I'd like to share some bits of advice for anyone trying to launch a web startup. As Co-Founder and CTO of
OnePage, I am striving to make
OnePage a success, and in order to do this I am pushing myself to research and analyse as much information which is already out there. Here are 5 top ingredients which I think are key:
1. Get something out there, fast!
It's very important to move fast, get something out there and not worry about implementation details or methodologies too much. Sure, things such as a great agile methodology, a fault-tolerant architecture and split testing are very important, but don't commit startup suicide by taking too long trying to get everything perfect. This doesn't mean I advise people to be oblivious of best practices or careless, and that brings me onto the next point...
2. Change things a lot
Re-engineer, re-design, re-factor as often as you see the need. No one has the perfect deployment strategy immediately or the ideal user experience right from the outset. You might come across extra information or get someone more with more expertise involved. The key here is to be constantly analysing to find new better ways to do what is being done whilst bringing in the new features. Be prepared for your mind to be changed about something, and for new realisations. Have an open mind.
3. Use many streams to converse with users
One of the single most important factors for the success of a startup right now is communication with users. If you can effectively communicate with your users and combine that with acting fast (ingredient 1) and changing things a lot (ingredient 2) in order to deliver what the users desire then you're onto a winner. At
OnePage we use Twitter, Facebook, UserVoice, email and word of mouth to engage with our users.
4. Value your competitors
Instead of folding as soon as you find someone else who is doing something similar, take every competitor and every action of your competitors as a positive insight. Get excited by the fact you have competitors - you must be onto something! Find ways to use the fact you have competitors to your advantage by identifying ways by which you can offer unique propositions for the users.
5. Get the right team
Get people on board as soon as possible. If you have the right team, you can motivate each other and achieve amazing things. At times when one member of the team is down the other members can help out. The process of finding the team is something for another post, but I can tell you that it can come from anywhere. I found the fantastic team we have at
OnePage entirely online. Simply by seeking people with a similar vision and complementary skills, and by not being afraid to ask for help, you can find your perfect startup team online! I will blog about how I found
Dan and
Laura on Twitter another time :)
Now do it!
Another one which I'm going to throw in there is to be very positive. Hence this is not a "5 mistakes startups make" post. You can work on things, don't get caught up pointing out what's wrong.
So now you need to take some action. Kickstart your idea: find the right team, get something out there and then work closely with your users and iterate often!
