IDEAinstitute Session Two: “Finding the Pain”

Matt Candler helps local entrepreneurs "find the pain."

On Wednesday, noted school reform movement leader and entrepreneur Matt Candler helped a group of local entrepreneurs identify  the “pain points” of their users.  Below are some of his key thoughts.

Matt began with a quote from a noted investor:

” Please don’t come to me and sell me a vitamin; I invest in pain killers.”

With that quote, Matt urged participants to solve real problems for real people–instead of just inventing “cool things” with the hope that customers will appear out of thin air.

In order to “find the pain,” Matt left entrepreneurs with a few things to remember:

• Think like an anthropologist: Truly get to know your users and their needs.  Spend time with them and observe them deeply.  Often, uncommon insights emerge from spending quality time with users and noticing their needs first hand.
• Use a beginner’s mindset: Sometimes being an “expert” prevents us from seeing true problems.  As you approach your users and their needs, don’t assume any expertise–try to look at things with a fresh set of eyes.
• Take listening seriously: We are wired to talk more than we listen.  But, if you spend most of your time “selling” and “pitching,” you might never get a real sense of what your users truly need.  Pause, take a deep breath, and LISTEN.  You just might gain an insight that will help you get more sales than any sales pitch you could ever make!

 

IDEAinstitute Session 1: Failure Fest

Today, The Idea Village officially launched IDEAinstitute!

The first session was “Failure Fest: Lessons Learned the Hard Way by Local Entrepreneurs.”

Failure—it’s one of the only things common to most great ventures.  Because successful entrepreneurs are pushing the boundaries of old ways of doing things, they encounter failure on a regular basis.  But, it’s their response to these setbacks that ultimately lays the groundwork for their future success.  During this panel, a group of local entrepreneurs will discuss some of their biggest failures, as well as the lessons they learned, with the hope of encouraging others in the New Orleans community to get out there, fail, learn, and thrive.

We were lucky to be joined by four stellar local entrepreneurs:

• Chris Laibe (CEO and Founder of Schedulist)
• Jen Schnidman Medbery (CEO and Founder of Kickboard for Teachers)
• Sal LaMartina (CEO and Co-Founder of Big Easy Blends)
• Lavonzell Nicholson (CEO and Founder of PlayNOLA)

The entrepreneurs shared stories of challenges and setbacks that they faced along the way.  Below are a handful of the lessons they learned:

• Beware the echo chamber:  When you start a company, it’s easy to surround yourself with supporters who won’t alert you to potential flaws in your product or service.  Make sure that you don’t just surround yourself with “yes men.”  Talk to real customers, seek out critical feedback–don’t just hunt for flattery.
• Be confident, not arrogant:  Every entrepreneur needs a healthy foundation of confidence to launch a venture, but don’t overdo it.  The line between arrogance and confidence is thin, and if you cross it, your customers, investors, and employees will be gone before you know it.
• If you don’t have enough time, expect; if you can’t take the chance, inspect: There are certain situations where you’re constrained by time.  In these moments, set the goal, focus, throw perfectionism out the door and just get the job done.  But, at other times, flawless execution is key.  In these moments, pay painstakingly close attention to every detail.  If you’re courting your first customer, raising your first round, or hiring your first salesperson, these are activities with little margin for error, so pay painstakingly close attention to detail.
• Partners–pick them wisely: Working with friends can add vitality and joy to your business, but be clear about your expectations upfront–just like you would with any other employee.  Be totally sure that their skillset, commitment, and vision for the business matches your needs.
• Be prepared for the emotional rollercoaster: Launching a venture is one of the most emotionally turbulent experiences on planet Earth.  The heights of joy, the depths of despair, and everything in between.  If you’re planning on starting a new business, prepare yourself–and those around you–for the emotional challenges you’ll face.
• Hire wisely: Generally speaking, follow the mantra: “Hire slowly, fire quickly.”  But, don’t hire too slowly.  There is no perfect candidate.  Give potential hires a small task related to their future work.  Also, bring in advisers and mentors who have expertise in relevant areas.  If you’re hiring a software developer, bring in an adviser who knows the space to ask hard, technical questions.  While the ultimate decisions about hiring are yours, you don’t have to go through this process alone.
• Don’t take advantage of your customers:  Once you’ve acquired your first customers and pumped them for testimonials to splatter all over your marketing materials, don’t forget about them as you go on the hunt for new business.  These are the partners that will help you sustain your brand, so make sure that you continue to pay attention to and engage customers as time goes it.
• Try to secure investments based on projections, not performance:  Don’t sell your new product short by securing funding based on past performance.  If you have a truly groundbreaking product with tons of possible upside, you’re at risk of giving away too much equity to get quick cash.
• Launch with a full product line, not just a single product: If you’re hoping to enter the mass market consumer retail space, make sure you enter the market with a product line–not just a product.  Your established competitors will overshadow you on the shelves if you don’t.
• Dedicate resources to new markets: Remember what it was like starting off in your first market?  Street teams? Grassroots publicity? Meeting with retailers?  Well, just because you have experienced success, doesn’t mean you get to skip these steps in new geographies.  Make sure you invest strongly in building your presence in new markets.

Thanks again to all who attended!  We’re looking forward to seeing you all at next week’s session: “Finding the Pain–building new ventures around real opportunities,” with Matt Candler, CEO of 4.0 Schools, next Wednesday, October 19, 2011 at 9:00 at The Idea Village.