👋 Hi there - it's Egemen. Thanks for reading Scalable. |
A mentor who crushed it in the 90s or early 2000s might not understand today's market dynamics, distribution channels, or the speed at which startups need to iterate. |
Respect experience, but don't blindly follow it. |
Bad advice kills startups. |
Look for advice from people who know what they are talking about - not just those with big titles. |
Today, I'm sharing 8 startup killing advice I heard many times. |
Here's a snapshot of what's on the menu today: |
|
💡 Spotlight: Paddle: Grow beyond the app stores
🧠 Deep-Dive: 8 Startup Killers
🗺️ Method: Product Market Fit Assessment
⚾️ Catch: The AI Report
☝️ Scaled This Past Week: Froda
|
|
|
💡 Spotlight: Grow beyond the app stores |
Reduce fees, reach more users, and grow on your terms with a dedicated web store backed by a merchant of record (MoR) like Paddle.
As a merchant of record, Paddle manages your payments, tax, and compliance needs so you can focus on what matters: growing your App. |
|
Paddle acts as the reseller of your app, offering a solution similar to the App Store or Google Play Store but optimized for successfully selling your mobile app on the web.
For mobile apps looking to grow beyond app stores, Paddle provides the infrastructure and expertise to successfully sell on the web without building complex payment systems. |
Grow beyond the app store with Paddle. |
|
🧠 Deep-Dive: 8 Startup Killers |
The wrong mentor can cost you years. |
Someone who crushed it in the 90s or early 2000s might not understand today's market dynamics, distribution channels, or the speed at which startups need to iterate. |
If they're giving advice based on an outdated playbook, you could be making moves that used to work - but are now a complete waste of time. |
|
(Side note: If you need "good" advice, tell me what's going well or not so well, reply to this email, I'm here to help.) |
Here are top 8 pieces of bad advice that I heard repeatedly over the years - avoid them. |
-
Build it, and they will come
Let's say you build a great product after many countless sleepless nights, Redbulls, and all. Well, it's not gonna sell itself. You need to have a GTM strategy.
-
Hire fast and fire faster
This will lead to a toxic work culture, plain and simple. Take your time and focus on quality.
-
Steve Jobs didn't ask what customers wanted
Understand the actual painpoints of customers, do not direct input on products they can't envision.
-
Raise as much cash as possible
Once you've accomplished your fundraising goals for a considerable runway, you should stop. Or you're simply giving it away for a discount.
-
Focus on fundraising, not revenue
A business that doesn't generate cash will fail. Investors are investing in you, expecting to make their money back.
-
Outcompete the market with low prices
Most times, you'll hurt yourself more than your competition. Your customer base will be disloyal, and margins will suffer. Compete on value instead.
-
Do what the successful companies are doing
Just don't. Be yourself.
-
Don't launch until it's perfect
Perfection is a myth. Delaying your launch will come at a heavy price in the form of opportunity cost (missed customers, feedback, insights, etc). Launch fast, iterate faster.
|
|
Scalable partners with best-in-class publications. Take a look at what our readers also enjoy reading. |
|
🗺️ Method: Simple Product Market Fit Assessment |
This is a little checklist I've come up with. |
It'll help you self assess your product maturity as a founder. |
 |
Simple Product Market Fit Assessment |
✅ A high-level breakdown of Before vs. After PMF, helping founders self-assess whether they are still searching for PMF or have already achieved it. |
scalablenews.gumroad.com/l/simple-pmf-assessment |
|
|
|
🙌 I hope this comes in handy for you when you need it! |
|
⚾️ Catch
|
|
There's a reason 400,000 professionals read this daily. |
Join The AI Report, trusted by 400,000+ professionals at Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI. Get daily insights, tools, and strategies to master practical AI skills that drive results. |
Sign up now for free and work smarter, not harder. |
|
☝️ Scaled This Past Week: Froda
|
Swedish Froda grabs €150M from EIF to close SME financing gap in Europe - it's the scale of the week! |
The funds will boost Froda's lending capacity, enabling it to reach more European small businesses - helping them compete. |
 |
Froda | Financing for small businesses |
Affordable financing when you need it, at Froda. Borrow up to 5 million SEK with a lowest price guarantee. |
www.froda.se/en |
|
|
|
Here's what Froda does: |
fast and flexible financing solutions for small and medium-sized businesses, streamlines loan applications, making approvals quick and hassle-free, partners with banks and fintechs to integrate lending services directly, and uses transaction data and AI to assess creditworthiness without requiring traditional collateral. |
|
|
Do you like Scalable? |
|
