Here are some key learnings from my startup journey, as well as from observing several startup that I worked closely with.
This should be specifically useful for first time startup founders.
2. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Disclaimer
• There is no recipe for success, just some well
known ingredients
• No Guru can you make you successful
• Everyone has to walk their own path
• All you learn from ‘Startup Gurus’ is their
experiences
• All someone could help is, give you a new
perspective
• I am not even a guru
Decide whether you still want to continue with this gyan
3. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
2 models of startup
• There are two models of running a business:
– Large target market, High growth, high risk
businesses
– Smaller market, high margin, slower growth,
stable business
• This discussion focuses on high growth model
4. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Key ingredients
• Large market opportunity
• High quality team
• Your own unique insights
• Ability to build a highly differentiated product
• Agility to experiment & iterate to reach
product-market fit
• Aptitude to market
• Capability to sell
• Realistic perseverance
6. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
High quality team
• Complimentary capabilities
• Common life goals
• Shared vision
• Implicit trust
• Comfortable being ‘naked’ with each-other
• More action, less talk
• Capability to roll-up sleeves and dirty their own
hands
• Ability to live with uncertainty
7. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Your own unique insight
• Something that you have deeply
learnt/observed/experienced about – what
works & what doesn’t :
– Market/Customer
– Problem/Solution
– Discovery/Sales
• Something that’s not common knowledge
• Not something one can Google/Wikipedia
9. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Product-market fit
• One core use-case
• One core TG
• Customer interviews
• Iterate with MVP till you find acceptance
– Of product
– Of message & medium that gets you discovered
– Of pitch that sells
• Do one thing, do it well
10. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Marketing
• Build a brand from day-one
• Understand what message gets you attention
• Understand which medium takes you to customer
in most optimal fashion
• Understand scalability of discovery process
• Remember :
– People buy the brand before they buy the product
– Customer doesn’t want your features, she wants
benefit/solution
11. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Sales
• Being shameless
• Not afraid of cold calls
• Not embarrassed of reaching out to ‘anyone’
• Rejection doesn’t bother a sales guy
• Understanding of : which pitch sells to which kind
of customer
• Understand scalability of sales process
ABC : Always Be Closing
13. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Business plan?
So you might ask – what about the B-plan?
• Write all of this down, that’s your business
plan. Rest everything is a template
• Review periodically, as and when there are
changes in any of these
14. #TiEBootcamp
@kanchankumar
Just another unemployable guy making
his 3rd attempt to build a $bn business
I am not a guru, not an investor (not even successful)
just an average guy changing the world
Kanchan.Kumar@gmail.com
@kanchankumar
+91-98206-25546
Who am I?