Hi everyone. I’m new in this community though I have been a guest for a while now. I must say, I’ve learnt a lot in this time. I look forward to having my project sense-checked by you all once it’s done.
That brings me to my question. I will be launching a web startup soon and a few people have asked me why I am doing this when I have no technical know-how, no knowledge of Web design or programming whatsoever. That a novice like me will have difficulties managing such a project.
Is this true? If so, what are the things I can do to better prepare myself for the task ahead?
What you need to make a business successful is to have a good team and great managerial skills.
Most people with technical know hows do not have the managerial, marketing or leadership skills required to turn their products/websites into successful businesses.
That is why tech hubs exist- to help techies in those areas.
Thanks for the link Lordbanks. I find one of his points very true as I have experienced it already.
A bit confused though about the article saying ideas need to be executed as soon as possible while at the same time asking non-tech founders to learn enough coding to start building their start ups themselves.
Won’t this result in ‘timewasting’ especially when the founder has little free time to learn and would therefore move at a slow pace?
He also said that most startup value propositions be validated or invalidated with non-technical MVPs. WHEN you have validated a value proposition without code, that’s when it makes sense to learn how. Of course not every founder must or should learn how to code, that’s just a recommendation that is sure to make your life easier if you have the bandwidth to do it. If you don’t, then better work hard on creating that reality distortion field that convinces the requisite talent to join your bandwagon.
The point the article made, which I agree with is that everytime you start something, you almost always are wrong about the initial direction. There is a need to listen, learn and adapt.
As such, there is no actual timewasting because you’d do a lot more harm to yourself trying to rush. If you are not involved in building the product, and you outsorced it to a freelancer or agency, then it is not really possible to change directions. And trust me, it is something that will be necessary.
For example, my current “startup” Proudly Nigerian started as a marketplace for artisans, then it turned to a ecommerce website builder, now it is turning into some sort of merge.
If I had contracted someone to build the marketplace which was my initial idea, I would not be able to change directions
So don’t rush in too quickly, however, LEARN QUICKLY and do as much as you can yourself… at least for now.
First take a lot of time to get your MVP right. The barebones. The exact thing you want to build. Nothing fancy. Write/sketch it on a peice of paper. Outline it on a Word document
When you have it, you start talking to devs.
Try to learn enough. By enough I mean enough to know who is good and who is not. It is difficut to judge a developer unless you have an idea of what software development takes. Plus it will prevent you from making unrealistic demands.
Make the person understand that the end product is not fixed. That depending on how things go, directions may change (and are likely to). Many will be reluctant to accept this because it means that the work may get harder just when you think you’re done.
Be prepared to pay. I would say the fee should NOT be fixed. Why? no one will work for a fixed fee if the end is not clearly defined. You should have the payments properly structured so that you don’t overpay, at the same time, you do not give the developer a thankless task.
Try to get some advice BEFORE selecting the developer/agency. You dont want to be stuck with a bad developer… Trust me.
Try not to pack too many features in your first realease. As little as possible. Only the core functionality is necessary. That way you can begin to get users and know what next to do.
Wish you the best. Let us know when your mvp is ready.
