The Lean Startup is a legendary book in technology startup circles and not without good reason. The methods discussed by its author, Eric Ries have created a blueprint that many budding entrepreneurs make avid use of in their quest for success. Indeed, many refer to it as THE Startup Bible. But is it more myth than method?
On my travels I talk with many startups and occasionally come across a few that are so protective of what they are doing, they are unwilling to even tell you about it – other than how great it will be and how it will change the world! This is often touted as ‘stealth mode’, keep the product under wraps until you are good to go and launch with a bang. Unfortunately this approach is often damaging, to the point where it could be fatal.
I make extensive use of twitter and have amassed a considerable number of followers over the last 12 months or so, but lately I’m seeing more and more followers claiming they can get me thousands more (for a small price).
As an early stage startup founder, whether you are looking to raise investment, do some bootstrapping, or a bit of both, there are three questions you need to evaluate before you go any further. Failure to do so could cost you a lot of unnecessary time, money and effort.
It seems everywhere I turn lately I meet enthusiastic individuals who are looking for a Technical Co-Founder to turn their idea into a reality, and experience implies they are in very short supply. If you find yourself in this position, I’ve set out some of the facts and myths, alongside some top tips which should help you achieve your goal.
In a new series of articles I look at the stories behind the startups and see how they came to be. In this first post we hear from James Critchley, CEO & Founder of cloud. IQ to find out why he left behind a secure career to found a Tech City startup aiming to make enterprise apps accessible to businesses of any size.
If you are relatively new to ‘startup land’ you’ll likely be hearing many terms that sound alien to you. Two you’ll hear over and over are Lean Startups or Lean Methodology and Minimum Viable Product or simply MVP – and for good reason.
There’s a lot of negative press lately surrounding global technology companies, and the ease with which they appear to avoid paying tax in the UK. Alongside this negative press is misinformation, uncertainty, and a lack of knowledge about what is going on and what the government intends to do about it. What there isn’t a lack of is opinion, so allow me to add to it!
There’s a simple mistake many startups are making with their online presence which is costing them sales, and it’s easy to put right. The issue is that I have no way of knowing whether you are a thief, crook, cowboy or combination of all three.
Just last week, Twitter became the latest casualty of poor Internet security when it fessed up to hackers having stolen account details for 250,000 of its users. As I’ve reported before, this type of activity seems set to rise, and you can be sure we will not be hearing of some of the more serious breaches.