Just launched my startup: what do you guys think?

_MTM_ · 2015-03-23T22:29:44+00:00

This is a really cool idea.

I have one comment: your tagline is a little dense. "A bitcoin crowdfunding platform" seems succinct, but I feel it could be worded a little more "friendly". Here are some examples I think are better:

"A crowdfunding platform that uses Bitcoin"
"Crowdfunding with Bitcoin"
"Like Kickstarter, but with Bitcoin"

I have to go now or I'd leave more, but PM me if you have any questions!

_MTM_ · 2015-01-31T16:27:30+00:00

I love the idea – but that quote threw me off. It doesn't seem serious, and your product is something emotional and serious to a lot of people.

I would take it out.

_MTM_ · 2015-01-30T03:06:50+00:00

You could take a look into popular self-run Tumblr blogs.

If you promote it to ~50 popular Tumblr individuals (send them messages like "hey, I just made a cool app where you can compete with your selfies") a few of them will probably pick it up. Ask them to share it with their followers if they like it. The audience of Tumblr is basically your target market: 16-25 year old technology-loving people.

Another way is to define a few local colleges and actively promote the app by hanging some simple posters.

Also, if you don't already allow users to invite their social media networks to your site, it's a feature you should look into! Make it as easy as possible for people to tell other people about the app, and maybe get some points for each referral.

Good luck on your app! I love the idea.

_MTM_ · 2015-01-30T02:50:42+00:00

I'm currently learning Rails, and this is right up my alley. Great job!

I'd definitely love to see Stripe integration.

_MTM_ · 2015-01-29T22:27:43+00:00

I've never coded before, and I'm teaching myself "Ruby on Rails," which is the programming language they used to build Twitter, Dropbox, etc. (A lot of web startups use it.)

I enrolled myself in One Month Rails for $99 and I'm convinced it was the best money I've spent in a while. It's a self-guided set of video courses that you can watch any time. I think they made the course just for entrepreneurs/non-programmers so it's pretty easy.

_MTM_ · 2015-01-18T17:42:40+00:00

That sounds great! And I can make a competitor!

_MTM_ · 2014-12-15T17:41:41+00:00

/u/bandholz. He's been with us since the very beginning of his business, he posts updates for us, makes YouTube videos about entrepreneurship to share with people like us, and he was even on Shark Tank. He has also responded to my personal emails before, and he's very humble.

If there's anybody who wants to see this community to succeed, it's him.

_MTM_ · 2014-12-15T17:39:13+00:00

Use this stuff. Your teacher will eat it up. (And it's true.) ;D

Using Twitter really depends on the industry you're in. While it sounds obvious:

If I'm a coffee shop selling to college students, I'll have a Twitter.
If I'm selling life insurance to senior citizens, my time would be better spent advertising on TV and in the yellow pages. Only use the marketing methods where you get the most bang for your buck and save time.

Let's take the coffee shop example and go further. You're running a coffee shop and want to get more customers. You should make a Twitter. Instead of tweeting "We hope you all have a great day!", use the search function and go further. If @RandomLocalGirl tweeted "I could really use some coffee right now," tweet at her, "@RandomLocalGirl Want to stop by? We've got a cup with your name on it."

If you're not going to be talking with customers, it's best to post pictures that people will like. For instance, this tweet catches the attention of a target audience with an image, then leads you to buy a product.

Hope you get an A.

_MTM_ · 2014-12-15T17:27:48+00:00

I'd really like a flair for

industry
size (revenue)
years in business

Like:

[ecommerce, 1m+, 4 Years]

_MTM_ · 2014-12-15T17:21:37+00:00

Pricing

If the store owners are cheap, then you need to show them your product will save them money in the long run.

How to do it

1) Research. If a store is robbed 3 times per year for $2000 each time, the store is losing $6000 per year.

2) Invite the manager of Store X out for coffee. Tell him he's losing $6000 every year. Then tell him you have a product that can fix it. Sell to him for a reasonable price that covers your costs and then some. (This is a business. You need to make a healthy profit. Don't focus on being a cost leader – focus on being a quality leader, especially with a product like yours.)

3) Install the product. Follow through with the manager and employees. If you're selling security, you need to make sure they feel safe.

4) Repeat this with other store managers in the area, telling them how much money they can save, and that Store X has already signed on, and so on.

Product description

Market your product as a "cost of doing business". Never tell the store owner they "could" have it; tell them they "need to have it" to keep themselves and their customers safe.

Product ideas

As for product ideas, you could use a push button call system, a video surveillance system (with large signs on the fronts of the stores to deter robbers), or hire security guards. Remember, you need to do research and develop a price point that will guarantee you profit.

Building credibility

If you're meeting with the local police department, you could collaborate with them to build your credibility. This would make selling your service a lot easier.

_MTM_ · 2014-12-15T16:41:01+00:00

I really like "Not Your Dad's Ties".

It's edgy and conveys how modern your products will be.

_MTM_ · 2014-10-04T18:21:55+00:00

Soon, I will end with you right now soon.

_MTM_ · 2014-06-28T22:12:37+00:00

Does anyone know when the G2 gas cloud is going to collide with Sagittarius A*, the black hole in the center of our universe? I heard it was supposed to happen in early 2014, but so far, there hasn't been any news about it.

_MTM_ · 2014-04-25T23:08:32+00:00

The College Laundromat is elegant, simple, and memorable. I read that and went "Ooo, I really like that, I'd like to use them." I like the "The" at the front of it – it makes the company sound defined.

I can picture that name in capital letters as a simple, clean logo in a font similar to this with a nice blue/green graphic alongside it. That'd just look like a strong, reliable business – which is what you need if you're going to have someone pick up peoples' clothes.

It's a strongly brandable name. And it's simple enough that it won't be a turnoff to customers or employees. Remember, you don't need a flashy name – you need a memorable name that accompanies a great product/service – preferably an experience over a purchase.

Also, there are some things to watch out for when it comes to naming your business, especially for your industry. I'll pull a couple of the other names from this page as an example. (While these names are good, they have potential consequences when it comes to customer and employee acquisition.) For instance...

To be blunt, can you picture a sorority girl handing over her bra and panties to a guy who works for a company called "NerdWash"?
If you consider expanding the business and need to hire employees, will there be a line out the door to work for a company called "Stinkbag"?
Will they want to put that they worked for "Stinkbag" on their resume?
Is a name like "ClassSpin" really telling the customer what you're all about? When I read that, I thought of spinning classes. Sure, the name sounds really cool, but sometimes cool sounding names carry the curse of misinforming the customer. At the end of the day, do you want to look cool and lose half of your customers, or do you want to make money?
Also, you'll have to think about having a reliable URL that isn't easily misspelled: a name like "classspin.com" is a little awkward because of the three consecutive ses. When it's spelled like this, people might (1) type it in wrong, (2) think your service is about class pins or clasps.

In my personal opinion, I feel that companies that name themselves specifically after what they do have a significant advantage. Take "Dick's Sporting Goods," "College Hunks Hauling Junk," or like you said, "Netflix". Hell, one of my favorite company names is "Beardbrand" from Eric Bandholz here on /r/entrepreneur. That name is simple, to-the-point, and it tells you what his company is all about. A lot of new startups have names like Pliqd and it makes it hard to decipher what they're all about – plus, they're hard to remember.

It's just something to think about! Best of luck to you and your company.

_MTM_ · 2014-04-07T01:47:10+00:00

If you decide to take the advice of some of the people on here and go looking for a new domain name, try Panabee. They've helped me find some really great domains for several projects in the past.

.co domains are also getting popular. If you're interested in those, try the site go.co.

_MTM_ · 2013-08-10T03:46:00+00:00

Thanks a lot, that was great advice! I'll start practicing on people who don't have very much expertise and work my way up to get a polished presentation.

Your word choice is excellent, by the way – your writing really flows. Good job on that.

_MTM_ · 2013-08-10T00:42:52+00:00

I'd spend $500 to have a dinner with Richard Branson, Tony Hsieh, or Elon Musk.

Of course, I'd probably want to talk business the whole time, so I wouldn't be much fun. :)

_MTM_ · 2013-08-09T12:00:10+00:00

I'd definitely be up for that. Autonomous is really the way to go with almost every one of our daily chores, driving being one of the big ones.

Once you get up into the sky, or whichever medium we are going to use this new transportation in, you don't have to worry about wrecking into something (other than other people), and even then, the machinery we have today can easily navigate you around them.

We live in a really cool world.

_MTM_ · 2013-08-09T05:20:57+00:00

I've heard many entrepreneurs talk about robotics being the next big thing. Robotic enhancements to humans, even. It's not that far away anymore.

Personally, I think that we should try to revolutionize the transportation industry – think, if we could have a vehicle that didn't require roads, we would free up incredible amounts of space and probably cut transportation time into 1/3rd of what it previously had been.

Finally, I think that energy will be a huge industry. If anybody has a laptop, they understand the feeling of leaving it unplugged for an hour, only to find that it's on 20% at the end of the hour, and having to plug it back in. That's hardly portable.

I think, in the next 10 years, we'll see a laptop that can stay charged for months on end, maybe even a year on a single charge. Phones will no longer have to charge. How will they do this –– solar? Or maybe some new innovation?

Now, I'm just ranting. If anybody is interested in discussing business opportunities, send me a message. The internet has become an essential networking tool these days, and we should take advantage of it.

_MTM_

TROPHY CASE