Back in 1995, when I put Imagine’s first magazines online, there were five (5!) videogame sites on the web. FIVE! We blew up in part because there was simply a void. Today, too many founders are launching surface-level startups like it’s 1999. The bar is much higher now; all the low-hanging fruit has been eaten. Are YOU too shallow?
Founders, you need to ask yourself several questions before you move forward and be prepared to get real real:
1) Are you sure there aren’t any good solutions on the market?
* If there are, why aren’t people using them? (Is this a non-problem?)
* If not, why not? (Is this unsolvable or unneeded?)
* If you don’t have a researched answer, what the heck are you even doing?!?
It’s embarrassing, the number of times I was frustrated by a presumed “lack” of a market solution and spent a week (or a month) building something, only to finally search Google and find five (or ten, or fifty) solutions already in place. A crowded market isn’t always bad. An empty market isn’t necessarily good. Not knowing the space is unconscionable.
2) Why are YOU the right person to serve this market?
* Do you have deep domain experience? (Do you truly understand the problem space?)
* Do you have an indefatigable passion? (Will you gut out all the hardships?)
* What do you know about this market that no one else knows?
“I’m passionate about building a successful company” is not the same as “I’m passionate about this market and will keep taking swings at bat.” “I learn fast” is table stakes. All founders want to have a successful startup. All founders think they learn fast. Why 👏 Are 👏 You 👏 Special 👏 Here?!?
If you don’t KNOW at three things that are absolutely true for your market (not assume, not believe, not think), you aren’t ready to build an MVP, let alone raise capital or go to market.
All the simple solutions have been launched. There are thousands of gaming sites out there. There are thousands of recruiting tools. There are thousands of mechanisms for making your voice heard. There are already a hundred AI-based solutions in every market.
Any company that thrives now will do so because 1) the founders understand the problem in a way that no one else does and 2) the market is still, 30 years after the launch of the consumer internet, underwhelmed by the available solutions.
If you’re going to take a stab at launching a company in 2024, be prepared to climb to the very top of the tree, far higher than what feels safe, in order to pick the last remaining opportunities.
#startups #founders #venturecapital