Idea to Startup

The third in our mini-series where we're starting a startup live on the pod. Today, we take what we learned from customer interviews and synthesize it into tests in real life. Step by step on customer, channel, landing page, and call-to-action.

Plus, why atheists don't sell their soul and York Peppermint Patties.  

The goods: 

• Idea Resume
• Tacklebox Application (March 31)
• The Art of Doing Science & Engineering
• Carrd (Landing Page Builder)
• The Sasquatch Problem (Are You Passionate Enough) 
• York Peppermint Patty 

Episode Two of our miniseries "We're Starting a Startup" details our first seven days after we decided to pursue an idea live. We talk customer interview strategy and stack, get a bunch of lukewarm feedback, and play clips from some of the interviews we ran. We also talk about Baked By Melissa cupcakes an uncomfortable amount. 

Big thank you to the customers we interviewed, including:

• Happy Medium
• SoWell Health

And a few other things we mention: 

• The Mom Test
• Tacklebox (Cohort starts March 31)
• Tacklebox self serve (Get on waitlist)

It was bound to happen. We're starting a startup idea on... Idea to Startup. Someone reached out basically daring us to, and we couldn't say no.

Today, we'll run three startup ideas through our Idea Resume framework that evaluates an idea at the earliest stages. Then, we'll pick the one we'll start over the next set of episodes.

• Idea Resume Framework
• Follow along on Instagram + Twitter - we'll post the ads, landing pages, etc.
• Start a Wine Company in 17 Minutes
• Cohort 26 + Self Serve 
• Business Guy Meme

Getting your first 1,000 customers is hard, particularly when you're thinking about it wrong.

We talk through how Push for Pizza and Slice took different approaches to growth in the pizza space. 

* Tacklebox + Self-Serve Product

• Slice 
• First 1000 Substack
• Tacklebox + Self-Serve Product

We're told we need to be head over heels passionate about our startup for it to succeed. Is that... true?
What if we haven't found something we're that passionate about - does that mean we shouldn't start it?How do you find something you're passionate enough about to build a company around?
Is Sasquatch Real?  

The answers to these and more on this week's Idea to Startup Pod. 

• Tacklebox Self Serve (and regular tacklebox accelerator)
• Tacklebox Newsletter (get articles and the full content archive)

We'll look back on 2021 as the best year to start a startup in the past 50. The world we're returning to will be a lot different from the one we left, and people will start meaningful companies to bridge that gap. Hopefully, one of those people is you.

Here are three stories that'll help you position yourself and your startup to succeed in 2021. 

Show Notes

Tacklebox Self Serve
Tacklebox Cohort
Pixar 22 Rules of Storytelling 
Madlib “I’m building X to capitalize on the confluence of these three trends - A, B, and C. I’m uniquely positioned to build X because of the perspective I gained from D, E, and F - (where D, E, and F are networks, experience, and skillsets that create a venn diagram very few other people sit in the middle of). The biggest assumption I’m making is G, and I’ve run K tests to start proving to myself that the risk is worth taking. I’m confident this is a problem that needs solving because of Z (where Z is an observed behavior of a specific customer you’ll start with and also the beachhead of a larger market).”

 

That title is even spammier than last week. But it isn’t. Today, we’ll talk about how thinking through how to build a billion dollar business is actually a really useful exercise, too.

Today, we’re going to fix Goodreads and drink a bunch of egg nog. Let’s see how that goes.

• Tacklebox Self Serve (and regular tacklebox accelerator)  
• Tacklebox Newsletter (get articles and the full content archive)

That title sure does sound spammy. But it isn’t. Today, we’ll talk about how thinking through how you’d make $1,000 today is the best way to actually start a startup.

This episode is for people who are stuck - people who want to start something but can’t figure out the best way to go about doing it. People who are overwhelmed by what starting a startup might entail.

We make it easy for you.

• Tacklebox Self Serve (and regular tacklebox accelerator)  
• Tacklebox Newsletter (get articles and the full content archive)
   

Today we take a bunch of questions from ITS listeners. We talk through startup ideas for 2021, founder superpowers, and hutzpah.

• Tacklebox Self Serve (and regular tacklebox accelerator)  
• Psychology of Money
• Upwork + Designhill
• The Books: Range, The Passion Economy, Essentialism, Boomtown, Three Body Problem, The Lost Man, Atomic Habits

This episode focuses on the 4 best emails written on Black Friday, and the framework each used to break through the clutter.

Show Notes:

• Tacklebox Self Serve
• Lolli
• Essentialism (read this)
• Contagious (read this, too)