2 ms·
Glad you kept at it and finally created something with traction. Here's what I learned via trial and error. A long time ago, when investors and accelerators a
by ilamont 5y ago
Glad you kept at it and finally created something with traction.
Here's what I learned via trial and error.
A long time ago, when investors and accelerators and MBA programs began to dominate the startup scene, founders got distracted.
I saw (and sometimes created) half-baked apps and websites, useless market research, chasing trends, chasing vanity metrics, investor pitching contests, startup theatre, and "build it and they will come" BS.
Build something people want and will pay for.
Not just say they want.
Not just say they'll pay for.
Make something that they see and will immediately take out their cash/cc/paypal/venmo and pay for on the spot.
If you can get that far, things start to fall into place. As others have noted, consulting may be necessary to keep things going.
This may not be applicable to capital-intensive fields, regulated industries, enterprise SaaS, but it works for a lot of B2C and even B2B startups.
- karussell 5y ago> Build something people want and will pay for. > Not just say they want. > Not just say they'll pay for. Thanks. From my point of view these are the most important points. Also listen to your customers and pick the things that meet your goals of the product but avoid including features that are very likely not scalable/adaptable/useful for other customers. It does also not hurt if you are convinced about your product and stick to it for an even longer period (years in my case). But sometimes it is necessary to jump off much earlier (months in my case) e.g. when the market is not big enough or competition is too crazy or similar.