Superdocu celebrates two years in business. It wouldn’t be there without all the resources we read, the podcasts we listened to, and the people we met. It’s time for us to give back in a series of posts, where we’ll reflect on our journey: marketing, design, entrepreneurship, and strategy are topics I’ll talk about.
- Lesson 1: How to define your startup’s brand identity?
- Lesson 2: Positioning is crucial for any startup
- Lesson 3: When you should automate stuff (or not)
- Lesson 4: Freelancing while growing your (boostrapped) startup is a good idea
- Lesson 5: Good things come to those who wait (and hustle in the meantime)
- Lesson 6: Vision doesn't (always) come first
- Lesson 7: Better talk to the organ grinder, than to his monkey
- Lesson 8: Find your "intellectual sparring partners"
- Lesson 9: Badly designed product-led growth can be harmful
- Lesson 10: Focus on areas where you have the biggest impact
- Lesson 11: Praise is fuel (but you still need an engine!)
- Lesson 12: Listen to your Sales Sixth Sense
- Lesson 13: Niche down first
- Lesson 14: The rate of no-shows is crazy high (but you can reduce it)
- Lesson 15: Market to contexts
- Lesson 16: Set unattainable goals
- Lesson 17: Just do it...later
- Lesson 18: Long email sequences are sometimes worth it
- Lesson 19: Take the VC call, even if you don't want the money
- Lesson 20: Being bootstrapped gives you freedom and control, but it’s not all glitz and glamour
- Lesson 21: Founder-Product Fit: choose the animal you want to chase
- Lesson 22: Screwups happen, but you can make up for your mistakes
- Lesson 23: On the importance of staying top-of-mind
- Lesson 24: Framing entrepreneurship as a game
- Lesson 25: Function + Emotion = Delight
- Lesson 26: Using the investment theory to build products
- Lesson 27: Find your own definition of work-life balance
- Lesson 28: If you don’t ask the right questions, you won’t get the right answers
- Lesson 29: When you can't compete with your product, compete with your service
- Lesson 30: Incorporate as late as possible
- Lesson 31: Being sexy isn't always a good idea
- Lesson 32: Don't underestimate your barriers to entry
- Lesson 33: Firing customers
- ...more to come
These insights aren't absolute truths but our own opinion on different aspects of creating a startup. Don't take everything I'll say for granted, and feel free to question it, add nuance or share your observations as well!