Loading...
Answers
MenuIs it ok to use pre-existing services to build a startup on?
Do I need to re-invent the wheel and have all the cost or is it ok to buy a pre-existing platform - like a white label classifieds app - and then customise it to fit my classified app needs?
Answers
Everyone does this.
For example, take the entire LAMP ecosystem.
You could write your own Linux + Apache + MariaDB + PHP + OpenSSL + WordPress...
Or you can just use these, as they currently exist.
Same applies to ideas.
Dan Kennedy is found of saying, "Pioneers come back riddled with arrows..."
In other words, doing anything new is likely to fail.
Better to take something... anything... already working... put your own spin on it... then go after part of an already existing market.
As for your specific project, you've provided to little detail... to provide any in depth advice...
Since your project is Tech based, likely good to bring on board someone to serve first as a Fractional CTO (Tech)... then after your tech is working... change over to a CMO (Marketing)...
Yes, it is absolutely fine to use pre-existing services as long as it matches the list of your requirements and you make sure that the service doesn't violate any of the terms and conditions.
The reason this is acceptable is because they are already built and the structure of the service is already established. The only thing you need to do is adapt your use case to fit your business needs.
For classified, there are many wordpress themes and PHP scripts available market that can be used readily. For more information we can discuss this over a call - so I can give you maximum value for your money. Take a look at the great reviews I’ve received: https://clarity.fm/ripul.chhabra
Hi
Unless you're doing something really unique (and even then...) it is actually advised that you start with something that already exists in order to first test the market and see that your idea/business is indeed feasible. Once you've validated your idea, you can spend money (if need be) on creating something tailor made.
By testing a simple platform first, you will learn a lot about the market, the users, what things you should do different etc....
I am a mentor on Startups.com, a lecturer, and a startup lawyer. I've successfully helped over 400 entrepreneurs, startups and businesses and I would be happy to help you. After scheduling a call, please send me some background information and the 2 main questions you want answered so that I can prepare in advance (to give you maximum value for your money). My reviews: https://clarity.fm/assafben-david
Please please please, use what's already available.
I'll give you an example, we use https://spark.laravel.com for billing, https://signaturegenerator.co to generate signatures, https://solidframework.net to convert documents, and probably a dozen other software solutions to create ours.
There's no where that says you need to use 100% proprietary code. Usually, this is done when you can't find anything opensource to tweak or if what's available is too expensive for your budget.
If there's an option, 9/10 startups stand on the shoulders of giants by using what's available. This is especially true if the market hasn't been validated in any meaningful way.
Related Questions
-
VCs: What are some pitch deck pet peeves?
Avoid buzzwords: - every founder thinks their idea is disruptive/revolutionary - every founder says their financial projections are conservative Instead: - explain your validation & customer traction - explain the assumptions underlying your projections Avoid: - focusing extensively on the product/technology rather than on the business - misunderstanding the purpose of financial projections; they exist in a pitch deck to: a) validate the founders understanding of running a business b) provide a sense of magnitude of the opportunity versus the amount of capital requested c) confirm the go-to-market strategy (nothing undermines a pitch faster than financial projections disconnected from the declared go-to-market approach) d) generally discredit you as someone who understands how to build a company; for instance we'll capture 10% of our market, 1% of China, etc. Top down financial projections get big laughs from investors after you leave the room. bonus) don't show 90% profit margins. Ever. Even if you'll actually have them. Ever. Instead: - avoid false precision by rounding all projections to nearest thousands ($000) - include # units / # subscribers / # customers above revenue line; this goes hand-in-hand with building a bottom up revenue model and implicitly reveals assumptions. Investors will determine if you are realistic, conservative, or out of your mind based largely on the customer acquisition numbers and your explanation of how they will be achieved. - highlight your assumptions & milestones on first customers, cash flow break even, and other customer acquisition and expense metrics that are relevant Avoid: - thinking about investor money as your money - approaching the pitch from your mindset (I need money); investors have to be skeptics, so understand their perspective. - bad investors; it's tempting to think that any money is good money. You can't get an investor to leave once they are in without Herculean efforts and costs (and if you're asking for money, you can't afford it). If you're not on the same page with an investor on how to run/grow the business, you'll regret every waking hour. Instead: - it's their money; tell them how you are going to utilize their money to make them more money - you're a founder, a true believer. Your mantra should be "de-risk, de-risk, de-risk". Perception of risk is the #1 reason an investor says no. Many are legitimate, but often enough it's simply a perception that could have been addressed. - beyond the pitch, make the conversation 2-way. Ask questions of the investor (you might learn awesome things or uncover problems) and talk to at least two other founders they invested in more than 6 months ago.Jason PlimlJP
-
I finally found my billion-dollar startup idea. Now what?
The idea is a very small fraction of what it takes to earn the first million. Certainly billion. What actually matters is your ability to *execute*. Entrepreneurship means "having the talent of translating opportunities into money". Or, as Alexis Ohanian of Reddit said, "entrepreneur is just French for 'has ideas, does them'." As much as it may seem that transitioning off your 9-to-5 is the biggest hurdle, it's not. If you can't "get out of the gate" then you're also not ready to deal with the real challenges of business, like "competition that has 1,000x your funding" or "suppliers that jerk you around" or "customers who steal your intellectual property". It's easy to have a "billion dollar idea". I'd like to mine gold off of asteroids; I'm sure that would be worth billions. I'd also like to invest in Arctic real estate that will become coastal vacation property after fifty more years of warming. And, of course, to make a new social network that everyone loves. But saying these things is very very different from accomplishing them. Prove your concept by first taking a small step, such as making the first dollar. (Maybe try Noah Kagan's course at http://www.appsumo.com/how-make-your-first-dollar-open/). If you can't figure out a way to "make it go" without a giant investment, then you're kidding yourself about your ability to execute the business. If you *can* figure out a way to get a toehold, then by all means do it now! Happy to advise further, feel free to contact me for a call.Aaron SylvanAS
-
What is the best platform to create a member based CMS website? (e.g. Squarespace)
Most of my friends use www.wordpress.org and http://member.wishlistproducts.com/ to create their membership sites. Hope that helps.Dan MartellDM
-
How much equity should I ask as a C-level executive in a new startup ?
As you may suspect, there really isn't a hard and fast answer. You can review averages to see that a CEO typically becomes a major shareholder in a startup, but your role and renumeration will be based on the perceived value you bring to the organization. You value someone's contribution through equity when you think that they will be able to add long-term benefits, you would prefer that they don't move company part way through the process, and to keep them from being enticed by a better salary (a reason for equity tied to a vesting arrangement). Another reason is when the company doesn't have salary money available but the potential is very strong. In this situation you should be especially diligent in your analysis because you will realize that even the best laid plans sometimes fall completely short. So to get the best mix, you have to be very real about the company's long-term growth potential, your role in achieving it, and the current liquidity necessary to run the operations. It should also be realized that equity needs to be distributed. You cannot distribute 110% and having your cap table recalculated such that your 5% turns into 1% in order to make room for the newly hired head of technology is rather demotivating for the team. Equity should be used to entice a valuable person to join, stay, and contribute. It should not be used in leu of salary that allows an employee to pay their bills. So, like a lot of questions, the answer is really, it depends. Analyzing the true picture of your long-term potential will allow you to more easily determine the correct mix.Darwin HansonDH
-
What is a good/average conversion rate % for an e-commerce (marketplace model) for customers who add to cart through to purchase order.
There is quite a bit of information available online about eCommerce conversions rates. According to a ton of sources, average visitor-to-sale conversion rates vary from 1-3%. This does not mean the Furniture conversions will be the same. The bigger problem is that visitor-to-sale conversions are not a good data point to use to measure or tune your eCommerce business. All business have some unique friction factors that will affect your final conversion rate. It's very important to understand each of these factors and how to overcome them. The best way to measure and optimize is to take a conversion funnel approach. Once you have defined your funnel you can optimize each conversion rate to better the total effect. For example: Top of the funnel: - All web site visitors, 100,000 / month First conversion: View a product page, 50% of all visitors Second Conversion: Add to Cart, 10% of people who view products Final Conversion: Complete Checkout, 80% of people who put items in a cart In this example we see that only 10% of people who actually view products put them in to a cart, but 80% of those people purchase. If you can figure out why visitors are not adding items to their cart and fix the issue to increase the conversion rate, revenue should increase significantly because of the high checkout rate. You can use free tools like Google Analytics to give you a wealth of information about your site visitor and their behavior or there are some great paid tools as well.Dan MartellDM
the startups.com platform
Copyright © 2025 Startups.com. All rights reserved.
