Tips on Finding Clients? Hey, everyone! My partners and I run a software development agency, and we’re at the stage where we’re trying to grow our client base. Finding consistent clients has been one of our biggest challenges. We’ve tried a mix of strategies so far—word of mouth, freelance platforms, and cold outreach—but results have been hit or miss. I’m curious to hear from others who’ve been in a similar boat: * Where have you had the most success finding clients for a small agency or freelance business? * Are there any unconventional... 1 10 replies
Red Flags When Choosing Business Cofounders - A Tech Founder's perspective After 15 years building startups as a technical founder, here are the critical red flags I've encountered that every technical founder should watch for: 🚩 1. **Disconnected from Their Target Market** - They're trying to solve problems for people they don't know or understand - No existing network or connections in their target industry - Can't demonstrate deep understanding of customer pain points 🚩 2. **Treating You as "Just the Tech Guy"** - Not valuing your strategic input beyond coding - Dismissing your vision and ideas for the business... 1 10 replies
We built a tool to help you find relevant grants. Would you pay for it? Hi everyone, About a year ago, I asked you guys whether it would make sense to develop a tool to help entrepreneurs find relevant grants. Many of you provided incredibly valuable feedback, which we used to refine the concept. With this concept, we went through Techstars and finally launched a beta version of our grant scan tool last week! Along the way, we realized something interesting: when you ask a grant advisor which grants might be a great fit for you, they almost always recommend the ones they know... 5 10 replies
Startup book tips for 2025.. Hi fellow founders! I have read a lot of books on startups this year, and wanted to share 8 of my top reads from this year: \- The SaaS Playbook: How to build a lean million-dollar SaaS, market against large competitors, and use your position as underdog as an unfair advantage. \- Obviously Awesome: Positioning your startup and product so customers 1. get it, 2. buy it and 3. love it. \- The Transparency Sale: Using transparency and "unexpected honesty" to build trust and sell more. \- Getting Acquired:... 5 1 replies
Should I Learn Frontend Dev or Hire Someone for My MVP? Hey everyone, I’m in the process/thought of starting a SaaS company , and I’m stuck on a decision I could really use some perspective on. Here’s the situation: I’ve got a solid background in backend development / Cloud and experience in leadership/sales, but when it comes to frontend dev, I’m at a beginner level. Now I’m debating what to do for my MVP: 1. **Learn Frontend Myself** * It feels like a good long-term skill to have, and it would give me full control over the MVP. But it’ll... 5 8 replies
🎄 Why I Hate Christmas – and What It Taught Me About B2B Sales 🎄 As a businessman, I value efficiency, discipline, and results. These principles have served me well. Take my clerk, Bob Cratchit: he works hard because I incentivize him with lean pay. My debtors pay on time because they know I hold them accountable. And Christmas? It’s an annual distraction that disrupts productivity, increases frivolous spending, and encourages emotional decisions. Bah, humbug! But here’s the thing: every interaction in B2B sales is a negotiation of value. By focusing on ROI rather than sentimentality, I’ve built a thriving business that rewards sound... 5 4 replies
Need an advice on my early startup's next steps Hey everyone, 1 month ago I released my B2B app and acquired my first users. (2 free, 2 paying customers). My user base is not technical people so having face-to-face meetings helps convince them which is what I did and I turned them into customers in 1 or 2 meetings. I am a solo developer for this app and now I am in a place where I need to choose between a couple of options. First I build the app with Firebase & React Native. I also built a... 2 0 replies
How do I build a tech startup if the products/services are too complicated for an initial proof of concept? I'm currently a graduate student and let's say I want to develop a startup that focuses of developing small nuclear reactors for data centers. As a nuclear engineering student, I might have a lot of knowledge about the feasibility of the project, what materials we might need and maybe I can run engineering simulations to demonstrate my idea. But there is no way I can develop a proof of concept, definitely not with the budget and support I get from my university, not to mention the safety hazard working... 4 5 replies
Is b2c dead? What will bring it back? It feels like all I see these days is B2B SaaS. And I get it—clear problem definition, solid business model, and all that. But consumer innovation feels overdue. What do you think will bring it back? Will it be new technologies, cultural shifts, or some untapped need waiting to be solved? 3 10 replies
A law firm called me another company wants to trademark our startup name Just today, a law firm in US, I am in Canada, called me and told me someone wants to trademark our startup name. now, I am incorporated with the trade name since last year, I haven't trade marked the name yet. Also, I got most of the internet domains other than .com, which is still for after market sales. it's a bit expensive to buy at my current startup stage. what is your advice? by the way, the name of my startup is currently on top of Google since... 4 10 replies
About to quit my startup job. Advice? About to quit my startup job that is equity based. These people are clowns. I have only vested about half of potential shares. I have my contracts: services agreement, statement of services, share vesting plan. I have downloaded emails and forwarded emails (gmail server) providing proof of dates and that they were delighted with my performance at work. Is there anything else I should retain in case they try not to honor my shares? Should I ask for a lawyer as a contact point? What's the procedure here? Sorry,... 3 7 replies
How Do Non-Tech Founders Grow Their Followers and Engagement? I'm curious about how `non-technical founders` approach growing their social media followers and boosting post engagement. As a technical founder (like me), automating tasks like analyzing trends around buzzwords like AI, understanding the data, and even generating content is relatively straightforward. However, without technical expertise, handling all of this manually can feel overwhelming and time-consuming. Sure, you could ask your CTO to help, but they’re likely busy building your product. So, how do you approach it? Do you rely on tools, hire help, or have some other system? Would... 16 0 replies
Platform for indiehackers and entrepreneurs Hi everyone, I’m Karel, and I’ve been learning how to code for the past 2-3 months. I started from scratch (except for a bit of HTML/CSS knowledge) and would say I’m at about 10/100 in terms of skill level. While I’ve gone through tutorials and courses, I quickly realized that I learn best by building something real—so I decided to work on my own project. I can’t share the name just yet, but my first project is a platform for indiehackers and entrepreneurs to document their ideas and work.... 5 4 replies
EU founders: I am thinking if we should hire a law firm or not, what do you think? Hi everyone, We are two individuals currently building a product. While we consider ourselves co-founders, we don’t officially have a founders’ agreement in place yet. Additionally, we haven’t registered the business yet. My partner is based in Dublin, and I’m based in Portugal. We've decided to register the business in Dublin for tax and other reasons. We’re also planning to start raising a pre-seed round soon and complete in Q1 2025, using SAFE notes and angel investments. I wanted to ask: for things like a founders' agreement, business registration,... 11 0 replies
Looking for a mentorship in my startup journey Hey, I am looking for a mentor for my startup journey, basically, I did 1 startup where we sell really early without any profit but made good connections and reputation, was one of the early engineers of my second startup which is going really well. Now I built an application on the side where I believe it has a potential to scale really well with good unit metrics. But I think I need some regular guidance along the way. What I have in mind is either I will try... 14 0 replies
Need advice on starting a ChatBot SAAS I am working on a idea of creating a ChatBot service for business's websites, letting them use it to their custom needs. Like they if they have a fully developed web app they can just use our platform to link their API endpoints for chatbot to interact, along with the query points. Or if it is a simple catalogue or profolio kind of website, they can simply give us a document describing about their business, based on which chatbot can answer queries. Is there any demand for this solution?... 1 0 replies
Never holding an annual stockholder meeting: consequences? If you're a startup founder and have raised venture capital funds, and you NEVER hold an annual or other stockholder meeting: do your investors generally just accept that? Or do some of your investors get irked and demand an annual meeting? If your investors are large investors then they would have likely negotiated the right to get financial statements, so that should keep them happy even without an annual stockholder meeting, but for others, do they care that there isn't a stockholder meeting? Thanks. 5 4 replies
Future of Decision Making in Startups In the next 3 to 5 years as growing startups rely more on ML and AI Algorithms - ExplainableAI and Causal AI will no longer be a luxury but a necessity for data-driven organizations seeking to outcompete in crowded markets and deliver consistent, long-term value. As an entrepreneur, stakeholder and key decision maker: What do you think about this statement? PS: Your answers will mean alot to me. 7 0 replies
Unpublished My App, Now Considering a Co-Founder Matching Platform I recently unpublished my app from the App Store because things didn’t work out with my cofounder. Naturally, I started thinking about repurposing the code and app to create something new—a co-founder matching platform. Interestingly, I was recently invited to join a new co-founder matching app that charges around $50/month. I’d like to take a different approach and offer co-founder matching for free. Here’s the idea: An AI-powered system interviews users to understand their values, priorities, and skills, then matches them with like-minded individuals. This would make finding a... 2 6 replies
Getting harder to start a business in the UK? Hello everyone, I’ve come across some recent articles in the Financial Times that highlight the increasing challenges for startups to launch, grow, and thrive under the current Labour government. As a co-founder working on a tech business, I’m curious to hear your thoughts on this issue. Thanks in advance. 17 0 replies
