Posts by Chris Schmitt
I can’t count the number articles, posts and books I’ve read on whether you should “bootstrap” an idea into a business or whether you should seek outside funding. As with virtually everything I’ve come across over the last 2-years, the answer is: “it depends”.
Clearly, if you have a good idea and the resources – tenacity, knowledge, time, skill, a source of income (or perhaps very forgiving parents) – you should try to bootstrap your company. On the other hand, if you lack one or more of those above attributes there are some fantastic angel investors and incubators out there that are willing to invest in your start-up, even before you get your first paying customer – usually for a substantial cut of your business (think of Angels as highly-paid consultants).
However, either way the principles of starting a business are the same no matter which direction you decide to take:
- You need a good idea: one that’s easy to understand and solves a real problem (notice I didn’t say a “great” idea);
- You need to find your target market and validate your idea before you invest a lot of time and money into into it; and
- You need to execute, i.e. build it and sign-up some customers - preferably paying customers.
We haven’t had one of these is a long time: PitchFest! Bring your ideas and see what the “crowd” thinks. No need for fancy presentations or 1000 row spreadsheets. Just bring your idea.
Where: The Code Factory, 246 Queen St., Ottawa (ring the buzzer to come to the 2nd floor)
When: 6pm, June 16th, 2011 (discussion starts at 6:15 sharp)
RSVP: here
In the immortal words of Lord Admiral Nelson, many start-ups find the best approach to launching a business is to “never mind the maneuvers, go straight at them”. But is this really the best way to approach it? In Nelson’s case I’m pretty sure he knew who his “enemies” were and realized that speed could be your best asset. But for a start-up that can be risky and expensive.
Believe me, I know how it feels when you read about that latest awesome technology and can’t wait to build that wonderful web application everyone’s going to flock to. But the reality is that your wonderful web app has to solve real burning problems if you are expecting customers to pay you for your service. The last thing you want to do is spend months building a product only to find out no one wants it.
At the next TeamCamp we’ll discuss two methods that can help you test an idea for under $100. While they’re blindingly simple, they will also force you to think through your idea before putting it out there.
If this interests you come join us at the next TeamCamp:
Where: The Code Factory, 246 Queen St., Ottawa
When: 6pm, May 19th, 2011 (talk starts at 6:15 sharp)
RSVP: here
On June 4-5th Vicki and I will be participating in The Weekend to End Women’s Cancers. The “Weekend” is a two-day, 60-kilometre walk through the neighborhoods of Ottawa. This is my third year participating in the walk.
We all know someone close to us whose life has been turned upside down by cancer. Your donation would really help to make a difference. Funding goes towards providing access to research and new therapies, reducing wait times, improving quality of life and providing care closer to home. Did you know that Ottawa is leading the way in cancer research?
60kms is a long walk so Vicki and I have been training hard, walking up to 15kms every Sunday. Soon we’ll be increasing our training walks to 20kms and then 25kms. It’s challenging and takes a lot of time, but it’s nothing compared to what women diagnosed with cancer go through.
If you’ve enjoyed TeamCamp over the past two and half years why don’t you consider supporting me? As you know I don’t charge anyone to participate in TeamCamp; it’s my way of giving something back to the community. This is your chance to do something special. Together, Vicki and I have committed to raise over $4000 for the Weekend. Any donation would be appreciated.
The easiest way to donate is on my personal page.
Thank you and God bless.
Find your niche
You think you’ve got a great idea for a web application: how do you determine if there’s a sufficiently sized market for your product to make it worth your while? How do you make sure that the market segment you’re pursuing isn’t so big that you’ll either be crushed by the competition or run out of money before you make a buck? You spend time evaluating your niche, that’s how!
Last week’s TeamCamp introduced the concept of the Micropreneurship. A “micropreneur” is a technical entrepreneur intent on stay solo that has learned how develop and market one or more profitable products. We talked about @robwalling‘s approach outlined in his book “Start Small, Stay Small” and we all agreed this was a great approach for TeamCampers.
Next week we’ll start to apply one of the principles outlined in this approach: finding a niche. For Micropreneurs niches are the name of the game. Finding the right nice to pursue will result in less investment in time and money to build a product, lower marketing costs, less competition and higher profits.
This will be a working session to explore together how to apply the approach to some of the great ideas we have twirling around in our heads.
When: Thursday, April 21st at 6PM
Where: The Code Factory, 246 Queen St., 2nd floor (ring the buzzer to take the elevator to the 2nd floor)
RVSP: here
Note: As we will be discussing ideas anyone attending this event needs to review and agree to the TeamCamp Participation Agreement
- Chris
Update: Rob Walling (@robwalling) was sent me 10 copies of his book Start Small, Stay Small. The first 10 people coming to TeamCamp tonight and have RSVP’d on Twegather will get a copy!
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This week we’ll be reviewing and talking about two startup methodologies: Lean Startup and Micropreneur Academy.
When: April 7th, 2011
Where: The Code Factory, 246 Queen St., Ottawa (ring the buzzer to take the elevator to the 2nd floor)
RSVP: here
The Lean Startup
The Lean Startup methodology derives its name from the lean manufacturing model. It’s about getting rid of waste. Applied to startups, the lean methodology entails developing a minimum viable product (MVP) as a fast way to discover customers, measure how they behave, and through experimentation, “pivoting” ultimately towards your customers needs.
Lean Startup is in fact a lean startup. Started as a blog, Eric Reis is a very high demand speaker, a consultant and has now published his own book.
You can view Eric Ries’ Lean Start up presentation at SxSW or if you have more time you can watch a one hour presentation in Udemy.
The Lean Startup is a trademark and service mark owned by Eric Ries.
Micropreneur Academy
The Micropreneur Academy teaches software developers how to launch a successful business using what you might call a lean methodology. A “micropreneur” is a technical entrepreneur intent on stay solo that has learned how develop and market one or more profitable products.
Rob Walling, one of the founders of the Micropreneur Academy has also written a book, “Start Small, Stay Small“. The first chapter is free and I highly recommend you download it. A lot of the points Rob makes in the opening chapter really resonated with me, particularly helping me to developer the proper mindset for a self-funded startup, understanding the need to do product marketing before building the product or prototype, how to determine of there is a market for your product. There’s a ton of practical advice here.
Which One?
If your a developer and would like to learn about starting your own company I would definitely recommend the Micropreneur Academy. First, it’ll help you understand and set your goals and offers very practical advice that you can start applying right away. I think Rob’s book is perfect for most TeamCampers.
If you’ve already had experience with a more traditional company and you want to learn about startups, and transforming your company into a more agile organization, then digging into Eric Ries Lean Startup model might be right for you. The Lean Startup methodology can be applied to any type of company, not just software companies.
Either methodologies are excellent and you won’t regret learning more about them.
- Chris
This week a pack of leprechauns pranced in and stole the pot of gold we all know as TeamCamp. Therefore, no TeamCamp this Thursday. Hopefully, TeamCamp will be returned in time for the next meeting on April 7th. God willing, we will be having a healthy discussion surrounding the Lean Startup model. If you’re really keen and want to do some prep for this meeting I highly recommend you spend a few bucks and get the book Start Small, Stay Small by Rob Walling. Or at least download the free chapter.
In the meantime, enjoy Saint Patrick’s Day and please, don’t drink and drive.
Do your ideas keep you awake at night? Do you have a great idea for a web application or an iPad app? Are you looking for a technical or business partner who also dreams of starting their own business? Then come on down to TeamCamp Thursday March 3rd for an idea “Pitch Fest”. Pitch your idea to a friendly group of people just like you. Together, we’ll explore and collaborate with you on your idea. You’ll meet new friends and who knows, maybe you’ll meet a co-founder? Prepare to spend about 20 mins per pitch. The format is not important, just be convincing and passionate.
To participate in a PitchFest you will need to review and acknowledge the TeamCamp Participate Agreement located at:http://teamcamp.pbworks.com/TeamCamp+Participation+Agreement
Where: The Code Factory, 2nd floor (Ring the buzzer to come to take the elevator to the 2nd floor)
When: March 3rd, 2011 at 6pm
RSVP: Here
Join us on Feb 17th for a lively discussion with Robert Saric around “Gamefluence”, or how to add gaming elements to a website to improve the user’s experience.
A large part of Robert’s research on game mechanics has been around the psychology of achievements, appealing to one’s competitive ego and understanding two distinct personalities: incrementalists and completionists. Robert is in the process of building a gaming engine for the WhyHire.me community, that will ultimately serve as a framework for motivation without encouraging nonconstructive community behaviours (i.e. just getting the most points). His goal is to educate their users with relevant advice based on each user’s chosen career path, congratulate completion of learning modules and tasks, and ultimately, make “fun” a consequence of a successful learning experience where the outcome can fundamentally benefit each user’s career. Based on his research, and the fact that everyone is talking about gaming mechanics, Robert thought it would be worth while to share some of his thoughts on this topic.
Agenda:
1 Gaming is huge, let me quantify it for you.
2. Don’t use the word Gamification (it’s as bad as Web 2.0).
3. Gaming is all about experience. That’s it.
4. The psychology of game theory
5. The evolution of gaming continues .. in 5 years .. in 10 years
For more information, see Robert’s article on the topic.
Robert is the co-founder of WhyHire.me, a startup that’s focused on connecting employers with talented students and recent-grads. WhyHire.me has helped almost 3,000 of its users establish powerful, relevant online resumes that are directly applicable to their chosen career path. As a speaker, Robert has had the opportunity to present to students across Canada talking about: career success, digital leadership, influence and interaction, and even game theory in social commerce. He enjoys participating in open-forum/panel discussions, and some of the more recent topics included: monetizing mobile apps, identity management, lessons for student entrepreneurs and social network awareness.
Where: The Code Factory, 2nd floor (Ring the buzzer to come to take the elevator to the 2nd floor)
When: Feb 17th, 2011 at 6pm
RSVP: Here
- Chris
The next TeamCamp meeting will be Feb 17th with @Robert_Saric. Robert will speak about Gamification of web applications/sites. More details to follow.
Note: there will be no regular TeamCamp meeting on Feb 3rd.
