Startup dynamic website

mdgelder

Beta member
Messages
1
Location
belgium
Hi guys,

i'm having an idea for a webstartup, however i'm not an it'er :( therefore I was wondering if you guys had an idea how to go about this. I don't have the funds to let 10 guys work on my idea neither and I'm not realy at home is this world neither (I'm a finance guy :)) therefore is my question to you guys, where do you start? do you go offshore (india etc) to save some money, and if so, does someone has experience with this? the idea would be to get a basic version and some users and then sell the idea to raise some money.

anyway, thanks for the help!
 
personally...

I think that there are a few ways to start a business from the position that you are in...

1, the very hard way, learn the skills that you lack. that way you get to keep your idea, and hopefully make your product before someone else does.

2, get a partner, you can be the ideas (and books since you work in finance, get a business partner who knows technology so that you can make it happen. you don't pay a business partner, but you split revenues based on the value that each of you bring to the company.

3, work harder, fair enough you can't employ 10 guys to work for you, but if you want to start a business then you need to capitalise it somehow, this can mean working harder, taking a second job, downsizing your house, re mortgaging your house, asking your parents to re mortgage their house to help fund you etc to raise capital to pay someone to develop your idea.

4, get a loan, either on your house, or just from a bank, or from a venture capitalist, try getting a loan. a loan from an entrepreneur might carry additional benefits in that they may be able to help you with their experience, but your idea will have to be very good and very well developed to go asking for funding.

5, go cheap, i.e outsource to India for coding, or outsource to china.
but remember you get what you pay for.
there are stories all over the net of people sending to china for a sample production run and getting a really good product, then when contracts are finalised and funds have changed hands, quality drops, second rate materials are used, finish not so good, large batches have to be thrown away, with electronics counterfeit parts are used that burn out easier/faster don't meet tolerances or specifications and you end up paying more than you'd have paid to get it done domestically.

same with India and software development, I've seen stories of people setting tests, saying I have this program and there is a bug.
there have been firms in India that just compile the code you send, then send you back the binary and expect to be paid, without actually fixing any code, because they just don't understand the job or the requirements.

Additionally, there are huge culture differences, language differences, and time differences when you outsource to overseas.

if you go cheap remember often times you get what you pay for.


if you're determined to outsource, then think of the size of your idea, do you really need to buy in a team or can you work with just one guy? how will you satisfy yourself that his coding is to the standards that you require, (hint -it works is not a standard, it might be impossible to maintain, and slow even though it works, might have bugs, or exploits, or be ripped off from someone else -winding you up in trouble if you've got GPL code in a closed source commercial product.)



my basic advice is, proceed carefully. plan your idea out on paper, if you really think it can go somewhere consider getting a prototype made by a freelancer (try Hire Freelancers & Find Freelance Jobs Online - Freelancer.com) just a basic prototype, not the full finished thing.

take that to people to try to get market feedback and possibly funding.
remember that when you talk to people about your products that you want to talk about non-disclosure first. the same for any coder that you hire, get the NDAs in order first.
 
nice tips root, i follow quite a few of them. :)

it all depends on what your idea is, it's good that your in fiance.. it'll help you optimize and save when out sourcing, if you do go on with your idea that is.

feel free to pm me to discuss your idea further. :)
 
Back
Top Bottom