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We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

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Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#131

Post by yellowarchangel »

dannykwells wrote: post #9

I kinda wonder, if you believe what's missing in your platform is a single feature that can be implemented in 2 days, do you really think YC wouldnt realize that too? So this is likely not the reason for the rejection. I would have even more worries about these founders after this stunt because it shows a lack of self awareness and strategic insight. I'm in no way affiliated but Id guess YC is looking for foundationa…

I feel like you're assuming way too much when the only evidence we have to base YC's rejection is by their rejection email. They clearly wanted MRR and company that moves fast, and the OP clearly showed that both are possible in a measly 48 hours.

Also YC even asked to meet them before the next round, so it might have intrigued them.

Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#132

Post by zergblush »

filmgirlcw wrote: post #127

I don't want to be a jerk to kids in their early 20s who are bootstrapping their startup idea, but reading this account would actually confirm for me why this team wasn't ready to be accepted into YC or a similar program. A big part of the onus of the original product, at least, as it was launched, was that it was "watermark free" and the way it was "sold" to end-users was that it was a free service. Now, I can under…

As a heavy app user, I absolutely abhor the bait and switch, on top of annoyances such as in-app subscriptions (I don’t mind one time in-app purchases for keeping permanent feature upgrades).

In this case, it sounds like their users may have been feeling baited and switched, having invested their time into the product only to have to pay to continue using it without watermarking.

If my understanding of the above is accurate, then they may have already destroyed their trust relationship with their current users..

Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#133

Post by bksenior »

filmgirlcw wrote: post #127

I don't want to be a jerk to kids in their early 20s who are bootstrapping their startup idea, but reading this account would actually confirm for me why this team wasn't ready to be accepted into YC or a similar program. A big part of the onus of the original product, at least, as it was launched, was that it was "watermark free" and the way it was "sold" to end-users was that it was a free service. Now, I can under…

This read like a business school professor. All young businesses are a fluid experiment "out of business rationale" is a hindsight fluff statement. If rationale informed effective product then a lot more people were successful.

Additionally, odds are that the best thing for the business (and founders) would being admitted to YC over any product change they could possible make.

They had non zero odds and I think it was a clever plan all things considered. If YC is looking at founders above everything else and less product, these young dudes seem to be cut from the cloth.

Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#134

Post by gnicholas »

prickledpear wrote: post #7

It's great that YC provides feedback on why they don't accept (some) companies. However, it's a bit disappointing to see that not having MRR is a reason to reject a company. It seems like a lot of the successful YC companies were accepted way before they were anywhere to close to revenue -- and some were even working on a completely different product when accepted. My hope is that MRR is sufficient, but not necessary…

I found the feedback contradictory. They said: (1) you need to charge for this, and (2) it's a market that no one owns yet so you need to grow fast to capture it.

The surest way to grow fast is to have a free product. I realize that not a lot of time can go into this feedback, but this struck me as pretty contradictory on its face.

Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#135

Post by mbf1 »

zergblush wrote: post #132
filmgirlcw wrote: post #127

I don't want to be a jerk to kids in their early 20s who are bootstrapping their startup idea, but reading this account would actually confirm for me why this team wasn't ready to be accepted into YC or a similar program. A big part of the onus of the original product, at least, as it was launched, was that it was "watermark free" and the way it was "sold" to end-users was that it was a free service. Now, I can under…

As a heavy app user, I absolutely abhor the bait and switch, on top of annoyances such as in-app subscriptions (I don’t mind one time in-app purchases for keeping permanent feature upgrades). In this case, it sounds like their users may have been feeling baited and switched, having invested their time into the product only to have to pay to continue using it without watermarking. If my understanding of the above is a…

I don't think the users are feeling baited and switched. They got something for free that most people charge for, and in exchange for early testing got watermark-free level service. Eventually, everything free needs to be paid for.

$50 per year is reasonable. By posting about their project and having that carried on ycombinator, they maybe got the biggest audience of sympathetic users they could ask for. It's a great bit of viral marketing, and I expect they'd see a spike in interest from independent investors as well as a spike in paid memberships.

Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#137

Post by d0m »

dalton wrote: post #87
d0m wrote: post #13

So, that's the dichotomy of YC. YC is an accelerator, and as such, needs to accelerate /something/. If you join too early, then it's almost a distraction to getting the product out and talking to users. However, hit the sweet spot and YC is an invaluable resource to help you grow. On the other hand, YC opens the door to so many opportunities and great people, that even if you're too early, the net result is still a p…

Hey Dom, we worked together directly when you were in YC, and I deeply disagree with your assessment that having progress helps a startup succeed in YC. The worst case scenario is a newly accepted YC startup with a little bit of traction... just enough traction that they aren't willing to change ideas/markets and not enough traction for them to actually know they have product market fit. It's the uncanny valley of pr…

Hey Dalton, thanks for the answer, that's fair. I totally agree that in the long-term, moving and failing fast is a net positive for both founders and YC. I wonder how different the YC three-months experience is between founders who have product-market fit vs the ones who don't? It seems like there's a "cadence" to the program highly focused on growth culminating to demo day?

Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#138

Post by rufugee »

plehoux wrote: post #79
rufugee wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

conferencebadge.com is very interesting to me, as are all niche businesses that can generate 7 digits. Would you care to share how you identified the opportunity and estimated potential revenue?

Went into the why and how in this podcast https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/033-philippe-lehoux-of-...

Thanks very much!

Re: We tried to hustle our way into YC after we got rejected

#140

Post by dalton »

d0m wrote: post #137
dalton wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hey Dom, we worked together directly when you were in YC, and I deeply disagree with your assessment that having progress helps a startup succeed in YC. The worst case scenario is a newly accepted YC startup with a little bit of traction... just enough traction that they aren't willing to change ideas/markets and not enough traction for them to actually know they have product market fit. It's the uncanny valley of pr…

Hey Dalton, thanks for the answer, that's fair. I totally agree that in the long-term, moving and failing fast is a net positive for both founders and YC. I wonder how different the YC three-months experience is between founders who have product-market fit vs the ones who don't? It seems like there's a "cadence" to the program highly focused on growth culminating to demo day?

Tons of examples of no traction/fast moving teams out-performing, ie Brex pivoted and had no growth or traction at demo day and it worked out pretty well for them :) https://twitter.com/daltonc/status/1138952277404790784?s=21

Doing YC at their early state was perfect because it was the perfect environment to come up with an idea like Brex.

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