An incredibly useful presentation and video put together by the gang at Andreseen Horowitz, the Go-to-Market Best Practices for Startups is a must ready for early stage SaaS companies.
While some of the topics are only dealt on a high level, it nonetheless gives you a good framework to dive into and build your own tools for your company. I have not seen a better starting guide than this one. Check it out!
Posted in Marketing, Product Launch
Tagged andreseen horowitz, framework, go-to-market, guide, startup
Let’s face it, not all ideas out there are worth of praise. I have been to many startup networking events where several people told me about very similar startup ideas that were basically copy-cats of other already proven models. But the best conversations are typically around those weird, different, maybe even bold ideas that make you think you don’t quite get it and wonder if it will ever make money.
Case in point is Vessyl, which Stephen Colbert hilariously mocks in his show. The “smart” drinking cup might have some utility, but so far has only gotten laughs.
Worth checking out.
Link: http://thecolbertreport.cc.com/videos/9nzwjt/vessyl-digital-cup
Or click the image below.
HBO recently released a new series, Silicon Valley, that does a pretty good job at capturing the startup environment in the SF Bay Area. It’s funny while not being overboard and makes fun of iconic people and companies in the Valley (Google, Peter Thiel, Paul Graham, and others).
If you are like me and doesn’t have HBO, you can still catch the first episode for free.
Click to watch the first episode
“It only adds 4 inches to your iPhone and gives you 45 seconds of battery life, but makes coffee” explains Jason Calacanis as he gives an impromptu presentation of iCoffee, a new iPhone app he was asked to pitch by Yossi Vardi, one of the participants in the VC Panel at the Launch Festival yesterday.
The joke is part of what makes the Launch Festival a one of a kind event, where 50 companies pitch their products to a panel of judges and 5 thousand attendees.
First Day Startups
Although the conference started off with a bit of a snafu (45 mins registration line and about 1 hour delay in the program in general), things were quite good once you got inside. This is my third year attending the conference and it has grown both in size and quality.
The event is a great opportunity for startup founders to present their ideas to a panel of judges who will not think twice before coming down hard on you or your idea, and is also a great venue for networking.
Of the statups that presented on stage, the following caught my attention:
Whiplash: Not only this startup is already making money ($500K last year), they are experiencing growth and are providing a much needed service, i.e. the shipping and logistics for eCommerce. This is a huge opportunity that, if done correctly, can transform this company into a major player in the fulfillment business.
CubeSensor: Robert Scobble said that as he was hearing the live feed of the event on his way up to San Francisco, he stopped his car just to buy a couple of units from this startup. Their whole premise is to improve indoor living, and they do that by giving you a ‘cube’ that sits on a table and monitors the air quality, humidity, noise, etc. If you have ever worked in an office with terrible air quality (so called ‘sick buildings’) you wish you had one of those. The key for them will be figuring out a killer distribution strategy and strategic partnerships.
Jawfish: a real-time, multiplayer game on iOS. What’s the big deal? The team behind it seems pretty solid (guys from Full Tilt Poker) and their advantage seems to the the architecture behind the games, delivering an awesome gaming experience. If they are really this technologically advanced and can get the right deals in place, they can become a major force in online gaming.
Triptease: Trip Advisor should have been dead but is still lingering because there is simply not a better option for online travel reviews. Triptease wants to change it with a magazine-like interface that makes reviews easy to create and fun to read. But the most interesting aspect is the leveraging of social networks. As people create beautifully rendered reviews, they will be able to share it with their friends. According to founder Charlie Osmond, hotels have already expressed an interest in using the site and have been emailing customers to place their reviews on Triptease. Going after smart parterships like that is a good move. Now, they have to get critical mass to start moving the needle against Trip Advisor.
Hubskip: A better way to book travel, because it gives you money back. Not only Hubspkip has a slick interface, it centralizes all booking for your trip (hotel, transportation, etc.) so you don’t have to worry about it. We all know that booking travel sucks, no matter what Expedia, Travelocity, and the other players do to their sites, the whole experience is pretty miserable. If Hubskip can break the mold and give us better travel planning at cheaper prices, you’ve got a winner.
Next post I will talk about some of the other startups presenting and also about those in the demo pit.
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged calacanis, conference, demo, launch festival, pitch, startup, vc panel
There’s an interesting writeup on Wall Street Journal, “Birth of a Salesman“, about the early beginnings of Amazon.com and how Bezos started it all.
Read the full article here.
Posted in Founder Stories
Tagged amazon.com, internet, jeff bezos, salesman, startup
Startup Web Guide 