A lot of companies still talk about being in stealth mode and aiming for a big hoorah type launch. It doesn’t usually work. Worse still, startups that are in stealth mode rarely talk to customers, prospects, users, partners or anyone else before their big reveal, which means they have little to no validation for what […]
This Much I Know is True
I’m a big believer in intellectual honesty. We emphasized it at Year One Labs by pushing teams through a lean startup methodology. And when I reflect back on my failures, there were clearly times when I was lying too much to myself. Having said that, I also think founders need to be capable of lying […]
You Suck! And How to Handle Other Negative Feedback
Negative feedback hurts. It’s easy to take personally and get offended. It’s easy to dismiss too. But negative feedback is a lot better than no feedback at all. The worst thing for a startup -at any stage- is crickets. … … … … … … … … … … … … … … Ugh. Silence […]
One Customer Doesn’t Make a Market
These days, most entrepreneurs I talk to understand the importance of speaking with customers before building a full-blown product. They’re getting out of the building. And that’s great. A few years ago it wasn’t like that at all. But unfortunately, I often speak with entrepreneurs that have only talked to one or two customers. That’s […]
There’s No “Shitty” in MVP
Lean Startup isn’t responsible for the deluge of crappy products being released by mediocre startups. Erick Schonfeld makes that suggestion in his recent post Details Matter. I’d argue that the mainstream usage of things like Twitter and Facebook (along with social media’s ability to create incredible influencers), lower costs and barriers to entry (development is […]
Pick Your Early Beta Customers Very Carefully
The goal of a startup is to find a sustainable, repeatable and scalable business model. And so much of a startup’s success is dependent on the early “beta period” where you provide access (to your product) to a limited group of prospects. If the beta period is a complete flop (no one uses the product, […]
The Specification is Dead; Long Live the Specification
In the olden days, most people followed a waterfall method. It involved writing “complete” specifications on exactly what had to be built, how it would be built, how it would work, look, etc. You’d have the “complete” package of documentation up-front and then you’d start coding. Seems like eons ago… Then we were introduced to […]
Don’t Sell Technology, Sell Magic
Tech startups aren’t in the technology business. They’re in the magic business. I’m not talking about sleight of hand tricks, fooling people with funky props, or pretending to saw off someone’s head. I’m talking about providing magical experiences to customers. Startups need to sell magic. Most customers don’t understand the technology that exists behind the […]
Being Responsive is Critical for Successful Customer Development
Most customers tolerate bugs. Most customers tolerate products with missing features that they need (or think they need!) Most customers tolerate the quirks and hiccups that come with new technology and software. This is true of early adopters, but it’s even true to some degree, of late adopters. Customers can be quite forgiving. But what […]
Visualize Your Website to Crystallize the Value Proposition and Target Market
It’s quite common for early startups to lack clarity around their core value proposition and target market(s). There’s a temptation to go wide on both – offer lots of different value to lots of different people. But generally that doesn’t work. A focus on a specific, differentiated and compelling value proposition targeting a specific, well-defined […]
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