There is everything in a name
Discovery is one of the big problems that every startup faces. It is even worse if you are a mobile first play, because the discovery process in the appstore – both on iOS and Android is quite broken,...
View ArticleInvestment isn’t entitlement.
Came across a tweet today of someone complaining that no investor is interested in them to invest. The trend lately is to tag the PM on all these whining. Listen. Investment is not an entitlement....
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Startups in the B2C space have three stages* that they need to pass. Stage one – user traction; the part where users sign up and complete a core action. Stage two – value loop; where the system...
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It is better NOT to focus on a brand right now. I meet entrepreneurs who tell me that their focus is on building a brand. That’s innnately their choice, but there are two ways to build a brand – one...
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The key, and perhaps the first step, if you want to deliver an experience and “not be transactional” is to set the tone so that there is trust. Trust that you have a plan, have their priorities in...
View Article“How can you help me with funding”
I am starting to get a lot of emails where the summary is pretty much the title of this blog post, that I thought writing this post would help. Short answer: I can’t. Let me explain. Startups are now...
View ArticleThe #ChennaiTricolor Initiative
If you ask any economist, what the secret weapon to accelerating the growth of a country is, they will tell you it is Entrepreneurs. A decade or so ago, it happened. The wildfire enthusiasm and...
View ArticleDear Startup: Don’t try to Change User Behaviour.
When I am talking to a startup team and they tell me that they are going to “change behaviour”, it sends red signals all the way. I didn’t know how to explain it till i thought about it a bit. Truth...
View ArticleOpensourcing your core, as a strategy
Open-sourcing your core is such a powerful move. Years ago when Reddit was getting way too much competition all around – Digg was reinventing, Stack overflow was trying to build something similar etc –...
View ArticleBe warned of the Culture of Excess
The big moves, are made to polarize. You can’t win everyone, at the sametime, it is important to let go of those who aren’t pretty much bhakts of what it is that you are building to get to the finish...
View ArticleEvery Friggin Grocery Shopping App is Broken.
There is so much money going into all these grocery startups, but i have a feeling that fundamentally the whole experience is flawed. Browsing through categories in an app is so tedious that I’d give...
View ArticleThoughts on Finding a Mentor
To get a mentor, and to even make use of them well, you need to be able to ask the right questions. You need to mature first on your perspective as an entrepreneur (and fundamentally a human being) in...
View ArticleGetting your first 300 Customers (B2C)
A lot depends on the kind of business you are running, the target segment etc. I’d do as much as refining and narrowing down as early as possible – because every segment that isnt a direct fit, but is...
View ArticleWhat’s wrong with Airtel Zero and Internet.org
I’ve been getting a lot of folks asking me why Airtel Zero is a bad idea and why it goes against Net Neutrality. Most folks actually believe it is an innovation by the operators and those of us in the...
View ArticleHow Ecosystems Evolve
Ecosystems evolve in stages. All ecosystems need three fundamental ingredients – People, Entities and Ideas. A lot of folks would say governments need to get involved, but the only thing that...
View ArticleDo More (with less)
Learn to do more with less. It is very easy to raise your first small round of funding these days, but a funded startup also has very high expectations to meet to get the next round of funding. Set bad...
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The Aircel Chennai Open Contest
It’s no secret that I quite admire the City of Chennai. It might not be a swanky city, and has at times its hangover with the past (that can look a tad bit unwelcoming), but Chennai is home. One of...
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#NetNeutrality, the fight is still on
The Media reports that Airtel, the (not-so-friendly) giant who planned to roll out additional charges on VoIP (Skype/Viber) calls, made via already paid Data Plans has rolled back. Its good news, but...
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Why Airtel Threatens the Future of Tech in India
Part 1 of this issue is blogged here. Back in the 70s when we were laying the telecom network in India, someone cheapened out. They laid the copper wires, but laid very poor quality copper – because we...
View Article#boycottairtel for Breaking Net Neutrality
A few days ago, Airtel one of the bigger Telecom operators in the country, decided to make the announcement that they will be charging additionally for VoIP traffic being generated on their network....
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