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If your goal is to make money, don't allow yourself to write a single line of code until you have talked to people not related to you (and not close friends wit

by yodon 10y ago

If your goal is to make money, don't allow yourself to write a single line of code until you have talked to people not related to you (and not close friends with you), heard at least two of them independently describe facing the same business problem, and heard both of them say "yes, that would help!" (or better "yes, I would buy that!") in response to your proposed solution. Finding a real business problem and a real solution is what matters. The tech is just an implementation detail you work out later.

enraged_camel 10y ago
On the other hand, I've had a lot of success showing people proofs of concept as a way to get the conversation going about various ideas I have. Sometimes people don't know what they want/need until they actually see a pre-alpha version in action.
- collyw 10y ago
  Indeed. Most people don't know what is possible let alone what is easy / hard to develop. The answer to everything in my previous workplace was "another excel sheet" when we had a proper Django application with relational integrity and data validation. Showing them that a few clicks on a web form was easier than what they were used to - copy pasting data from one web page, pasting it back into an excel, reformatting it and uploading it, followed by a ton of data validation errors.
daliwali 10y ago
>The tech is just an implementation detail you work out later. Are so-called "tech" startups even about technology anymore? They are more and more focused on extracting value than innovating anything. Consider the focus on sales, marketing, advertising as of late and ask yourself if the greatest minds of this generation should be spending their efforts on making people buy stuff they don't need.
- TeeJay942 10y ago
  OP isn't looking to build the next great tech startup. Just a side project that makes money.
herbst 10y ago
I have 2 SaaS. One that fit this advice and one that didn't. The one that did is a year old without a sale. The one that I had no one in mind that would pay for it was profitable from month one. However both were bigger weekend projects I wouldnt spend much more than that on it

by yodon 10y ago

enraged_camel 10y ago

On the other hand, I've had a lot of success showing people proofs of concept as a way to get the conversation going about various ideas I have. Sometimes people don't know what they want/need until they actually see a pre-alpha version in action.

collyw 10y ago
Indeed. Most people don't know what is possible let alone what is easy / hard to develop. The answer to everything in my previous workplace was "another excel sheet" when we had a proper Django application with relational integrity and data validation. Showing them that a few clicks on a web form was easier than what they were used to - copy pasting data from one web page, pasting it back into an excel, reformatting it and uploading it, followed by a ton of data validation errors.

daliwali 10y ago

>The tech is just an implementation detail you work out later. Are so-called "tech" startups even about technology anymore? They are more and more focused on extracting value than innovating anything. Consider the focus on sales, marketing, advertising as of late and ask yourself if the greatest minds of this generation should be spending their efforts on making people buy stuff they don't need.

TeeJay942 10y ago
OP isn't looking to build the next great tech startup. Just a side project that makes money.

herbst 10y ago

I have 2 SaaS. One that fit this advice and one that didn't. The one that did is a year old without a sale. The one that I had no one in mind that would pay for it was profitable from month one. However both were bigger weekend projects I wouldnt spend much more than that on it