Downloaded 482 times
Uploaded byAndy Harjanto
101 Lessons Learned for Startups
This document contains 101 lessons learned for startups collected from the experience of running startups. Some of the key lessons include preparing to unlearn what you've learned and know that startup best practices have changed, validating ideas with customers before writing code, focusing on solving problems rather than just having cool ideas, and knowing when to pivot or fold a failing idea. It emphasizes the importance of testing ideas quickly through prototypes and constant customer feedback to achieve product-market fit.
More Related Content
Similar to 101 Lessons Learned for Startups
101 Lessons Learned for Startups
- 1.
- 2. Collected from others’and myexperience as running startups
- 3. More details, pleasevisitShift Happens Bloghttp://www.andyharjanto.com
- 4. Why listening tome? I’m just one of youNot a startup celebrity, Nor a superstar genius
- 5. Building astartup todayisnot the same as building it a decade agoShift Happens
- 6. Down Trend Timeto MarketDevelopment CostCapital Expenditure Distribution CostFund SizeBetter ToolsCloud ComputingModern ProgrammingSocial Media
- 7. Up Trend MarketSizeCompetitionNoise LevelImpatienceGlobalizationSocial MediaEasier Barrier to Entry
- 8. Lessons Learned Topicswe’ll be discussing
- 9. Most of topicsdiscussedare also applicable to “startup” teams inside a company
- 10.
- 11. 1Do you havewhat it takes? http://bit.ly/5dGJFbto be a goodEntrepreneurRisk TakerCompetitiveResilience Tenacity
- 12. 2Prepare to unlearnwhatyou’ve learned2010s Startups have to domany things backward andunconventionalmore later…
- 13. 3Your “killer” ideais just a hypothesis Talk to potential customers, friends,family without writing a single code
- 14. 4No need toperfect your ideaIt’s almost a guarantee to change
- 15. 5Careful for creatinga new marketLess competition, yes, but…It’s a lot longer to create than you think
- 16. 6Some games arein town really over. Don’t competeLet the big boys play
- 17. 7Ride the wave,Be the firstYou have millionsof potential usersfrom day oneFacebook AppsTwitter Based Services/Tools
- 18. 8At the endof the day, does your product solve problem?Remember, just cool won’t cut it Can you retain users?
- 19. 9A 5 yearbusiness plan? How about 5 day operating plan?Startup is operatingunder extreme uncertainty
- 20. 10Targeting Consumer Market....seemsso binaryMore often than not, you have to be BIG fast (millions of users) in order to succeedOR Go Home
- 21. 11Targeting Business Market…beprepared for long cyclesWork with channel partners, sales, build relationship.
- 22. 12Your Plan: Gettingrevenue from advertising… Think againUnless you’re to top 5 sitesin your market, you’re almost nobody
- 23. 13Overnight success isa mythBuild a long runwayMedia loves overnight success storiesAll you heard is, 6 month start; 1 million users
- 24. 14Don’t sweat overyour competitorsThey could be even more clueless than you are
- 25. 15Going against entrenchedplayers? They resist to change Provide a product that solvesproblems in a different, better way.
- 26. 16Be wary ofa small number of competitors in your market It’s either you’re genius OR there is no market
- 27. 17Sadly, luck playsroles in your startup success tooYour product is ahead of its timeCelebrities love your productIt’s the economy, stupid
- 28. 18Gauge market interestfirst via Social MediaDon’t worry about someone stealing your ideas
- 29. 19Be prepared forextreme rollercoaster emotional rides Low of the lowsHigh of the highs
- 30. 20Be prepared forrejection after rejectionNo one cares about your startupPersistenceis the key
- 31. 21Just Do-It, you’reahead of99% of peopleToo many people just talk with zero action
- 32.
- 33. 22If you starta startup to get rich, you’re in the wrong businessOnly few will make it “big”Change The WorldChallengesSolves ProblemsIndependence
- 34. 23Startup is avery high risk business It does not makesense from financialperspectiveMany ways to minimize the risk
- 35. 24Be prepared forat least 18 months without pay & benefits Don’t jumpbeforeyou’re sureToo many jump and abandonbefore fully developed
- 36. 25Always operate underassumption of no investorsGot change formy startup?
- 37. 26More than anythingelse, tractions are what investors looking forTrafficNumber of usersNumber of subscriptionsCan business scale?GrowthRetention Rate
- 38. 27Knowing when tofoldMore of art than scienceGut Feeling will tell youMeasuring your tractions is a good indicator
- 39. 28In many countries,government grants are plenty for startupsGovernments encouragehigh tech companies to have presents locally, createlocal jobs, and nationalpride
- 40. 29Your passionate userare sometimes your best investors
- 41. 30Watch your burnrate very carefully. You’re on dietNo Physical OfficeSkype (Free)Free Email, DocsFreeSoftwareOpen SourceRamen profitability
- 42. 31Less money givesyou senseurgency and boosts creativity It’s amazing to see how human survival instinct kicks in
- 43. 32Charge for theservice from day 1 is not a bad strategyYou’ll get very passionate customerswho believe in your product
- 44. 33Spend generously ontools, books, chance to network. Your ROI is excellence
- 45. 34Don’t optimize yourproductFor VCVC: How big is the market size? Superstar developers? At the end of the day, tractionmatters the most
- 46. 35Get into partnerprogramswith the big guys Many offer free software and services
- 47.
- 48. 36Find a greatco-founderShare the same valuesCompliment skillsCheck and balances
- 49. 371st Stage: HireDesigner and Community Manager, insteadThis could also be YouGauge Market InterestIdeas ValidationQuick Prototypes
- 50. 382nd Stage: HireGreat Developers, TestersThis could also be YouKnows ScalabilitySupportabilityQuality CodeSecurity
- 51. 39Hire for CultureFit & PassionateSet min-bar for Intelligent Gauge Market InterestInterview Process: Make the candidate as ifan employee for a dayIdeas Validation
- 52. 40Hire temp, consultantsto keepburn rate lowGauge Market InterestChannel PartnersProduct VideosMarketing materials
- 53. 41A very shortdaily meeting is muchbetter than a long weekly meetingHuman needs constant reminderof progress, accomplishmentand togetherness
- 54. 42Run effective meetingin22minuteshttp://bit.ly/caXq6h
- 55. 43Don’t grow fast,until youget to the product-fit phaseGauge Market InterestKeep in in quick tight cycles of build, validate, learn
- 56. 44666 is thenumber to avoidIn a given startup project, nomore than 6people6months6day a week
- 57. 45Everyone should beCEO ofsomethingPromote a culture of Veni, Vidi, ViciI saw the problemI own the problemI solve the problem
- 58. 46Be decisive; majorityof decisions are irreversibleHeard on the street: “An hour meeting with 7 people to decide one API changeWhat a waste!”
- 59. 47External dependencies arekiss of death for startupsThey’re not moving at the same speedReorg does happenThey can easily out-live you
- 60. 48Run your teamon POT(progress, ownership, transparency)http://bit.ly/6XT3NG
- 61.
- 62. 49Why building anawesome product no body wants?“Build it, they may notcome”Talk to customers, before writing a single code
- 63. 50Fail-Fast; andGet Traction-FastReallymeans Fail-Fast on bad ideasIt does not mean abandoning project too quickly
- 64. 51Quick build, validate,measure and learn. It’s in our engineer DNA that welike to build a perfect systemIn an early stage, Resist to be perfect
- 65. 52Can you tellthe difference:Progress vs. Wasted Progress?Run tight, small loops ofIdeas (Hypothesis), Validate/Measure andBuild
- 66. 53Don’t just accumulatework done without measuringMeasurement will give you feedbackto continue path, or tochange direction Retention RateUser TrafficBounce RateUser HappinessConversion Rate
- 67. 54It’s OK towrite messy codesduring validation process
- 68. 55Your spec shouldbe UIprototypesWritten spec is easily obsolete The cost of writing,maintainingUI prototype is minimal and fun
- 69. 56Suppress many ofyour ideasIt’s not a feature to featurecompetitionIt’s who solves the problems the best
- 70. 57Just build itnow and fast. No need for optimization yet.Your code will likelybe a throw awayas you gather feedback
- 71. 58Concentrate on corescenariosMake it great!No place for mediocrity People either love it Or hate it!
- 72. 59Ignore your 10%cases.That will take 90% of your energy
- 73. 60Eat your owndog food dailyUse your own productregularlyIn the early phase, It’s better than hiring a full-time tester
- 74. 61Boost virality, makesharing a click a wayPeople love to share
- 75. 62Boost retention rate.Humanis a curios being Add a few analytics, newsabout themselves and friendse.g.“your doc hasbeen viewed 5 times”
- 76. 63Boost retention rate.Humancraves for attentionsRIM (Blackberry), Twitter, Facebook do this perfectlyThey make users addicted to their product, by tellingthem – “You’re important”
- 77. 64Minimize FrictionsUsers are“very lazy” nowadaysOne clickOne minute setupNo installation
- 78. 65Don’t give useroptionsSet appropriate defaultThey have enoughother things toworry
- 79. 66Ship your productwith a minimum feature setEnough to showcaseYour core scenariosAdd featureslater afterafter undisputablefeedback
- 80. 67After iterations, oftenask what features to drop, instead of add Remember, your ideas are justa hypothesis; willing to let goPivot on your core beliefs, andgo to other directions appropriately
- 81. 68What Microsoft, Google,Apple can’t afford, but you can? They can’t ship a crappy product,even for their betaThey have reputation to maintain, You don’t!Use it to run a tight feedback loop toimprove your product
- 82. 69Without instant gratificationUsersdrop like a flyFirst 60 second experience is critical I saw dead users leaving
- 83. 70Create a productthat 10xbetterDare to be differentStand up and get noticedThe world is a very noisyplace(and getting worse by day…)
- 84. 71Collect less, betterprivacy,security. Many analytics tools are goodenough to measure user behavior
- 85. 72Don’t put anyfeatures, concepts that you can’t explain in 15 secsDoes your product ship with you? Don’t makeuser think
- 86. 73Reach Product-Market FitPhase. Celebrate, Work Harder.40%will be upset If your service discontinues
- 87. 74Watch out foryoursite performanceUsers have no patience for sluggish sites
- 88. 75Do a sideproject/experiment.Minimize your riskMany side projects made it big
- 89. 76Use Cloud ComputingLet’snot be IT guysLet’s focus on buildinggreat productSleep better at night
- 90. 77Building a newwalled garden,community is really, really hardPiggy back existing onesfacebooklinked-intwitter
- 91.
- 92. 78Never too earlyto start your marketing campaignHow about Day 1?Or even 90 days beforevaluable contentsqualitycomments
- 93. 79Show the worldwhat you’re doing. Stealth Mode is counter intuitive. No need for private betaAre you worried someonestealing your ideas?Really?Are you buildingspace shuttle?
- 94. 80There is nosuch thing is product launching for startupsContinuous improvementUnless you’re Apple.
- 95. 81Approaching Press. Doyou have unique, interesting stories?They’re not your writersBuild a human connection first
- 96. 82Don’t have goodretention rate,Don’t go to press yet!NewspublishedTrafficWasted
- 97. 83Most effective wayto acquire customers? Your passionate customersGood news, travel fast and far
- 98. 84Save your moneyon press releases. Ineffective.Different countries, however, it could be different stories
- 99. 85SEO, Social Mediatakes time to developMillions of others are doing it; how you stand out?
- 100. 86Viral is nota strategyPeople are immune. Mutate! Unless yourProduct is irresistibly good
- 101. 87Simple pricing isalmost always better than complex oneHave 1-3 pricingoptions as opposed to complex pricingchoices.Customers want predictable costs,not many options
- 102.
- 103. 88US is acrowded place. Go play outsideLess competitorsGrowing marketOf course, there is a catch…
- 104. 89Partner locally. Remotemanagement is an illusionClose, personal relationsoften are prerequisite outside US
- 105. 90Global team communicationis easy. Culture fit is hard
- 106. 91In many countries,social status is more important…than your product itself. “Your product sucks,But X uses it, so I use it”
- 107. 92One size doesnot fit allPackage your product differently in other countriesbased on marketdemand
- 108.
- 109. 93Nice guy finishesfirst… in the long run
- 110. 94Admit mistakes, startfrom the top. We’re all learning
- 111. 95Set expectation toteamChanges are constantWe’re a startupnot a manufacturer
- 112. 96You’ll be surprised,many peopleare routing for small guysMany offer a helping hand
- 113. 97Whom Microsoft, Google,Apple should be worried?YouThey may have the muscles, but you can run fasterFew of youwill be the next them
- 114. 98Startup is nota jobIt’s a life style. It’s drive and passion to change the world with little financial reward.Yes, few made it very bigYes, it has been known that startup entrepreneurs have genetic defects
- 115. 99It’s a growingpain experience with big personal rewards
- 116. 100Subscribe to theseexcellent blogs, vlogs, podcastsPaul Graham http://bit.ly/pgqy8
- 117.
- 118.
- 119. Both Side ofTable http://bit.ly/EsjT7
- 120. Mixergyhttp://bit.ly/rgDKP101It’s a blankcanvas… What are you waiting for!
- 121. For more presentationslikethis….Please visit: http://www.slideshare.net/Guppers/presentations
- 122. Contact me mailto:andy@gestone.com
Editor's Notes
- #12 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #13 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #14 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #15 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #16 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #17 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #18 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #19 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #20 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #21 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #22 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #23 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #64 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434
- #65 http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2434