The most unambitious way to build a startup

Hey guys, just wrote something for those of you unsure whether your idea has some potential to be a great business.

I founded two profitable SaaS companies without VC money (I won't tell you which one. because this post is not about that). In building those, I used a little framework to evaluate their potential to succeed.

Basically, I created a little framework with four rules to minimize the risk of failure.

The statistic that 90% of startups fail has been around for decades, but I don't think it's entirely true.

It may be true for VC-backed startups that must turn into a Billion dollar company or die. But fuck that!

The Silicon Valley way is not the only game in town.

The framework:

I called it "The most unambitious way to build a startup" because you will not change the world. The returns won't be as outlandish.

But if you're looking to build a business that changes your own world, this might be an interesting read.

Here are my four rules:

1. Is it B2B? This is where the money is
2. Is there a competitor making bank? Good! There is a market
3. Is there one angle to outcompete your competitor? This could be support, pricing, or features.
4. Are there SEO opportunities? People need to find out about you. For me, this is SEO, but it could be sales, partnerships, etc., or whatever your jam for growth is.

I wrote more in-depth about how I applied it to my businesses before I started in my newsletter today: https://1millionarr.substack.com/p/the-most-unambitious-way-to-build

Hope you get something out of it!
Cheers,
Iron