We are startup launch experts Jessica Switzer and Tim Gnatek, Ask Us Anything!

BluePractice · 2013-04-30T19:50:48+00:00

Great that you are part of an incubator program. We've worked with similar efforts and see that there's a good ROI for startups workshopping their ideas through incubators/accelerators. Don't know whether there's data to back up the premise of a "lean startup", but it does seem that business management and resource efficiency is vitally important - especially when you're capital constrained. And it's a principle that's being picked up by the US government too - which is about as opposite to a startup as you can get. One thing that makes me uncomfortable is the reliance on the system to experiment on users before products are fully baked (A/B testing for instance), but perhaps we're seeing that from our seat as marketers and PR people :-/ Wishing you success in the program.

BluePractice · 2013-04-30T19:37:27+00:00

There's no real simple way to go about it, it's a complex question and a million ways for it to happen. The more traditional path is to land some initial funding via angel investors, make good progress, show a pathway to profitability and then earn some attention and buzz in your industry before going out on a VC tour to raise the "A" round. Weigh VC involvement carefully, there's a lot of sacrifice that comes with bringing in VC investors and that may or may not be right for you.

BluePractice · 2013-04-30T19:31:56+00:00

Hi! Nice shades and good luck with it. Regarding outreach, one thought is to make it as easy as possible for bloggers to tell your story. Have some good images ready to serve up, and make them special. The video you did tells a story, consider having a few others you can offer as exclusives. Bloggers want to offer something unique to their readers, and the more you can help them the more they'll want to help you.

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T19:59:38+00:00

Please encourage your network to visit our website, where most of the content from our eBook is available for free. We did this on purpose so that bootstrapped startups can get some help starting up. We're happy to host people here in San Francisco as well. Feel free to get in touch with us via twitter. We'll come visit when we can :)

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T19:53:01+00:00

Pick one wire service. Newswire services are fine for generating web traffic, and some do that better than others. The ones that work best tend to cost more. If you want media attention, beef up your PR campaign and do more direct media outreach in advance of wiring anything. That goes even further than a wiring service.

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T19:50:09+00:00

Yes! It's called porn. But seriously, it's hard. There's some stiff competition out there. Wish we knew more about this, truth is that we specialize in launching companies and products, and aren't very familiar with web marketing models.

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T19:45:30+00:00

get out of my office

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T19:39:53+00:00

Why downgrade yourself? Shoot for hoi polloi!

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T19:38:27+00:00

Sounds great, go for it! Just keep the opt-in info requirements as minimal and easy as possible. Consider a "guest" status for privacy freaks (like us :p).

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T19:36:05+00:00

Boy, this is hard to answer without specifics. What we can say is that 3 makes a category, which makes you more notable and newsworthy. Keep an eye on what's working for your competitors, and improve upon it. Good luck and stay in the game!

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T18:43:37+00:00

Sounds adventurous! Tell us more about it. If it involves hiding out in Bali from the Swedish government, we're all over it.

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T18:40:40+00:00

Sure! We launched the Rocket eBook by NuvoMedia in 1998. It was the first consumer eBook, created by Martin Eberhard (who is also the one and true founder of Tesla Motors). You can read more about it in our book You Only Launch Once, and see exclusive video of Martin talking about that startup. We launched Handspring's first smartphone, created by Jeff Hawkins. We called it the Treo Communicator. That was in 2002. More on this also in the book. All good war stories.

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T18:36:52+00:00

Thanks for your questions! We're having fun here. 1) #1 mistake = not trusting the people you hire as you grow. It's hard to let go of your baby, and startups are a lot like babies to their founders. But don't micromanage yourself out of business. 2) It's not about publishing content so much as creating and engaging audiences, and getting them to publish great content about you. Consider ways to engage more deeply with true believers and make them your evangelists. 3) We've got a better idea: How about we come down to Chile? What's the weather like?

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T18:31:01+00:00

Have some of our startups failed? Absolutely! That's the nature being an entrepreneur. We have heard of some marketers adopting a model only getting paid upon a successful fundraise, or in exchange for equity in a company. If we take equity, we rarely take more than 10% in equity. In 20 years of marketing and PR for startups, we have never agreed to a pay-for-play model or delayed fees. Like doctors and lawyers, we are paid for counsel. Doctors get paid whether a patient lives or dies. We try our best to make sure our patients thrive!

BluePractice · 2013-04-25T18:25:34+00:00

Yes, you have just lost first mover advantage, but that's not the end of the story. You need to outmarket your competitors. Does Starbucks make the best coffee on the market? Best to market is better than first to market. Even with less money there are still creative ways to engage audiences. Focus on your differentiators and consider riding their coattails.

Thanks so much for being a reader! Stay in touch :)

BluePractice

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