3 Lessons From Building a Venture Fund That Can Help You Make Smarter Business Decisions.

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Key Takeaways

Entrepreneurs can make better decisions by gathering sufficient evidence, testing assumptions and managing risks before committing significant resources.
Reflecting on outcomes and applying lessons learned helps business owners refine their judgment and make more informed decisions over time.

Early in my career, I remember sitting in a doctoral seminar, looking around the room and thinking, “I don’t belong here.” Everyone else seemed sharper, more prepared and more confident. Meanwhile, I was mentally editing every thought before I let it leave my mouth.

Eventually, I realized I had developed a pretty effective system for never embarrassing myself: Don’t say anything until I’m certain I’m right. Unfortunately, it was also an effective system for never growing. So I gave myself a different rule: If I’m not embarrassing myself at least once a day, I’m probably not pushing myself hard enough.

Decades later, after moving into entrepreneurship and venture investing, I’ve turned that lesson into a more disciplined approach. I call it Act, Adjust, Absorb.

Act: Know what ‘enough’ looks like

“Move before you’re ready” is terrible advice if it means ignoring evidence. Leaders need to distinguish between certainty, which is rare, and a sufficient signal, which they can actively look for.

When I began exploring what would eventually become Desert Forge Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund focused on the Las Vegas ecosystem, I didn’t have every detail figured out. I felt limited in my ability to act, so I did what I’ve learned to do with consequential decisions: I talked to people who understood the opportunity, challenged my assumptions, and looked for evidence that the idea could work. I started by talking with my nephew, who is deeply involved in the Silicon Valley ecosystem. His advice helped me frame and focus the fund, preparing me for the wave of AI startups that was coming. I also spoke with a friend in Tucson who founded venture capital funds focused on the University of Arizona. His advice helped refine the fund’s positioning in Las Vegas. He also shared the legal documents from his first fund, giving me a practical template to work from.

These conversations were instrumental in shaping the fund. The key is not to seek validation for what you already believe, but to ask questions that might prove you wrong. What am I missing? What has to be true for this to work? Where could this fail? At some point, more analysis stops reducing risk and starts postponing action. That’s when leaders need to act.

Adjust: Make the first move small enough to learn from

My first two investments taught me the importance of starting small and remaining flexible.

I launched the fund with a strong interest in deep tech emerging from university labs, and our first two investments fit that thesis perfectly. Both companies, however, wanted fairly substantial lead investments, perhaps more than we were ready to make. I agreed to move forward even though we were still raising the necessary capital, and that put us in a difficult position.

To get out of it, I had to adjust. We accelerated fundraising, recalibrated conversations with investors and became much more deliberate about communicating timelines to both sides. That experience reinforced an important rule: Move early on reversible decisions, but proceed carefully when your decisions create obligations for others.

Today, before making a consequential commitment, I pressure-test it with five questions:

What assumption am I testing?
What is the smallest credible move I can make?
What has to be true for this to work?
Who becomes dependent on us if I say yes?
What evidence would cause me to accelerate, change course, or stop?

Absorb: Turn experience into a better system

Leaders often act and adjust but skip the most valuable step: absorbing the lesson. We get busy and move on. But entrepreneurship gets easier when we treat this mindset like a muscle and strengthen it through small, repeated efforts. To put this into practice, set aside time each week to identify one conversation, question, or decision you’ve been avoiding. Address it early, then reflect on three questions:

What did I expect would happen? What actually happened? What did I learn?

My experience with the fund changed how I think about readiness. I no longer ask only, “Am I ready to move?” I also ask whether the people and resources affected by my decision are ready. I distinguish between what I know, what I believe, and what still needs testing. And I deliberately seek out people willing to challenge my thinking.

Experience should give leaders more than confidence. It should give them better filters.

Find your judgment zone

Entrepreneurial advice often encourages people to push beyond their comfort zones. The Act, Adjust, Absorb framework can help you do that, but when applied consistently, it offers something more valuable: a process for comparing the outcomes you fear with what actually happens. Over time, you build evidence. You learn that asking the supposedly stupid question often reveals that others were confused, too. You discover that respectful disagreement rarely leads to the catastrophe you imagined. And you begin to recognize which risks are real and which exist mostly in your head.

Earlier in my career, uncertainty sometimes felt like evidence that I wasn’t ready. Today, I see it as my judgment zone. I’m not fearless, but my decisions are better calibrated. I embrace uncertainty as an opportunity to learn, and while I’m certainly not immune to mistakes, I’m better at learning from them and applying those lessons to my next decision.

That’s the confidence gap leaders need to close. Don’t wait to feel confident before acting. Act when you have sufficient evidence, adjust when reality teaches you something, and absorb the lesson so your next decision is better. If you want more confidence as you contemplate your next move, take heart in Goethe’s words: “Doubt can only be removed by action.”

Effective product pages help online shoppers decide whether an item fits their needs and what buying it involves. A beautiful photograph gets attention. Product details such as dimensions, available sizes, delivery details, and a clear price help turn that attention into a purchase.

Even established retailers miss these basics. In its benchmark of leading U.S. and European retailers, updated in March 2026, Baymard Institute rated 52% of desktop sites and 62% of mobile sites “mediocre or worse” for product-page usability¹.

Product-page changes can affect revenue, too. In a 27-day test for Life Pro Fitness, agency Media Contour made product images, key details, and buying buttons visible without needing to scroll. Testing vendor Wingify reported that the revised page generated $0.67 more revenue per visitor than the original².

If you are building a new store, follow the five tips below as you create your product pages. Have those pages ready before running ads that send shoppers to them.

If you already have an online store, choose one product page to improve. Reference these steps to check whether it answers shoppers’ questions and lets them add the right item to their cart.

1. Answer shoppers’ questions in the product description

Identify the main question a shopper needs answered before buying. Look for questions customers ask repeatedly or misunderstandings behind returns. For a new product, start with fit, compatibility, or what is included. Confirm the answer against your product specifications, then put it near the start of the description.

For example, consider a pet-supply retailer selling a dog harness. Someone choosing their first harness needs measurements and adjustment details to judge the fit. Someone replacing a harness they already own needs to recognize the same model and size. The page should make both tasks straightforward.

Also, use consistent labels and units across similar products to make comparisons easier. Include limitations, such as incompatible models or items sold separately, so shoppers can rule out an unsuitable purchase.

In e-commerce platform BigCommerce, for instance, online sellers can use the product description and custom fields—additional facts such as material or compatibility—to present these details. Preview the product page to check that shoppers can find the information they need.

Then, use those same facts to help shoppers recognize the item in search results. In BigCommerce’s page title field, use the product name and a relevant detail, such as its model or material. Avoid repeating keywords or giving every product the same title.

2. Give every product image a question to answer

Plan your gallery around what someone needs to inspect. Show the whole product, a useful detail, and the product in use. For example, a lighting retailer could photograph a lamp beside a chair to show its scale and how it lights a reading space. A close-up of the switch shows how someone would operate it. Together, these images help shoppers picture using the lamp at home. Keep written dimensions available as well.

The same Baymard overview describes how shoppers use images to judge size and can struggle when photographs lack a familiar reference.

If you sell a bundle, make clear which pictured items are included. For products that need assembly or demonstration, you might even consider creating a short video. Add alt text: a short description of the useful information in an image. Screen-reader software can read that description aloud or present it in braille. Keep essential instructions available as text as well.

BigCommerce supports product images, images for variants such as different colors, and YouTube-hosted product videos. Check that your gallery presents the right item as shoppers change their selection.

3. Make choices, prices, and recurring charges clear

Keep size, color, quantity, and purchase options close to the buying button. Label them plainly, show the current selection, and make unavailable choices recognizable. If the size options fit on the screen, show them as labeled buttons, such as S, M, and L. This lets shoppers see which sizes are available without opening a menu, as the Baymard overview explains.

Place helpful links beside the choice it explains. For the dog harness, for example, consider putting a measurement guide beside the size selector so shoppers can check the fit before choosing. Keep it visible or provide a clearly labeled link that works by touch and keyboard.

In BigCommerce, online sellers can configure choices such as size and color through product variants and options. Then check that the displayed price and availability match the shopper’s selection. For multipacks, show both the pack total and the unit price. Make the full pack price easy to find so shoppers know what they will be charged.

If you offer subscriptions, let shoppers explicitly choose between a one-time purchase and a recurring order. Put the recurring charge, delivery frequency, and change or cancellation terms beside that choice so shoppers can compare the commitments before selecting. Confirm that these terms match how your subscription service works. Select a subscription yourself and verify that checkout shows the plan, price, and frequency you chose.

4. Make sure delivery, returns, and reviews are easy to find

A shopper who needs an item by a particular date wants to know whether it will arrive in time. Show a delivery estimate for their destination. Put a short explanation of shipping and returns near add to cart, with links to the full policies.

Show shipping fees or explain how they will be calculated. Clearly describe return windows, fees, and exclusions that matter for the item. If pickup is offered, distinguish stock at the selected location from stock elsewhere. Avoid presenting an estimate as a confirmed promise.

Also consider making reassurances that are specific to the purchase. Using the dog harness as an example again, you’d want to explain whether a shopper can exchange it if the fit is wrong and which conditions apply. That answers the practical concerns that a badge saying “Shop with Confidence” leaves unresolved. Use only promises your business can honor.

Customer reviews provide another way to assess the product. Show the review rating, text, reviewer’s display name, and date on the relevant product page. If reviews come from another service, name that service. These details help shoppers understand whose experience they are reading and how recent it is.

5. Test the path from product page to cart

Shoppers need to know that the page has registered their choices and whether adding an item succeeded. Open your chosen product page on your phone. If a required option starts unselected, try adding the item before choosing it. The page should tell you what to select or explain why “Add to cart” is unavailable.

If the product has options, choose them, then change one selection. Check that the price, availability, and any option-specific images match. Add the item. While the request is processing, the page should make that clear. Once it succeeds, a confirmation or the cart itself should show what was added. If an error occurs, it should explain how to continue without losing other selections.

From there, make sure to check the item’s quantity, options, and price in the cart. If you chose a size or color, return to the product page and check whether it still shows that selection. These checks help catch a wrong selection or an uncertain result before a shopper encounters it.

Shoppers who cannot use a mouse need to select options and add products using a keyboard. To check that they can, repeat the steps above on a computer without the mouse. Use Tab to move forward between controls and Shift+Tab to move back. A visible outline or other marker should show which control you are about to use. Press Enter to activate links and Enter or Space for buttons. In a drop-down list, such as a size selector, use the arrow keys to move through the options.

Shoppers who need larger text must still be able to read product details and reach Add to cart. Use the browser’s Zoom control to enlarge the page to 200% and try the same steps again. Check for overlapping text or controls that disappear. Across all these checks, record anything that prevents choosing the product, adding it, or correcting a mistake.

Keep improving one page at a time

Clear facts and images help shoppers judge the product; clear choices, terms, and working controls help them act on that decision. Choose one issue from your review to fix first. Give priority to a problem that prevents adding the correct item to the cart. If shoppers can add the correct item, address an unanswered question that could lead someone to buy the wrong product.

Record what you changed and when. If you have sales reports, compare purchases and revenue for the product over equal periods before and after the change. Note any promotions or changes in visitor numbers that could also explain the results. Customer questions, order corrections, and return reasons can help you check whether the same misunderstanding persists.

For more examples, explore BigCommerce’s product-page guide, then apply the same review to the next product page.

¹^{Product Page UX 2026: 10 Pitfalls and Best Practices}^{(Baymard Institute)
2}^{Media Contour uses split URL testing to improve the revenue from product pages}^(Wingify)