Thread by @iamjonjackson

🚀 Bootstrapped startup lessons from "Zero to Sold" by @arvidkahl

I'll tweet my learnings 🤓 and actions 💪🏻 as I read Arvid's book.

A thread 🧵👇🏻

I'm applying most of these learnings to my upcoming #EdTech startup.

First off, focussing on the market.

I have a fair understanding of the market as I know several small organisations quite well who would be the long-term target for the paid version of the SaaS.

In fact, I work *in* the industry in question.

I'm aiming to use this as my unfair advantage (as Arvid recently said to me!) 😎

But, ok. I may see a problem clearly because I work in the sector, but is it a 💥 CRITICAL 💥 problem?

Well, the pain point I want to help improve is something that learners in the UK *have* to do as part of their specific type of programme (yes I'm keeping it vague at the moment!)

💼 It's a legislative requirement.

✅ It has to be done.

So that's good for me, right?

Also, anecdotally and from personal experience I know it is often a struggle.

Something that tends to be left until the end (when that's definitely the worst way to do it).

It's painful and stressful and feels like a box ticking exercise.

What if I could gamify the process so learners actually *want* to do it.

Better yet, they'll be doing it without even realising they're doing it.

😎

But woah there Jon.

Who would be paying for this? How big is the market? And how can I validate the need beyond anecdotes?

👉🏻 ACTION #1

Figure out the market size 📊

The training organisations I would be targeting have to be on a government managed register.

It's public. 👍🏻

You can download a CSV of all the company names. 👌🏻

There are 2000+ of these organisations.

Nice 😎

Some of those organisations will be too large for me: a small number of national leaders who will likely have their own tech.

The remainder, as long as they're active, should be prime targets. 🎯

👉🏻 ACTION #2 (Todo)

Reach out to more of these organisations and have a structured conversation with them about the identified problem.

In the process, new critical problems might be identified.

I can also start to ask how valuable a solution would be (i.e. price points)

More learnings and actions to follow.

Here's Arvid's book on Amazon* in case you want to check it out.

Arvid told me Amazon was the best place to get a physical copy 👍🏻

* affiliate link

amazon.co.uk/Zero-Sold-Star…

"Great products happen at the intersection of your skills and the opportunities of a niche market you care about. Make the most of your transferable knowledge."

- @arvidkahl

This is just razor sharp ⚡

On problem intensity 👇🏻

"Nobody pays you to find their remote when it falls down the back of the couch. They will just find it themselves."

Unless you're Apple and you just released AirTags 😝

📝 Note to self

Questions to ask (B2BC) prospects: see pages 86-89 of the print book.

amazon.co.uk/Zero-Sold-Star…

💡 A mini revelation:

The exploratory conversations that startup founders should have with prospective customers are a bit like the participatory research involved in Action Research.

This is my academic brain joining up dots with the practical startup world! 🤓

⚡ Learning from "STEP THREE: YOUR SOLUTION"

Validate the solution(s) before building a product.

This happens by talking to prospects about your proposed solution and assessing the +/- impact and risks.

My take: iterate aggressively before you even touch any code.

"Understanding the emotional impact of changing from an existing solution is an integral part of the solution validation process."

✅ Engage your prospects
✅ Ask about their fears of change
✅ Ask about painful experiences with other solutions
✅ Avoid causing new problems!

Hope you're enjoying my tweets on "Zero to Sold" by @arvidkahl.

More to follow as I continue to glean actionable insights for my own EdTech venture 💪🏻

Have you already read it? Or reading it at the moment? Share your insights! 💡

And do 🔁 and ❤️ any tweets you enjoyed! 🙏🏻