Hey Everyone, I currently have an idea for a start up that I have been working on for about a year. I have done a lot of market research, validation, and I have a launch page setup that people have gone to and signed up for my mailing list. I am currently in high school so I am on summer break right now and would really like to get something going on my time off. I do have money saved up to hire freelance web developers if i have to.
What would you recommend I do next? Learn to code myself, hire a freelancer web developer, work on finding a tech co founder, or any other suggestions.
Here are some recommendations for next steps based on your current situation:
Continue market validation and building an audience. During your summer break, focus heavily on talking to potential customers, conducting surveys, building your email list, etc. Validation is extremely important before building anything.
Learn basic coding skills yourself. Spend time going through free online courses to learn HTML, CSS, and basic web development principles. This will help you communicate better with developers and catch mistakes.
Outline full product specs and wireframes. Map out in detail what features and pages your MVP product will need and how it will function. Developers will need clear guidance.
Hire a freelance front-end developer on a contract basis. With your product outline and wireframes, hire someone part-time to build out the initial launch-ready MVP for you over the summer.
Consider a tech co-founder. As a non-technical founder, look for someone who can be your technical partner long-term. They would ideally come on board part-time now.
Apply to accelerators. Use your MVP and traction so far to apply to startup accelerators and incubators. If accepted, the funding could help you hire developers full-time.
Test frequently with users. As features are built, test them out with your audience for feedback to refine your product. Iteration is key.
Focusing on validation, specs, finding a technical co-founder, or hiring a freelancer part-time seems like the best next steps given your current stage and resources. Keep leveraging your summer break productively.
