The hottest Startup Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Business Topics

👩‍👩‍👧‍👧 The power of Community in Job Searching and Reskilling, 🧊 Hidden Job Market,🧞 Career pivots

Work3 - The Future of Work • 58 implied HN points • 16 Mar 23
💼 Business Job Market Community Startup Career development
  1. Developing a learning mindset, problem-solving, and determination are crucial competencies for working in the tech industry.
  2. Building a community in job searching and reskilling can provide valuable support, especially for early-stage careers.
  3. To access the hidden job market, focus on networking and building relationships rather than solely relying on job applications.
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Dev-Led Landscape: Transforming a Middle-Aged Startup

Tyler’s Musings • 5 implied HN points • 29 Nov 24
💼 Business Leadership Strategy Marketing Startup Technology
  1. Establish regular meetings and routines in your company. This creates predictability and keeps everyone aligned on goals.
  2. Transparency is key. Share important information openly with everyone in your organization to build trust and keep everyone informed.
  3. Always analyze your customer's needs and market trends. Understand who your customers are and how to best serve them to stay competitive.

Lean SRE

Certo Modo • 19 implied HN points • 18 Mar 24
🕹 Technology SRE DevOps Webinar Startup Automation
  1. Smaller organizations and startups can benefit from implementing Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) practices, leading to reduced operational costs and time savings.
  2. Implementing SRE practices in smaller companies may differ in approach from larger organizations, but can still yield significant benefits.
  3. Starting an SRE program at a larger company can be achieved by beginning with just one software engineering team.

Alison.AI analyzes your creative to ensure real conversion

Startup Strategies • 42 implied HN points • 04 Mar 24
💼 Business AI Startup Advertising Funding Technology
  1. Alison.AI, founded by Asaf Yanai and Koby Berkovich, uses AI to optimize video advertising by analyzing competitors' successful creatives. They offer a suite of tools for enhancing the video creation process from ideation to production.
  2. Alison.AI stands out by focusing on video creative analysis, providing data-driven insights for optimizing video ads and streamlining advertising campaign briefs with the SmartBrief feature.
  3. The startup secured a significant $5.1 million pre-seed funding round, with investors like a16z, and has shown impressive growth by analyzing millions of creatives, identifying key features, and working with major companies in the digital marketing space.

What should you prioritise when building a new team?

🔮 Crafting Tech Teams • 59 implied HN points • 25 Apr 23
💼 Business Startup Team Building Tech industry Mistakes Growth
  1. Prioritize building a new team based on lessons learned from mistakes and growth in the startup tech industry.
  2. Avoid getting lost in the details and conflicting advice while building a team from scratch.
  3. Consider the importance of optimization in team-building decisions and how advice can vary based on different perspectives.

The 10 most common GTM myths about early-stage SaaS

Startup Business Tips 🚀 • 43 implied HN points • 27 Jan 24
💼 Business Startup Marketing Sales Podcasts Growth
  1. Having a great product is not enough, you need effective marketing and sales to succeed.
  2. Adding a free plan may not always solve the problem of acquiring paying clients, and freemium may not be suitable for all businesses.
  3. Tracking lost reasons properly, understanding the value you offer, and analyzing churn are crucial aspects that impact the success of a SaaS business.

Hanging up the jetpack. Planting a flag.

The Jungle Gym • 83 implied HN points • 19 Jul 23
💼 Business Career development Entrepreneurship Startup Leadership Coaching
  1. The decision to fully commit to Exec was driven by an energizing problem, a receptive market, and a stellar team.
  2. Exec aims to help companies design customized talent development programs, work with a network of vetted coaches, and provide flexible payment options.
  3. Having the right team and shared values is crucial for the success of startups like Exec.

From corporate slave to bored freelancer to boring businesses

Kenny’s Sub • 19 implied HN points • 21 Dec 23
💼 Business Entrepreneurship Startup Freelancing Product Development Passive Income
  1. After working in a corporate job, Ayush realized he wanted more control over his life and income. He decided to quit and pursue entrepreneurship to build passive income and assets.
  2. He experimented with various online business ideas, including freelance work and e-commerce, but found more success in digital products and software. He aimed to focus on products that can grow and generate income over time.
  3. Ayush learned the importance of focus and long-term planning in business. He now emphasizes building sustainable businesses with evergreen demand and higher leverage, like software, instead of just temporary spikes from services or e-books.

Knowde

Axial • 37 implied HN points • 14 Dec 23
💼 Business Startup E-commerce Supply Chain Innovation Marketplace
  1. Axial partners with great founders and inventors in early-stage life sciences companies
  2. Knowde aims to modernize the global chemical industry through its B2B marketplace
  3. Knowde's platform streamlines chemical procurement for buyers and provides digital storefronts for suppliers

What makes something defensible?

Superfluid • 79 implied HN points • 29 Mar 23
💼 Business Venture Capital SaaS Startup Investment Competition
  1. Moats are evolving rapidly in the business world, fueled by technological advancements like GPT-4.
  2. Founders need to articulate their product's defensibility to VCs and focus on long-term moat building strategies.
  3. VCs may need to be more selective in their investments, considering competition, data as a moat, and the importance of long-term product vision.

Introducing Ghost - A B2B marketplace to solve for >$1T of excess inventory

Equal Ventures • 59 implied HN points • 19 Jul 22
💼 Business Marketplace Inventory Startup Investment Retail
  1. There was a significant rise in excess inventory due to supply chain challenges, leading to potential losses of over $1T annually.
  2. Ghost is a B2B marketplace created to help brands manage and liquidate excess inventory efficiently.
  3. The founders of Ghost, Josh Kaplan and Dee Murthy, demonstrated remarkable success with the platform in a short period, showing strong product-market fit.

Introducing Starday

Equal Ventures • 119 implied HN points • 17 Aug 21
💼 Business Food & Drink Investing Tech Entrepreneurship Startup
  1. The food value chain is undergoing significant changes due to shifts in consumer preferences towards sustainable, healthy, and local products, creating opportunities for new platforms and brands.
  2. Digital-first grocery platforms are empowering consumers to own the value chain and access a wide range of niche, specialty products, leading to a revolution in how food is purchased and consumed.
  3. Launching a strong platform in the food industry that focuses on data-driven optimization and efficient product launches can lead to the creation of multiple successful brands with long-term profitability.

How I Built This In Public: Luca Restagno

Build In Public Newsletter • 19 implied HN points • 11 Aug 23
💼 Business Entrepreneurship Startup Marketing Community Motivation
  1. Start your 'build in public' journey early to engage with your audience and get valuable feedback.
  2. Building in public can be energizing, provide introspection, and offer opportunities for collective learning.
  3. Overcome the fear of judgment and share your journey authentically to gain trust and reputation in the community.

Wiz: Visible Vulnerabilities

The Product Person • 19 implied HN points • 13 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Cybersecurity Startup Cloud Computing Sales Product Development
  1. Wiz achieved remarkable success with $10 billion valuation by rapidly growing in the cybersecurity industry.
  2. Wiz's founding team had a strong background in security from Israeli Intelligence, and previous successful ventures set a solid foundation for their new startup.
  3. Wiz's swift growth was boosted by their cloud-first approach and fast product implementation, attracting high-profile customers and significant funding.

Hire Executives Who Get Things Done

Build To Scale • 19 implied HN points • 12 Sep 23
💼 Business Leadership Startup Recruitment Innovation Management
  1. When hiring senior executives, probe to understand their past actions and problem-solving approaches to gauge their potential fit with your company.
  2. Beware of big company executives transitioning to startups, as they might struggle with the hands-on, rapid decision-making environment and bring in unnecessary processes.
  3. Always personally check the references of potential executives to get genuine insights on their work ethics and impact.

Startup stock options: Liquidity options

Brick by Brick • 18 implied HN points • 26 Feb 24
💰 Finance Startup Investment Stocks
  1. Common shares vs Preferred shares: Know the differences. Common shareholders may face challenges like Right of First Refusal (ROFR) when transacting with their shares.
  2. Liquidity avenues for startup common shares include IPOs (least likely), M&A, tender offers, private share sales, and equity financing. Each option comes with its own set of complexities and approvals.
  3. Preferred shareholder rights like Liquidation Preference and Participation Right can significantly impact common shareholders during exits, potentially wiping out their earnings completely. Understanding these rights is crucial in startup shareholder dynamics.