HOW TO LAUNCH A TECH STARTUP IN RECORD TIME

COURSE WORKBOOK
with Mitch Harper
WELCOME
I've had the opportunity to advise some of the best
and brightest startups across Australia and the US,
including Drift, Airtasker, and Biteable to name a few. Who this course is for?
Since I was 17, I've been building software companies.
Over the years I've experienced huge successes, as well 1. Aspiring tech founders who are looking for the
Welcome to the 60-Day Startup course! as soul-crushing failures. right idea to build into a company
Throughout this course, I'm going to help you avoid 2. Existing tech entrepreneurs who are looking to
all the mistakes I've made, and shortcut your way scale quicker
to success using these battle-tested strategies and
validation methods. 3. Business owners who are looking to branch out
into tech/software
You’ll learn my entire A-to-Z process that’s been proven
to work time and time again…

• Starting Up the Right Way

• Finding a Painkiller Idea (Market Research) How to get the most from the
•
•
Product Validation
Product Development and Design
course?
Mitch Harper • Product Management
• Getting Your First 100 Paying Customers (Pre- In order to make sure you get the most out of this
My name is Mitch Harper, and I'm excited to work Launch / Closed Beta) training, come up with a painkiller product idea, and get
with you over the next 60 days. your first paying customers before your product even
• Recommended Launch Framework
When I was getting started back in the 1990s, there exists, we strongly recommend that you:
was nothing out there on how to start a tech startup So grab a pen and paper (or crack open a fresh Google
or software business. Doc), join the private Facebook Group for this course, • Block off time each day/week in your calendar
and get ready to build your startup in record time. dedicated to learning.
It took me 6 years of my entrepreneurial career to • Take action. Do the workbook exercises, fill out
go from $0 to my first million dollars in revenue. And I can’t wait to see what you build.
I can assure you that if there was a program like 60- the templates, do the research.
Day Startup around back then, I could’ve compressed • Join the community. Foundr’s team and fellow
that time into less than 1 year — better yet, I would’ve
been able to get my first paying customers in only 60 What to expect members are here to help! Use the private
Facebook group to get feedback and get unstuck.
days flat.
Each lesson comes with:
Now you’re in luck, because that’s exactly what this Cheers to your success,
course is going to unlock for you and your startup.
• A bite-sized video - The Foundr Team
The step-by-step playbook that I'm going to show you • Action items & exercises
throughout this course is responsible for over $200
million in revenue across the 8x companies that I've • A corresponding workbook
founded, including BigCommerce which has now • Tools, resources & templates
done over $100 million in revenue alone.

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COURSE OVERVIEW

MODULE 1: MODULE 3:
Starting Up the Right Way Product Validation

❏❏ Welcome ❏❏ Validation Strategy (10,000 ft. View)

❏❏ Your Why ❏❏ Email Validation
❏❏ The Startup Mindset ❏❏ Social Media Validation
❏❏ Growth Stages ❏❏ SurveyMonkey Audience Validation
❏❏ Bootstrapping vs. Raising Capital ❏❏ Phone Call Interview Script
❏❏ Painkillers vs. Vitamins ❏❏ Choosing Your Validation Approach
❏❏ Quick & Dirty Payment Stack
❏❏ 5 Why's Framework

MODULE 2: MODULE 4:
Finding a Painkiller Idea Product Development and Design
(Market Research)
❏❏ Your Idea ❏❏ Getting Your Product Built
❏❏ Market Size & Niching Down ❏❏ Going to Market (MVP vs. MSP)
❏❏ Competitive Research ❏❏ Who You Need On Your Team
❏❏ Funnel Hacking ❏❏ How To Attract A-Player Talent (Job Ad
❏❏ Killing Your Hypothesis Templates)
❏❏ Scoring Multiple Ideas ❏❏ Hiring Your Developer
❏❏ The Love Test ❏❏ Hiring Your Designer
❏❏ Vetting Skills With A Paid Test

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MODULE 5: MODULE 7
Product Management Recommended Launch Framework
❏❏ What Makes a Successful Launch (Time or
❏❏ Your Role As The Product Manager Money)
❏❏ Project Management Process To Ship ❏❏ Competitive Launch Research
❏❏ "The T-Shirt Sizing Method" ❏❏ Free Launch Strategy ($0)
❏❏ Roadblocks To Look Out For ❏❏ Low-Budget Launch Strategy ($5,000-
$10,000)
❏❏ Big Budget Launch Strategy ($10,000+)
❏❏ Post-Mortem: Common Mistakes from Failed
MODULE 6: Launches

Getting Your First 100 Paying Custo- ❏❏

❏❏
The Growth Cycle: Where To From Here?
Closing Thoughts
mers (Pre-launch/Closed Beta)

❏❏ Getting Your First Paying Customers With a

Closed Beta
❏❏ Your One-Page Beta Website
❏❏ Getting Testimonials From Beta Users
❏❏ Keeping Your Beta Users Updated Weekly
❏❏ The 6-Part Launch Checklist

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MODULE 1: • Remember, your why should make you emotional.
• It’s OK to make your Why about money for now. ACTION ITEMS
Starting Up the Right Way •
A business exists to generate revenue.
More revenue → greater impact. Bigger success
will help you fuel your Why. In your workbook, write down your Why. Here
• But as you think about your future, try to make are some thought-starters to help you get ideas
your Why about more than just money. down on paper…
LESSON: • This will keep you in the game for the long haul.
Step 10 years into the future and look around.

Your Why Example “Why”: Mitch’s latest company, Insane

Growth, is on a mission to directly impact the growth • What does your life look like?
of 1,000,000 businesses by the year 2027. • Who do you spend your time with?
• What gets you out of bed every day?
• What do you do in a typical day?
• What has been your life’s mission?
• What kind of impact have you made?

“Understanding WHY you want a successful startup will help you

achieve that success.”

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Find Your North Star: Developing
Powerful Mission and Vision Statements
for Your Business (Foundr Blog)
• On A Mission (Andreessen Horowitz Blog)
• Share Your Value by Becoming a Mission-
Driven Organization (CloudApp Blog)
• 30 Mission-Driven Startups You Should
Know (Tradecraft on Medium)

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Notes:

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MODULE 1: Here’s a piece of advice that likely nobody is telling
you: Building a real successful startup that changes the ACTION ITEMS:
Starting Up the Right Way world takes 7-10 years.

Sure, there are some tech unicorns out there who

achieve rapid growth and a billion dollar valuation in a ❏❏ Think about the 3-5 startups you admire
few years. But this is the exception, not the rule. ❏❏ Research them on Crunchbase
LESSON: ❏❏ Look at what year they were founded
If you truly want to build a business that matters, and

The Startup Mindset has a greater impact on the world, you need to get into
the right mindset for the long haul.

2 things that will keep you in the game:

• Have a compelling, emotional Why (like we talked

about in the previous lesson)
• Realize that building a startup is a journey with a
series of ups and downs

“Your #1 job as an entrepreneur is actually NOT to grow your

business. It is to develop the MINDSET that will give you enough
patience and persistence to stay in the game.”

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Startup #1:

Year Founded:

Startup #2:

Year Founded:

Startup #3:

Year Founded:

Startup #4:

Year Founded:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Crunchbase.com (free database of startup
info)
• The Critical Lessons I Wish I Had Known
Startup #5: About Before Starting a Software Company
(Foundr Blog)
Year Founded: • Investing in Startups: Three Traits of Mission-
Driven Founders (Mission.org on Medium)

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Notes:

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MODULE 1: A lot of founders make the common mistake of setting
their targets too high right out of the gate, and trying to

Starting Up the Right Way build a kajillion-dollar startup. This will practically ensure
failure.

I’d like to walk you through the 4 key growth stages of

building a startup, so that you can avoid these mistakes
LESSON: and stay focused on your company’s goals.

Growth Stages of a Startup There are very specific things you need to do at each
phase, and the only phase that you should be caring about
right now with this course is Phase 1, which involves
going from “nothing to something,” — or more specifically,
ground zero to $1 million in revenue.

Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4

Revenue $0 - $1M $1M - $5M $5M - $20M $20M+

"You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step."
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Getting Ready to Scaling Expansion, M&A /

Stage Product-Market Fit
Scale Exit

Additional
+ International
Distribution / Distribution /
Focus Product & Team
Marketing Multiple Marketing
+ Biz Dev
+ Margin Expansion
Channels

ACTION ITEMS
❏❏ Fill out the Startup Growth Stages Worksheet
❏❏ Place each startup into its correct phase – then flip
it over to see how well you did, so you have a better
understanding of the market.

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Notes:

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MODULE 1: One burning question that comes up a lot in the
tech startup space is, Should I raise capital, or go the

Starting Up the Right Way bootstrapped route?

There is no right or wrong answer. It’s entirely up to

you and your goals for the business. But here are some
Pros and Cons to keep in mind from each approach, to
LESSON: help you decide which is right for you.

Bootstrapping vs. Bootstrapping Raising Capital

Raising Capital PROS:

PROS:

• Parallel plays – you can test multiple marketing

• 100% equity and ownership of the company
channels at once, or hire multiple people simultaneously
• 100% control of the company and the direction you go
• Faster hiring – a bigger budget will allow you to hire
with the business
whole teams at a time
• No board
• More aggressive marketing – you can test multiple
• No investors
paid channels instead of 1 at a time
• Nobody telling you what to do or influencing your
• Introductions to talent & advisors – your investors and
strategy, apart from your mentors and advisors, if you have
board can connect you with great people who have been
them
there before, to help you grow and solve problems
CONS: CONS:

• Slower growth due to less capital • Dilution – you own less of the company
• Careful spending – every dollar matters • Less control – multiple “cooks in the kitchen” who
• Can’t test too many marketing channels at once – Have to influence the direction of the company
get 1 channel profitable, then move onto the next one • Board, board meetings, slide decks – every month or
• Smaller network – due to no investors or board, who every quarter you have to put together a presentation
typically connect you to update your board
• Slower hiring – each hire has to be “revenue attributable” • Expected exit – your investors will expect you to sell
the business within 10 years, at an absolute maximum*

*Pro Tip: If you’re planning to raise capital, ask your investors, “Where is your fund at in its lifecycle?” Depending on
when they raised their last round of funding, you will be expected to sell the business within that lifecycle.

ACTION ITEM:
❏❏ Do the Bootstrapping vs. Raising Capital Self-
Assessment Checklist, and see which route is right
for your business. customer avatar.

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Bootstrapping vs. Raising Capital:
Self Assessment Checklist

Here are some guidelines that have helped me over the last 15 years to hold 7 companies to over $200M in total revenue. First
is a simple question: “Do you have a genuine shot at building a $100M revenue company that one day you could sell or take
public?”
If yes, AND you have a 7–10 year time horizon, AND you’re OK raising money from investors, then being growth focused and
raising capital can be a smart move.
On the other hand, if you answer yes to any of these following questions below, then a profitable business that you bootstrap
yourself could be the best decision for you.

Bootstrapping - Questions to Ask Yourself:

❏❏ Do you want to own 100% of your business in 5 years from now?

❏❏ Are you OK with slower growth that’s more controlled and funded from your customers (AKA profit AKA you need a great
product) instead of investors?
❏❏ Are you optimising for lifestyle (more time with your family, etc) at this point in your life?
❏❏ Do you dislike the 1 in 1,000 odds of building a company that can one day get acquired or go public?
❏❏ Do you want smaller, incremental “pay days” – 6/7 figure dividends every year – instead of a tiny chance at a potential 7/8
figure pay day in 10 years?
❏❏ Do you dislike the idea of having a board, preparing board slides and having to pitch other people to invest in your
company?
❏❏ Are you patient and can you handle “slow at first” growth for 2–3 years?
❏❏ Do you want the option of keeping your team small and org chart relatively flat?
❏❏ Are you great at holding yourself accountable and surrounding yourself with experienced founders to help you avoid
mistakes and apply leverage to your business?

On the flipside, if you answer yes to any of the questions on this next list, then maybe side with building a fast growing company
(which let’s be honest – means raising money, building a board, being diluted, going for a moonshot outcome, etc).

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Raising Capital - Questions to Ask Yourself:

❏❏ Do you like the idea of having investors there to hold you accountable and to whom you justify the way you want to run
your business?
❏❏ Would you prefer a 1 in 1,000 chance at a 7/8 figure exit in 10 years over a 6 figure dividend potentially forever?
❏❏ Do you like the idea of building the next big thing and swinging for the fences to make it happen?
❏❏ Do you want to build a larger team (potentially hundreds or thousands of employees) over time?
❏❏ Do you believe your product can become a top 3 player in your space?
❏❏ Are you playing in a large market where at least one competitor has shown strong signs of actual growth (revenue or
customers – NOT just raising money)?
❏❏ Are you OK owning 10–30% of your company instead of 100%, if it’s worth 10–100x what it is today?
❏❏ Are you wired with a strong and unrelenting desire to “level up” and become the best CEO you can be?
❏❏ Over time can you attract hundreds of thousands of SMB customers, thousands of enterprise customers or hundreds of
millions of users?
❏❏ Do you have limited financial responsibilities and commitments (mortgage, wife/husband, kids) or are you comfortable
financially already (maybe from a previous exit or your investments)?

Which route feels right for you?

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Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Bootstrapping vs. Raising Capital Self-
Assessment (Checklist)
• Startup Financing: When to Bootstrap vs.
Raise Equity (Lighter Capital)
• The 10 Most Successful Bootstrapped
Startups (TechStartups.com)
• The Power of Choice: Bootstrapping vs.
Venture Capital (Toptal Blog)
• How To Generate $1M+ To Fund Your
Startup’s First 2 Years Of Growth (Mitch
Harper)
• Bootstrapping Business: Why More Startups
Are Rejecting VC Gold (Crunchbase Blog)

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MODULE 1: In this lesson, let’s explore an extremely important Exceptions to the Rule
point: Coming up with a painkiller product idea, and

Starting Up the Right Way NOT a vitamin.

Sometimes a vitamin can BECOME a painkiller, depending
on the use case. Facebook, for example, was originally
designed as a vitamin for Harvard students to connect and
Painkiller Product meet people on campus. And while consumer implications
LESSON: may point to Facebook causing more pain points than
A painkiller solves a “tier 1 problem” for your audience, actually solving them, Facebook’s business benefits are

Painkillers vs. Vitamins or one of the top 3 problems in your customer's life or
business. Something that’s keeping them up at night,
absolutely a painkiller. Today, over 3 million businesses use
Facebook every day to advertise to targeted audiences
and they will pay good money for the right solution. and find new customers that they wouldn’t otherwise be
able to reach.
Painkiller Examples:

• Slack – Solves employee communication and

collaboration problems, and the overwhelm of
email.
• Adobe Creative Suite – Countless creative
workers and freelancers couldn’t do their jobs
without this software (designers, video editors,
etc.) and therefore wouldn’t have an income.
• BigCommerce – Allows brick-and-mortar stores
to sell online and compete against Amazon.

Vitamin Product
"Nice to have," but not "need to have." Typically, people
don’t pay money for vitamin products, because it’s not
solving their most critical problems. Vitamin products
may also seem like they could easily be features of
another product.

Vitamin Examples:

“To-do list” app

Mobile games (e.g. Zynga)

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ACTION ITEMS
❏❏ Think about your future potential customers
❏❏ Write down their top 3 pain points

Potential Customer Pain Point

Potential Customer Pain Point

Potential Customer Pain Point

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Potential Customer Pain Point

Potential Customer Pain Point

Potential Customer Pain Point

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BONUS ACTION

❏❏ Pull up your credit card statement

❏❏ Look at the tech tools you pay for on a monthly/annual basis
❏❏ Determine which ones are painkillers vs. vitamins

Tech Tool / App / Software Subscription Price You Pay Painkiller or Vitamin?
(e.g. Dropbox, Spotify, Netflix, Slack, Vimeo Pro, Adobe, TurboTax, (e.g. $10/mo or $99/year)
QuickBooks, Squarespace, Clickfunnels, etc.)

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Notes:

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MODULE 2: Throughout this module, we’re going to come up with
your painkiller idea that solves a true problem for your
Finding a Painkiller Idea customers, so that you can build a software solution for
that problem and turn it into a scalable company.

(Market Research) Here’s an exercise I like to do in order to get started:

LESSON: Step 1: Review the 3-5 problems or pain points you listed
in the previous module.

Your Idea Step 2: Brainstorm all the ways you can solve those 3-5
problems with a product.
Step 3: Set a timer for 5-10 minutes per problem for
dedicated brainstorming.
Step 4: Take a break. Come back and brainstorm more
solutions for the next problem.
Step 5: Circle or highlight the top 3 solutions that stand
out to you.

Pain Point #1: Pain Point #2: Pain Point #3: Pain Point #4: Pain Point #5:

Solution Ideas: Solution Ideas: Solution Ideas: Solution Ideas: Solution Ideas:

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If you’re still feeling stuck on coming up with pain points, Tips for Coming Up With Product Solution Ideas
try these 10 simple exercises:

• Carry a notepad around for a week and observe what • Forget about the “how.” Don’t feel intimidated by the
people complain about technical constraints of how to actually build this
• Write down any time you (or a loved one) gets solution. You don’t need to worry about code at all right
frustrated with something, and see if you can spot any now. Instead, ask yourself, “If I had a magic wand, how
recurring trends would I solve this problem?”
• Join relevant Facebook Groups or LinkedIn Groups, • Walk it off. If you’re getting writer’s block when coming
and listen for common questions / complaints / up with solution ideas, go for a walk or run, and come
problems back to it later.
• Interview 2-3 people on the street who could be your • Leverage your peak creative time. Try different times
potential customer -- ask them about their biggest of day to brainstorm. Some people are stronger in the
challenges, pain points, frustrations, etc. morning or afternoon, while others are creative night
• Look for stuck points at work -- where is the company owls.
losing money? • Perhaps most importantly, DON’T fall in love with your
• Look at other successful startups, identify the pain solution, because it will surely change over time. Instead,
points they’re solving, and see if this solution could fall in love with the problem that you’re solving!
be applied to another industry / niche / customer (e.g.
“Salesforce for Real Estate Developers” or “Netflix for
Learning”)
• Look at software review sites like Capterra, G2
Crowd, or TrustPilot — filter through the 1-star and
2-star reviews to find common complaints
• Search a topic on Quora and look for common
questions that keep popping up
• Keep a notebook next to your bed for a week, and
write down the stressor or pain point that is literally
keeping you up at night
• Think of 2-3 instances at work when you were
incredibly stressed (e.g. tight deadline, impossible
TOOLS & RESOURCES
task, cumbersome process) – is this pain point a
common theme? • My Ironclad, 3-Step System for Coming Up
With Winning Startup Business Ideas (Foundr
Blog)

• The Entrepreneur’s 5-Step Guide to Finding

and Validating Online Business Ideas (Foundr
Blog)

• 3 Ways to Discover a Business Idea That

Works (Entrepreneur)

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Notes:

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MODULE 2: In this lesson we talk about two very important topics: Market Sizing, and Niching Down, to ensure that your product
idea is going to hit the mark and be successful.

Finding a Painkiller Idea TAM (Total Addressable Market)

(Market Research) How big is the largest possible market for this product?

(e.g. the global fitness and gym industry encompasses 175 million members worldwide.)
LESSON:
SAM (Serviceable Addressable Market)

Market Size & Niching Down What proportion of that market fits your positioning that you can actually reach?

(e.g. Peleton estimates there are 14 million households with “connected fitness” enthusiasts under age 35 who would be
willing to buy their content-streaming exercise bikes.)

“If you think you can build a product that solves everyone’s needs,
then you’ll probably end up solving no one’s needs.”

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3-Pronged Approach to Find Your TAM
and SAM: ACTION ITEMS
Step 1: Research your potential competitors' press ❏❏ Do the research to find your TAM and SAM
mentions – they typically include their market size in these
❏❏ Fill out the TAM and SAM chart with your findings
articles.

Step 2: Look up negative reviews of your potential

competitors on Review Sites:

• G2 Crowd
• Capterra
• GetApp
• TrustPilot

Step 3: Then, instead of serving EVERYONE in your Total

Addressable Market (TAM), you can niche down into
serving just those specific people who are posting negative
reviews, and hone this into your Serviceable Addressable
Market (SAM).

Case Study: Follow Up Boss

This 3-step approach is exactly how Follow Up Boss did it,
which is now approaching 8 figures in revenue. They looked
up the 1-star and 2-star reviews of the leading CRM software,
Salesforce, and found a common trend: realtors were really
frustrated that it didn’t connect with things like Zillow. So
instead of building a new CRM for “everyone in the world,” they
niched down to their SAM, and built a CRM software specifically
for real estate agents.

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Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• TAM SAM SOM: What Do They Mean &
How Do You Calculate Them? (HubSpot
Blog)
• How To Identify Your Market And Size Up
Competitors (Forbes)
• TAM, SAM, SOM and LAM – What’s your
Launch Addressable Market? (TechStars)
• PYMNTS.com (a business news site whose
articles often include market data)

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MODULE 2: In this lesson we’re going to do some competitive
research, in order to: ACTION ITEMS
Finding a Painkiller Idea
(Market Research) 1. Validate that there's a market for your product idea
2. Prove that the market has competitors in it ❏❏ Find 3-5 potential competitors on Capterra
3. Discover that at least 1 of the competitors has raised ❏❏ Check their Crunchbase profiles to confirm that at
LESSON: funding from investors least 1 of them has raised funding
❏❏ Use an SEO tool like Ahrefs to check that they have
Competitive Research significant site traffic (look for 100,000+ monthly
organic visits per competitor)

Competitor URL Raised Monthly Notes

Funding? (Y/N) Organic Traffic

"If there are no competitors in a space, then there's no market."

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Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Capterra (free search tool for
software)
• Crunchbase (free database of
startups)
• Ahrefs (paid SEO research tool)
• How to Perform a Best-in-Class
Competitor Analysis (Buffer Blog)

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MODULE 2: In this lesson we’re going to do some funnel hacking. PRO TIP
Now don’t worry – this isn’t a technical process, and you

Finding a Painkiller Idea shouldn’t be intimidated at all. In order to find all the Facebook Ads that a company is
running, go to https://www.facebook.com/ads/library/

(Market Research) All I mean by “funnel hacking” is that we’re going to

scope out those 3-5 competitors you found in the
and then search for the brand page.

previous lesson, and assess their customer journey to

LESSON: reverse-engineer their success.

Funnel Hacking WHY FUNNEL HACKING?

ACTION ITEMS
• Strategic research should always be done by the
founder.
• Anyone can do this process that I’m about to show
you. People often just skip this step when they’re ❏❏ Funnel hack at least 3 competitors
building fast. Your biggest competitor is often ❏❏ Write down your findings in the Competitive
laziness. Analysis Spreadsheet
• This process helps you understand how the people
in your space talk about the problem, the language
they’re using, etc. – so that you then know how to
word your own copy and create a unique marketing
experience.
• When you’ve got larger competitors, they’ve
already done a lot of the research and testing for
you. If you skip this funnel hacking step, you’re
missing out on a major shortcut!

FUNNEL HACKING GOAL

Understand your competitors and how they advertise.

Look at their:

• Ad copy
• Messaging / positioning
•
•
Ad style (video, photo, etc.)
Landing page TOOLS & RESOURCES
• Who their audience is
• What their customers want • Competitive Analysis Spreadsheet
• How they attract customers (Google Sheets)
• How they talk about the problem
• Ultimate Marketer’s Blueprint To
• What they are promising
Funnel Hacking (Clickfunnels)
• Unique selling point

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COMPETITIVE INSIGHT TEMPLATE

Competitor #1 Competitor #2 Competitor #3 Competitor #4 Competitor #5

Competitor Name

Competitor URL

THE AD:
Ad Copy / Messaging /
Positioning

THE AD:
Ad Style (Video, Photo, etc.)

POST-CLICK:
Landing Page Headline +
Subhead

How they talk about the

problem / pain point

Big Promise / Benefits

U.S.P.
Unique Selling Point / What
makes this product better
or different?"

NOTES

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Notes:

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MODULE 2: The goal of this lesson is to see if you can disprove your
idea, or “kill your hypothesis.” If you can’t, then you’re
Finding a Painkiller Idea onto a winning idea!

(Market Research) WHY KILL YOUR HYPOTHESIS?

LESSON: • You will always run into objections as a tech

founder, and you need to know how to overcome

Killing Your Hypothesis •

them in order to sell your product.
People fall in love with their idea more so than the
problem their idea was created to solve. If you fall
in love too early, you may disregard things that
could cause it to fail.
• You need to fall in love with the problem, not the
solution – because the solutions and technology
can change all the time.
• This process helps further validate that your
hypothesis has potential, even before you use
the 60-Day Startup validation system in the next
modules to start bringing in paying customers.

"Fall in love with the problem, not your ideas or your solutions."

5 KEY QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF

Why would someone NOT buy your product?

What are all the reasons why it WOULDN’T work as a product?

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Why wouldn't people use it?

What could cause this to fail, or not get traction?

What are the common objections your future customers might have?

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NEXT STEPS
Reason/Dealbreaker Rating (1, 2, or 3)
Once you’ve written down these answers, go ahead and rate
each of those dealbreakers on a score from 1-3 that it’ll kill
your product.

• 1 = low probability that it’ll stop the product or idea from

working
• 2 = medium probability that it’ll stop the product or idea
from working
• 3 = high probability that it’ll stop the product or idea
from working

If everything is a 3, it’s probably a bad idea.

If everything is a 1 or 2, you’re on the right track. Move

forward!

Case Study: Biteable

This SaaS product started out as a generic video editing tool “for
everyone.” Before we pivoted, we thought about, what are all
the reasons someone WOULDN’T buy or use this product? The
team ended up niching down to focus on helping Social Media
Managers, and re-launched to massive success.

ACTION ITEMS
❏❏ Ask yourself these 5 questions
❏❏ Rate each reason 1, 2 or 3 on its likelihood of killing your
product
❏❏ See if you can kill your hypothesis
❏❏ If you can’t kill it, then congrats — you can move forward
on a winning idea!

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• How Assumptions Can Kill Your Startup
(ChartMogul)
• The Contrarian Founder: Do Your Best to Kill
Your Idea! (TheStartup on Medium)

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 2: The goal of this lesson is to gather even more data
to prove that your idea is going to work, and validate

Finding a Painkiller Idea demand for your product. This process leaves nothing
to chance.

(Market Research) If you’re stuck deciding between multiple ideas, this

scoring system will help you pick the winning horse.
LESSON:
Remember, as a startup founder, you can’t let your

Scoring Multiple Ideas emotions & opinions dictate your decisions. It has to be
based on data.

ACTION ITEMS
❏❏ Rate each of your ideas on a scale of 1-10 based
on the 6 criteria
❏❏ Move forward with the 1 idea that scores the
highest

COURSE WORKBOOK
Your Idea #1 Criteria Score

Market size
How big is the market you're looking to serve? Think back to your TAM and SAM. For reference, a SAM
of 10MM+ potential customers = a large market and deserves a high score.

Criticality of problem
Does your product idea solve one of the top 3 problems in your customer’s life or business? (aka "Tier 1
Problem") Is it helping to solve a pain point that keeps them up at night?

Your passion for solving the problem

Could you see yourself working on solving this problem every week for the next 1-2 years? How about
the next 7-10 years?

Competitive analysis
Are there lots of competitors flooding your market, targeting the same niche as you and making it hard
to compete? (low score) Or are there just a few competitors, at least one of who has raised funding?
(high score) Are there no competitors at all, meaning there is no market? (low score)

Ability to reach potential customers

Who is your target audience? Are they easy to reach? Think about how you'd get paying customers
and how difficult it would be. (Consider: geography, niche, network, your familiarity with the industry,
regulations, etc.)

Difficulty or complexity of problem

For example, if your product idea involves landing rockets on the moon, or curing an incurable disease,
it's going to be difficult (low score). If your product can be designed & built in a few months, give it a high
score.

Total Score (out of 60):

COURSE WORKBOOK
Your Idea #2 Criteria Score

Market size
How big is the market you're looking to serve? Think back to your TAM and SAM. For reference, a SAM
of 10MM+ potential customers = a large market and deserves a high score.

Criticality of problem
Does your product idea solve one of the top 3 problems in your customer’s life or business? (aka "Tier 1
Problem") Is it helping to solve a pain point that keeps them up at night?

Your passion for solving the problem

Could you see yourself working on solving this problem every week for the next 1-2 years? How about
the next 7-10 years?

Competitive analysis
Are there lots of competitors flooding your market, targeting the same niche as you and making it hard
to compete? (low score) Or are there just a few competitors, at least one of who has raised funding?
(high score) Are there no competitors at all, meaning there is no market? (low score)

Ability to reach potential customers

Who is your target audience? Are they easy to reach? Think about how you'd get paying customers
and how difficult it would be. (Consider: geography, niche, network, your familiarity with the industry,
regulations, etc.)

Difficulty or complexity of problem

For example, if your product idea involves landing rockets on the moon, or curing an incurable disease,
it's going to be difficult (low score). If your product can be designed & built in a few months, give it a high
score.

Total Score (out of 60):

COURSE WORKBOOK
Your Idea #3 Criteria Score

Market size
How big is the market you're looking to serve? Think back to your TAM and SAM. For reference, a SAM
of 10MM+ potential customers = a large market and deserves a high score.

Criticality of problem
Does your product idea solve one of the top 3 problems in your customer’s life or business? (aka "Tier 1
Problem") Is it helping to solve a pain point that keeps them up at night?

Your passion for solving the problem

Could you see yourself working on solving this problem every week for the next 1-2 years? How about
the next 7-10 years?

Competitive analysis
Are there lots of competitors flooding your market, targeting the same niche as you and making it hard
to compete? (low score) Or are there just a few competitors, at least one of who has raised funding?
(high score) Are there no competitors at all, meaning there is no market? (low score)

Ability to reach potential customers

Who is your target audience? Are they easy to reach? Think about how you'd get paying customers
and how difficult it would be. (Consider: geography, niche, network, your familiarity with the industry,
regulations, etc.)

Difficulty or complexity of problem

For example, if your product idea involves landing rockets on the moon, or curing an incurable disease,
it's going to be difficult (low score). If your product can be designed & built in a few months, give it a high
score.

Total Score (out of 60):

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• “Scoring Multiple Ideas” Worksheet (Google
Sheets)
• How Do You Choose Between Two (Or More)
Good Ideas? (Forbes)

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 2: Contrary to what I mentioned in the previous lesson
about making data-driven decisions and taking the ACTION ITEM
Finding a Painkiller Idea emotion out of it, in this lesson, I’d like to talk about
something a little more emotional: Making sure you
❏❏ Write a letter to yourself from the future, which I like
(Market Research) absolutely LOVE what you’re doing.
to call a “Look-Back Statement”
Remember, you’re going to be pursuing this passion
LESSON: for the next 3-5 years or maybe even 7-10 years and
working toward solving the problem that you’ve If you’re running into writer’s block, try thinking about:

The Love Test identified.

• Picture yourself standing 10 years in the future.
Personally, I’ve built 8 different companies, and for
those companies in which I wasn’t passionate about • What does your life look like?
the problem, my energy tapered out and I became • Where is your office? What does it look like?
anxious to chase the next idea. • Who works for you? What do they do?
• What has your company achieved?
• How many people have you helped solve the
problem?
• What do you hope to achieve next?

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Write a Letter to Your Future Self (Medium)
• FutureMe.org

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 3 In this module we’re going to dive deep into validating
your product idea. ACTION ITEM
Product Validation By the end of this process, you should have at least 10
paying customers before your product even exists (if ❏❏ Read the Fieldboom Case Study provided to learn
not 20, 30 or even 100), essentially guaranteeing that how they used this exact process to validate their
your idea is going to work. product idea

LESSON:
You'll then have the confidence to move forward, bring

Validation Strategy on a designer & developer, and build your product.

Why Validate?
(10,000 ft. view) • Saves months of wasted effort
• Mitigates risk
• Avoids mistakes
• Starts funding your product
• Practically guarantees success
“The most powerful form of validation is when people pull out their Validation Goals
credit card and buy your product before it even exists.”
• Get people on the phone
• Agitate the problem
• Use a very specific script
• Ask for their credit card #

Validation Tactics

Throughout the module I’ll walk you through different

approaches to validating your product idea, and then
how to decide which one is right for you.

• Email Validation
• Social Media Validation
• SurveyMonkey Audience Validation

Remember, the ultimate goal of ALL of these tactics

is to get people on the phone, at which point you can
guide them through a very specific script (that I’ll share
in an upcoming lesson), and then get their credit card
number to pre-pay for your product.

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 3 Email can be one of the most powerful ways to validate
your product. ACTION ITEMS
Product Validation If you have an engaged email list of at least 500 ❏❏ Download the Validation Email Script Template
subscribers, you can expect 3-10% of them to express
an interest in your product, and you should definitely ❏❏ Customize it to your problem & solution
try this validation approach.
LESSON: ❏❏ Send it out to your email list
Just make sure that you:

Email Validation a) personally reply to them

b) get them on the phone

"You want to build a 1-on-1 bond with people on your email list."

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Email Validation - Script Template
• Email Validation - Example Screenshot

COURSE WORKBOOK
VALIDATION EMAIL SCRIPT TEMPLATE Example Email Outreach

Subject line: quick question

Hi [Firstname],

I hope you're well. I'm looking to speak with people who

are struggling with [insert tier 1 pain point].

My team and I are in the early stages of creating software

that will [solve pain point], a) a lot cheaper and b) a lot
easier [customize this to your benefits & “big promise”].

Is that something you're struggling with? If so, just reply

and I'd be happy to tell you more and see if we can help.

Cheers,
[Your name]

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 3 In this lesson we’re going to walk through Social Media
Validation using cold outreach, or semi-warm outreach ACTION ITEMS
Product Validation to people who follow you.
❏❏ Send 50-100 messages a day for the next 7 days
This is a great strategy if you don’t have an email list,
which is very common for aspiring entrepreneurs. ❏❏ From that batch, you should get a 5-10% reply rate to
schedule in phone calls
LESSON: The approach is very similar to Email Validation
Outreach, except short and sweet.

Social Media Validation • GOAL (if you have followers)

Get your target customer to engage with you so
you can get them on the phone.

• GOAL (if you don't have followers)

Find people who have the problem you're solving,
build a dialogue with them, and get them on the
phone.

Social Media Validation Tactics

1. LinkedIn connect + add note, then DM with people

who reply
2. Twitter post + DMs to people who engage with
your tweet
3. Facebook boosted post + DM/email people who
engage with your post

If I had to choose one, I would recommend prioritizing

LinkedIn outreach (especially if your product idea is TOOLS & RESOURCES
B2B) as it’s very effective.
• Example: Twitter Validation (initial tweet)
• Example: Twitter Validation (DM followup)
• Example: LinkedIn Validation
• Example: LinkedIn Validation 2 (recipient’s
view)
• Example: Facebook Validation (FB post)

COURSE WORKBOOK
LinkedIn Validation: Twitter Validation: Facebook Validation:

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 3 In this lesson we’re going to walk through how to
validate using SurveyMonkey and their Audience ACTION ITEMS
Product Validation feature.
❏❏ Create your survey using the question template
This process will allow you to essentially pay-
per-response, and target specific people who are provided
experiencing the problem you’re looking to solve. ❏❏ Pick an audience
LESSON: ❏❏ Send it out and get people on the phone
SurveyMonkey Tips

SurveyMonkey Audience • Try for 500 responses

• Think back to your SAM when niching down your
Validation targeting (for example, is your product mainly
serving a specific geography, gender, age group,
income level, or profession?)
• Don’t go too specific on your targeting (it will cost
a lot more)
• Make all questions mandatory
• Keep it short and easy to answer (multiple choice,
one-line responses, etc.)
• As quickly as you can, get them on the phone (this
is still our main goal)

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• SurveyMonkey
• SurveyMonkey Audience Tool (allows you to
buy responses)
• TypeForm (alternative to SurveyMonkey if you
already have an email list)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
 ACTION ITEMS
MODULE 3 By this point you’ve done at least 1 of the validation
tactics, if not all 3. And you’ve got a bunch of people

Product Validation raising their hand with interest in your product.

Your ultimate goal of doing these validation tactics is ❏❏ Do your first Phone Call using the Script provided
to get someone on the phone – and in this lesson, I’m ❏❏ Slowly ramp up to 4-5 calls/day
LESSON: going to show you how to turn a cold prospect into a
customer.

Phone Script to Lock in

Common blocker: if you’re shy or nervous to get on
Pre-Buyers the phone (like I was when I first started), you can use
these scripts to overcome this hurdle. If you want to
build a business, you’ve got to get on the phone and
talk to your customers.

What happens if you don’t do this? You’ll end up

creating a product that nobody wants and it doesn’t
sell – and you’ll waste a ton of money and time that
you’ll never get back.

Now, let’s say hypothetically you get 1 in 5 prospects

on the phone after your validation process (either
Email Outreach, Social Outreach. or Surveying).

Here’s what you do next once you get them on the

phone…

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Phone Script Template to Lock in Pre-Buyers

COURSE WORKBOOK
PHONE SCRIPT TO LOCK IN PRE-BUYERS
STEP 1: Ask about the problem. NLP Question #3: “Does this sound like something that STEP 7: Take their credit card details over the phone and
might help you?” plug them into your payment form.
• How is [insert problem] affecting your day-to-day [life
/ business]?
• How hard of a [problem / challenge / frustration] has • YOU: “Excellent [Firstname], why don’t we go ahead
this been for you?
STEP 5: If you get 3 “Yes”s to these NLP questions, next,
casually ask them one final question: and get you signed up now?”
• Goal: Get them to describe the problem in their own • CALLER: Yes / Sounds great / Let’s do it
words. • YOU: “Can you please let me know your credit card
• “Would you like to join our Closed Beta Program and details and I’ll get you signed up in our system…” (ask
STEP 2: Set the scene for a solution. them for credit card number, expiration date, security
get [exclusive / special / VIP] access to the product
• code)
when it's ready?
• How have you tried to solve [insert problem] in the • Enter their credit card information into your payment
past? form.
This question should be an easy “Yes” if you already
received 3 “Yes”s to the NLP questions. • See “Quick & Dirty Payment Stack” in another lesson
STEP 3: Agitate the problem. “Kick the bruised knee.” for the technical setup.

• So tell me, why don’t you think those approaches that STEP 6: Tell them about the Closed Beta Program, how ...Voila! You’ve got yourself another pre-buyer, before your
you tried actually solved the problem for you? much it costs, etc. product even exists.
• YOU: “Alright [Firstname], cool, let me go ahead and
STEP 4: Use the Triple "Yes" NLP Technique (Neuro- tell you about the Closed Beta Program. It really just
Linguistic Programming). PHONE SCRIPT TIPS
means that for the next 6 months, you are one of
our VIPs. As we design and build the product, your • Build empathy
• NLP Question #1: “Are you open to new ways of
feedback is prioritized, and we’re going to build the • Show them you understand the problem
solving the problem?”
product in a way that solves the problem only you • Don’t be overly salesy or aggressive
have. How does that sound?” • Keep calm, casual, and conversational
• Next, build empathy with them before asking
Question #2. • Leverage Neuro-Linguistic Programming
• CALLER says something like, “That sounds great.” • Practice, practice, practice
• E.g. “Well you know what, you’re actually not the
first person who’s told me that. I’ve actually had • Try to answer any Qs they may have
• YOU: “Alright [Firstname], I’m glad you like what we’re • Keep the call to 45 minutes
conversations with XX other people, and they’ve
building. And what I want to do now is just tell you • Start with 1 call/day then ramp up to 4-5 calls/day
all got this same problem that you do.”
about the fee to join the Beta Program. It is a limited • Expect to close 1 in 5 people you speak with
opportunity, and we only want [insert number] people
• NLP Question #2: “Is it okay if I take a few minutes to
in this program, because we’re going to work so closely Important: If at ANY point, the answer is “No” or they
tell you about the solution we've built?”
with you. Now we’re charging [$XXX] and that will give aren’t interested, simply thank them for their time, wish
you Lifetime Access to our product when it’s ready. We them a nice day, and end the phone call. It’s not worth your
• If “Yes,” then tell them about your product and
haven’t set our launch pricing yet, but we’re looking at time to try persuading a non-buyer into being a buyer.
how it will solve their problem.
[$XX/month] so instead of paying that, you get Lifetime Move on to the next call!
• DON’T talk about features. Talk about benefits
Access for only [$XXX], you’re in our VIP Closed Beta
and how it will unlock the desired outcome in their
Program, and we will use your feedback to shape how
business / life. Talk about how your product will
we build the product. How does that sound?”
move them away from the pain point and toward
where they want to go.

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 3 Now that we’ve gone through the different validation
tactics, let’s do a gut check: which one is right for you ACTION ITEMS
Product Validation and your business?
❏❏ Choose which channel is right for you
• Email Validation
• Social Media Validation ❏❏ Go out and execute on your Validation Strategy
• Survey Validation
LESSON:

Choosing Your Validation There are a few considerations to think about:

Approach •
•
Do you have an existing email list?
Do you have a social following (FB page, IG page,
or FB group)?
• If you have multiple channels, which one has the
most engaged audience?
• What’s your preferred communication method?
(e.g. if you’re comfortable on camera, you can do
a quick video on FB or IG; if you love writing, then
email / text-based messaging may be best)
• Do you have any kind of budget to spend on
validation? (e.g. $100-$200 to boost your FB video
to reach ALL of your followers, or $1,000 to buy a
SurveyMonkey Audience)
• If you don’t have an audience on ANY channel
right now, then simply use the SurveyMonkey
Audience tool to pay per response and target your
ideal prospects.
• Where is your ideal customer already hanging
out? Speak to them where they are most likely to
engage with you.

Pro Tip: Post on ALL the channels that you can. You
don’t necessarily have to choose only 1. It’s better to
get as many responses and data as possible, which
thereby gets more people on the phone with you,
and ultimately, more pre-buyers in your Closed Beta
Program.

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 3 In this demo I’m going to walk you through my “quick
and dirty payment stack” so that you can start taking ACTION ITEMS
Product Validation payments immediately before your product even
exists, and get people signed up for your Closed Beta ❏❏ Set up your Quick & Dirty Payment Stack
Program.
❏❏ Start signing people up to your Closed Beta over the
This payment stack is NOT for public eyeballs. Only phone
LESSON: you will see it — so don’t worry about making it pretty.
It’s meant to work in tandem with the Phone Scripts so

Quick & Dirty Payment Stack that you can easily take down people’s credit card info
over the phone.

How to Set Up Your Quick & Dirty Payment Stack

• Step 1: Create a Clickfunnels account

• Step 2: Create your Stripe account, connect it with
your Clickfunnels account
• Step 3: Set up a new "funnel" in Clickfunnels (use
the “Order Form” template)
• Step 4: Strip down the form fields to only what
you need (Name, Email Address, Payment Fields,
Button)
• Step 5: Save!
• Step 6: Create a "product" for Closed Beta Access,
set your price
• Step 7: Save and publish

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Clickfunnels (landing page tool)
• Stripe (payment tool)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 3 When you start asking questions of potential
customers, digging into the pain point, and empathizing ACTION ITEM
Product Validation with them further, it’s important to get to the root
cause of WHY they’re frustrated.
❏❏ Use the "5 Whys" Framework in your phone calls with
Root Cause Analysis potential customers to get to the emotional root of
A method of problem-solving used for identifying the their problem

LESSON: underlying reason of a problem.

5 Why's Framework People buy using emotion, not logic.

People also buy from people who they like. So it’s

critical to get to know them better, so that they feel
that they personally know, like, and trust you.

You want to draw out an emotional reason beneath the

surface problem. Then, you can speak to the solution
you’re building and cater it to their true wants and
needs.
"The best way to build empathy is to show them you understand the
problem even better than they do."

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• 5 Whys: Getting to the Root of a Problem
Quickly (MindTools)
• The 5 Whys Process We Use to Understand
the Root of Any Problem (Buffer)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 4: Two big questions that come up at this stage are: How • United States - $100K-$130K salary
long will it take to get my product built? And what will • Australia - $100K-$130K salary

Product Development it cost? •

•
South America - ½ to ⅔ of US ($50K-$70K)
India - ⅓ of US ($33K-$43K)

and Design Throughout this module I’m going to walk you through
how to get your product built, what to expect in terms
• Philippines - ⅓ of US ($33K-$43K)

of timelines and costs, and how to assemble a small PRO TIPS

LESSON: startup team to bring your product vision to life.
You get what you pay for! Don’t cheap out on design and

Getting Your Product Built Important Note: This course is NOT about how to
code. You won’t need to know any Javascript, HTML5
development.
By paying less in cash, you’re paying more by
etc. compromising on quality, functionality, and smooth user
experience.
What you WILL learn is how to find, vet, and hire the If you’re bootstrapping your startup, consider bringing
best A-player designers and developers, and how to on your designer & developer as part-time freelancers to
work with them to build your product for you. start (10-20 hours/week), while you simultaneously raise
cash through your Closed Beta Program.
How long will it take?

• This course is called 60-Day Startup, and I can

promise you that if you follow my framework, you
can absolutely expect to acquire your first paying
customers within 2 months, before your product
ACTION ITEM
even exists.
• That said, the actual design & development will ❏❏ Use the Cheat Sheet: Designer & Developer Rate
take 3-6 months. Card to figure out where you’ll look to hire your team
• You should also double your developer’s time from
estimates. They are very optimistic, but it usually
takes twice as long as they say. (e.g. if they say 3
months, it will likely be 6).

What will it cost?

TOOLS & RESOURCES
Since salaries are always evolving and we want to keep
this data as up-to-date as possible, please refer to our • Cheat Sheet: Designer & Developer Rate Card
Cheat Sheet: Designer & Developer Rate Card as well • How Cheap Mobile App Development Can Kill
as the Resource links to get a real sense of costs. Your Business (Ruhani Rabin)
• How Much Do Freelance Developers Cost
After hiring hundreds of developers over the last 15+ Around the World? (CodeMentor)
years, I can tell you that this is the rough breakdown of • Calculator: Freelance Full Stack Developer
development costs per country: Hourly Rate (CodeMentor)
• Interactive Map: UX Designer Salaries by
Country

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 4: The term “MVP” is thrown around a lot in the tech
startup space. In this lesson, I’m going to show you why ACTION ITEMS
Product Development this is the wrong approach, and what you should be
doing instead.

and Design MVP (Minimum Viable Product) ❏❏ Write down 3-5 ideas for your MSP, and how you
can make your product better than or different
Building just enough features that you have something
customers can use and give you feedback on. from the competition
LESSON:

Going to Market (MVP vs. MSP) MSP (Minimum Sellable Product)

Building something with the "table stakes features"
plus making it better, different, or unique from the
competition.

HOW TO FIND YOUR MSP

1. Customer development – Talk to people! Ask them,

“If you could wave a magic wand, how would you make
our product idea better?”

Example: Zoom literally just made the product work

better than what was out there with Skype and
GoToWebinar, and did what they promised.

2. Look at negative reviews – Look at software

review websites like Capterra, GetApp, G2Crowd, or
TrustPilot, and filter through the negative reviews of
your competitors.

• Which features are they missing?

• Which parts of their product don’t perform as
advertised?
• What are their users’ biggest frustrations?
• Consider adding these solutions to your
product.

3. Skate where the puck is going – not where it’s been.

Think 2-3 years in the future of your industry, imagine
what products like yours will look like, and reverse-
engineer how to build it today.

Example: Drift infused artificial intelligence into their

product, vs. becoming “just another chat tool.”

COURSE WORKBOOK
MSP Idea #1 MSP Idea #4

MSP Idea #2 MSP Idea #5

MSP Idea #3

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• When & Why it Makes Sense to Deliver a
Minimum Sellable Product, Not a Minimum
Viable Product (Open View Partners)
• MVP vs. MSP: Building for Sales (Grow SaaS)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 4: Who You Need

Product Development •
•
Product Manager (you)
Developer

and Design • Designer

That’s it! This is your 3-person startup team, and each

LESSON: of you has multiple skills that combine to bring your
product to life over the first 3-6 or even 12 months.

Who You Need On Your Team If you don’t know how to code or design, DON’T try to
do these things yourself just to save money. You will
end up costing yourself more in the long run. It’s very
important to invest in the right skills and experience
level to build your product.

The key role of the Product Manager, on the other

hand, should be played by you as the founder for the
first 6 months.

It’s your job to work closely with your Designer and

Developer to decide what goes into the product.

Product Designer Skills

• UI Design
• UX Design
• Visual Design

COURSE WORKBOOK
Full Stack Developer Skills

“A full stack developer is an engineer who can handle all the

work of databases, servers, systems engineering, and clients.
Depending on the project, what customers need may be a
mobile stack, a Web stack, or a native application stack.”

“In fact, ‘full stack’ refers to the collection of a series of

technologies needed to complete a project. ‘Stack’ refers to
a collection of sub-modules. These software sub-modules or
components combined together to achieve the established
function while without the need for other modules.” —
HackerNoon

Product Manager Role (You)

• Understand customers deeply

•
•
Decide what goes into the product
Which features, and when
USER TECH/
•
•
Work w/ developer & designer
Project manage the overall build
EXPERIENCE DEVELOPMENT
• Solve your customers' problems
• First 6 months, you should play this role

BUSINESS
YOU ARE HERE
Product Manager

COURSE WORKBOOK
3 HIRING CONSIDERATIONS
ACTION ITEMS
1. Remote vs. Co-located — If you find it easy to work
with people on Slack, Zoom, Skype, etc. and simply ❏❏ Do the Startup Team Checklist
want the best talent, regardless of where they’re ❏❏ Decide whether you want a Remote team or a Co-located
based, then try a Remote team. If you’re big on team
in-person meetings and water cooler talk, then Co-
located is best for you.

2. Cost / Budget — This can affect whether you hire

full-time salaried employees vs. part-time freelancers.
(Refer to the Designer & Developer Rate Card for
rough costs)

3. Culture & Collaboration — Some startups like having

everyone under the same roof for team lunches, ad
hoc conversations, outings, etc. However there is also
a growing trend of “remote first” teams, and countless
tools are available to build a collaborative culture
from afar. It does take more work to build a culture
with a remote team, but it is entirely possible.
TOOLS & RESOURCES
• Foundr Magazine, for example, has team
members in 10+ countries. • Startup Team Checklist
• InVision, a notable SaaS startup, has 800+ • Building InVision Studio with a fully remote
employees and they are fully remote. team (InVision)
• The Complete Guide To Building and Managing
Remote Startup Teams (Foundr Blog)
• How to Run a Remote Team (Zapier Blog)
• Startup founders: Remote teams are possible
— here are 4 ways to make them happen
(TheNextWeb)
• 3 Things I've Learned Building a Remote
Startup Workforce (TheStartup)
• 9 Unique Ways to Maintain Company Culture
Across Virtual Teams (MavenLink)
• 4 Reasons Why Your Team Should Work Under
the Same Roof (Entrepreneur)
• Brian Chesky (Airbnb) and Alfred Lin (Sequoia,
Zappos) Discuss Company Culture (YouTube)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 4: In this lesson I’ll walk you through my tried-and-
true Job Ad Templates for finding the absolute best ACTION ITEMS
Product Development A-Player talent that is going to form your startup team.

❏❏ Download and customize the Job Ad

and Design Please feel free to use the Job Ad Templates and
customize them to your company mission and vision. Templates
These are battle-tested over 15+ years of hiring ❏❏ Post your job ads on the sites recommended
LESSON: hundreds of developers and designers.
❏❏ Look through design portfolios

How To Attract A-Player Talent Happy hunting!

(Job Ad Templates) Key Sections of Your Job Ads

1. A Bit About Us
2. A Bit About You (As A Person)
3. A Bit About You (As A Designer / Developer)
4. What You’ll Do
5. We Are For You If…
6. How To Apply

Developer Hiring Hubs

• We Work Remotely
• Stack Overflow Talent
• Indeed Local

Designer Hiring Hubs

• Dribbble
• Behance
• We Work Remotely
• Hired.com

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Job Ad Template: Senior Full Stack Developer
• Job Ad Template: Senior Product Designer

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 4: In this lesson I’m going to walk you through how to STEP THREE: PHONE INTERVIEW
interview and hire your developer.

Product Development PRO TIP: Conduct your first interviews through

Use the Developer Interview Questions (Phone Interview)
cheat sheet provided when conducting these interviews

and Design VIDEO recording (e.g. SparkHire, HireVue). over the phone.

This helps you A) make sure that only the developers I’d recommend you make a copy of this document and
LESSON: who really want the job will apply, and B) you can pay customize the “Introduction” part to your business, so that
attention to their body language and communication you can have a script handy as you do these interviews.

Hiring Your Developer skills.

Additional things to look for in developers:

STEP ONE:
VIDEO SCREENING WITH 5 KEY QUESTIONS
(GET THEM TO RECORD A VIDEO AND SUBMIT IT) • They contribute to open-source projects.
• They optimize for speed over perfectionism.
• They understand the role of being the only developer
Tell me about the biggest project you’ve worked on and in the company (to start) and not having all the
what your contribution was. resources and structure of a large company.
If you had the choice between using an existing open • They are comfortable making and justifying tech
source library and creating a library from scratch, decisions.
which would you choose and why? • They have a good personality that fits your company
How do you keep up with the constant changes culture. Skills can be taught. Personality can’t be
required to be a proficient software developer? changed!
Have you worked as part of a team before? If so, what • Be wary of shiny object syndrome. Don’t hire a
do you like most AND least about working in a team? developer who is chasing the new tech.
If you had to choose perfection or speed, which would • They have experience as a freelancer or working
you choose and why? remotely (if you’re building a remote team).

STEP TWO:
EMAIL FOLLOWUP TO YOUR SHORTLIST
(3-5 CANDIDATES)
ACTION ITEMS
Hey [Firstname],
❏❏ Review the Developer Interview Questions (both
Congratulations! You've been shortlisted as one of my video and phone)
top 5 candidates. ❏❏ Start interviewing developers!

When are you available to speak on the phone for

about 60 minutes?

Thanks,
[Your Name]

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Cheat Sheet: Developer Interview Questions 1
(Video Screening)
• Cheat Sheet: Developer Interview Questions 2
(Phone Interview)
• SparkHire (for video screenings)
• HireVue (for video screenings)

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 4: Similarly to the process for hiring a Developer, I’ve also
put together a series of interview questions for hiring

Product Development your Designer.

and Design For your first Designer hire, you’re looking for
someone with all 3 of these skills:

• Visual Design
• UX Design (User Experience)
LESSON: • UI Design (User Interface)

Hiring Your Designer

COURSE WORKBOOK
STEP ONE: STEP THREE: PHONE INTERVIEW
VIDEO SCREENING WITH 5 KEY QUESTIONS
(GET THEM TO RECORD A VIDEO AND SUBMIT IT) Use the Designer Interview Questions (Phone Interview)
cheat sheet provided when conducting these interviews
1. Tell me about the biggest project you’ve worked on over the phone.
and what your contribution was?
Again, I’d recommend you make a copy of this document
2. How do you get customers involved when you’re
and customize the “Introduction” part to your business,
designing something?
so that you can have a script handy as you do these
3. How do you keep up with the constant changes interviews.
required to be a proficient product designer?
4. Have you worked as part of a team before? If so, what
do you like most AND least about working in a team?
5. If you had to choose perfection or speed when ACTION ITEMS
designing our product, which would you choose and
why? ❏❏ Review the Designer Interview Questions
❏❏ Shortlist your designer candidates
STEP TWO: EMAIL FOLLOWUP TO YOUR SHORTLIST ❏❏ Interview them on the phone
(3-5 CANDIDATES)

Hey [Firstname],

Congratulations! You've been shortlisted as one of my top

5 candidates.

When are you available to speak on the phone for about

60 minutes?

Thanks,
[Your Name]

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Cheat Sheet: Designer Interview Questions 1
(Video Screening)
• Cheat Sheet: Designer Interview Questions 2
(Phone Interview)
• SparkHire (for video screenings)
• HireVue (for video screenings)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 4: In this lesson we’re going to look at how to figure out
which one of your top shortlisted candidates you ACTION ITEMS
Product Development should actually hire, by giving them a Paid Test Project.

and Design The goal is to get them to do some in-depth and ❏❏ Choose which feature you'll use for your paid
relevant work that will simulate what their role would skills test
be like if you were to hire them. ❏❏ Send out your test project brief to your
shortlist candidates (via email)
SKILLS TEST TIPS
LESSON:
• Pay them $200-$500

Vetting Skills With A Paid Test •

•
Give them 72 hours to complete
Scope it down to 10-20 hours of work

Project
• Pick 1 feature/screen, not a whole app
• Make it challenging but realistic

If you’re intimidated by this part of the process and

asking people to do work for you, just remember, this
is helping you narrow down the one (1) absolute best
Designer and Developer from the pack that is going to
form your core startup team!
“The best talent is happy to jump through hurdles.” The candidates who succeed with this project should
find it fun and exciting, because:

1. They want the job

2. They’re passionate about working for/with you
3. They’re excited to build your product and solve
the problem

Once they submit their work, invite them to come

meet you in-person (or via Zoom / Skype / Hangout)
and actually present it to you.

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• How to Set up a Freelancer Test Project
(Upwork Blog)
• The ultimate guide to hiring with design
exercises (Dribbble Blog)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 5: That is the reason why they’re buying your product!
ACTION ITEM
Product Management Product Management Responsibilities

• Solve (and keep solving) the problem

• Decide what, when, and order ❏❏ Study the Product Manager Cheat Sheet and
• Write the product spec articles provided
• Be the voice of the customer
• Own the product roadmap
LESSON: • Have the final say on features
• Work closely with developers

Your Role As The Product •

•
Determine release schedule
Make sure things go out on time

Manager
• Testing and QA

"Your job is to solve (and keep solving) the main problem that your
customers have."

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• What Does a Product Manager Do? (Brent
Tworetzky, SVP Product at InVision)
• What It Takes to Become a Great Product
Manager (Harvard Business Review)
• Product Manager: The role and how to master it
(Atlassian Agile Coach)
• What is the role of a product manager? (Aha.io)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 5: In this lesson I’m going to walk you through a proven
project management process that will get your product ACTION ITEM
Product Management built on-time, under-budget, and allow you to SHIP your
product fast, even as you grow your team.

This exact process is what I used to DOUBLE a tech ❏❏ Copy the Trello Template provided
company from $10M to $20M in revenue. ❏❏ Set up your product roadmap

It also allows you as the founder to have complete

LESSON: visibility into every piece of the puzzle and check-in on the
status of your product build.

Project Management Process TOOLS

To SHIP • Trello
• Asana
• JIRA
• Basecamp
• Monday.com
• Smartsheet
• Sticky notes :)

For the purposes of this demo, I’m going to show you in

Trello, and attach a Trello template that you can copy into
your own account.

Coming Soon In Progress In Progress - In Progress - In Progress - In Progress Shipped Shipped

/ Backlog (Being Development Development Development (Testing) (In Last 30 (This Quarter)
Designed) (Early) (Mid) (Almost Done) Days)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Trello Template: Example Product Roadmap
(make a copy for yourself!)
• Best Practices and Expert Tips for Creating
Product Roadmaps (SmartSheet)
• On the map: product roadmap templates and tips
(Asana)
• Product Roadmap: Nine Strategies for Creating
One (This Is Product Management)

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 5: In this lesson I’m going to share with you a really
powerful technique that will ensure your product gets ACTION ITEMS
Product Management built on time and under-budget.
❏❏ Do the T-Shirt Sizing Worksheet
This is called the T-Shirt Sizing Method.
❏❏ Break down your features
Goals

• Break down the scope of each feature

LESSON: • Make each project or task more achievable
• Gain visibility into your team's progress

The T-Shirt Sizing Method • Build your product faster

Now, each company or industry may have different

definitions of what the T-shirt sizes entail, but for
our purposes in a fast-moving tech startup, this is the
breakdown I recommend you use:

XS S M L XL
"You can't build a tech startup if you don't know the progress of your (Extra Small) (Small) (Medium) (Large) (Extra Large)
team's development."
Few Hours 1 Day Few Days One Week Few Weeks

XS XS S S M L L XL

XS XS S S M

XS XS S S M

XS XS

XS XS

PRO TIP: Anything that goes onto your product roadmap should be a maximum of a "Medium."

COURSE WORKBOOK
T-Shirt Sizing Worksheet
XS S M L XL
Go ahead and assign a T-Shirt Size to each of the following features, (Extra Small) (Small) (Medium) (Large) (Extra Large)
and write them in the appropriate columns.
Few Hours 1 Day Few Days One Week Few Weeks
If a given feature feels like it’s larger than a “Medium,” try to scope it
down into smaller sub-features that fit into the Medium, Small and
Extra Small sizes.

• Login screen - “Sign In with Facebook” and “Sign In with Google”

• Checkout page
• “Recommended Content” carousel based on your user’s past history
• Zapier integration
• Onboarding flow with questionnaire
• “Share with a friend” referral bonus system
• In-App Notifications
• Automatic Email Notifications
• User profiles (and ability for user to edit their own)
• Add progress bar to onboarding flow
• “Logged In Home” state

(Ideally you would chat with your Developer about how long each of
these will take, and work with him/her to break the features down. I
just want to get you thinking critically about scope.)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Project Estimation Through T-Shirt Size (Medium)
• How T-Shirts Can Style Up The Strategy For Your
Next Big Project Kickoff (Trello)
• Story Points, T-shirt Sizing and Time Buckets:
How Tech Companies Do Engineering Estimates
(Product Habits)

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 5: In this lesson I’m going to talk about 8 roadblocks you
should look out for as you bring your product to life.

Product Management ❏❏ Teach Developers How to Create Good Estimates

on and how much time they can actually commit to
your product. This way, they don’t burn out or do sub-
- Use the T-Shirt Sizing Method that we just went par work on your project, due to heavy commitment
through, and teach your developer(s) how to on someone else’s.
scope things accurately in terms of how much time
it will take. The more you work closely together, ❏❏ Stick to the Product Roadmap! - Make sure everyone
the better you’ll both get. “sticks to the script” (Product Roadmap) and doesn’t
LESSON: do random things just for fun. Remember, you’re
❏❏ Ensure Constant Communication - As the running a business. Your team has to stay the course
Roadblocks To Look Out For
founder, you set the tone. You want to make sure and not get distracted. If you’re getting pushback on
your team has continuous communication (using this, explain to your Developer openly and honestly
tools like Slack, etc. rather than relying on email) how the features they’re building will directly impact
and walk through features and designs on-screen customers, thereby allowing you to make more
with Zoom (if remote). money and pay your Developer more :)
❏❏ Give Your Team Clarity & Exactly What They ❏❏ Avoid “Shiny Object Syndrome” - Don’t be tempted
Need - Make sure your team members always to add fancy new features just because you see tech
have the resources and information they need in trends or competitors doing it. You’re in the middle
order to get their work done (e.g. clear outline/ of building your initial version of your product (MSP)
brief of a feature you want to design). Everyone and you need to keep your team’s eyes on the prize.
needs to be on the same page, especially at an
early stage startup.
❏❏ Be Realistic About Scale - Make sure you properly
manage developers who try to build a V1 that
can handle 10 kajillion users from the start
ACTION ITEM
(you don’t need this in order to launch!). Make
sure they understand that while you appreciate ❏❏ Review the Startup Roadblocks Checklist
them thinking about scale, this isn’t required to
launch. This will blow out your estimates and you
won’t launch on time. If you’re confused here,
always refer back to your MSP and your Product
Roadmap as your North Star.
❏❏ Don't Overspend on Infrastructure Upfront
- Don’t invest too much in infrastructure and
overspend on cloud software etc. upfront (when
you don’t need it at this stage). There are many
free and cheap tools for small teams. Why spend
money when you don’t have to?
❏❏ Understand Your Freelancers' Workload &
Commitments - If you hire freelance devs who
aren’t full-time for you, make sure you fully
understand the other projects they are working

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 6: Now comes the really exciting part! It’s time to How Much to Charge?
start bringing in your first paying customers, before

Getting Your First your product is even built. The way we do this is
with a “Closed Beta” or “Early Access Program.”
$200 - $500 $1,000 - $3,000
100 Paying Customers Closed Beta (lifetime access) (lifetime access)
Giving someone a big discount in exchange
(Pre-launch/Closed Beta) for buying your product before it's even built.
Typically you want to charge a one-time fee for
Small Business Product
Enterprise B2B Product
Consumer Product
lifetime access.

LESSON:
Why Closed Beta? What If My Closed Beta Fails?

Getting Your First Paying If your Closed Beta fails, or your product doesn’t get
• Validates demand – Feedback from people
Customers With a Closed Beta
built for whatever reason, you can simply refund your
saying “I love that idea” means nothing. The customers.
most powerful form of validation is when
someone pulls out their credit card and pre-
buys your product before it even exists.

"Do things that don't scale." Paul Graham, Y Combinator

• Raises cash – Your Closed Beta customers are
paying upfront which puts cash in your pocket ACTION ITEMS
right away, and as you know, cash flow is the
oxygen of a business. ❏❏ Price your Closed Beta lifetime access
• Helps fund your build – You can use this ❏❏ Plan out your Closed Beta launch timing
money to pay your designer and developer.

• Starts your pre-marketing – Another added

benefit to doing a Closed Beta is that it
kickstarts your marketing and starts to build
a close-knit community of customers who can
help spread the word of your product.

When to Start a Closed Beta?

Start this process about 3 months before your

product is ready to launch.

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 6: In this lesson we’re going to look at how to build your
simple one-page website to get more signups to your ACTION ITEMS
Getting Your First Closed Beta group.
❏❏ Map out the 6 key elements of your one-page Beta
100 Paying Customers Goal: Get the names and email addresses of people
who are interested in your product before it’s ready, so website
you can reach out to them, get them on the phone, and
(Pre-launch/Closed Beta) get them signed up for your Closed Beta.

Landing Page Elements

LESSON: • Headline — Clearly articulate the problem and

how your product will solve it. Be specific to your

Your One-Page Beta Website •

customer and their pain point.
Subhead — 1-2 sentences that back up the
headline promise and adds clarity.
• Bulleted Benefits — Detail the benefits and how
your product will help your customer get to their TOOLS & RESOURCES
desired outcome and solve the problem they’re
experiencing. LANDING PAGE TOOLS
• Testimonials — Include at least 3 pieces of social
proof. This is a very powerful marketing weapon! • Clickfunnels
You can ask your first 3 Closed Beta members for • Unbounce
testimonials. • LaunchRock
• Screenshots — If the product isn’t built yet, then
use one of the design mockups that your Designer • Instapage
has created. Try to have one visual “above the • Leadpages
fold,” and also include as many visuals as possible • Landingi
about how the product works, throughout the
page. • Lander
• Call to Action — A very simple CTA to collect
their Name and Email Address. (e.g. “Get Started”, RESOURCES
“Signup Free”, “Sign Me Up”, etc.)
• BetaList (landing page inspiration)
• Example: FieldBoom Launch Page (HTML
.zip)
• Get Your First 1,000 Email Subscribers
by Using Conversion-Centered Design
(Foundr Blog)
• Landing Page Formula by Foundr (an
in-depth online course with Oli Gardner,
cofounder of Unbounce)

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 6: In this lesson I’m going to walk you through my
“Specific-Result Testimonials” template to gather ACTION ITEM
Getting Your First social proof from your early Closed Beta users. These
testimonials will become some of your most powerful
❏❏ Reach out to your Closed Beta users for
100 Paying Customers marketing assets for months to come.
testimonials using the Specific Result Template
You can reach out via email, but I really like to use the
(Pre-launch/Closed Beta) phone or Skype/Zoom and chat with them for 10-
15 minutes. This allows you to dig deeper instead of
having them quickly email a one-off response.

LESSON:
SPECIFIC-RESULT TEMPLATE:

Getting Testimonials 4 QUESTIONS TO ASK

From Beta Users

1. "What did your business / life look like before you
started using this product?"

2. "How, SPECIFICALLY, has our product impacted

your business / life?"

3. "How is your business / life better after using our

product?"

4. "Would you recommend our product to a friend or

colleague? If so, why?"

PRO TIP: Keep digging until you get a “specific result.”

E.g. Number of new customers/leads, dates, amount
of time saved, weight loss, percentages, magnitudes
(“I felt 10 times more confident”), how/why they use
a specific feature that they love, or even contrasting
stories before-and-after using your product.

TESTIMONIAL TYPES

Video (ideal)
Audio
Text/Image

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 6: 3 KINDS OF EMAILS
ACTION ITEM
Getting Your First 1. New Feature Announcements
❏❏ Draft your email updates to your Closed Beta
100 Paying Customers •
•
Cadence: Weekly
Screenshot
users

(Pre-launch/Closed Beta)
• Name of feature
• 1-2 paragraphs
• How it will help

2. Launch Updates Email

LESSON:
• Cadence: Monthly
Keeping Your Beta Users •
•
500-700 words
Personal tone

Updated Weekly •
•
Progress on launch
Launch date
• Include disclaimer*

*This launch date can, and probably will, change. But I

just wanted to let you know personally as I value your
membership to our Closed Beta!

3. Education on Product Use

• Cadence: Varies (as needed)

• More advanced features
• Screen recording
• Walk users through it

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Email Templates: Keeping Your Beta Users
Updated

COURSE WORKBOOK
EMAIL TEMPLATES - KEEPING YOUR BETA USERS UPDATED

New Feature Announcements / Product Updates Email: Advanced Features Email Template:

SUBJ: Improvements to [PRODUCT NAME] we thought you'd like SUBJ: How to use [ADVANCED FEATURE]

Hi [FIRST NAME], Hi [FIRST NAME],

Thanks for participating in our [Early Access Program / Closed Beta Program]! We've had quite a few people in our [Early Access Program / Closed Beta Program]
ask for more details about integrating [PRODUCT NAME] with their [INSERT NEW
In the last [WEEK/MONTH] we've been working hard to improve our product based on FEATURE e.g. integrating with their email marketing software], so we've put together
your feedback. As such, I'm happy to announce that we've added 2 new features since some step-by-step videos to help you out.
our last email:
If you use Mailchimp, watch this video:
1. The ability to import your contacts from Gmail. You can now do this automatically [LINK]
which will save you time.
If you use ActiveCampaign, watch this video:
2. Multiple user accounts. You can now invite your team to use [PRODUCT NAME] by [LINK]
giving them their own unique sign up links, instead of sharing your account with them.
If you use Infusionsoft, watch this video:
These features are enabled on your account right now. [LINK]

If you have any questions, please let me know. We're also hosting a live webinar on Thursday at 11am PST to walk you through email
integration. If you'd like to attend, please register here:
Thanks, [LINK]
[YOUR FIRST NAME]
Thanks,
[YOUR FIRST NAME]

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 6: Once you’ve ticked all of these 6 boxes, you’re ❏❏ 4. You know which channel(s) you'll test.
ready to launch your product!

Getting Your First ❏❏ 1. You have a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 60

You should have a really clear understanding of which
marketing channel(s) you’ll test, and have a hypothesis

100 Paying Customers or above.

around at least 1 channel.

(Pre-launch/Closed Beta) •
•
9-10 = Promoters
7-8 = Passives
❏❏ 5. Your product has no bugs (or very few bugs).

• 0-6 Detractors There are no critical bugs that stop your user from
getting the result that you promised them. The only
bugs left in your product should be minor or trivial
LESSON: bugs (e.g. spacing). If you have any functionality bugs,
don’t launch yet.
The 6-Part Launch Checklist
❏❏ 6. You have at least 3 customer Testimonials.

As mentioned earlier in the course, you should have

multiple testimonials by now that show specific
results among your Closed Beta users. At least 3, if not
dozens!

❏❏ 2. You have your marketing set up. ACTION ITEMS

Some sort of proper marketing website (more detailed
than your one-page beta website). ❏❏ Go through the 6-part Product Launch Checklist
and see if you’re ready to launch!
• Homepage ❏❏ Proceed to the next module, where I’ll walk you
• Features page through my different launch strategies for every
• Pricing page kind of budget
• About Us page
• Testimonials
• A way for people to sign up

❏❏ 3. You have a way to try or buy.

Your marketing website has a CTA for “Free Trial” (if

applicable) and “Sign Up” (for paid plan) and this feature
works.

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 7: In this lesson I’m going to give you an overview of what
makes a successful launch. Two ingredients that are

Recommended Launch really important to your launch are Time and Money.

Framework It’s up to your budget and bandwidth as to which one

you choose, but here are some factors to consider for
both types of launches.

TIME MONEY

• Free! • Fast!
LESSON:
• Sweat equity, hustle hard • Can have a huge impact

What Makes a Successful

• Requires excellent communication skills • Run multiple launch strategies simultaneously
• Relies heavily on cold outreach and research • Easier to get taken seriously
• Requires you to do a lot of the heavy lifting • (e.g. you can hire a PR practitioner to get press
Launch (Time or Money) • Great learning experience
•
for your launch)
Need to factor into your overall budget

“Time” Strategies: “Money” Strategies:

SEO, Content Marketing, Facebook Ads, Google AdWords, Retargeting, PR

Referrals, Word of Mouth, (Paid Press),
Organic Social Media, Affiliate Marketing, Competitions, Events & Offline
Cold Email Outreach, Activations,
Cold LinkedIn Outreach, Webinar + Paid Ads Funnel,
Co-Marketing Partnerships, E-Book Funnel, Running
Influencer Marketing, PR, Testimonials as Paid Ads, etc.
ProductHunt, Testimonials, etc.

ACTION ITEM
❏❏ Think about which is right for you: free or paid
launch strategy

COURSE WORKBOOK
Notes:

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• 7 Tried-and-True Strategies SaaS
Businesses Are Using to Grow (HubSpot)
• 8 Elements Of A Robust Product Launch
Strategy (Neil Patel, Forbes)
• The Ultimate Guide To Launching On
Product Hunt, Even If You’re Nobody In The
Online Space (Foundr Blog)
• How to Launch on Product Hunt (Product
Hunt)

COURSE WORKBOOK
MODULE 7: In this lesson we’re going to do some more competitive
research, this time, to see how your competitors ACTION ITEMS
Recommended Launch LAUNCHED and what worked for them, so you can
incorporate some of those learnings into your own
❏❏ Use the Competitive Analysis Spreadsheet
Framework launch.
❏❏ Fill it out for your top 3 competitors
❏❏ Find what worked for them
❏❏ Incorporate those things into your launch plan

LESSON:

Competitive Launch Research

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Crunchbase
• WayBack Machine (Archive.org)
• ProductHunt
• Template: Competitive Analysis
Spreadsheet

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COMPETITIVE LAUNCH ANALYSIS TEMPLATE

Example Competitor #1 Competitor #2 Competitor #3

Competitor Name Slack

Competitor URL https://slack.com/

Crunchbase URL https://www.crunchbase.com/

organization/slack

ProductHunt Launch URL https://www.producthunt.com/posts/

slack

WayBack Machine URL https://web.archive.org/

(their landing page when web/20140501204203/https://slack.
they first launched)" com/

Month / Year Launched May 2014

(according to Crunchbase
+ WayBack Machine)

What Worked Sign Up For Free" CTA; simple design;

in-depth product tour w/good looking
screenshots; testimonials;
social proof w/company logos

What Didn't Work

ProductHunt Engagement "Yes. commenting a lot with users;

(e.g. founder interacting with 142 reviews; 14,400+ upvotes; high-
comments, engaging with influential production video"
""Hunters"", lots of reviews & upvotes)"

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MODULE 7: In this lesson I’m going to go through some of my BE HELPFUL
favorite FREE launch strategies, if all you’ve got is time

Recommended Launch on your side and no marketing budget. The theme of all of these strategies and tactics is to
help people out, and continue finding ways to solve the

Framework PRODUCTHUNT problem.

ProductHunt is a great tool to launch your product for I’m amazed at how many startup founders are selfish, and
free. aren’t willing to give back. You can be different, and really
get your product standing out.
• Find and leverage “Hunters” to promote on your
behalf Go to these discussion sites/forums and help answer
LESSON: • Maximize your pre-hype & buildup questions related to the problem your product solves…
• Build a list of people you can reach out to and ask

Free Launch Strategy •

for Upvotes
Engage with the community in the comments
Quora Questions
Facebook Groups

($0 Budget)
section, help answer questions, continue helping LinkedIn Groups
to solve their problem (which leads to more
upvotes and positive word-of-mouth) BLOGGING & SEO CONTENT MARKETING
• Include screenshots of your product
• If possible, record a featured video talking Another great long-term strategy is content marketing,
through your product and why you’re passionate which will start to get you ranking on Google in the next
about solving this problem 1-2 months and compound over time to build up your
• Leverage your email newsletter organic traffic.
• The more upvotes you get, the higher up your
listing appears on the homepage Start blogging at least once a week with helpful content
for your audience, offering tips and free value to help
PRODUCT REVIEW SITES people solve the problem.

Another great approach is using the Product Review

Sites I told you about earlier.

G2 Crowd
Capterra
GetApp
TrustPilot

Once you list your product on one of these websites,

all you need to do is reach out to your Closed Beta
members and kindly ask them for a review.

These genuine reviews will get your product ranking

on Google Search and build up your organic traffic and
brand awareness.

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ProductHunt Listing Ideas Groups/Quora Threads I Can Help People In…

Product Review Sites: 10 Blog Post Ideas To Help Solve the Problem…
List of Closed Beta Members Who I’ll Contact for a Review…

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MODULE 7: In this video lesson, we’ll go through three different launch strategies that you can implement if you have a few thousand
dollars to put into your marketing.

Recommended Launch The key thing to note here is that ALL strategies lead back to your email list, which is one of your most valuable assets.

Framework You can reach out to your email subscribers time and time again, for years to come, and get them converting into paying
customers.

Strategy #1: FB Ad —> Lead Magnet Squeeze Page —> Email List

Types of Lead Magnets:

LESSON: • Cheat Sheet

• eBook

Low-Budget Launch Strategy • Ultimate Guide

($5,000-$10,000) Pro Tip: Make your lead magnet provide free value and consumable in less
than 5 minutes.

Strategy #2: FB Ad —> Webinar —> Email List

Webinar Framework:

• 5 min. Intro / Pre-Frame

• 30 min. Content / Value (related to the problem that your product
solves)
• 15 min. Offer / Pitch (introduce your product, talk about the benefits)
• Add Bonuses / Stack the Value
• Give them 1 year of your product at a discount (e.g. “12 months for the
price of 10”)
• Inject Scarcity (e.g. "only available if you sign up through this webinar
in the next 24 hours")

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Strategy #3: Guest Webinar —> Email List

The Guest Webinar Strategy follows a very similar framework

ACTION ITEMS
and approach as Strategy #2. Essentially you want to reach
out to influential people in your space and companies who ❏❏ Choose 1 of the 3 low-budget launch strategies
sell a complementary product that your customers might be ❏❏ Start planning your launch and building your email
interested in. list!

Let them know that you have this amazing educational

content that their customers would find valuable, and ask if
you could present a webinar to their audience.

Pro Tip: Pay a freelance designer a few hundred dollars to

make your slide deck really beautiful.

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• How to Use a Webinar to Generate Massive
Sales and Connect with your Audience
(Foundr Blog)
• 69 Highly Effective Lead Magnet Ideas to
Grow Your Email List (Opt-In Monster)
• How to Build a Huge Email List: How We
Added 56,000 Subscribers in 30 Days
(Foundr Blog)
• 17 Lead Magnet Ideas and Examples to
Grow Your Email List (Email Monks)
• How To Create Facebook Ads That Convert
In 2020: Our 4-Step Strategy
(Insane Growth)

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MODULE 7: In this lesson I’m going to show you how to launch your
product successfully, when you have a “big” budget. ACTION ITEMS
Recommended Launch And by “big” budget, I mean anywhere between
$10,000 - $100,000 to allocate toward marketing.
❏❏ Choose 1 additional channel to run ads
Framework A word of caution: Spend wisely. Don’t blow all your ❏❏ Record 1-2 minute videos about the blog post
money on day one. You need to start small, and slowly topics you wrote down
ramp up over time.

When you have a bit more budget, it means you can

test out different marketing channels simultaneously,
LESSON: and do what I call “parallel plays.”

Big Budget Launch Strategy LAUNCH TIPS

($10,000+)
• Start with $30-$50 daily spend on FB Ads
• Ramp it up 20% every 2-3 days
• Avoid Google AdWords altogether
• Set up a Facebook Page with your actual name to
run ads from
• Test 4-5 different lead magnets (with different ad
angles)
• Try recording quick videos on Instagram Stories
and running them as “ads” (e.g. “swipe up now and
get a free copy of my eBook”)

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MODULE 7: After building 8x companies over the last 15+ years,
and advising and coaching for countless other startups, ACTION ITEMS
Recommended Launch I’ve seen my fair share of product launches. I’ve had
some humbling successes, and have also seen a lot of
❏❏ Do a “Pre-Mortem” on your startup launch
Framework mistakes.
❏❏ Imagine your product launch already happened
I’d like to help you avoid these mistakes in advance, so and failed, and list out all the possible reasons that
you can successfully launch your startup. this may have happened (so you can avoid them in
advance!)
❏❏ Mistake #1: Pricing too low ❏❏ For each reason, write down 2-3 ideas to mitigate
that mistake
LESSON: ❏❏ Mistake #2: Timeline too long
❏❏ Mistake #3: Product onboarding sucks
Post-Mortem: Common ❏❏ Mistake #4: Lack of customer support

Mistakes from Failed Launches ❏❏ Mistake #5: Spending too much $$$ on ads
❏❏ Mistake #6: Setting unrealistic goals
❏❏ Mistake #7: Not collecting feedback & iterating
❏❏ Mistake #8: Worrying too much about
competitors
“The only guarantee, ever, is that things will go wrong. The only thing
we can use to mitigate this is anticipation. Because the only variable ❏❏ Mistake #9: Not managing cash flow responsibly
we control completely is ourselves.” — Ryan Holiday

PRE-MORTEM EXERCISE

Imagines that your launch already happened yesterday,

and it totally failed. Then work backward to determine
what went wrong, and what may have led to the failure.

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TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Early Challenges: Managing Cash Flow -
BackBlaze
• When Should You Take Money Out Of Your
Business? - Insane Growth (YouTube)
• Startups: How to Do a Pre-Mortem (and
Prevent a Post-Mortem) - Guy Kawasaki
• Why You Should Write a Premortem For
Your Startup - Humble Ventures

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MODULE 7: We’ve come a LONG way, so congratulations! Now,
where do we go next? ACTION ITEMS
Recommended Launch It’s important to keep in mind that a product launch
❏❏ Think about additional ways you can get
Framework is never one-and-done. It’s a continuous cycle that
repeats itself, and you should always keep gathering customer feedback in order to iterate on your
product
feedback and iterating based on your customer’s
needs. ❏❏ Remember, startup growth is a cycle!

LESSON:

The Growth Cycle:

Where To From Here?

“A launch is something you continually iterate on.”

TOOLS & RESOURCES

• Drift
• LiveChat
• Intercom
• SurveyMonkey NPS
• Retently

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MODULE 7: Congratulations! You’ve completed the 60-Day Startup course by Foundr, and you should be well
on your way to building your startup and getting your first paying customers before your product

Recommended Launch even exists.

Framework Some key takeaways to grow on:

• Be a learning machine
• Make data-driven decisions
• Take action every single day on your startup
• Join the Foundr community
LESSON: • Get help, get feedback, and get unstuck

Closing Thoughts And lastly, a quote that I live by…

"You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step."
– Martin Luther King, Jr.

Best of luck on your entrepreneurial journey. I can’t wait to see your product idea come to life.

- Mitch and the Foundr Team

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