Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Powered by
Survival Guide for Early-Stage
Startups
INSPIRED BY:HomeHero
Before you write your business plan make sure your company is solving a real problem.
Don’t build your startup based on a solution — Solutions change. Start with the pain
point and grow from there.
INSPIRED BY:BucketFeet
If you have more than three priorities, you’re overcommitting yourself. Identify the
three most important things that will enable you to fulfill your mission. Act on them daily.
INSPIRED BY:Delighted
Working in private beta can be especially beneficial for small teams to maintain focus. Dedicate time to working with the customers
and businesses you want to use your product.
INSPIRED BY:BucketFeet
Attend trade shows and tech conventions before your product’s complete to learn how
founders are running their booths.
INSPIRED BY:BucketFeet
Highlight your mission at the front and center of your website. Ask as many people as possible to log on and share the message
they’re receiving in the first 30 seconds.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page:
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Start with a clear headline concisely describing your product
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Highlight the three key benefits of your solution.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Use photos or videos to illustrate your customer’s future without the pain point.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Implement a call to action indicating your riskiest assumption (the one thing that
100 % has to happen in order for your company to be successful)
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Allow users to leave their email for future updates.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Use Google Ad-words to gain traction.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Display positive testimonials.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Include a buy or pre-order now button to gauge interest.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
To create an indicative landing page: • Measure how many customers convert.
INSPIRED BY:WorkPop
Once you’ve designed your homepage, ask yourself two questions:
1) Is there value action? 2) Does it bring people back?
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
Communicate with each customer who signs up for your service; Ask them what their
pain points are, how they’ve been solving them and the ideal solution to alleviate them. The more
feedback you receive before you start writing code, the more effective your solution will be.
INSPIRED BY:Delighted
Don’t dismiss feedback you’ve heard before. Communicate with each user to understand how they use your product and where their desire for a new feature is stemming from.
INSPIRED BY:Exo Protein
Connect with early adopters and influencers that respect your product. Personally connecting
with early adopters and influencers who respect your product not only fuels your movement but influences others to join.
INSPIRED BY:BucketFeet
Start out targeting smaller businesses, retailers, and restaurants as it’s likely that
the founder or buyer will be in the store for you to pitch your product.
INSPIRED BY:BucketFeet
Design your product sheet to look like a magazine. Create an engaging editorial experience rather than a traditional line sheet.
INSPIRED BY:Dashed
Remember that no means not yet in sales. Be persistent by politely following up with clients
based on the current state of their business.
INSPIRED BY:Javelin
Use a concierge service to personally deliver your product or service to each new member. Do this until it is no longer scalable.
INSPIRED BY:Delighted
Start out as scrappy as possible. Do things by hand until you’re doing it 10 - 15 times a
day and then build a product for it.
INSPIRED BY:Delighted
Prioritize new features based on usability.Cool features are exciting, but every company
needs a list of used services to survive.
INSPIRED BY:Zady
Plan a cover story launch by:
INSPIRED BY:Zady
Plan a cover story launch by:• Planning a 3 month roll out before launch day.
INSPIRED BY:Zady
Plan a cover story launch by:• Being proactive when speaking to journalists.
INSPIRED BY:Zady
Plan a cover story launch by:• Pitching your brand as a movement not a startup.
INSPIRED BY:Zady
Plan a cover story launch by:• Finding catalysts to publicly support your movement.
INSPIRED BY:HomeHero
Develop your product on your home turf before expanding. Startups working to disrupt industries need to prioritize product market fit and personal relationships with users to gauge future success.
INSPIRED BY:Dashed
When you’re ready to take the business to the next level, evaluate your times, team, and
feedback to be 100% confident that your service will be the same or better in a new market.
How did you survive year one?
tweet us!
Tweet us @33voices for a chance to be featuring on our newsletter and website.
featured Startups:
TUNE IN
exoprotein.com
TUNE IN
homehero.org
TUNE IN
bucketfeet.com
TUNE IN
Javelin.com
featured Startups:
TUNE IN
dashed.com
TUNE IN
Delighted.com
TUNE IN
beta.workpop.com
TUNE IN
zady.com/
CONNECT WITH US!
Tell us what you [email protected]
Presentation created by Chase Jennings
Insights by Jenna Abdou
