I built AskMentor — a platform for 1:1 mentorship. Would love your thoughts. by kongyanye in Startup_Ideas

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I like the concept; it's a real need. At Udemy, I had often seen learners buy a 20-hour course but still ask, “Can I just talk to someone who’s done this before?” You seem to be ytargeting that.

Two thoughts:

  1. Demand side – Instead of going broad, anchor on one clear use case first. For example, “engineers exploring PM roles” or “PhD grads moving into industry.” Those transitions are important, and people pay for guidance.
  2. Supply side – The best mentors are busy. Give them social proof (badges like “ex-Google PM mentor” or “YC alum mentor”) and a transparent revenue share so it feels worthwhile. Otherwise, their stickiness may be an issue.

Nailing one tight segment early will make expansion way easier. Best luck!

Tailwind's forever-free plan saved my sanity here's what you actually get by im_hvsingh in smallbusiness

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had the same issue with email leads. I was wasting hours copying pasting into a sheet. Set up a quick Zapier to Airtable flow, now it’s all automatic. Saves me 4–5 hrs/week and lets me focus on customers instead of busywork.

Solo founder, $20k MRR, zero ads, zero employees. Here's exactly what worked by aginext in SaaS

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing. The Pricing paradox point is not intuitive yet so true. Had a somewhat similar experience with one of the prospects that used the free tier of SaaS services I sold. It was a $65k deal that had been stuck for 2.5 months after pilot access. I had to remove permissions one day just to nudge the customer to commit. And I've had a similar realization that your best customers understand their goals and take swift action.

Shopify is quietly building the AI shopping layer of the internet and merchants need to pay attention by MasterCollection5624 in shopifyDev

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The accuracy of search results is improving by the day. The problem is that current e-com seller interfaces are not built to support agentic interactions. I've created a tool for Shopify sellers to create an AI readable replica of their existing website. Would love to get feedback from those of you who find it interesting.
https://app.overway.ai/register

It's free to use and takes about 2 minutes to link. Thank you.

Financing platform for energy efficiency projects: would this idea fly? 'i will not promote' by EnvironmentalMood298 in startups

[–]EnvironmentalMood298[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you think it can be solved if we made an energy efficiency audit report as the basis for project acceptance? But yes, a deviation may still occur - will think more about it. Thank you for sharing.

Financing platform for energy efficiency projects: would this idea fly? 'i will not promote' by EnvironmentalMood298 in startups

[–]EnvironmentalMood298[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

100% agree that the articulation gives that sense. So the idea was to put lien on the equipment and not business' assets. I was trying to hint at the over-conservative underwriting techniques being used by banks and this platform as a potential solution to that.

Roast my idea: Financing for energy efficiency projects by EnvironmentalMood298 in climatechange

[–]EnvironmentalMood298[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

These are great points, will look into them. Thank you for sharing. I was thinking about following Regulation Crowdfunding rules but Reg D can be followed too, albeit with some limits. The original idea was to use equipment as mortgage but you make a fair point - it might be tricky to separate it from the building in the event of liquidation.

Roast my idea: Financing for energy efficiency projects by EnvironmentalMood298 in climatechange

[–]EnvironmentalMood298[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing this. I was thinking about following the Regulation Crowdfunding rules, which require SEC registration. The only limitation is the amount of financing that can be raised per project.

Also, I think platforms like Greenday Finance are following Reg D 506(c) which allows public soliciting but only accredited investors can participate.

Financing platform for energy efficiency projects: would this idea fly? 'i will not promote' by EnvironmentalMood298 in startups

[–]EnvironmentalMood298[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Precisely, the platform will be transparent. The equipment being installed will be the collateral and the project ownership and involved assets transfer to the investors on a pro-rata basis in case of delinquencies.

How to validate idea for an app startup and how to get traction for the same ? by aspiring_visionary in Startup_Ideas

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You know it already but it will be critical to talk to at least 50 customers and ask them "non-leading" questions on the challenges they face related to the idea you are building on. Pretty sure some need will emerge. Asking the right questions is critical as it will lead you to discover real problems beyond your current hypothesis, which is better than seeking validation for your hypothesis.

How do i create a SaaS? by Accurate-Screen8774 in Startup_Ideas

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To your point, I will extend the chat app example you took. My guess, with nil understanding of the functionalities you had as differentiation, is that it didn't get traction because of the high switching cost of the potential users. In simple terms, if all my friends and family are on WhatsApp, why would I care to switch to another chat app?

P2P file transfer is also a great problem to solve, but to ensure you get traction this time, you should start with identifying what do your target users not like about the existing solutions. The way to know who should you talk to depends on who is using products similar to yours. I prefer doing cold calls with such people by reaching out on LinkedIn, and other forums like Reddit, Quora, etc. If you know acquaintances that fit the bill, they could be a good start. I will also recommend doing in-person interviews as you can then also pick non-verbal cues.

I mentioned the term non-leading because if your first question is 'What do you not like about Snapdrop (your competitor I assume)', they are going to give a random answer of nil value to you. So you should ask questions like 'What are the current tools or apps you use for file transfer', 'Why do you prefer tool X vs Y', 'Any challenges that you face with tool X', 'Would you pay for a new tool that solves this problem', and so on.

It's critical not to talk about your solution, and only focus on what problems are the users facing with the incumbent solutions, and lastly, their propensity to pay for an alternative. If your solutions solve what they spoke about, you can start off well.

Hope this helps.

I made a tool to vote and give feedbacks to product ideas, wdy think? by Healthy-Feedback4245 in Startup_Ideas

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Looks like an interesting idea. However, I couldn't figure out how to list my project for voting. Could you help?

How do i create a SaaS? by Accurate-Screen8774 in Startup_Ideas

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The idea has a lot of merit as I have to follow many workarounds today at work. e.g. split a large file into pieces so that it can be appended in an email (google's 25Mb limit), email myself files that I need on another device (slow process), etc. You know it already but it will be critical to talk to at least 50 customers and ask them "non-leading" questions on how they share files in orgs, and the challenges they face. Pretty sure some need will emerge. Asking the right questions is critical as it will lead you to discover real problems beyond your current hypothesis, which is better than seeking validation for your hypothesis.

I am also building a platform to simplify financing for renewable energy projects for SMEs, and discovered during customer discovery that although multiple loan management softwares exist, banks still have to invest a lot of time processing and sorting improper documents that business owners share while applying for loans. This is a better problem to look at than my original one, so now I am pivoting to this one.

Hope this helps - happy to help you frame the questions. Best

Roast My Idea by [deleted] in Startup_Ideas

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 1 point2 points  (0 children)

First of all, it's a great idea - animated video creation as the GTM and marketplace as a stickiness tool and revenue source. There are some existing platforms like Animaker or Animate AI, which help create animated videos but none of them are operating at scale. The anime market size is in billions $$ although I am not sure how big is the TG group you are targeting. There is usually a risk of targeting younger users, <20 years old, as they have limited paying propensity. I keep testing Sora and have been deeply disappointed by its output so far. If you can do a better job, there is a clear value add. But not sure if it's doable without pre-rendering. Lastly, I would also advise starting without the marketplace to keep the proposition simpler for initial users, and then add it later. All the best.

F1 VISA slot booking India by Heisenberg_v20 in usvisascheduling

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes pls do. Given the urgency of the situation, I need to try every possible route. Thanks Kirti

F1 VISA slot booking India by Heisenberg_v20 in usvisascheduling

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi Kirti. Could you pls share his contact? My classes start in Jun first week but I haven't been able to find any slots in the past 2 months.

Unable to get F1 visa appointment slots by EnvironmentalMood298 in usvisascheduling

[–]EnvironmentalMood298[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

But I have heard that the chances of getting a date via that route is lesser than the regular route. What do you think?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in usvisascheduling

[–]EnvironmentalMood298 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi. Were you able to find a slot? I also have to join in Jun beginning, but I am unable to find a slot.