BUT LOOKING GOOD WHILE DOING IT
Startups are hard. There is no doubt about that. Trying to develop, launch and adapt in the early stages can be overwhelming at times and can often look expensive. The good news is, with companies that began just like you, now enable almost anyone to develop, launch, adapt and look good while doing it on a shoestring budget. Unless you are in certain hardware industries or building out new technology, if you wanted to, you could launch tomorrow. You are now wondering if I fell on my head lol? Nope…and I am going to give you the down-low on how you can launch, adapt and reach product market fit for almost nothing.
Guess what that also means? For many of you that have not launched… you could be launched by KY Pitch Finals. So let’s dive in…
1.) Squarespace
I do not know of a single business that should not have a website. Even if you have a hardware product or service that is going to take major funding to execute, you can begin to build your community through a blog, forum, or mailing list so when you do launch, you already have potential customers at your fingers tips.
In today’s world you do not need to know how to code, hire a web developer, or try and figure out WordPress.
Squarespace is where it is at. They have monthly rates starting at 18 dollars a month and it is not hard to have a beautiful website with a strong user experience. It does take some time to figure out and learn, but anyone with internet can do it. This website is a Squarespace website and I developed it single handedly.
2.)Unsplash
For images, Squarespace does connect to Unsplash but I prefer just going to Unsplash outside of their platform. I find it easier to find the perfect image as well as download it on my laptop for future use whether it by a social media post for brochure. You can find an image to further your voice on almost any topic. They are beautiful and professional. The best news is…. Unsplash is completely free! Who does not like free?
3.) Canva
Now that you have a website that is rock star status with images that look like you paid a high dollar photographer, next up is needing to build your social media and marketing presence. Canva is a subscription service that is around 20 dollars a month. Canva allows anyone to become a graphic designer. All of our social media images…. they are done on Canva! Create your branding, message, and voice through Canva to take your company to the next level. They have templates, but as you become more comfortable with their platform I recommend either changing the templates around or creating from scratch. The same thing goes for Squarespace. They more you use both of the platforms the easier and more creative you will become.
4.) Mailchimp, Smore and Squarespace
Once you have your graphics on point, next up is to develop your mailing list and producing engaging and consistent content. If you are using Squarespace for your website they have a beautiful and easy way to collect your subscribers, build focused lists as well as gorgeous emails that are consistent with your branding. They are a little more expensive than the other options but not by much. It just depends on your needs and audience size. Of course you upgrade and grow as your company grows.
Mailchimp is another great option. They are customizable and robust. The downside of Mailchimp is there is more of a learning curve than their is with Squarespace, they are not as beautiful as Squarespace, and they can look clunky if you are new to the platform.
Finally there is, Smore. Overall I really like Smore, they are the cheapest out of the three and by far the easiest to figure out. The problem I have with Smore is there is little room for creative growth and it is definitely a plug in and go. For the individual that does not have time to really develop a creative and well branded email along with budget restrictions, this is the platform for you.
Any of the three are going to get the job done regardless of what best fits your needs!
5.) Mighty Network and Disciple
With these two I am the least knowledgable, but have tinkered with them both to a certain degree. If you are need to build an online community that is capable of interactions, this could be a scrappy model for you while still looking strong! Because they are more tech driven than just a websit,e they are a little bit more expensive but still completely affordable. Heck with most of these if you just cut out your Starbucks or eating out you will be able to fit them in without stretching yourself thin! I do not know enough about them to tell you which one is better but I will say from what I can tell it seems Might Network is furhter along in their development and easier on the wallet. You can use that platform from the free plan ,to 23 dollars per month, to 81 dollars per month, and all the way to a custom plan. So there is something for everyone!
I will caution though… for most companies that are going to be seeking investor funding they are going to want to see a strong and not too far in the future plan on developing your own technology. They are going to want to see that you can recruit strong talent as well as maintain them. This is not a long term solution but a great solution to get your product to market fast!
There are many other platforms and tools out there, but with trying to keep this blog post from being insanely long I am going to focus on those five for today. The others are more for keeping your life as a founder as streamlined as possible… as possible being the key phrase lol. I hope this helps as well as inspires you to just make that leap and get launched asap! For most companies the faster you can get to market the better!
