactional volume.
Third, test fast. Algorithms shift. Consumer behavior changes. High-performing teams don’t resist this; they test weekly, sometimes daily, and adapt.
Fourth, manage time like a CEO. Every decision has a cost. Prioritizing high-impact actions isn’t optional; it’s survival.
Fifth, stay connected to mentorship and learning. The digital market moves quickly. The remaining founders are the ones who keep learning, never assuming they know it all.
Turning Habits into Infrastructure
What begins as personal discipline must eventually evolve into a team structure. Change teaches founders how to scale their systems, not just their sales.
Tools are essential for starting, think Notion for documentation, Asana for project management, Mixpanel or PostHog for analytics, and Loom for async communication. But tools alone don’t create momentum.
Teams need Monday metric check-ins, weekly test cycles, customer insight reviews, just to name a few. Founders set the tone by modeling behavior. It’s the rituals that matter, then, they turn it into company culture.
Ryan puts it simply: “We’re not just building tools; we’re building infrastructure for digital trade.”
Avoiding the Common Traps
Even with structure, the path isn’t always smooth. Some founders over-focus on short-term results, chasing vanity metrics or shiny tactics that feel productive but don’t move the needle.
Others fall into micromanagement, drowning in dashboards instead of building intuition. Discipline should sharpen clarity, not create rigidity. Flexibility is part of the process. Knowing when to pivot is just as important as knowing when to persist.
Scaling Through Self-Replication
In the end, eCommerce scale isn’t just about growing a business. It’s about repeating successful systems at every level. When founders internalize high-performance habits, they turn them into processes, then culture, then legacy.
Growth doesn’t require more motivation. It requires more precision. More consistency. Your calendar, not your to-do list, is your business plan.
In a space dominated by noise and novelty, Change and its founder are quietly reshaping the conversation. They aren’t chasing trends but building resilience, one habit at a time.
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