The Secret to Start-Up Success: Save Customers Money

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/the-secret-to-start-up-success-save-customers-money/

by dreamz • 17 years ago

26 13 17 years ago

bits.blogs.nytimes.com

brm2• 17 years ago

There are only a couple secrets to startup success...

Save someone Time

Save someone Headache

Save someone Money

Make someone Money

Make someone cool(er) by association

Make someone smart(er) by association

patio11• 17 years ago

I'm not a fan of the phrasing, but "get the user laid" is often cited.

coglethorpe• 17 years ago

I've heard "get 'em paid or get 'em laid"

kqr2• 17 years ago

Popular Jamie Zawinski article where he writes in terms of meeting users needs:

How will this software get him laid?

http://www.jwz.org/doc/groupware.html

callmeed• 17 years ago

Nice ... but isn't the "headache" usually just a symptom of the time or money issue?

trekker7• 17 years ago

yes, unless it's an actual headache, i.e. Tylenol

lyime• 17 years ago

I think this article makes a really good point and has got me thinking. We all want to build cool things and innovation is key. Although, in these times I think coming up with solutions to make people and/or businesses more efficient might be even more innovative.

gcheong• 17 years ago

Here's a simpler secret:

Create more value for the customer than it costs them and than it costs you to produce.

brm2• 17 years ago

For being so simple, that's a complicated sentence.

Hexstream• 17 years ago

What if I put it this way?

  (defun evaluate-profitability (you your-service customer)
    (if (> (value service customer)
	   (cost your-service customer)
	   (cost your-service you)))
    "PROFIT!")

vlisivka• 17 years ago

The Ultimate Question: "How likely is it that you would recommend this company to a friend or colleague?"

It helps, really.

Replace "company" by whatever you need. I used it to check myself, to check my firm, to check my solutions, etc.

josefresco• 17 years ago

Also key to success; hiring a good PR firm to get you mentioned in a NYTimes fluff article.

SingAlong• 17 years ago

Wow nice one! This is what the new idea I'm working on is all about.

I still have a half developed primitive version of an already successful idea in the west and I hate to copy ideas. But the one I'm working on is a local version that suits the prices and standard of living locally. I've even edited the idea to make it simpler to understand as guys in my surrounding are not too much into tech (they rarely understand the internet. for them all they know is that there's a gate to it called google).

I was always wondering if this was a valid base to work on an idea.

The Secret to Start-Up Success: Save Customers Money

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